A statistician takes an action on behalf of an agent, based on the agent’s self-reported personal data and a sample involving other people. The action that he takes is an estimated function of the agent’s report. The estimation procedure involves model selection. We ask the following question: Is truth-telling optimal for the agent given the statistician’s procedure? We analyze this question in the context of a simple example that highlights the role of model selection. We suggest that our simple exercise may have implications for the broader issue of human interaction with machine learning algorithms. (JEL C52)
{"title":"The Model Selection Curse","authors":"K. Eliaz, R. Spiegler","doi":"10.1257/aeri.20180485","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1257/aeri.20180485","url":null,"abstract":"A statistician takes an action on behalf of an agent, based on the agent’s self-reported personal data and a sample involving other people. The action that he takes is an estimated function of the agent’s report. The estimation procedure involves model selection. We ask the following question: Is truth-telling optimal for the agent given the statistician’s procedure? We analyze this question in the context of a simple example that highlights the role of model selection. We suggest that our simple exercise may have implications for the broader issue of human interaction with machine learning algorithms. (JEL C52)","PeriodicalId":29954,"journal":{"name":"American Economic Review-Insights","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.5,"publicationDate":"2018-10-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1257/aeri.20180485","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46482876","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
This paper exploits vast granular data—with over one million county-month observations—to estimate a dynamic panel data model of weather’s local employment effects. The fitted county model is then aggregated and used to generate in-sample and rolling out-of-sample (nowcast) estimates of the weather effect on national monthly employment. These nowcasts, which use only employment and weather data available prior to a given employment report, are significantly predictive not only of the surprise component of employment reports but also of stock and bond market returns on the days of employment reports. (JEL C53, G12, G17, H63, Q54, R23)
{"title":"Clearing the Fog: The Predictive Power of Weather for Employment Reports and Their Asset Price Responses","authors":"Daniel J. Wilson","doi":"10.1257/AERI.20180432","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1257/AERI.20180432","url":null,"abstract":"This paper exploits vast granular data—with over one million county-month observations—to estimate a dynamic panel data model of weather’s local employment effects. The fitted county model is then aggregated and used to generate in-sample and rolling out-of-sample (nowcast) estimates of the weather effect on national monthly employment. These nowcasts, which use only employment and weather data available prior to a given employment report, are significantly predictive not only of the surprise component of employment reports but also of stock and bond market returns on the days of employment reports. (JEL C53, G12, G17, H63, Q54, R23)","PeriodicalId":29954,"journal":{"name":"American Economic Review-Insights","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.5,"publicationDate":"2017-06-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1257/AERI.20180432","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42698621","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
We exploit the gender-specific components of large-scale labor demand shocks stemming from rising international manufacturing competition to test how shifts in the relative economic stature of young men versus young women affected marriage, fertility, and children’s living circumstances during 1990–2014. On average, trade shocks differentially reduce employment and earnings of young adult males. Consistent with Becker’s model of household specialization, shocks to males’ relative earnings reduce marriage and fertility. Consistent with prominent sociological accounts, these shocks heighten male idleness and premature mortality, and raise the share of mothers who are unwed and the share of children living in below-poverty, single-headed households. (JEL F16, J12, J13, J16, J23, J31, L60)
{"title":"When Work Disappears: Manufacturing Decline and the Falling Marriage-Market Value of Young Men","authors":"David Autor, David Dorn, Gordon H. Hanson","doi":"10.1257/AERI.20180010","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1257/AERI.20180010","url":null,"abstract":"We exploit the gender-specific components of large-scale labor demand shocks stemming from rising international manufacturing competition to test how shifts in the relative economic stature of young men versus young women affected marriage, fertility, and children’s living circumstances during 1990–2014. On average, trade shocks differentially reduce employment and earnings of young adult males. Consistent with Becker’s model of household specialization, shocks to males’ relative earnings reduce marriage and fertility. Consistent with prominent sociological accounts, these shocks heighten male idleness and premature mortality, and raise the share of mothers who are unwed and the share of children living in below-poverty, single-headed households. (JEL F16, J12, J13, J16, J23, J31, L60)","PeriodicalId":29954,"journal":{"name":"American Economic Review-Insights","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.5,"publicationDate":"2017-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1257/AERI.20180010","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46203078","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}