Alcohol consumption by men in China: A non-Gaussian censored system approach

Steven T. Yen, Yan Yuan and Xiaowen Liu

China Economic Review, 2009, vol. 20, issue 2, 162-173

Abstract: Consumption of beer, wine and spirits by men in China is investigated, using data from the 2006 China Health and Nutrition Survey. Censoring of consumption levels is accommodated by estimating a censored equation system, using quasi maximum-likelihood and copula methods which allow the specification of non-Gaussian error distributions. Findings suggest that a misspecified error distribution can obscure the effects of explanatory variables on alcohol consumption. The procedure produces very different empirical estimates from a more conventional (Gaussian) estimator. Income does not affect alcohol consumption, with socio-demographic factors such as education, employment, and marital status playing more definitive roles. Regional differences are also found.

Keywords: Alcohol; Censoring; Copula; Generalized; log-Burr; distribution; Quasi; maximum; likelihood (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:chieco:v:20:y:2009:i:2:p:162-173

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