5

I am using the code below to fit a gamma GAMM introducing a variance structure that informs the model that variance of the response variable is much larger in one of the levels of the factor coast than in the other. I am using the gamma distribution to ensure strictly positive fitted values, but I am getting the following error message: 

model <- gamm(abundance ~ s(exposure)+s(depth), 
           random = list(coast =~ 1), 
           family=Gamma(link="log"),
           weights = varIdent(form =~ 1|coast),
           data=census, method="REML")

Error in gamm(abundance ~ s(exposure) + s(depth), random = list(coast = ~1),  : 
  weights must be like glm weights for generalized case

I am assuming the syntax to specify the variance structure needs to change, but I don't know how. Does anyone out there know how to improve this code to avoid the error message?

Very grateful!

Sandy
  • 91
  • 4

1 Answers1

5

Your error message "weights must be like glm weights for generalized case" is saying that if you choose to use Gamm() with a generalized case (which means: using a non-Gaussian probability distribution such as Gamma) then the weights argument should be specified as it would be for GlmmPQL().

The explanation is that GAMM is essentially a wrapper function and depending on how it is used it may utilize the functions nlme() or GlmmPQL(). If you specify a Gaussian distribution for your model then GAMM makes a call directly to nlme() by default. With this default method the weights argument specifies a gls variance structure, because that is what nlme() does (read ?nlme and the weights argument).

If you switch to a generalized distribution (eg, gamma, beta, poisson) GAMM calls to GlmmPQL(), which does have a weights argument but it entirely different (read ?GlmmPQL and the weights argument).

Thus, as far as I know you cannot access gls weights through gamm with a non-Gaussian distribution. If I am mistaken, please somebody correct this.

Ira S
  • 510
  • 6
  • 15