This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

Spurious correlation in estimation of the health production function: A note

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Sule Akkoyunlu () (KOF Swiss Economic Institute, ETH Zurich, Switzerland)
Frank R. Lichtenberg () (Columbia University, Graduate School of Business, New York,)
Boriss Siliverstovs () (KOF Swiss Economic Institute, ETH Zurich, Switzerland)
Peter Zweifel () (University of Zürich, Socioeconomic Institute, Zürich,)

Additional information is available for the following registered author(s):

Abstract

In this paper, we address the issue of spurious correlation in the production of health in a systematic way. Spurious correlation entails the risk of linking health status to medical (and nonmedical) inputs when no links exist. This note first presents the bounds testing procedure as a method to detect and avoid spurious correlation. It then applies it to a recent contribution by Lichtenberg (2004), which relates longevity in the United States to pharmaceutical innovation and public health care expenditure. The results of the bounds testing procedure show longevity to be linearly related to these two factors. Therefore, the estimates reported by Lichtenberg (2004) cannot be said to be result of spurious correlation, to the contrary, they very likely reflect an effective relationship, at least for the United States.

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://www.kof.ethz.ch/publications/science/pdf/wp_227.pdf
File Format: application/pdf
File Function:
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Paper provided by KOF Swiss Economic Institute, ETH Zurich in its series KOF Working papers with number 09-227.

Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML (with abstract), plain text (with abstract), BibTeX, RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite), ReDIF
Length: 15 pages
Date of creation: May 2009
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:kof:wpskof:09-227

Contact details of provider:
Postal: Weinbergstrasse 35, CH-8092 Z�rich
Phone: +41 44 632 41 28
Fax: +41 44 632 12 18
Email:
Web page: http://www.kof.ethz.ch
More information through EDIRC

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: ().

Related research
Keywords: Health; Life expectancy; Innovation; Pharmaceuticals; Health care expenditure; Cointegration;

Other versions of this item:

Find related papers by JEL classification:
H51 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Government Expenditures and Health
I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Production
J18 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Public Policy
C22 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Time-Series Models; Dynamic Quantile Regressions
C32 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Time-Series Models; Dynamic Quantile Regressions
O33 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Technological Change - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes

This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. M. Hashem Pesaran & Yongcheol Shin & Richard J. Smith, 2001. "Bounds testing approaches to the analysis of level relationships," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 16(3), pages 289-326. [Downloadable!]
  2. Pierre-Yves Crémieux & Pierre Ouellette & Caroline Pilon, 1999. "Health care spending as determinants of health outcomes," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 8(7), pages 627-639.
  3. Zeynep Or, 2001. "Exploring the Effects of Health Care on Mortality Across OECD Countries," OECD Labour Market and Social Policy Occasional Papers 46, OECD, Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs. [Downloadable!]
  4. Peter Zweifel & Lukas Steinmann & Patrick Eugster, 2005. "The Sisyphus Syndrome in Health Revisited," International Journal of Health Care Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 5(2), pages 127-145, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Pierre-Yves Crémieux & Marie-Claude Meilleur & Pierre Ouellette & Patrick Petit & Martin Zelder & Ken Potvin, 2005. "Public and private pharmaceutical spending as determinants of health outcomes in Canada," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 14(2), pages 107-116. [Downloadable!]
  6. Granger, C. W. J. & Newbold, P., 1974. "Spurious regressions in econometrics," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 2(2), pages 111-120, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? LogEc provides statistical analysis about downloads from this service (and others).

This page was last updated on 2009-11-10.

This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.