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Table 1 Characteristics of Variable Selection Methods in 287 Articles

From: A survey of variable selection methods in two Chinese epidemiology journals

Category

Frequency

Percent

A: Select via bivariate associations

18

6

B: Select via multivariable model

74

26

   † Stepwise

34

46

   † Significance testing of individual regression coefficients

33

45

   † Unspecified

7

9

C: Screen by bivariate associations then select via multivariable model

85

30

   † Stepwise

38

45

   † Significance testing of individual regression coefficients

28

33

   † Unspecified

19

22

D: Select via bivariate associations or multivariable model

60

21

   † Stepwise

25

42

   † Significance testing of individual regression coefficients

28

47

   † Unspecified

7

11

E: Select using other criteria

50

17

   Prior knowledge or personal judgment

45

90

   Tree model

4

5

   Factor analysis followed by stepwise regression

1

2

  1. †Variable selection method employed in multivariable model