Faculty Profile
One of the many rising stars of the KU Economics Department faculty, Dr. Shahnaz Parsaeian, came to Lawrence in 2020 after receiving her Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California, Riverside. A specialist in econometrics widely published in a number of top-tier field journals, Dr. Parsaeian’s research develops new econometric methods for working with large and complex economic datasets in which information is observed at different frequencies.
Her recent paper, “Mixed Frequency Panel Regressions with Sparse and Heterogeneous Structures,” introduces a framework that can identify which high frequency predictors are most informative while also uncovering meaningful differences across units in the data. Rather than assuming that all units respond to economic conditions in the same way, the method allows units with similar relationships to form latent groups, with common patterns within each group but different patterns across groups. Importantly, neither the number of groups nor which units belong to each group needs to be specified in advance; the method learns this structure directly from the data. At the same time, it identifies the most relevant predictors and their high frequency information. She applies the approach to U.S. metropolitan housing markets, combining economic, labor market, and financial information observed at different frequencies to improve nowcasting of local house price movements.
More broadly, Dr. Parsaeian’s work focuses on econometrics and forecasting, with particular emphasis on developing methods that capture changes and heterogeneity in economic relationships. Her earlier work has examined structural breaks and time varying parameters, allowing economic relationships to change over time rather than remain fixed. This is particularly important in economics, given that major shocks such as recessions, financial crises, pandemics, and significant policy changes can alter relationships that may have appeared stable in the past. Her current research extends this broader agenda by studying heterogeneity across economic units and developing methods that can uncover differences in their underlying relationships directly from the data.
The Director of Undergraduate Studies for the Department, Dr. Parsaeian is teaching both undergraduate and graduate level econometrics courses this fall (ECON 526 and ECON 818). She also continues to serve as a member of George Washington University’s prestigious H.O. Stekler Research Program on Forecasting.