# Chapter 6 The Simple Linear Regression Model Reporting the - PDF

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```					Chapter 6

The Simple Linear Regression Model: Reporting the Results and Choosing the
Functional Form

To complete the analysis of the simple linear regression model, in this chapter we will
consider

• how to measure the variation in yt, explained by the model
• how to report the results of a regression analysis,
• some alternative functional forms that may be used to represent possible relationships
between yt and xt.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                          1
6.1 The Coefficient of Determination

Two major reasons for analyzing the model

yt = β1 + β2 xt + et               (6.1.1)
are
1. to explain how the dependent variable (yt) changes as the independent variable (xt)
changes, and
2. to predict y0 given an x0.

• Closely allied with the prediction problem is the desire to use xt to explain as much of
the variation in the dependent variable yt as possible.
• In (6.1.1) we introduce the “explanatory” variable xt in hope that its variation will
“explain” the variation in yt.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                           2
• To develop a measure of the variation in yt that is explained by the model, we begin by
separating yt into its explainable and unexplainable components.

yt = E ( yt ) + et                (6.1.2)

• E ( yt ) = β1 + β2 xt is the explainable, “systematic” component of yt , and
• et is the random, unsystematic, unexplainable noise component of yt.
• We can estimate the unknown parameters β1 and β2 and decompose the value of yt into

yt = yt + et
ˆ ˆ                        (6.1.3)

where yt = b1 + b2 xt and et = yt − yt .
ˆ                   ˆ         ˆ

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                          3
• Subtract the sample mean y from both sides of the equation to obtain

yt − y = ( yt − y ) + et
ˆ          ˆ                   (6.1.4)

• The difference between yt and its mean value y consists of a part that is “explained”
by the regression model, yt − y , and a part that is unexplained, et .
ˆ                                        ˆ

• A measure of the “total variation” y is to square the differences between yt and its mean
value y and sum over the entire sample.

∑(y     t   − y ) 2 = ∑ [( yt − y ) + et ]2
ˆ          ˆ

= ∑ ( yt − y ) 2 + ∑ et2 + 2∑ ( yt − y )et
ˆ              ˆ          ˆ       ˆ    (6.1.5)

= ∑ ( yt − y ) 2 + ∑ et2
ˆ              ˆ

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                                      4
∑ ( yt − y )et = ∑ yt et − y ∑ et
\$       \$      \$ \$         \$       = ∑ (b1 + b2 x t )et − y ∑ et = b1 ∑ et + b2 ∑ x t et − y ∑ et
\$        \$         \$             \$        \$

∑ et = ∑ ( y t
\$               − b1 − b2 x t ) = ∑ y t − Tb1 − b2 ∑ x t = 0

∑ x t et = ∑ x t ( y t
\$                  − b1 − b2 x t ) = ∑ x t y t − b1 ∑ x t − b2 ∑ x t2 = 0

The last expressions in each of these equations become zero from the normal equations
that are used to solve for the least squares estimators. Substituting ∑ e\$ = 0 and ∑ x e\$ = 0                                  t    t t

back into the original equation, we obtain ∑ ( y − y )e\$ = 0 .
\$                                  t        t

• The cross-product term                   ∑(y
ˆ       t   − y )et =0 and drops out.
ˆ

1.   ∑(y    t   − y ) 2 = total sum of squares = SST: a measure of total variation in y about its

sample mean.
2.   ∑( y
ˆ   t   − y ) 2 = explained sum of squares = SSR: that part of total variation in y about

its sample mean that is explained by the regression.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                                                                             5
3.   ∑e
ˆ   2
t   = error sum of squares = SSE: that part of total variation in y about its mean

that is not explained by the regression.
Thus,
SST = SSR + SSE                      (6.1.6)

• This decomposition is usually presented in what is called an “Analysis of Variance”
table with general format

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                             6
Table 6.1 Analysis of Variance Table
Source of                        Sum of        Mean
Variation                DF      Squares     Square
Explained                 1      SSR          SSR/1
Unexplained T−2                   SSE      SSE/(T−2)
[ = σ2 ]
ˆ
Total                   T−1       SST

• The degrees of freedom (DF) for these sums of squares are:
1. df = 1 for SSR (the number of explanatory variables other than the intercept);
2. df = T−2 for SSE (the number of observations minus the number of parameters in the
model);
3. df = T−1 for SST (the number of observations minus 1, which is the number of
parameters in a model containing only β1.)

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                       7
• In the column labeled Mean Square are (i) the ratio of SSR to its degrees of freedom,
SSR/1, and (ii) the ratio of SSE to its degrees of freedom, SSE/(T−2) = σ2 .
ˆ
• The “mean square error” is our unbiased estimate of the error variance.
• One widespread use of the information in the Analysis of Variance table is to define a
measure of the proportion of variation in y explained by x within the regression model:

SSR      SSE
R2 =       = 1−                        (6.1.7)
SST      SST

• The measure R 2 is called the coefficient of determination. The closer R 2 is to one, the
better the job we have done in explaining the variation in yt with yt = b1 + b2 xt ; and the
ˆ
greater is the predictive ability of our model over all the sample observations.
• If R 2 =1, then all the sample data fall exactly on the fitted least squares line, so SSE=0,
and the model fits the data “perfectly.”

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                                8
• If the sample data for y and x are uncorrelated and show no linear association, then the
least squares fitted line is “horizontal,” and identical to y , so that SSR=0 and R 2 =0.
• When 0 < R 2 < 1, it is interpreted as “the percentage of the variation in y about its
mean that is explained by the regression model.”

Remark: R 2 is a descriptive measure. By itself it does not measure the quality
of the regression model. It is not the objective of regression analysis to find the
model with the highest R 2 . Following a regression strategy focused solely on
maximizing R 2 is not a good idea.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                                  9
6.1.1          Analysis of Variance Table and R2 for Food Expenditure Example

The computer output usually contains the Analysis of Variance, Table 6.1. For the food
expenditure data it is:

Table 6.3 Analysis of Variance Table
Sum of              Mean
Source                  DF         Squares            Square
Explained               1        25221.2229     25221.2229
Unexplained 38                   54311.3314         1429.2455
Total                  39        79532.5544

R-square      0.3171

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                       10
From this table we find that:

SST = ∑ ( y − y ) = 79532.
t
2

SSR = ∑ ( y − y ) = 25221.
ˆ          t
2

SSE = ∑ e = 54311.
ˆ        2
t

SSR      SSE
R2 =        = 1−     = 0.317
SST      SST
SSE/(T−2) = σ2 = 1429.2455
ˆ

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6   11
6.1.2 Correlation Analysis

The correlation coefficient ρ between X and Y is

cov( X , Y )
ρ=                                (6.1.8)
var( X ) var(Y )

• Given a sample of data pairs (xt,yt), t=1, ...,T, the sample correlation coefficient is
obtained by replacing the covariance and variances in (6.1.8) by their sample
analogues:

ˆ
cov( X , Y )
r=                                (6.1.9)
ˆ        ˆ
var( X ) var(Y )
where

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                          12
T
cov( X , Y ) = ∑ ( xt − x )( yt − y ) /(T − 1)
ˆ                                                                (6.1.10a)
t =1

T
var( X ) = ∑ ( xt − x ) 2 /(T − 1)
ˆ                                                    (6.1.10b)
t =1

• The sample variance of Y is defined like var( X ) .
ˆ
• The sample correlation coefficient r is

T

∑ ( x − x )( y
t                  t   − y)
r=         t =1
(6.1.11)
T                          T

∑ (x − x ) ∑ ( y
t =1
t
2

t =1
t   − y )2

• The sample correlation coefficient r has a value between −1 and 1, and it measures the
strength of the linear association between observed values of X and Y.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                                                13
6.1.3 Correlation Analysis and R2

• There are two interesting relationships between R 2 and r in the simple linear
regression model.
1. The first is that r 2 = R 2 . That is, the square of the sample correlation coefficient
between the sample data values xt and yt is algebraically equal to R 2 .
We want to show that
[∑ ( x       − x )( y t − y )   ]
2
∑ ( yt    − y)
2
SSR                   \$                                   t
R2 =     =                                    =                                                   = rxy
2

∑ ( yt    − y)             ∑ ( xt   − x)           ∑ ( yt   − y)
2                           2                       2
SST

Now,
∑ ( yt        − y ) = ∑ (b1 + b2 x t − b1 − b2 x ) = b2 ∑ ( x t − x )
2                                  2               2                               2
\$

[∑ ( x         − x )( y t − y )   ]                     [∑ ( x                    − x )( y t − y )         ]
2                                                                        2

⋅ ∑ (x − x) =
t                                                2                 t
=
[                    ]
t
2 2
∑ ( xt    − x)
2
∑ ( xt   − x)

Submitting this expression into that for                                           R2         yields the desired result.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                                                                                                14
2. R 2 can also be computed as the square of the sample correlation coefficient between yt
and yt = b1 + b2 xt . As such it measures the linear association, or goodness of fit,
ˆ
between the sample data and their predicted values. Consequently R2 is sometimes
called a measure of “goodness of fit.”

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                           15
6.2 Reporting the Results of a Regression Analysis

One way to summarize the regression results is in the form of a “fitted” regression
equation:

yt =40.7676 + 0.1283 xt
ˆ                         R 2 = 0.317
(R6.6)
(s.e.) (22.1387) (0.0305)

• The value b1 = 40.7676 estimates the weekly food expenditure by a household with no
income;
• b2 =0.1283 implies that given a \$1 increase in weekly income we expect expenditure
on food to increase by \$.13; or, in more reasonable units of measurement, if income
increases by \$100 we expect food expenditure to rise by \$12.83.
• The R 2 =0.317 says that about 32% of the variation in food expenditure about its mean
is explained by variations in income.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                         16
• The numbers in parentheses underneath the estimated coefficients are the standard
errors of the least squares estimates. Apart from critical values from the t-distribution,
(R6.6) contains all the information that is required to construct interval estimates for β1
or β2 or to test hypotheses about β1 or β2.
• Another conventional way to report results is to replace the standard errors with the “t-
values”
• These values arise when testing H0: β1 = 0 against H1: β1 ≠ 0 and H0: β2 = 0 against H1:
β2 ≠ 0.
• Using these t-values we can report the regression results as

yt = 40.7676 + 0.1283 xt
ˆ                          R 2 = 0.317
(6.2.2)
(t )   (1.84)   (4.20)

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                               17
6.2.1 The Effects of Scaling the Data

• Data we obtain are not always in a convenient form for presentation in a table or use in
a regression analysis. When the scale of the data is not convenient it can be altered
without changing any of the real underlying relationships between variables.
• For example, suppose we are interested in the variable x = U.S. total real disposable
personal income. In 1999 the value of x = \$93,491,400,000,000.
• We might divide the variable x by 1 trillion and use instead the scaled variable
x* = x /1,000,000,000 ,000= \$93.4914 trillion dollars.
• Consider the food expenditure model. We interpret the least squares estimate b2 =
0.1283 as the expected increase in food expenditure, in dollars, given a \$1 increase in
weekly income.
• It may be more convenient to discuss increases in weekly income of \$100. Such a
change in the units of measurement is called scaling the data. The choice of the scale
is made by the investigator so as to make interpretation meaningful and convenient.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                            18
• The choice of the scale does not affect the measurement of the underlying relationship,
but it does affect the interpretation of the coefficient estimates and some summary
measures.
• Let us summarize the possibilities:

1. Changing the scale of x:
yt =40.77 + 0.1283 xt
ˆ
 x 
=40.77+ (100 × 0.1283)  t      (R6.8)
 100 
=40.77 + 12.83 xt*
• In the food expenditure model b2 =0.1283 measures the effect of a change in income of
\$1 while 100b2 =\$12.83 measures the effect of a change in income of \$100.
• When the scale of x is altered the only other change occurs in the standard error of the
regression coefficient, but it changes by the same multiplicative factor as the

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                           19
coefficient, so that their ratio, the t-statistic, is unaffected.                  All other regression
statistics are unchanged.
2. Changing the scale of y:
 x 
100yt = (100 × 40.77 ) + (100 × 0.1283)  t 
ˆ
 100                 (R6.9)
yt* =4077 + 12.83 xt
ˆ

• In this rescaled model β* measures the change we expect in y * given a 1 unit change
2

in x.
• Because the error term is scaled in this process the least squares residuals will also be
scaled.
• This will affect the standard errors of the regression coefficients, but it will not affect t
statistics or R 2 .
3. If the scale of y and the scale of x are changed by the same factor, then there will be no
change in the reported regression results for b2, but the estimated intercept and

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                                           20
residuals will change; t-statistics and R 2 are unaffected. The interpretation of the
parameters is made relative to the new units of measurement.

6.3 Choosing a Functional Form

• In the household food expenditure function the dependent variable, household food
expenditure, has been assumed to be a linear function of household income.
• What if the relationship between yt and xt is not linear?

Remark: The term linear in “simple linear regression model” means not a
linear relationship between the variables, but a model in which the parameters
enter in a linear way. That is, the model is “linear in the parameters,” but it is
not, necessarily, “linear in the variables.”

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                               21
• By “linear in the parameters” we mean that the parameters are not multiplied together,
divided, squared, cubed, etc.
• The variables, however, can be transformed in any convenient way, as long as the
resulting model satisfies assumptions SR1-SR5 of the simple linear regression model.
• In the food expenditure model we do not expect that as household income rises that
food expenditures will continue to rise indefinitely at the same constant rate.
• Instead, as income rises we expect food expenditures to rise, but we expect such
expenditures to increase at a decreasing rate.
y

x

Figure 6.2 A Nonlinear Relationship between Food Expenditure and Income

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                             22
6.3.1 Some Commonly Used Functional Forms

The variable transformations that we begin with are:

1. The natural logarithm: if x is a variable then its natural logarithm is ln(x).
2. The reciprocal: if x is a variable then its reciprocal is 1/x.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                       23
Type                            Statistical Model                  Slope           Elasticity

xt
yt = β1 + β2 xt + et               β2              β2
1. Linear                                                                               yt

1                             1                1
yt = β1 + β2      + et             −β2             −β2
2. Reciprocal                                  xt                            xt2             xt yt

yt
ln( yt ) = β1 + β2 ln( xt ) + et   β2              β2
3. Log-Log                                                              xt

4. Log-Linear
(Exponential)                   ln( yt ) = β1 + β2 xt + et         β2 yt           β2 xt

5. Linear-Log                                                           1               1
yt = β1 + β2 ln( xt ) + et         β2              β2
(Semi-log)                                                              xt              yt

1                  yt              1
ln( yt ) = β1 − β2      + et       β2              β2
6. Log-inverse                                       xt                 xt2             xt

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                                                 24
1.The model that is linear in the variables describes fitting a straight line to the original
data, with slope β2 and point elasticity β2 xt / yt . The slope of the relationship is constant
but the elasticity changes at each point.
2.The reciprocal model takes shapes shown in Figure 6.3(a). As x increases y approaches
the intercept, its asymptote, from above or below depending on the sign of β2 . The slope
of this curve changes, and flattens out, as x increases. The elasticity also changes at each
point and is opposite in sign to β2 . In Figure 6.3(a), when β2 >0, the relationship between
x and y is an inverse one and the elasticity is negative: a 1% increase in x leads to a
reduction in y of −β2 /( xt yt ) %.
3. The log-log model is a very popular one. The name “log-log” comes from the fact that
the logarithm appears on both sides of the equation. In order to use this model all values
of y and x must be positive. The shapes that this equation can take are shown in Figures
6.3(b) and 6.3(c). Figure 6.3(b) shows cases in which β2 > 0, and Figure 6.3(c) shows
cases when β2 < 0. The slopes of these curves change at every point, but the elasticity is

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                                25
constant and equal to β2 .                      This constant elasticity model is very convenient for
economists, since we like to talk about elasticites and are familiar with their meaning.
4.The log-linear model (“log” on the left-hand-side of the equation and “linear” on the
right) can take the shapes shown in Figure 6.3(d). Both its slope and elasticity change at
each point and are the same sign as β2 .
5.The linear-log model has shapes shown in Figure 6.3(e).                      It is an increasing or
decreasing function depending upon the sign of β2 .
6.The log-inverse model (“log” on the left-hand-side of the equation and a reciprocal on
the right) has a shape shown in Figure 6.3(f). It has the characteristic that near the origin
it increases at an increasing rate (convex) and then, after a point, increases at a decreasing
rate (concave).

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                                      26
Remark: Given this array of models, some of which have similar shapes, what
are some guidelines for choosing a functional form? We must certainly choose
a functional form that is sufficiently flexible to “fit” the data. Choosing a
satisfactory functional form helps preserve the model assumptions. That is, a
major objective of choosing a functional form, or transforming the variables, is
to create a model in which the error term has the following properties;
1. E(et)=0
2. var(et)=σ2
3. cov(ei,ej)=0
4. et~N(0, σ2)
If these assumptions hold then the least squares estimators have good statistical
properties and we can use the procedures for statistical inference that we have
developed in Chapters 4 and 5.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                              27
6.3.2 Examples Using Alternative Functional Forms

In this section we will examine an array of economic examples and possible choices for
the functional form.

6.3.2 The Food Expenditure Model
• From the array of shapes in Figure 6.3 two possible choices that are similar in some
aspects to Figure 6.2 are the reciprocal model and the linear-log model.
• The reciprocal model is
1
yt = β1 + β2      + et          (6.3.2)
xt
• For the food expenditure model we might assume that β1 > 0 and β2 < 0. If this is the
case, then as income increases, household consumption of food increases at a
decreasing rate and reaches an upper bound β1.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                        28
• This model is linear in the parameters but it is nonlinear in the variables. If the error
term et satisfies our usual assumptions, then the unknown parameters can be estimated
by least squares, and inferences can be made in the usual way.
• Another property of the reciprocal model, ignoring the error term, is that when x <
−β2/β1 the model predicts expenditure on food to be negative. This is unrealistic and
implies that this functional form is inappropriate for small values of x.
• When choosing a functional form one practical guideline is to consider how the
dependent variable changes with the independent variable. In the reciprocal model the
slope of the relationship between y and x is
dy       1
= −β2 2
dx      xt
If the parameter β2 < 0 then there is a positive relationship between food expenditure and
income, and, as income increases this “marginal propensity to spend on food” diminishes,
as economic theory predicts.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                            29
• For the food expenditure relationship an alternative to the reciprocal model is the
linear-log model

yt = β1 + β2 ln( xt ) + et            (6.3.3)

which is shown in Figure 6.3(e).
• For β2 > 0 this function is increasing, but at a decreasing rate. As x increases the slope
β2/xt decreases.
• Similarly, the greater the amount of food expenditure y the smaller the elasticity, β2/yt.

AS/ECON 3210 Use of Economic Data – Chapter 6                                              30

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