Many multivariate methods that are apparently distinct can be linked by introducing one or more parameters in their definition. Methods that can be linked in this way are correspondence analysis, unweighted or weighted logratio analysis (the latter also known as quot;spectral mappingquot;),...

The singular value decomposition and its interpretation as a linear biplot has proved to be a powerful tool for analysing many forms of multivariate data. Here we adapt biplot methodology to the specific case of compositional data consisting of positive vectors each of which is constrained to...

Because of its many advantages, the use of decision trees has become an increasingly popular alternative predictive tool for building classification and regression models. Its origins date back for about five decades where the algorithm can be broadly described by repeatedly partitioning the...

In the microsimulation literature, it is still uncommon to test the statistical significance of results. In this paper we argue that this situation is both undesirable and unnecessary. Provided the parameters used in the microsimulation are exogenous, as is often the case in static...

Computational Statistics is an international journal that fosters the publication of applications and methodological research in the field of computational statistics. In this article, we will discuss the motivation, history, some specialties, and the future scope of this journal

While linking records across large administrative datasets ["big data"] has the potential to revolutionize empirical social science research, many administrative data files do not have common identifiers and are thus not designed to be linked to others. To address this problem, researchers have...

Education is considered an important means of alleviating poverty and of improving an individual’s job and earnings prospects. Nevertheless, in Haiti and the Dominican Republic school enrollment is far from complete and shows notable regional variation. This paper analyzes determinants of...

This paper uses a set of routinely collected high-frequency data in low-income countries (LICs) to construct an aggregate and a comprehensive index of economic activity which could serve (i) as a measure of the direction of economic activity; and (ii) as a useful input in analyzing...

The spatial granularity of poverty statistics can have a significant impact on the efficiency of targeting resources meant to improve the living conditions of the poor. However, achieving granularity typically requires increasing the sample sizes of surveys on household income and expenditure or...

Granular spatial information on the distributions of human population is relevant to a variety of fields like health, economics, and other areas of public sector planning. This paper applies ensemble methods and aims at assessing their applicability to analyzing and forecasting population...