A note on centering in subsample selection for linear regression

Abstract: Centering is a commonly used technique in linear regression analysis. With centered data on both the responses and covariates, the ordinary least squares estimator of the slope parameter can be calculated from a model without the intercept. If a subsample is selected from a centered full data, the subsample is typically un-centered. In this case, is it still appropriate to fit a model without the intercept? The answer is yes, and we show that the least squares estimator on the slope parameter obtained from a model without the intercept is unbiased and it has a smaller variance covariance matrix in the Loewner order than that obtained from a model with the intercept. We further show that for noninformative weighted subsampling when a weighted least squares estimator is used, using the full data weighted means to relocate the subsample improves the estimation efficiency.