Book Image

Causal Inference and Discovery in Python

By : Aleksander Molak
4.7 (9)
Book Image

Causal Inference and Discovery in Python

4.7 (9)
By: Aleksander Molak

Overview of this book

Causal methods present unique challenges compared to traditional machine learning and statistics. Learning causality can be challenging, but it offers distinct advantages that elude a purely statistical mindset. Causal Inference and Discovery in Python helps you unlock the potential of causality. You’ll start with basic motivations behind causal thinking and a comprehensive introduction to Pearlian causal concepts, such as structural causal models, interventions, counterfactuals, and more. Each concept is accompanied by a theoretical explanation and a set of practical exercises with Python code. Next, you’ll dive into the world of causal effect estimation, consistently progressing towards modern machine learning methods. Step-by-step, you’ll discover Python causal ecosystem and harness the power of cutting-edge algorithms. You’ll further explore the mechanics of how “causes leave traces” and compare the main families of causal discovery algorithms. The final chapter gives you a broad outlook into the future of causal AI where we examine challenges and opportunities and provide you with a comprehensive list of resources to learn more. By the end of this book, you will be able to build your own models for causal inference and discovery using statistical and machine learning techniques as well as perform basic project assessment.
Table of Contents (21 chapters)
1
Part 1: Causality – an Introduction
7
Part 2: Causal Inference
14
Part 3: Causal Discovery

Should we always control for all available covariates?

Multiple regression provides scientists and analysts with a tool to perform statistical control – a procedure to remove unwanted influence from certain variables in the model. In this section, we’ll discuss different perspectives on statistical control and build an intuition as to why statistical control can easily lead us astray.

Let’s start with an example. When studying predictors of dyslexia, you might be interested in understanding whether parents smoking influences the risk of dyslexia in their children. In your model, you might want to control for parental education. Parental education might affect how much attention parents devote to their children’s reading and writing, and this in turn can impact children’s skills and other characteristics. At the same time, education level might decrease the probability of smoking, potentially leading to confounding. But how do we actually know whether...