Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 January 2017
The symposium develops statistical models and methods for the study of path dependence. In this introductory essay, the connections between key areas in the path dependence and statistical literatures are illuminated. And some ways in which familiar time series and regression models embody these ideas are explained. The arguments in the articles in the symposium then are summarized and compared. Finally, directions for additional, statistically grounded research on path dependence are discussed.
Authors' note: Introduction to articles originally presented at a Conference on Path Dependence, sponsored by the Society for Political Methodology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, June 4 and 5, 2010. We thank the Society and the National Science Foundation for their assistance, the reviewers of the individual papers for their valuable contribution, and Michael Alvarez and Jonathan Katz for their interest in and support of this project. We also thank Aya Kachi and Kenneth Kollman for comments specific to this essay.