GAMs

Mrs. Young | July 17, 2025

This method also belongs to Adjusted methods (Backdoor C.).

Table of Contents

  1. Description & principle
  2. Reference articles
  3. Packages
  4. Assessment table

Description & principle

A clear, technical yet accessible explanation of the method, its core principle(s).

Major variants

optional

If the method has variants that seem important, either already widespread or promising and well documented.

Further online resources

References to useful online resources to get started, e.g. explanation blogs

Reference articles

Method

  • One or a few key academic references that introduce or formalize the method.

Research applications

With RS data in Ecology / Biodiversity

  • A

Without RS data (Ecology domain)

optional

  • B

Packages

Python

R

Code Cells

optional

Assessment table

CategoryCriteriaAssessment
OutcomeObjectiveEffect estimation, Predictive task + interpretability, Detection
 EstimandATT, ATE, CATE, Maps & generalisations
 ValidityVarying
Data compatibilityTypeSpatial only (cross-sectional), Time-series (one sample), Panel data (many samples)
 Required TS lengthHandles ≤ 10
 Handles few samplesYes ≤ 10
 Handles huge datasets (n)Most do
 Handles missing dataNo: requires prelim. correction
 RS-data provenFew applications
AssumptionsFunctional formAdditivity, Assumption-free
 No unobserved confoundersRequired
 No interferenceRequired
 Well-defined treatmentsRequired
 Common support (positivity)Recommended
 Causal Markov ConditionRecommended
 FaithfulnessRequired
 IDDRequired
 Model specific assumptionNo specific
Model propertiesRequires explicit processesAgnostic
 Exposure typeContinuous / Time-varying, Categorical, Binary
 Number of variablesMultivariate
 Handles lag effectsPossible
 Propagates uncertaintyModel-specific tools
 Parametric natureSemi-parametric
PackagesLanguageR, Python, Others
 UsageUser-friendly, Technical but well documented

References