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Is there a difference between a "surrogate metric" a "proxy metric" or a "correlated metric"? Is "surrogate" simply unnecessary jargon, or is there a meaning that makes it more specific than when saying "proxy" or "correlated"?

Harry M
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  • Jargon is terminology you don’t like, don’t recognize or didn’t invent. – Nick Cox May 02 '19 at 20:25
  • I realize there is some subjectivity to this, but to the uninitiated layperson, something like "proxy" or "leading indicator" seems much evocative and is a more commonly used word generally (can be seen in ngrams word usage graphs). "Surrogate" also has another primary meaning, as used in "surrogate mother" to which "surrogate statistic" is not related, which can be confusing. – Harry M May 02 '19 at 21:30
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    I don’t claim to have access to an uninitiated layperson. My impression that the words proxy and surrogate about equally familiar or conversely technical. – Nick Cox May 02 '19 at 22:41
  • I have had discussions within my circle who does not have an econ/stats background and proxy metric was much more intuitive for all of them. Selection bias perhaps – Harry M May 03 '19 at 01:43
  • Interesting. That's one convenience sample. My own sample is no more than personal impressions from reading eclectically and capriciously here and there. I am a geographer. FWIW, whenever I read "Intuitive" I translate as "familiar" and it usually works. – Nick Cox May 03 '19 at 07:08
  • The use of "surrogate" in "surrogate mother" is actually totally related. It roughly means "acting in the place of the original", which is both what a surrogate mother and surrogate measure do. Wiktionary [defines](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/surrogate) "surrogate" it to mean "substitute", which perfectly captures its use in "surrogate mother" and "surrogate measure". – Noah May 03 '19 at 13:24

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In most contexts I can think of surrogate and proxy are mutually interchangeable. These terms are widely used in cases when the original phenomenon is difficult to measure, and thus refer to a (claimed to be) very close, but easier to measure substitute that is used instead.

In limited contexts correlated can be used as well, but there's a difference in the intention. A correlated measure could be used as a proxy/surrogate, but if it is not, then it is just (possibly one of many) correlated measures.

I wouldn't say that surrogate is "less necessary jargon" than proxy, it's just that the different vocabulary originate from different scientific communities that might have adopted the approach independently of each-other.

mapto
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    Sometimes the proxy is a little hard to spot because it is so familiar. Length of mercury thread in a thermometer is one favourite example. – Nick Cox May 02 '19 at 20:24