Measuring association between two categorical variables: revisiting risk ratio and odds ratio
Article
Article Title | Measuring association between two categorical variables: revisiting risk ratio and odds ratio |
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Article Category | Article |
Authors | Khan, Shahjahan (Author) and Memon, Muhammad Ashraf (Author) |
Journal Title | International Journal of Statistical Sciences |
Journal Citation | 20 (2), pp. 153-170 |
Number of Pages | 18 |
Year | 2020 |
Place of Publication | Rajshahi, Bangladesh |
Web Address (URL) | http://www.ru.ac.bd/stat/volume-202/ |
Abstract | In many statistical analyses the relative risk or risk ratio (RR) and odds ratio (OR) are two commonly used measures of association between two categorical variables. The risk, and hence the RR, are defined in terms of probability. However, neither odds nor OR is defined in probabilistic term. Although the two ratios share similar mathematical structure, they are not the same. In reality, they are very different and hence should not be used as synonymous or interchangeably. Many epidemiological literatures inappropriately interpret OR as risk (cf. Chen (2010)). The main reasons for this confusion may be due to the fact that both represent `likelihood’ of events and that OR and RR share the same numerator, ignoring the other fact that they are measured in different scales (denominators). This paper identifies the differences between the two measures by exploiting their basic definitions, methods of computations, and interpretations of results. |
Keywords | categorical outcomes; risk and odds; risk ratio; odds ratio; logistic regression |
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020 | 490506. Probability theory |
Public Notes | © 2020 Dept. of Statistics, Univ. of Rajshahi, Bangladesh. |
Byline Affiliations | School of Sciences |
Institution of Origin | University of Southern Queensland |
https://research.usq.edu.au/item/q60y7/measuring-association-between-two-categorical-variables-revisiting-risk-ratio-and-odds-ratio
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