Why High-order Polynomials Should not be Used in Regression Discontinuity Designs /

It is common in regression discontinuity analysis to control for high order (third, fourth, or higher) polynomials of the forcing variable. We argue that estimators for causal effects based on such methods can be misleading, and we recommend researchers do not use them, and instead use estimators ba...

Ausführliche Beschreibung

1. Verfasser:

Gelman, Andrew

Körperschaft:

National Bureau of Economic Research

Weitere Verfasser:

Imbens, Guido

Format:

Elektronisch E-Book

Sprache:

Englisch

Veröffentlicht:

Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 2014.

Zusammenfassung:

It is common in regression discontinuity analysis to control for high order (third, fourth, or higher) polynomials of the forcing variable. We argue that estimators for causal effects based on such methods can be misleading, and we recommend researchers do not use them, and instead use estimators based on local linear or quadratic polynomials or other smooth functions.

Umfang:

1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);

Anmerkungen:

August 2014.

Schlagworte:

Econometrics

Econometric and Statistical Methods and Methodology: General