Unrestricted Estimator Research Articles

Merging data from multiple sources: pretest and shrinkage perspectives

ABSTRACTIn this article, we have developed asymptotic theory for the simultaneous estimation of the k means of arbitrary populations under the common mean hypothesis and further assuming that corresponding population variances are unknown and unequal. The unrestricted estimator, the Graybill-Deal-type restricted estimator, the preliminary test, and the Stein-type shrinkage estimators are suggested. A large sample test statistic is also proposed as a pretest for testing the common mean hypothesis. Under the sequence of local alternatives and squared error loss, we have compared the asymptotic properties of the estimators by means of asymptotic distributional quadratic bias and risk. Comprehensive Monte-Carlo simulation experiments were conducted to study the relative risk performance of the estimators with reference to the unrestricted estimator in finite samples. Two real-data examples are also furnished to illustrate the application of the suggested estimation strategies.

Estimation of Order Restricted Normal Means when the Variances Are Unknown and Unequal

<p dir="ltr">In the present paper, two normal distributions with parameters <span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: medium;">μ</span><sub><span style="font-size: small;">i </span></sub></span>and <span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: medium;">σ</span><span style="font-size: small;"><sub>i</sub><sup>2 </sup></span></span>where there is an order restriction on the means when the variances are unknown and unequal are considered. Under the squared error loss function, a necessary and sufficient condition for the plug-in estimators to improve upon the unrestricted maximum likelihood estimators uniformly is given. Also under the modified Pitman nearness criterion; a class of estimators is considered that reduce to the estimators of a common mean when the unbiased estimators violate the order restriction. It is shown that the most critical case for uniform improvement with regard to the unbiased estimators is the one when two means are equal. To illustrate the results, two numerical examples are presented.</p>

Estimation and testing in generalized mean-reverting processes with change-point

In this paper, we study an inference problem in generalized Ornstein–Uhlenbeck processes with an unknown change-point when the drift parameter is suspected to satisfy a linear restriction. The testing problem studied generalizes a very recent problem about testing the existence of a change-point. To this end, we derive the asymptotic properties of the unrestricted estimator (UE) and the restricted estimator for the drift parameters, and we construct some shrinkage estimators (SEs). Further, we derive a test for testing the uncertain restriction and establish its asymptotic power. Moreover, we derive the asymptotic distributional risk of the proposed estimators and we prove that SEs dominate the UE. Finally, we present some numerical results which confirm the consistency of the proposed test as well as the superiority of the SEs over UE.

Model selection and post estimation based on a pretest for logistic regression models

ABSTRACTThis article addresses the problem of parameter estimation of the logistic regression model under subspace information via linear shrinkage, pretest, and shrinkage pretest estimators along with the traditional unrestricted maximum likelihood estimator and restricted estimator. We developed an asymptotic theory for the linear shrinkage and pretest estimators and compared their relative performance using the notion of asymptotic distributional bias and asymptotic quadratic risk. The analytical results demonstrated that the proposed estimation strategies outperformed the classical estimation strategies in a meaningful parameter space. Detailed Monte-Carlo simulation studies were conducted for different combinations and the performance of each estimation method was evaluated in terms of simulated relative efficiency. The results of the simulation study were in strong agreement with the asymptotic analytical findings. Two real-data examples are also given to appraise the performance of the estimators.

Generalized preliminary test stochastic restricted estimator in the linear regression model

ABSTRACTIn this paper, we propose three generalized estimators, namely, generalized unrestricted estimator (GURE), generalized stochastic restricted estimator (GSRE), and generalized preliminary test stochastic restricted estimator (GPTSRE). The GURE can be used to represent the ridge estimator, almost unbiased ridge estimator (AURE), Liu estimator, and almost unbiased Liu estimator. When stochastic restrictions are available in addition to the sample information, the GSRE can be used to represent stochastic mixed ridge estimator, stochastic restricted Liu estimator, stochastic restricted almost unbiased ridge estimator, and stochastic restricted almost unbiased Liu estimator. The GPTSRE can be used to represent the preliminary test estimators based on mixed estimator. Using the GPTSRE, the properties of three other preliminary test estimators, namely preliminary test stochastic mixed ridge estimator, preliminary test stochastic restricted almost unbiased Liu estimator, and preliminary test stochastic restricted almost unbiased ridge estimator can also be discussed. The mean square error matrix criterion is used to obtain the superiority conditions to compare the estimators based on GPTSRE with some biased estimators for the two cases for which the stochastic restrictions are correct, and are not correct. Finally, a numerical example and a Monte Carlo simulation study are done to illustrate the theoretical findings of the proposed estimators.

Restricted estimation and testing of hypothesis in linear measurement errors models

ABSTRACTIn this article, the linear models with measurement error both in the response and in the covariates are considered. Following Shalabh et al. (2007, 2009), we propose several restricted estimators for the regression coefficients. The consistency and asymptotic normality of the restricted estimators are established. Furthermore, we also discuss the superiority of the restricted estimators to unrestricted estimators under Pitman closeness criterion. We also develop several variance estimators and establish their asymptotic distributions. Wald-type statistics are constructed for testing the linear restrictions. Finally, Monte Carlo simulations are conducted to illustrate the finite-sample properties of the proposed estimators.

Shrinkage and LASSO strategies in high-dimensional heteroscedastic models

ABSTRACTIn this paper, we consider the estimation problem of the parameter vector in the linear regression model with heteroscedastic errors. First, under heteroscedastic errors, we study the performance of shrinkage-type estimators and their performance as compared to theunrestricted and restricted least squares estimators. In order to accommodate the heteroscedastic structure, we generalize an identity which is useful in deriving the risk function. Thanks to the established identity, we prove that shrinkage estimators dominate the unrestricted estimator. Finally, we explore the performance of high-dimensional heteroscedastic regression estimator as compared to classical LASSO and shrinkage estimators.

On graphical tests for proportionality of hazards in two samples.

In this paper, we present a class of graphical tests of the proportional hazards hypothesis for two-sample censored survival data. The proposed tests are improvements over some existing tests based on asymptotic confidence bands of certain functions of the estimated cumulative hazard functions. The new methods are based on the comparison of unrestricted estimates of the said functions and their restricted versions under the hypothesis. They combine the rigour of analytical tests with the descriptive value of plots. Monte Carlo simulations suggest that the proposed asymptotic procedures have reasonable small sample properties. The power is much higher than existing graphical tests and comparable with existing analytical tests. The method is then illustrated through the analysis of a data set on bone marrow transplantation for Leukemia patients.

Optimal method in multiple regression with structural changes

In this paper, we consider an estimation problem of the regression coefficients in multiple regression models with several unknown change-points. Under some realistic assumptions, we propose a class of estimators which includes as a special cases shrinkage estimators (SEs) as well as the unrestricted estimator (UE) and the restricted estimator (RE). We also derive a more general condition for the SEs to dominate the UE. To this end, we generalize some identities for the evaluation of the bias and risk functions of shrinkage-type estimators. As illustrative example, our method is applied to the "gross domestic product" data set of 10 countries whose USA, Canada, UK, France and Germany. The simulation results corroborate our theoretical findings.

A class of Stein‐rules in multivariate regression model with structural changes

AbstractIn this paper, we consider an estimation problem of the matrix of the regression coefficients in multivariate regression models with unknown change‐points. More precisely, we consider the case where the target parameter satisfies an uncertain linear restriction. Under general conditions, we propose a class of estimators that includes as special cases shrinkage estimators (SEs) and both the unrestricted and restricted estimator. We also derive a more general condition for the SEs to dominate the unrestricted estimator. To this end, we extend some results underlying the multidimensional version of the mixingale central limit theorem as well as some important identities for deriving the risk function of SEs. Finally, we present some simulation studies that corroborate the theoretical findings.

On the Properties of Estimates of Monotonic Mean Vectors for Multivariate Normal Distributions

Problems concerning estimation of parameters and determination the statistic, when it is known a priori that some of these parameters are subject to certain order restrictions, are of considerable interest. In the present paper, we consider the estimators of the monotonic mean vectors for two dimensional normal distributions and compare those with the unrestricted maximum likelihood estimators under two different cases. One case is that covariance matrices are known, the other one is that covariance matrices are completely unknown and unequal. We show that when the covariance matrices are known, under the squared error loss function which is similar to the mahalanobis distance, the obtained multivariate isotonic regression estimators, motivated by estimators given in Robertson et al. (1988), which are the estimators given by Sasabuchi et al. (1983) and Sasabuchi et al. (1992), have the smaller risk than the unrestricted maximum likelihood estimators uniformly, but when the covariance matrices are unknown and unequal, the estimators have the smaller risk than the unrestricted maximum likelihood estimators only over some special sets which are defined on the covariance matrices. To illustrate the results two numerical examples are presented.

On shrinkage estimators in matrix variate elliptical models

This paper derives the risk functions of a class of shrinkage estimators for the mean parameter matrix of a matrix variate elliptically contoured distribution. It is showed that the positive rule shrinkage estimator outperformed the shrinkage and unrestricted (maximum likelihood) estimators. To illustrate the findings of the paper, the relative risk functions for different degrees of freedoms are given for a multivariate t distribution. Shrinkage estimators for the matrix variate regression model under matrix normal, matrix t or Pearson VII error distributions would be special cases of this paper.

Bayesian estimation of a bounded precision matrix

Abstract The inverse of normal covariance matrix is called precision matrix and often plays an important role in statistical estimation problem. This paper deals with the problem of estimating the precision matrix under a quadratic loss, where the precision matrix is restricted to a bounded parameter space. Gauss’ divergence theorem with matrix argument shows that the unbiased and unrestricted estimator is dominated by a posterior mean associated with a flat prior on the bounded parameter space. Also, an improving method is given by considering an expansion estimator. A hierarchical prior is shown to improve on the posterior mean. An application is given for a Bayesian prediction in a random-effects model.

Nonparametric Shrinkage Estimation for Aalen's Additive Hazards Model

Aalen's nonparametric additive model in which the regression coefficients are assumed to be unspecified functions of time is a flexible alternative to Cox's proportional hazards model when the proportionality assumption is in doubt. In this paper, we incorporate a general linear hypothesis into the estimation of the time-varying regression coefficients. We combine unrestricted least squares estimators and estimators that are restricted by the linear hypothesis and produce James-Stein-type shrinkage estimators of the regression coefficients. We develop the asymptotic joint distribution of such restricted and unrestricted estimators and use this to study the relative performance of the proposed estimators via their integrated asymptotic distributional risks. We conduct Monte Carlo simulations to examine the relative performance of the estimators in terms of their integrated mean square errors. We also compare the performance of the proposed estimators with a recently devised LASSO estimator as well as with ridge-type estimators both via simulations and data on the survival of primary billiary cirhosis patients.

Fuzzy entropy in fuzzy weighted linear regression model under linear restrictions with simulation study

In fuzzy set theory, it is well known that a fuzzy number can be uniquely determined through its position and entropy. Hence, by using the concept of fuzzy entropy the estimators of the fuzzy regression coefficients may be estimated. In the present communication, a fuzzy linear regression (FLR) model with some restrictions in the form of prior information has been considered. The estimators of regression coefficients have been obtained with the help of fuzzy entropy for the restricted/unrestricted FLR model by assigning some weights in the distance function. Some numerical examples have also been provided in order to illustrate the proposed model along with the obtained weighted estimators. Further, in order to compare the performance of unrestricted estimator and restricted estimator, a simulation study has been conducted by using two fundamental criteria of dominance – mean squared error matrix (MSEM) and absolute bias.

Shrinkage Estimation of the Memory Parameter in Stationary Gaussian Processes

The correct and efficient estimation of memory parameters in a stationary Gaussian processes is an important issue, since otherwise, forecasts based on the resulting time series would be misleading. On the other hand, if the memory parameters are suspected to fall in a smaller subspace through some hypothesis restrictions, it becomes a hard decision whether to use estimators based on the restricted spaces or to use unrestricted estimators over the full parameter space. In this article, we propose James-Stein-type estimators of the memory parameters of a stationary Gaussian times series process, which can efficiently incorporate the hypothetical restrictions. We show theoretically that the proposed estimators are more efficient than the usual unrestricted maximum likelihood estimators over the entire parameter space.

Conditional Stochastic Dominance Testing

This article proposes bootstrap-based stochastic dominance tests for nonparametric conditional distributions and their moments. We exploit the fact that a conditional distribution dominates the other if and only if the difference between the marginal joint distributions is monotonic in the explanatory variable at each value of the dependent variable. The proposed test statistic compares restricted and unrestricted estimators of the difference between the joint distributions, and it can be implemented under minimal smoothness requirements on the underlying nonparametric curves and without resorting to smooth estimation. The finite sample properties of the proposed test are examined by means of a Monte Carlo study. We illustrate the test by studying the impact on postintervention earnings of the National Supported Work Demonstration, a randomized labor training program carried out in the 1970s.

Estimation of a monotone percentile residual life function under random censorship

In this paper, we introduce a new estimator of a percentile residual life function with censored data under a monotonicity constraint. Specifically, it is assumed that the percentile residual life is a decreasing function. This assumption is useful when estimating the percentile residual life of units, which degenerate with age. We establish a law of the iterated logarithm for the proposed estimator, and its n-equivalence to the unrestricted estimator. The asymptotic normal distribution of the estimator and its strong approximation to a Gaussian process are also established. We investigate the finite sample performance of the monotone estimator in an extensive simulation study. Finally, data from a clinical trial in primary biliary cirrhosis of the liver are analyzed with the proposed methods. One of the conclusions of our work is that the restricted estimator may be much more efficient than the unrestricted one.

Analysis and Implementation of MPEG-4 Motion Codec

Motion codec is the key technique of MPEG-4 VM. The motion encoding and decoding use “Unrestricted Motion Estimation”, “Advanced Prediction”, “Overlapped Motion Compensation”, in addition, the particular “Repetitive Padding”, and “Modified Block Matching “ are added for MPEG-4. At the same time, some questions during motion are explained carefully, and some new viewpoints are brought forward.

On Projection‐type Estimators of Multivariate Isotonic Functions

Abstract. Let M be an isotonic real‐valued function on a compact subset of and let be an unconstrained estimator of M. A feasible monotonizing technique is to take the largest (smallest) monotone function that lies below (above) the estimator or any convex combination of these two envelope estimators. When the process is asymptotically equicontinuous for some sequence rn→∞, we show that these projection‐type estimators are rn‐equivalent in probability to the original unrestricted estimator. Our first motivating application involves a monotone estimator of the conditional distribution function that has the distributional properties of the local linear regression estimator. Applications also include the estimation of econometric (probability‐weighted moment, quantile) and biometric (mean remaining lifetime) functions.