MIXNO: a computer program for mixed-effects nominal logistic regression

Abstract

MIXNO provides maximum marginal likelihood estimates for mixed-effects nominal logistic regression analysis. These models can be used for analysis of correlated nominal response data, for example, data arising from a clustered or longitudinal design. For such data, the mixed-effects model assumes that data within clusters or sub jects are dependent. The degree of dependency is jointly estimated with the usual model parameters, thus adjusting for dependence resulting from nesting of the data. MIXNO uses marginal maximum likelihood estimation, utilizing a Fisher-scoring solution. For the scoring solution, the Cholesky factor of the random-effects variance-covariance matrix is estimated along with the (fixed) effects of explanatory variables. Examples illustrating usage and features of MIXNO are provided.