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Cited by 1,557

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 12 of the 12 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Big Data: New Tricks for Econometrics

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Varian, Hal R.·2014·Journal of Economic Perspectives

Abstract

Computers are now involved in many economic transactions and can capture data associated with these transactions, which can then be manipulated and analyzed. Conventional statistical and econometric techniques such as regression often work well, but there are issues unique to big datasets that may require different tools. First, the sheer size of the data involved may require more powerful data manipulation tools. Second, we may have more potential predictors than appropriate for estimation, so we need to do some kind of variable selection. Third, large datasets may allow for more flexible relationships than simple linear models. Machine learning techniques such as decision trees, support vector machines, neural nets, deep learning, and so on may allow for more effective ways to model complex relationships. In this essay, I will describe a few of these tools for manipulating and analyzing big data. I believe that these methods have a lot to offer and should be more widely known and used by economists.

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Metadata

Authors
Varian, H. R.
Venue
Journal of Economic Perspectives
Published
2014-05-01
Volume
28
Issue
2
Pages
3-28
ISSN
0895-3309 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2155419203
Cited by
1,557
References
12
FWCI
184.85
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
bronze

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CoChat. (2026). Citation check: Big Data: New Tricks for Econometrics. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1257/jep.28.2.3
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Varian, H. R. (2014). Big Data: New Tricks for Econometrics. Journal of Economic Perspectives. https://doi.org/10.1257/jep.28.2.3

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