Introduction to Statistics and Econometrics

By Takeshi Amemiya

This outstanding text by a foremost econometrician combines instruction in probability and statistics with econometrics in a rigorous but relatively nontechnical manner. Unlike many statistics texts, it discusses regression analysis in depth. And unlike many econometrics texts, it offers a thorough treatment of statistics. Although its only mathematical requirement is multivariate calculus, it challenges the student to think deeply about basic concepts.

The coverage of probability and statistics includes best prediction and best linear prediction, the joint distribution of a continuous and discrete random variable, large sample theory, and the properties of the maximum likelihood estimator. Exercises at the end of each chapter reinforce the many illustrative examples and diagrams. Believing that students should acquire the habit of questioning conventional statistical techniques, Takeshi Amemiya discusses the problem of choosing estimators and compares various criteria for ranking them. He also evaluates classical hypothesis testing critically, giving the realistic case of testing a composite null against a composite alternative. He frequently adopts a Bayesian approach because it provides a useful pedagogical framework for discussing many fundamental issues in statistical inference.

Turning to regression, Amemiya presents the classical bivariate model in the conventional summation notation. He follows with a brief introduction to matrix analysis and multiple regression in matrix notation. Finally, he describes various generalizations of the classical regression model and certain other statistical models extensively used in econometrics and other applications in social science.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: B007CKL89S
• ISBN13: 9780674462250
• Release Date: April 1994
• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 0.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.5" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

A must have book

Along with Ramu Ramanathan's book this is a must have book. Both of them covers the basic of Econometrics. Amemiya provide proofs that you cannot easily find in other econometrics books. I have Greene's, Wooldridge's, Kennendy's and Mittlehammer's econometrics books. None covers everything; so you need to find which "group" of books covers your needs....

Concise and Good on the Fundamentals

This is a fairly short book that nevertheless manages to give an excellent treatment of probability, statistics and econometrics at the upper-level undergraduate / beginning graduate level in economics. It is a much better read than the econometric tomes by Greene, Judge, etc., and not just because it is an order of magnitude shorter. It covers statistics very seriously, and forces one to think more deeply about the fundamentals. I have looked at a great many textbooks in my quest to get a handle on econometrics, and the ones that really stood out to me are this one and Goldberger's graduate text. Start with Amemiya, then read Goldberger, and you'll have an excellent foundation in statistics and econometrics. You won't know all the latest econometric techniques with just these two books, but as they say, if the foundation is good, you can build high. Goldberger in particular, does not have any ready substitutes that I know of. His book separates out and emphasizes the identification part of the problem (an emphasis shared by econometricians like Heckman and Manski). This approach is crucial to understanding econometrics and is not easy to get from other textbooks.