Effects of model misspecification on small area estimators

Fuente: arXiv
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Autores principales: Chen, Yuting, Lahiri, Partha, Salvati, Nicola
Formato: Preprint
Publicado: 2024
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author Chen, Yuting
Lahiri, Partha
Salvati, Nicola
author_facet Chen, Yuting
Lahiri, Partha
Salvati, Nicola
contents Nested error regression models are commonly used to incorporate observational unit specific auxiliary variables to improve small area estimates. When the mean structure of this model is misspecified, there is generally an increase in the mean square prediction error (MSPE) of Empirical Best Linear Unbiased Predictors (EBLUP). Observed Best Prediction (OBP) method has been proposed with the intent to improve on the MSPE over EBLUP. We conduct a Monte Carlo simulation experiment to understand the effect of mispsecification of mean structures on different small area estimators. Our simulation results lead to an unexpected result that OBP may perform very poorly when observational unit level auxiliary variables are used and that OBP can be improved significantly when population means of those auxiliary variables (area level auxiliary variables) are used in the nested error regression model or when a corresponding area level model is used. Our simulation also indicates that the MSPE of OBP in an increasing function of the difference between the sample and population means of the auxiliary variables.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2403_11276
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Effects of model misspecification on small area estimators
Chen, Yuting
Lahiri, Partha
Salvati, Nicola
Methodology
Applications
Nested error regression models are commonly used to incorporate observational unit specific auxiliary variables to improve small area estimates. When the mean structure of this model is misspecified, there is generally an increase in the mean square prediction error (MSPE) of Empirical Best Linear Unbiased Predictors (EBLUP). Observed Best Prediction (OBP) method has been proposed with the intent to improve on the MSPE over EBLUP. We conduct a Monte Carlo simulation experiment to understand the effect of mispsecification of mean structures on different small area estimators. Our simulation results lead to an unexpected result that OBP may perform very poorly when observational unit level auxiliary variables are used and that OBP can be improved significantly when population means of those auxiliary variables (area level auxiliary variables) are used in the nested error regression model or when a corresponding area level model is used. Our simulation also indicates that the MSPE of OBP in an increasing function of the difference between the sample and population means of the auxiliary variables.
title Effects of model misspecification on small area estimators
topic Methodology
Applications
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2403.11276