Functional SAC model: With application to spatial econometrics

Abstract: Spatial autoregressive combined (SAC) model has been widely studied in the literature for the analysis of spatial data in various areas such as geography, economics, demography, regional sciences. This is a linear model with scalar response, scalar explanatory variables and which allows for spatial interactions in the dependent variable and the disturbances. In this work we extend this modeling approach from scalar to functional covariate. The parameters of the model are estimated via the maximum likelihood estimation method. A simulation study is conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed methodology. As an illustration, the model is used to establish the relationship between unemployment and illiteracy in Senegal.