maximum likelihood estimation

Analysis of Networks with Missing Data with Application to the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health

It is common in the analysis of social network data to assume a census of the networked population of interest. Often the observations are subject to partial observation due to a known sampling or unknown missing data mechanism. However, most …

A Separable Model for Dynamic Networks

Models of dynamic networks—networks that evolve over time—have manifold applications. We develop a discrete time generative model for social network evolution that inherits the richness and flexibility of the class of exponential family random-graph …

ergm.userterms: A Template Package for Extending statnet

Exponential-family random graph models (ERGMs) represent a powerful and flexible class of models for the statistical analysis of networks. statnet is a suite of software packages that implement these models. This paper details how the capabilities …

Improving simulation-based algorithms for fitting ERGMs

Markov chain Monte Carlo methods can be used to approximate the intractable normalizing constants that arise in likelihood calculations for many exponential-family random graph models for networks. However, in practice, the resulting approximations …

ergm: A Package to Fit, Simulate and Diagnose Exponential-Family Models for Networks

We describe some of the capabilities of the ergm package and the statistical theory underlying it. This package contains tools for accomplishing three important, and inter-related, tasks involving exponential-family random graph models (ERGMs): …

Specification of Exponential-Family Random Graph Models: Terms and Computational Aspects

Exponential-family random graph models (ERGMs) represent the processes that govern the formation of links in networks through the terms selected by the user. The terms specify network statistics that are sufficient to represent the probability …

Generalised Linear Models Incorporating Population Level Information: An Empirical Likelihood Based Approach

In many situations information from a sample of individuals can be supplemented by population level information on the relationship between a dependent variable and explanatory variables. Inclusion of the population level information can reduce bias …

Goodness of Fit of Social Network Models

We present a systematic examination of a real network data set using maximum likelihood estimation for exponential random graph models as well as new procedures to evaluate how well the models fit the observed networks. These procedures compare …

Degree distributions in sexual networks: A framework for evaluating evidence

Objective: We present a likelihood based statistical framework to test the fit of power-law and alternative social process models for the degree distribution, and derive the sexually transmitted infection epidemic predictions from each model. Study …

Model-based Assessment of the Impact of Missing Data on Inference for Networks

Most inference using social network models assumes that the presence or absence of all relations is known. This is rarely the case. Most social network analysis ignores the problem of missing data by including only actors with complete observations. …