title: A two-stage model for multiple time series data of counts.
abstract: We propose a two-stage model for time series data of counts from multiple locations. This method fits first-stage model(s) using the technique of iteratively weighted filtered least squares (IWFLS) to obtain location-specific intercepts and slopes, with possible lagged effects via polynomial distributed lag modeling. These slopes and/or intercepts are then taken to a second-stage mixed-effects meta-regression model in order to stabilize results from various locations. The representation of the models from the stages into a combined mixed-effects model, issues of inference and choices of the parameters in modeling the lag structure are discussed. We illustrate this proposed model via detailed analysis on the effect of air pollution on school absenteeism based on data from the Southern California Children's Health Study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90033-9987, USA. kiros@rcf.usc.edu
authors.forename: Kiros
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Berhane
authors.forename: Duncan C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Thomas