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The importance of flexible hazard functions in the analysis of organizational survival data -- experiences from a cohort of Swedish commercial banks

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Abstract

The survival pattern of Swedish commercial banks during the period 1830--1990 is studied by parametric and non-parametric event-history methods. In particular we study the sensitivity of the conclusions reached with respect to the model used. It is found that the hazard is inversely U-shaped, which means that models that cannot allow for this type of hazard run into difficulties. Thus two of the most popular approaches in the analysis of event history data, the Gompertz and the Weibull models produce misleading results regarding the development of the death risk of banks over time. As regards the effect of explanatory variables on survival, on the other hand, most models are found to be robust and even in cases of misspecified baseline hazards, the estimated effects of the explanatory variables do not seem to be seriously wrong.

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Bergstro¨m, R., Engvall, L. & Wallerstedt, E. The importance of flexible hazard functions in the analysis of organizational survival data -- experiences from a cohort of Swedish commercial banks. Quality & Quantity 31, 15–35 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004290505710

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