The E-MS Algorithm: Model Selection With Incomplete Data

The idea extends the concept of parameters to include both the model and the parameters under the model, and thus allows the model to be part of the E-M iterations. We develop the procedure, known as the E-MS algorithm, under the assumption that the class of candidate models is finite.

Some special cases of the procedure are considered, including E-MS with the generalized information criteria (GIC), and E-MS with the adaptive fence (AF; Jiang et al.). We prove numerical convergence of the E-MS algorithm as well as consistency in model selection of the limiting model of the E-MS convergence, for E-MS with GIC and E-MS with AF. We study the impact on model selection of different missing data mechanisms.