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Inference in Linear Time Series Models with some Unit Roots

Econometrica 1990 58(1), 113
This paper considers estimation and hypothesis testing in linear time series when some or all of the variables have (possibly multiple) unit roots. The motivating example is a vector autoregression with some unit roots in the companion matrix, which might include polynomials in time as regressors. Parameters that can be written as coefficients on mean zero, nonintegrated regressors have jointly normal asymptotic distribution, converging at the rate of T(superscript "one-half") In general, the other coefficients (including the coefficient on polynomials in time), and associated t and F test statistics, have nonstandard asymptotic distributions. Copyright 1990 by The Econometric Society.

The Optimal Exploitation of Renewable Resource Stocks: Problems of Irreversible Investment

Econometrica 1979 47(1), 25
[This paper studies the effects of irreversibility of capital investment upon optimal exploitation policies for renewable resource stocks. It is demonstrated that although the long-term optimal sustained yield is not affected by the assumption of irreversibility (except in extreme cases), the short-term dynamic behavior of an optimal policy may depend significantly upon the assumption. It is suggested that the results may have profound implications for problems of rehabilitation of overexploited fisheries and other renewable resource stocks.]

Understanding Doctor Decision Making: The Case of Depression Treatment

Econometrica 2020 88(3), 847-878 open access
Treatment for depression is complex, requiring decisions that may involve trade-offs between exploiting treatments with the highest expected value and experimenting with treatments with higher possible payoffs. Using patient claims data, we show that among skilled doctors, using a broader portfolio of drugs predicts better patient outcomes, except in cases where doctors' decisions violate loose professional guidelines. We introduce a behavioral model of decision making guided by our empirical observations. The model's novel feature is that the trade-off between exploitation and experimentation depends on the doctor's diagnostic skill. The model predicts that higher diagnostic skill leads to greater diversity in drug choice and better matching of drugs to patients even among doctors with the same initial beliefs regarding drug effectiveness. Consistent with the finding that guideline violations predict poorer patient outcomes, simulations of the model suggest that increasing the number of possible drug choices can lower performance.

Speculative Overpricing in Asset Markets With Information Flows

Econometrica 2012 80(5), 1937-1976
In this paper, we derive and experimentally test a theoretical model of speculation in multi-period asset markets with public information flows. The speculation arises from the traders’ heterogeneous posteriors as they make different inferences from sequences of public information. This leads to overpricing in the sense that price exceeds the most optimistic belief about the real value of the asset. We find evidence of speculative overpricing in both incomplete and complete markets, where the information flow is a gradually revealed sequence of imperfect public signals about the state of the world. We also find evidence of asymmetric price reaction to good news and bad news, another feature of equilibrium price dynamics under our model. Markets with a relaxed short-sale constraint exhibit less overpricing.

Robust Rank Tests of the Unit Root Hypothesis

Econometrica 1997 65(1), 133
The authors consider a family of rank tests based on the regression rank score process introduced by C. Gutenbrunner and J. Jureckova (1992) to test the unit root hypothesis in economic time series. In contrast to tests based on least-squares methods, the rank tests are asymptotically Gaussian under the null hypothesis, and have excellent power--particularly under innovation exhibiting heavy tails. These regression rank scores arise as a vector of solutions of the dual form of the linear program required to compute the regression quantile statistics of R. W. Koenker and G. Bassett (1978). For location model, they are simple ranks of the sample observations.

The Predictive Utility of Generalized Expected Utility Theories

Econometrica 1994 62(6), 1251
Many alternative theories have been proposed to explain violations of expected utility (EU) theory observed in experiments. Several recent studies test some of these alternative theories against each other. Formal tests used to judge the theories usually count the number of responses consistent with the theory, ignoring systematic variation in responses that are inconsistent. We develop a maximum-likelihood estimation method which uses all the information in the data, creates test statistics that can be aggregated across studies, and enables one to judge the predictive utility-the fit and parsimony-of utility theories. Analyses of 23 data sets, using several thousand choices, suggest a menu of theories which sacrifice the least parsimony for the biggest improvement in fit. The menu is: mixed fanning, prospect theory, EU, and expected value. Which theories are best is highly sensitive to whether gambles in a pair have the same support (EU fits better) or not (EU fits poorly). Our method may have application to other domains in which various theories predict different subsets of choices (e.g., refinements of Nash equilibrium in noncooperative games).