Comparing Two Statistical Models for Low Boom Dose-response Relationships with Correlated Responses

This study compares two statistical modeling approaches to construct summary dose-response curves for low boom community noise surveys. NASA field survey data were used that consist of multiple responses from a survey participant. These data require an approach that accounts for the correlation among repeated annoyance observations from the same participant. A multilevel model accounts for the correlation by allowing estimated parameters to vary with each survey participant. On the other hand, a population average model utilizes generalized estimating equations and accounts for the correlation via a user-specified within-subject correlation structure. A visual comparison of the dose-response curves for these two methods reveals similar results. When comparing specific points along the summary curves, the multilevel model yields more precise confidence bounds than the population average model. The similarity between the summary curves derived from each model lends validity to both approaches for approximating a population representative summary curve.