This book develops a machine-learning framework for predicting economic growth. It can also be considered as a primer for using machine learning (also known as data mining or data analytics) to answer economic questions. While machine learning itself is not a new idea, advances in computing technology combined with a dawning realization of its applicability to economic questions makes it a new tool for economists.

This book uses machine-learning to identify the causes of conflict from among the top predictors of conflict. This methodology elevates some complex causal pathways that cause civil conflict over others, thus teasing out the complex interrelationships between the most important variables that cause civil conflict. Success in this realm will lead to scientific theories of conflict that will be useful in preventing and ending civil conflict. After setting out a current review of the literatu...

A comprehensive guide to running randomized impact evaluations of social programs in developing countriesThis book provides a comprehensive yet accessible guide to running randomized impact evaluations of social programs. Drawing on the experience of researchers at the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab, which has run hundreds of such evaluations in dozens of countries throughout the world, it offers practical insights on how to use this powerful technique, espe...

This book provides a comprehensive and up to date treatment of theory and practical implementation in Register-based statistics. It begins by defining the area, before explaining how to structure such systems, as well as detailing alternative approaches. It explains how to create statistical registers, how to implement quality assurance, and the use of IT systems for register-based statistics. Further to this, clear details are given about the practicalities of implementing such statistica...

As technology advancement has increased, so to have computational applications for forecasting, modelling and trading financial markets and information, and practitioners are finding ever more complex solutions to financial challenges. Neural networking is a highly effective, trainable algorithmic approach which emulates certain aspects of human brain functions, and is used extensively in financial forecasting allowing for quick investment decision making.This book presents the mos...

A fresh approach to bridging research design with statistical analysisWhile good social science requires both research design and statistical analysis, most books treat these two areas separately. Understanding and Applying Research Design introduces an accessible approach to integrating design and statistics, focusing on the processes of posing, testing, and interpreting research questions in the social sciences.The authors analyze real-world data...

Have you been told you need to do multilevel modeling, but you can′t get past the forest of equations? Do you need the techniques explained with words and practical examples so they make sense?Help is here! This book unpacks these statistical techniques in easy-to-understand language with fully annotated examples using the statistical software Stata. The techniques are explained without reliance on equations and algebra so that new users will understand when to use these approaches...

Master Data Analytics Hands-On by Solving Fascinating Problems You’ll Actually Enjoy!Harvard Business Review recently called data science “The Sexiest Job of the 21st Century.” It’s not just sexy: For millions of managers, analysts, and students who need to solve real business problems, it’s indispensable. Unfortunately, there’s been nothing easy about learning data science–until now.Getting Started with Data Science takes its insp...

A trusted classic on the key methods in population sampling—now in a modernized and expanded new editionSampling of Populations, Fourth Edition continues to serve as an all-inclusive resource on the basic and most current practices in population sampling. Maintaining the clear and accessible style of the previous edition, this book outlines the essential statistical methodsfor survey design and analysis, while also exploring techniques that have developed ...

For anyone wanting to learn, in practical terms, how to measure, describe, monitor, evaluate, and analyze poverty, the Handbook is the place to start. Designed initially to support training courses on poverty analysis, it consists of explanatory text with numerous examples, interspersed with multiple-choice questions (to ensure active learning) and combined with extensive practical exercises using Stata statistical software. The sixteen chapters cover the measurement of poverty and poverty li...

Introduction to Agent-Based Economics describes the principal elements of agent-based computational economics (ACE). It illustrates ACE's theoretical foundations, which are rooted in the application of the concept of complexity to the social sciences, and it depicts its growth and development from a non-linear out-of-equilibrium approach to a state-of-the-art agent-based macroeconomics. The book helps readers gain a better understanding of the limits and perspectives of the ACE models and ...

This book provides a narrative of how R can be useful in the analysis of public administration, public policy, and political science data specifically, in addition to the social sciences more broadly. It can serve as a textbook and reference manual for students and independent researchers who wish to use R for the first time or broaden their skill set with the program. While the book uses data drawn from political science, public administration, and policy analyses, it is written so that s...