Search Results
Title: Is Optimal Matching Suboptimal?
Resulting in 1 citation.
| 1. |
Hollister, Matissa |
|
Is Optimal Matching Suboptimal? Sociological Methods and Research 38,2 (November 2009): 235-264. Also: http://smr.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/38/2/235 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: Sage Publications Keyword(s): Career Patterns; Intergenerational Patterns/Transmission; Job Patterns; Occupational Status; Occupations; Work Histories Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. Optimal matching (OM) is a method for measuring the similarity between pairs of sequences (e.g., work histories). This article discusses two problems with optimal matching. First, the author identifies a flaw in OM "indel costs" and proposes a solution to this flaw. Second, the author discusses the need for benchmarks to measure the added value of OM and to test competing versions. To that end, the author conducts an empirical test of traditional OM, the alternative localized OM, and sequence comparison. The test documents the problem with traditional OM and shows that it is solved by localized OM. The test also demonstrates the value of OM and sequence comparison in examining occupational sequences; both methods capture variation beyond traditional human capital and status attainment measures, although the marginal improvements of OM over sequence comparison may not justify its computational complexity. These results point to the need for more systematic approaches to sequence analysis methods. |
|
|
Bibliography Citation
Hollister, Matissa. "Is Optimal Matching Suboptimal?" Sociological Methods and Research 38,2 (November 2009): 235-264.
|