are pooled across i as well as t. Because we do not want to lose an entire time period, the
Prais-Winsten transformation should be used for the initial time period.
Unobserved effects models containing lagged dependent variables also require IV
methods for consistent estimation. The reason is that, after differencing, y
i,t1
is corre-
lated with u
it
because y
i,t1
and u
i,t1
are correlated. We can use two or more lags of y
as IVs for y
i,t1
. (See Wooldridge [2002, Chapter 11] for details.)
Instrumental variables after differencing can be used on matched pairs samples as well.
Ashenfelter and Krueger (1994) differenced the wage equation across twins to eliminate
unobserved ability:
log(wage
2
) log(wage
1
)
0
1
(educ
2,2
educ
1,1
) (u
2
u
1
),
where educ
1,1
is years of schooling for the first twin as reported by the first twin, and
educ
2,2
is years of schooling for the second twin as reported by the second twin. To account
for possible measurement error in the self-reported schooling measures, Ashenfelter and
Krueger used (educ
2,1
educ
1,2
) as an IV for (educ
2,2
educ
1,1
), where educ
2,1
is years
of schooling for the second twin as reported by the first twin, and educ
1,2
is years of school-
ing for the first twin as reported by the second twin. The IV estimate of
1
is .167 (t
3.88), compared with the OLS estimate on the first differences of .092 (t 3.83) (see
Ashenfelter and Krueger [1994, Table 3]).
SUMMARY
In Chapter 15, we have introduced the method of instrumental variables as a way to con-
sistently estimate the parameters in a linear model when one or more explanatory vari-
ables are endogenous. An instrumental variable must have two properties: (1) it must be
exogenous, that is, uncorrelated with the error term of the structural equation; (2) it must
be partially correlated with the endogenous explanatory variable. Finding a variable with
these two properties is usually challenging.
The method of two stage least squares, which allows for more instrumental variables
than we have explanatory variables, is used routinely in the empirical social sciences.
When used properly, it can allow us to estimate ceteris paribus effects in the presence of
endogenous explanatory variables. This is true in cross-sectional, time series, and panel
data applications. But when instruments are poor—which means they are correlated with
the error term, only weakly correlated with the endogenous explanatory variable, or both—
then 2SLS can be worse than OLS.
When we have valid instrumental variables, we can test whether an explanatory vari-
able is endogenous, using the test in Section 15.5. In addition, though we can never test
whether all IVs are exogenous, we can test that at least some of them are—assuming that
we have more instruments than we need for consistent estimation (that is, the model is
overidentified). Heteroskedasticity and serial correlation can be tested for and dealt with
using methods similar to the case of models with exogenous explanatory variables.
In this chapter, we used omitted variables and measurement error to illustrate the
method of instrumental variables. IV methods are also indispensable for simultaneous
equations models, which we will cover in Chapter 16.
540 Part 3 Advanced Topics