4.1 Article

Heterogeneity in general multinomial choice models

Journal

STATISTICAL METHODS AND APPLICATIONS
Volume 32, Issue 1, Pages 129-148

Publisher

SPRINGER HEIDELBERG
DOI: 10.1007/s10260-022-00642-5

Keywords

Categorical dependent variable; Heterogeneity; Multinomial logit model; Discrete choice analysis; Random utility maximization; Electoral decisions

Ask authors/readers for more resources

This study proposes a flexible and general heterogeneous multinomial logit model to study differences in choice behavior. The model captures heterogeneity that classical models cannot capture, indicates the strength of heterogeneity, and allows for examining the explanatory variables causing heterogeneity.
Different voters behave differently at the polls, different students make different university choices, or different countries choose different health care systems. Many research questions important to social scientists concern choice behavior, which involves dealing with nominal dependent variables. Drawing on the principle of maximum random utility, we propose applying a flexible and general heterogeneous multinomial logit model to study differences in choice behavior. The model systematically accounts for heterogeneity that classical models do not capture, indicates the strength of heterogeneity, and permits examining which explanatory variables cause heterogeneity. As the proposed approach allows incorporating theoretical expectations about heterogeneity into the analysis of nominal dependent variables, it can be applied to a wide range of research problems. Our empirical example uses individual-level survey data to demonstrate the benefits of the model in studying heterogeneity in electoral decisions.

Authors

I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.

Reviews

Primary Rating

4.1
Not enough ratings

Secondary Ratings

Novelty
-
Significance
-
Scientific rigor
-
Rate this paper

Recommended

No Data Available
No Data Available