A notion of an obstructive residual likelihood

Summary A new notion of an obstructive residual likelihood is proposed and explored. Examples where the conditional maximum likelihood estimator is preferable to the unconditional maximum likelihood estimator are discussed. In these examples the residual likelihood can be obstructive in deriving a preferable estimator, when the maximum likelihood criterion is applied. This notion is different from a similar notion ancillarity, which simply emphasizes that a residual likelihood is un-informative. The Institute of Statistical Mathematics     

Adjusted Empirical Likelihood and its Properties

Computing a profile empirical likelihood function, which involves constrained maximization, is a key step in applications of empirical likelihood. However, in some situations, the required numerical problem has no solution. In this case, the convention is to assign a zero value to the profile empirical likelihood. This strategy has at least two limitations. First, it is numerically difficult to determine that there is no solution; second, no information is provided on the relative plausibility of the parameter values where the likelihood is set to zero. In this article, we propose a novel adjustment to the empirical likelihood that retains all the optimality properties, and guarantees a sensible value of the likelihood at any parameter value. Coupled with this adjustment, we introduce an iterative algorithm that is guaranteed to converge. Our simulation indicates that the adjusted empirical likelihood is much faster to compute than the profile empirical likelihood. The confidence regions constructed via the adjusted empirical likelihood are found to have coverage probabilities closer to the nominal levels without employing complex procedures such as Bartlett correction or bootstrap calibration. The method is also shown empirical likelihood.     

非线性模型中的拟似然估计和约束拟似然估计

该文证明了,在非线性回归模型中,若以均方误差或均方误差矩阵为标准,拟似然估计是正则广义拟似然估计类中的最优估计,并讨论了拟得分函数最优性与拟似然估计最优性的关系.为改进拟似然估计,该文提出了一种约束拟似然估计,并证明了约束拟似然估计比拟似然估计有较小的均方误差.     

Jackknife-blockwise empirical likelihood methods under dependence

Empirical likelihood for general estimating equations is a method for testing hypothesis or constructing confidence regions on parameters of interest. If the number of parameters of interest is smaller than that of estimating equations, a profile empirical likelihood has to be employed. In case of dependent data, a profile blockwise empirical likelihood method can be used. However, if too many nuisance parameters are involved, a computational difficulty in optimizing the profile empirical likelihood arises. Recently, Li et al. (2011) [9] proposed a jackknife empirical likelihood method to reduce the computation in the profile empirical likelihood methods for independent data. In this paper, we propose a jackknife-blockwise empirical likelihood method to overcome the computational burden in the profile blockwise empirical likelihood method for weakly dependent data.     

The maximum full and partial likelihood estimators in the proportional hazard model

Summary The maximum full likelihood estimator in the proportional hazard model is explored in relation to the maximum partial likelihood estimator. In the scalar parameter case both the estimators have a common sign, and the absolute value of the former is strictly greater than that of the latter except for trivial cases. We point out also that the maximum full likelihood estimator after a simple modification of the likelihood equation provides a good approximation to the maximum partial likelihood estimator. Similar results are valid for the likelihood ratio tests. The Institute of Statistical Mathematics     

A Note on Convergence of the Equi-Energy Sampler

This paper studies maximum likelihood estimation for a parameterised elliptic diffusion in a manifold. The focus is on asymptotic properties of maximum likelihood estimates obtained from continuous time observation. These are well known when the underlying manifold is a Euclidean space. However, no systematic study exists in the case of a general manifold. The starting point is to write down the likelihood function and equation. This is achieved using the tools of stochastic differential geometry. Consistency, asymptotic normality and asymptotic optimality of maximum likelihood estimates are then proved, under regularity assumptions. Numerical computation of maximum likelihood estimates is briefly discussed.     

Empirical likelihood for heteroscedastic partially linear models

We make empirical-likelihood-based inference for the parameters in heteroscedastic partially linear models. Unlike the existing empirical likelihood procedures for heteroscedastic partially linear models, the proposed empirical likelihood is constructed using components of a semiparametric efficient score. We show that it retains the double robustness feature of the semiparametric efficient estimator for the parameters and shares the desirable properties of the empirical likelihood for linear models. Compared with the normal approximation method and the existing empirical likelihood methods, the empirical likelihood method based on the semiparametric efficient score is more attractive not only theoretically but empirically. Simulation studies demonstrate that the proposed empirical likelihood provides smaller confidence regions than that based on semiparametric inefficient estimating equations subject to the same coverage probabilities. Hence, the proposed empirical likelihood is preferred to the normal approximation method as well as the empirical likelihood method based on semiparametric inefficient estimating equations, and it should be useful in practice.     

The singly truncated normal distribution: A non-steep exponential family

This paper is concerned with the maximum likelihood estimation problem for the singly truncated normal family of distributions. Necessary and suficient conditions, in terms of the coefficient of variation, are provided in order to obtain a solution to the likelihood equations. Furthermore, the maximum likelihood estimator is obtained as a limit case when the likelihood equation has no solution.     

平衡增加的经验欧氏似然

经验(欧氏)似然方法是近年来非常流行的一种非参数统计方法.针对经验(欧氏)似然的凸包限制和计算复杂问题,本文借助Emerson和Owen (2009)所提出的平衡增加思想对经验欧氏似然进行修正,得到了平衡增加的经验欧氏似然.随后论文从理论和模拟两个方面进行了研究.理论上给出了该方法与经验欧氏似然检验函数之间的联系,即在固定的样本量n下随着添加点位置的连续变化,检验方法可以从简单的均值增加经验欧氏似然变化到经验欧氏似然检验;模拟结果显示,适当选取调整因子,平衡增加的经验欧氏似然相对于(调整)经验欧氏似然而言,在大多数情况下,其分布更接近于对应的极限分布.     

Parsimonious and Efficient Likelihood Composition by Gibbs Sampling

The traditional maximum likelihood estimator (MLE) is often of limited use in complex high-dimensional data due to the intractability of the underlying likelihood function. Maximum composite likelihood estimation (McLE) avoids full likelihood specification by combining a number of partial likelihood objects depending on small data subsets, thus enabling inference for complex data. A fundamental difficulty in making the McLE approach practicable is the selection from numerous candidate likelihood objects for constructing the composite likelihood function. In this article, we propose a flexible Gibbs sampling scheme for optimal selection of sub-likelihood components. The sampled composite likelihood functions are shown to converge to the one maximally informative on the unknown parameters in equilibrium, since sub-likelihood objects are chosen with probability depending on the variance of the corresponding McLE. A penalized version of our method generates sparse likelihoods with a relatively small number of components when the data complexity is intense. Our algorithms are illustrated through numerical examples on simulated data as well as real genotype single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data from a case–control study.     

Nonlinear regression modeling using regularized local likelihood method

We introduce a nonlinear regression modeling strategy, using a regularized local likelihood method. The local likelihood method is effective for analyzing data with complex structure. It might be, however, pointed out that the stability of the local likelihood estimator is not necessarily guaranteed in the case that the structure of system is quite complex. In order to overcome this difficulty, we propose a regularized local likelihood method with a polynomial function which unites local likelihood and regularization. A crucial issue in constructing nonlinear regression models is the choice of a smoothing parameter, the degree of polynomial and a regularization parameter. In order to evaluate models estimated by the regularized local likelihood method, we derive a model selection criterion from an information-theoretic point of view. Real data analysis and Monte Carlo experiments are conducted to examine the performance of our modeling strategy.     

有关顺序统计量的极大似然估计

讨论了一类参数空间受样本限制的极大似然估计问题.分析了随机变量分布的非零区域与似然函数定义域的对应关系,提出如果分布的非零区域受参数限制,则无论似然方程是否可解,参数的极大似然估计必然与样本顺序统计量X_((n))或X_((1))有关,并具体分析了似然估计一定等于、一定不等于和可能等于顺序统计量X_((n))(X_((1)))的三种情形,并给出了相应的判别条件.最后分析得出在第三种判别条件之下,似然估计是否取值于x_((n))(x_((1)))视具体的样本观测值决定.     

Asymptotic properties of conditional maximum likelihood estimator in a certain exponential model

The conditional maximum likelihood estimator is suggested as an alternative to the maximum likelihood estimator and is favorable for an estimator of a dispersion parameter in the normal distribution, the inverse-Gaussian distribution, and so on. However, it is not clear whether the conditional maximum likelihood estimator is asymptotically efficient in general. Consider the case where it is asymptotically efficient and its asymptotic covariance depends only on an objective parameter in an exponential model. This remand implies that the exponential model possesses a certain parallel foliation. In this situation, this paper investigates asymptotic properties of the conditional maximum likelihood estimator and compares the conditional maximum likelihood estimator with the maximum likelihood estimator. We see that the bias of the former is more robust than that of the latter and that two estimators are very close, especially in the sense of bias-corrected version. The mean Pythagorean relation is also discussed.     

非线性回归模型中的约束拟似然

在非线性回归模型中,拟得分函数是一类线性无偏估计函数中的最优者(GodambeandHeyde(1987),朱仲义(1996)),而由拟得分函数得到的拟似然估计在由线性无偏估计函数得到的估计类中具有渐近最优性(林路(1999)).本文则研究非线性回归模型中的有偏估计函数理论,构造了参数的约束拟似然估计,得到了约束拟似然的局部最优性,局部改进了拟似然估计,从而扩充了线性模型中的有偏估计理论.     

Smoothed jackknife empirical likelihood method for ROC curve

In this paper we propose a smoothed jackknife empirical likelihood method to construct confidence intervals for the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. By applying the standard empirical likelihood method for a mean to the jackknife sample, the empirical likelihood ratio statistic can be calculated by simply solving a single equation. Therefore, this procedure is easy to implement. Wilks’ theorem for the empirical likelihood ratio statistic is proved and a simulation study is conducted to compare the performance of the proposed method with other methods.     

Empirical likelihood for median regression model with designed censoring variables

We propose a new and simple estimating equation for the parameters in median regression models with designed censoring variables, and then apply the empirical log likelihood ratio statistic to construct confidence region for the parameters. The empirical log likelihood ratio statistic is shown to have a standard chi-square distribution, which makes this method easy to implement. At the same time, another empirical log likelihood ratio statistic is proposed based on an existing estimating equation and the limiting distribution of the empirical likelihood ratio statistic is shown to be a sum of weighted chi-square distributions. We compare the performance of the empirical likelihood confidence region based on the new estimating equation, with that based on the existing estimating equation and a normal approximation method by simulation studies.     

A Note on the Estimation of Semiparametric Two-Sample Density Ratio Models

In this paper,a semiparametric two-sample density ratio model is considered and the empirical likelihood method is applied to obtain the parameters estimation.A commonly occurring problem in computing is that the empirical likelihood function may be a concaveconvex function.Here a simple Lagrange saddle point algorithm is presented for computing the saddle point of the empirical likelihood function when the Lagrange multiplier has no explicit solution.So we can obtain the maximum empirical likelihood estimation (MELE) of parameters.Monte Carlo simulations are presented to illustrate the Lagrange saddle point algorithm.     

Empirical Likelihood Ratio With Arbitrarily Censored/Truncated Data by EM Algorithm

The empirical likelihood is a general nonparametric inference procedure with many desirable properties. Recently, theoretical results for empirical likelihood with certain censored/truncated data have been developed. However, the computation of empirical likelihood ratios with censored/truncated data is often nontrivial. This article proposes a modified self-consistent/EM algorithm to compute a class of empirical likelihood ratios for arbitrarily censored/truncated data with a mean type constraint. Simulations show that the chi-square approximations of the log-empirical likelihood ratio perform well. Examples and simulations are given in the following cases: (1) right-censored data with a mean parameter; and (2) left-truncated and right-censored data with a mean type parameter.     

半参数两样本密度比率模型估计问题的一点注记

In this paper,a semiparametric two-sample density ratio model is considered and the empirical likelihood method is applied to obtain the parameters estimation.A commonly occurring problem in computing is that the empirical likelihood function may be a concaveconvex function.Here a simple Lagrange saddle point algorithm is presented for computing the saddle point of the empirical likelihood function when the Lagrange multiplier has no explicit solution.So we can obtain the maximum empirical likelihood estimation (MELE) of parameters.Monte Carlo simulations are presented to illustrate the Lagrange saddle point algorithm.     

EMPIRICAL LIKELIHOOD RATIO CONFIDENCE INTERVALS FOR VARIOUS DIFFERENCES OF TWO POPULATIONS

Recently the empirical likelihood has been shown to be very useful in nonparametric models. Qin combined the empirical likelihood thought and the parametric likelihood method to construct confidence intervals for the difference of two population means in a semiparametric model. In this paper, we use the empirical likelihood thought to construct confidence intervals for some differences of two populations in a nonparametric model. A version of Wilks' theorem is developed.