Published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 April 2015
One of the fundamental problems in applied econometric work is the choice of functional form. Economic theory is insufficient in suggesting the functional forms appropriate to the specification of economic relationships. Conventionally, the functional form of the regression equation is assumed a priori and parameter estimates are obtained according to certain desirable criteria, such as least squares. A wide variety of functional forms have been investigated empirically with respect to the demand function for food, yet no single functional form has been generally accepted among economists [2, 6, 7].