Estimating attributable response as a function of a continuous risk factor
The problem of estimating the number of binary responses that can be attributed to high levels of a continuous covariate is studied. The distribution of the covariate in the population is combined with the relative odds of response to produce a function, areas under which represent numbers of responses attributable to covariate values in that range. A combination of parametric and nonparametric smoothing is proposed. Consistent estimates of variance are developed as well as…