Item count techniques (ICTs) are indirect survey questioning methods designed to deal with sensitive features. These techniques have gained the support of many applied researchers and undergone further theoretical development. Latterly in the literature, two new item count methods, called...

This paper addresses the poor performance of the Expectation-Maximization (EM) algorithm in the estimation of low-noise dynamic factor models, commonly used in macroeconomic forecasting and nowcasting. We show analytically and in Monte Carlo simulations how the EM algorithm stagnates in a...

This paper aims to evaluate Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) insurance values through regime-switching models. We separate periods of the economy with faster growth from those with slower growth to observe long-term trends in the economy. We derive a fair PBGC insurance pricing...

Dynamic factor models (DFMs), which assume the existence of a small number of unobserved underlying factors common to a large number of variables, are very popular among empirical macroeconomists. Factors can be extracted using either nonparametric principal components or parametric Kalman...

Surveys in many different research fields rely on sequences of Likert scale questions to assess individuals' general attitudes toward a set of related topics. Most analyses of responses to such a series do not take into account the potential measurement error introduced by the context effect we...

How risky are investments in residential real estate? To answer this question, information is needed about the behavior of house prices. The hedonic methodology has become a standard approach for modelling the prices of heterogeneous assets. Although intuitively appealing, it is often criticized...

The present method allows to detect outlying observations in data which may be described by a deterministic function plus a stochastic component. This type of functional relationship often occurs in experimental data, in toxicological research, for instance. The Hampel identifier, an outlier...

The determination of toxicokinetic parameters is an essential component in the risk assessment of potential harmful chemicals. It is a key step to analyse the processes involved in the formation of DNA adducts which are connected with the development of chemical-induced cancer. A general problem...

A basic part in the risk assessment of potential carcinogens is the determination of toxicokinetic parameters. The partition of the xenobiotic in the body of experimental animals is a first step of the biochemical pathway of the formation of DNA adducts which might lead to the development of...

The determination of toxicokinetic parameters is an essential component in the risk assessment of potential harmful chemicals. It’s a first step to analyse the processes which are involved in the development of DNA adducts and might therefore lead to the development of cancer. The complete...