Tutorial on mixed effects models.

Lauri Mehtatalo
Mixed-effects models are tools to analyze grouped datasets where the
groups constitute a random sample from a population of groups. Such
datasets arise, for example, in designs with repeated measurements from
several subjects (including clinical trials), in split-plot designs, or in other
clustered datasets (such as spatially clustered trees within sample plots or
pupils in school classes). In this tutorial, mixed-effects models are used especially for two different purposes: (i) for taking into account the dependence
of observations resulting from the grouped structure of the data to enable
hypothesis testing and inference, and (ii) for prediction, especially for prediction to new groups using a small sample of calibration measurements from
the group of question and a previously fitted mixed-effects model.
We will start with linear mixed-effects models for datasets with a single
level of grouping. Extensions will be presented (i) to models with several
nested levels of grouping, (ii) to models with several crossed levels of grouping, (iii) to multivariate mixed-effects models and (iv) to nonlinear mixedeffects models. The targeted audience are statisticians working on grouped
datasets in different fields, with prior knowldge on the basics of linear models.
The planned contents for the four half-day sessions are as follows:
1. Linear mixed-effecs models for a single level of grouping. Model formulation, estimation, prediction of random effects. Examples on modeling and prediction of plot-specific height-diameter relationship of forest
trees, and large-scale meta-models on tree biomass.
2. Linear mixed-effects models for multilevel datasets. Examples on modeling tree growth ring dataset, with nested levels for observations within
trees and trees within sample plots, and crossed effects for calendar
years and trees.

3. Multivariate mixed-effects models. We formulate multivariate mixedeffects models for the modelling several response variables simultaneously. Special benefits for prediction are obtained through prediction
of random effects for all models by using measurements of only some
of the response variables. Applications are presented to modeling tree
volume, biamass and remote sensing of forests.
4. Nonlinear mixed-effects models. Nonlinear mixed-effects models are
especially justified in a situation where the subject-matter knowledge
suggests a nonlinear function for the response, or the nonlinear models
provide meaningful interpretations to the parameters. Examples are
presented on the effetc thinning of individual tree growth, and light
response of moss photosynthesis.
Tutor: Lauri Mehtatalo got his M.Sc. and D.Sc. degreees in forest
sciences at the University of Joensuu (Currently University of Eastern Finland (UEF), Joensuu Campus) in 2000 and 2004, respectively. In 2004,
he also completed his master-level non-degree studies on statistics. He has
worked as a postdoctoral researcher in Finnish Forest Research Institute and
Yale School of Forestry and Environmental studies, Senior Assistant and
Senior Researcher at the School of Forest Sciences at UEF. Since 2013, he
is Associate Professor in Applied Statistics at UEF School of Computing.
He has published over 50 paper in forest mensuration, especially in mixedeffects models, tree size distributions, and remote sensing. Since 2006, he
has teached biannually a master level course on forest biometrics to universities of Helsinki and Joensuu. He has also given three more advanced
Nordic courses on Forest Biometrics to PhD students of Forest Sciences in
the Nordic Countries. He is currently authoring a textbook Forest Biometrics
with examples in R to Taylor&Francis series Applied Environmental Statistics together with his Ph.D. supervisor Juha Lappi. This tutorial is based
on the textbook chapter drafts.
Contact: firstname.mehtatalo@uef.fi
Webpage: cs.uef.fi/ lamehtat
Textbooks
Pinheiro and Bates 2000. Mixed-effects models in S and S-Plus. Springer.
McGulloch, C.E. and Searle, S.R. and Neuhaus, 2008. Generalized,
linear and mixed models. 2nd edition, Wiley.
2

 Stroup, W. 2013. Generalized linear mixed models. Modern concepts,

methods and applications. CRC press.
Galecki and Burzykowski. Linear mixed-effects models using R : a
step-by-step approach. Springer, 2013.
Demidenko, E. Mixed Models: Theory and Applications with R, 2nd
Edition. ISBN: 978-1-118-09157-9. 754 pages. Wiley, September 2013.
My previous course material can be found at http://cs.uef.fi/~lamehtat/
documents/LME.pdf
For my publications, see http://cs.uef.fi/~lamehtat/publications.htm.