Product Description

Continuing to emphasize numerical and graphical methods, An Introduction to Generalized Linear Models, Third Edition provides a cohesive framework for statistical modeling. This new edition of a bestseller has been updated with Stata, R, and WinBUGS code as well as three new chapters on Bayesian analysis.

Like its predecessor, this edition presents the theoretical background of generalized linear models (GLMs) before focusing on methods for analyzing particular kinds of data. It covers normal, Poisson, and binomial distributions; linear regression models; classical estimation and model fitting methods; and frequentist methods of statistical inference. After forming this foundation, the authors explore multiple linear regression, analysis of variance (ANOVA), logistic regression, log-linear models, survival analysis, multilevel modeling, Bayesian models, and Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods.

Using popular statistical software programs, this concise and accessible text illustrates practical approaches to estimation, model fitting, and model comparisons. It includes examples and exercises with complete data sets for nearly all the models covered.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #159924 in Books
• Published on: 2008-05-12
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

Review
Praise for the Second Edition
The second edition … is successful in filling a void in the otherwise sparse literature on the subject of generalized linear models at the introductory level … a wide range of research applications are covered and ample workings are also provided to aid the reader in statistical calculations … I would highly recommend this text … .
—Kerrie Nelson, Statistics in Medicine, Vol. 23, 2004

This book promises in its introductory section to provide a unifying framework for many statistical techniques. It accomplishes this goal easily. … Furthermore, the text covers important topics that are frequently overlooked in introductory courses, such as models for ordinal outcomes. … This book is an excellent resource, either as an introduction to or a reminder of the technical aspects of generalized linear models and provides a wealth of simple yet useful examples and data sets.
—Journal of Biopharmaceutical Statistics, Issue 2, 2009

Customer Reviews

clear writing and nice examples
Bill recommended Dobson's text because of her clear writing style and many useful examples. Dobson also places the theory in the context of the general exponential family of distributions. As I knew that the second edition was about to come out I waited for it.

The wait seems to have been very worthwhile. The second edition is a real bargin.... She has updated it with the many advances that have occurred over the past 12 years since the first edition was printed. This edition now includes some discussion of generalized additive models, broader coverage of applications as survival analysis, GEE, multi-level models and nominal and ordinal logistic regression have been added. It now offers the reader more applications in a wider variety of disciplines and includes modern approaches to diagnostic checking of the models.

As with the first edition, exploratory techniques are emphasized particularly graphical methods. The goal is to unify the apparently disparate statistical techniques that students are exposed to, into one general modeling framework.

It includes a nice up-to-date bibliography and recent advanced results on longitudinal models. The level is intermediate statistics with introductory statistics and linear models taken to be prerequisites. Students are also required to have some familiarity with calculus and linear algebra.

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This book provides a surprisingly brief and gentle, yet thorough, introduction to the subject of modeling dependent variables that are not continuous (see note below). The reader, who should be familiar with calculus-based probability, may initially find it frustrating that the actual practice of modeling nominal data is not discussed until the last two chapters (of 9). However, the cause for delaying the discussion of these models is to introduce the terminology and methodology of generalized linear models through more familiar linear regression models.

Thus, while this book is not ideal for someone who wants to jump right into the thick of building logistic, loglinear, or other models for nominal data, it is quite suitable for those wishing a thorough introduction to the practice of generalized linear modeling. For greater detail, a thicker book like McCullagh & Nelder's _Generalized Linear Models_ would be suitable.

Note: While the term "Generalized Linear Models" includes linear regression models (i.e., models for continuous dependent variables), reading this book is not the easiest way to be introduced to regression. A better starting point would be Draper & Smith's _Applied Regression Analysis_ or Weisberg's _Applied Linear Regression_.

Excellent concept - Execution could be better
I wish somebody would write a concise tutorial of the matematics required for an "intermediate" book such as Dobson's. Undoubtedly for someone whose acquaintence with modern statitical methods is more current this book is a gem. For someone like myself who wants a refresher and whose math is a bit rusty it leaves something to be desired. Some of the theoretical derivations in chapters 3 and 4 (keys to the understanding of the rest of the book) would be improved by a bit more detail and a thoroughly worked example. A major shortcoming is the lack of answers to the excercises; I don't see how the book was published without them. If the book was 100 pages longer with the addition of the aforementioned material, I would have given it a five star rating.