Ecological-Inference Models

Ecological-inference models are statistical tools used to draw conclusions about individual behaviors or characteristics based on group-level data. For example, when researchers look at voting patterns in a neighborhood, they may see that a majority vote for one candidate. However, this doesn't reveal how each person voted individually. Ecological inference helps estimate those individual voting behaviors by analyzing patterns and relationships within the group data. These models are particularly useful in fields like sociology and political science, where understanding individual actions from aggregate data is essential.