A shrinkage type estimator is introduced which has favorable properties in binary regression. Although binary observations are never very far away from the underlying probability, in all interesting cases there is a non-zero distance between observation and underlying mean. The proposed response...

We describe a stochastic model based on a branching process for analyzing surveillance data of infectious diseases that allows to make forecasts of the future development of the epidemic. The model is based on a Poisson branching process with immigration with additional adjustment for possible...

The use of generalized additive models in statistical data analysis suffers from the restriction to few explanatory variables and the problems of selection of smoothing parameters. Generalized additive model boosting circumvents these problems by means of stagewise fitting of weak learners. A...

Additive models of the type y=f_1(x_1)+...+f_p(x_p)+e where f_j,j=1,...,p, have unspecified functional form, are flexible statistical regression models which can be used to characterize nonlinear regression effects. The basic tools used for fitting the additive model are the expansion in...

In linear mixed models the influence of covariates is restricted to a strictly parametric form. With the rise of semi- and nonparametric regression also the mixed model has been expanded to allow for additive predictors. The common approach uses the representation of additive models as mixed...

Common approaches to monotonic regression focus on the case of a unidimensional covariate and continuous dependent variable. Here a general approach is proposed that allows for additive and multiplicative structures where one or more variables have monotone influence on the dependent variable....