Relative Distribution Methods in the Social Sciences

This monograph presents methods for full comparative distributional analysis based on the relative distribution. This provides a general integrated framework for analysis, a graphical component that simplifies exploratory data analysis and display, a statistically valid basis for the development of hypothesis-driven summary measures, and the potential for decomposition - enabling the examination of complex hypotheses regarding the origins of distributional changes within and between groups. Written for data analysts and those interested in measurement, the text can also serve as a textbook for a course on distributional methods.

Contenu

and Motivation.- The Relative Distribution.- Location, Scale and Shape Decomposition.- Application: White Men's Earnings 1967-1997.- Summary Measures.- Application: Earnings by Race and Sex: 1967-1997.- Adjustment for Covariates.- Application: Comparing Wage Mobility in Two Eras.- Inference for the Relative Distribution.- Inference for Summary Measures.- The Relative Distribution for Discrete Data.- Application: Changes in the Distribution of Hours Worked.- Quantile Regression.