DoWhy: Different estimation methods for causal inference#

This is a quick introduction to the DoWhy causal inference library. We will load in a sample dataset and use different methods for estimating the causal effect of a (pre-specified)treatment variable on a (pre-specified) outcome variable.

We will see that not all estimators return the correct effect for this dataset.

First, let us add the required path for Python to find the DoWhy code and load all required packages

[1]:

%load_ext autoreload
%autoreload 2

[2]:

import numpy as np
import pandas as pd
import logging

import dowhy
dowhy.enable_notebook_rendering()
from dowhy import CausalModel
import dowhy.datasets

Now, let us load a dataset. For simplicity, we simulate a dataset with linear relationships between common causes and treatment, and common causes and outcome.

Beta is the true causal effect.

[3]:

data = dowhy.datasets.linear_dataset(beta=10,
        num_common_causes=5,
        num_instruments = 2,
        num_treatments=1,
        num_samples=10000,
        treatment_is_binary=True,
        outcome_is_binary=False,
        stddev_treatment_noise=10)
df = data["df"]
df

[3]:
Z0 Z1 W0 W1 W2 W3 W4 v0 y
0 1.0 0.695005 0.756846 -0.455658 -1.619506 0.451366 0.848583 True 14.125891
1 1.0 0.740840 0.232650 -0.197780 1.913915 2.043638 0.355326 True 19.903660
2 1.0 0.127496 1.586717 1.209487 0.395038 2.158241 0.331035 True 23.022899
3 1.0 0.622622 -0.715715 0.518765 -0.299597 0.326239 1.835002 True 17.193976
4 0.0 0.910649 0.673094 1.203447 0.017020 2.141706 -0.129277 True 16.881076
... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...
9995 1.0 0.220506 0.149088 0.449113 -0.933008 1.418868 2.553539 True 24.503816
9996 1.0 0.664848 -1.130498 0.395465 0.104016 0.805195 0.307878 True 9.779345
9997 1.0 0.012122 -1.747151 -0.754116 -0.638597 -0.284165 0.186346 True 2.518058
9998 1.0 0.633165 0.222945 0.028843 -1.036431 0.255225 1.245667 True 15.474833
9999 1.0 0.732228 -0.997667 1.812350 -0.285827 -1.184131 1.248328 True 11.654109

10000 rows × 9 columns

Note that we are using a pandas dataframe to load the data.

Identifying the causal estimand#

We now input a causal graph in the DOT graph format.

[4]:

# With graph
model=CausalModel(
        data = df,
        treatment=data["treatment_name"],
        outcome=data["outcome_name"],
        graph=data["gml_graph"],
        instruments=data["instrument_names"]
        )

[5]:

model.view_model()
../_images/example_notebooks_dowhy_estimation_methods_9_0.png 
[6]:

from IPython.display import Image, display
display(Image(filename="causal_model.png"))
../_images/example_notebooks_dowhy_estimation_methods_10_0.png

We get a causal graph. Now identification and estimation is done.

[7]:

identified_estimand = model.identify_effect(proceed_when_unidentifiable=True)
print(identified_estimand)

Estimand type: EstimandType.NONPARAMETRIC_ATE

### Estimand : 1
Estimand name: backdoor
Estimand expression:
  d
─────(E[y|W3,W4,W1,W2,W0])
d[v₀]
Estimand assumption 1, Unconfoundedness: If U→{v0} and U→y then P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0,U) = P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0)

### Estimand : 2
Estimand name: iv
Estimand expression:
 ⎡                              -1⎤
 ⎢    d        ⎛    d          ⎞  ⎥
E⎢─────────(y)⋅⎜─────────([v₀])⎟  ⎥
 ⎣d[Z₁  Z₀]    ⎝d[Z₁  Z₀]      ⎠  ⎦
Estimand assumption 1, As-if-random: If U→→y then ¬(U →→{Z1,Z0})
Estimand assumption 2, Exclusion: If we remove {Z1,Z0}→{v0}, then ¬({Z1,Z0}→y)

### Estimand : 3
Estimand name: frontdoor
No such variable(s) found!

Method 1: Regression#

Use linear regression.

[8]:

causal_estimate_reg = model.estimate_effect(identified_estimand,
        method_name="backdoor.linear_regression",
        test_significance=True)
print(causal_estimate_reg)
print("Causal Estimate is " + str(causal_estimate_reg.value))

*** Causal Estimate ***

## Identified estimand
Estimand type: EstimandType.NONPARAMETRIC_ATE

### Estimand : 1
Estimand name: backdoor
Estimand expression:
  d
─────(E[y|W3,W4,W1,W2,W0])
d[v₀]
Estimand assumption 1, Unconfoundedness: If U→{v0} and U→y then P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0,U) = P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0)

## Realized estimand
b: y~v0+W3+W4+W1+W2+W0
Target units: ate

## Estimate
Mean value: 9.999583028222927
p-value: 0.0

Causal Estimate is 9.999583028222927

Method 2: Distance Matching#

Define a distance metric and then use the metric to match closest points between treatment and control.

[9]:

causal_estimate_dmatch = model.estimate_effect(identified_estimand,
                                              method_name="backdoor.distance_matching",
                                              target_units="att",
                                              method_params={'distance_metric':"minkowski", 'p':2})
print(causal_estimate_dmatch)
print("Causal Estimate is " + str(causal_estimate_dmatch.value))

*** Causal Estimate ***

## Identified estimand
Estimand type: EstimandType.NONPARAMETRIC_ATE

### Estimand : 1
Estimand name: backdoor
Estimand expression:
  d
─────(E[y|W3,W4,W1,W2,W0])
d[v₀]
Estimand assumption 1, Unconfoundedness: If U→{v0} and U→y then P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0,U) = P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0)

## Realized estimand
b: y~v0+W3+W4+W1+W2+W0
Target units: att

## Estimate
Mean value: 11.545873176311312

Causal Estimate is 11.545873176311312

Method 3: Propensity Score Stratification#

We will be using propensity scores to stratify units in the data.

[10]:

causal_estimate_strat = model.estimate_effect(identified_estimand,
                                              method_name="backdoor.propensity_score_stratification",
                                              target_units="att")
print(causal_estimate_strat)
print("Causal Estimate is " + str(causal_estimate_strat.value))

*** Causal Estimate ***

## Identified estimand
Estimand type: EstimandType.NONPARAMETRIC_ATE

### Estimand : 1
Estimand name: backdoor
Estimand expression:
  d
─────(E[y|W3,W4,W1,W2,W0])
d[v₀]
Estimand assumption 1, Unconfoundedness: If U→{v0} and U→y then P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0,U) = P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0)

## Realized estimand
b: y~v0+W3+W4+W1+W2+W0
Target units: att

## Estimate
Mean value: 9.938170159455044

Causal Estimate is 9.938170159455044

Method 4: Propensity Score Matching#

We will be using propensity scores to match units in the data.

[11]:

causal_estimate_match = model.estimate_effect(identified_estimand,
                                              method_name="backdoor.propensity_score_matching",
                                              target_units="atc")
print(causal_estimate_match)
print("Causal Estimate is " + str(causal_estimate_match.value))

*** Causal Estimate ***

## Identified estimand
Estimand type: EstimandType.NONPARAMETRIC_ATE

### Estimand : 1
Estimand name: backdoor
Estimand expression:
  d
─────(E[y|W3,W4,W1,W2,W0])
d[v₀]
Estimand assumption 1, Unconfoundedness: If U→{v0} and U→y then P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0,U) = P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0)

## Realized estimand
b: y~v0+W3+W4+W1+W2+W0
Target units: atc

## Estimate
Mean value: 9.94243375933713

Causal Estimate is 9.94243375933713

Method 5: Weighting#

We will be using (inverse) propensity scores to assign weights to units in the data. DoWhy supports a few different weighting schemes:

  1. Vanilla Inverse Propensity Score weighting (IPS) (weighting_scheme=”ips_weight”)

  2. Self-normalized IPS weighting (also known as the Hajek estimator) (weighting_scheme=”ips_normalized_weight”)

  3. Stabilized IPS weighting (weighting_scheme = “ips_stabilized_weight”)

[12]:

causal_estimate_ipw = model.estimate_effect(identified_estimand,
                                            method_name="backdoor.propensity_score_weighting",
                                            target_units = "ate",
                                            method_params={"weighting_scheme":"ips_weight"})
print(causal_estimate_ipw)
print("Causal Estimate is " + str(causal_estimate_ipw.value))

*** Causal Estimate ***

## Identified estimand
Estimand type: EstimandType.NONPARAMETRIC_ATE

### Estimand : 1
Estimand name: backdoor
Estimand expression:
  d
─────(E[y|W3,W4,W1,W2,W0])
d[v₀]
Estimand assumption 1, Unconfoundedness: If U→{v0} and U→y then P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0,U) = P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0)

## Realized estimand
b: y~v0+W3+W4+W1+W2+W0
Target units: ate

## Estimate
Mean value: 13.720722963642809

Causal Estimate is 13.720722963642809

Method 6: Instrumental Variable#

We will be using the Wald estimator for the provided instrumental variable.

[13]:

causal_estimate_iv = model.estimate_effect(identified_estimand,
        method_name="iv.instrumental_variable", method_params = {'iv_instrument_name': 'Z0'})
print(causal_estimate_iv)
print("Causal Estimate is " + str(causal_estimate_iv.value))

*** Causal Estimate ***

## Identified estimand
Estimand type: EstimandType.NONPARAMETRIC_ATE

### Estimand : 1
Estimand name: iv
Estimand expression:
 ⎡                              -1⎤
 ⎢    d        ⎛    d          ⎞  ⎥
E⎢─────────(y)⋅⎜─────────([v₀])⎟  ⎥
 ⎣d[Z₁  Z₀]    ⎝d[Z₁  Z₀]      ⎠  ⎦
Estimand assumption 1, As-if-random: If U→→y then ¬(U →→{Z1,Z0})
Estimand assumption 2, Exclusion: If we remove {Z1,Z0}→{v0}, then ¬({Z1,Z0}→y)

## Realized estimand
Realized estimand: Wald Estimator
Realized estimand type: EstimandType.NONPARAMETRIC_ATE
Estimand expression:
 ⎡ d    ⎤
E⎢───(y)⎥
 ⎣dZ₀   ⎦
──────────
 ⎡ d     ⎤
E⎢───(v₀)⎥
 ⎣dZ₀    ⎦
Estimand assumption 1, As-if-random: If U→→y then ¬(U →→{Z1,Z0})
Estimand assumption 2, Exclusion: If we remove {Z1,Z0}→{v0}, then ¬({Z1,Z0}→y)
Estimand assumption 3, treatment_effect_homogeneity: Each unit's treatment ['v0'] is affected in the same way by common causes of ['v0'] and ['y']
Estimand assumption 4, outcome_effect_homogeneity: Each unit's outcome ['y'] is affected in the same way by common causes of ['v0'] and ['y']

Target units: ate

## Estimate
Mean value: 11.170824597093981

Causal Estimate is 11.170824597093981

Method 7: Regression Discontinuity#

We will be internally converting this to an equivalent instrumental variables problem.

[14]:

causal_estimate_regdist = model.estimate_effect(identified_estimand,
        method_name="iv.regression_discontinuity",
        method_params={'rd_variable_name':'Z1',
                       'rd_threshold_value':0.5,
                       'rd_bandwidth': 0.15})
print(causal_estimate_regdist)
print("Causal Estimate is " + str(causal_estimate_regdist.value))

*** Causal Estimate ***

## Identified estimand
Estimand type: EstimandType.NONPARAMETRIC_ATE

### Estimand : 1
Estimand name: iv
Estimand expression:
 ⎡                              -1⎤
 ⎢    d        ⎛    d          ⎞  ⎥
E⎢─────────(y)⋅⎜─────────([v₀])⎟  ⎥
 ⎣d[Z₁  Z₀]    ⎝d[Z₁  Z₀]      ⎠  ⎦
Estimand assumption 1, As-if-random: If U→→y then ¬(U →→{Z1,Z0})
Estimand assumption 2, Exclusion: If we remove {Z1,Z0}→{v0}, then ¬({Z1,Z0}→y)

## Realized estimand
Realized estimand: Wald Estimator
Realized estimand type: EstimandType.NONPARAMETRIC_ATE
Estimand expression:
 ⎡        d            ⎤
E⎢──────────────────(y)⎥
 ⎣dlocal_rd_variable   ⎦
─────────────────────────
 ⎡        d             ⎤
E⎢──────────────────(v₀)⎥
 ⎣dlocal_rd_variable    ⎦
Estimand assumption 1, As-if-random: If U→→y then ¬(U →→{Z1,Z0})
Estimand assumption 2, Exclusion: If we remove {Z1,Z0}→{v0}, then ¬({Z1,Z0}→y)
Estimand assumption 3, treatment_effect_homogeneity: Each unit's treatment ['v0'] is affected in the same way by common causes of ['v0'] and ['y']
Estimand assumption 4, outcome_effect_homogeneity: Each unit's outcome ['y'] is affected in the same way by common causes of ['v0'] and ['y']

Target units: ate

## Estimate
Mean value: 24.835706985410255

Causal Estimate is 24.835706985410255

Method 8: Doubly Robust Estimator#

Combines a regression estimator and a propensity score estimator to give back a doubly robust estimate.

[15]:

causal_estimate_doubly_robust = model.estimate_effect(identified_estimand,
        method_name="backdoor.doubly_robust",
        method_params={'propensity_score_column':'propensity_score_dr'}
    )
print(causal_estimate_doubly_robust)
print("Causal Estimate is " + str(causal_estimate_doubly_robust.value))

*** Causal Estimate ***

## Identified estimand
Estimand type: EstimandType.NONPARAMETRIC_ATE

### Estimand : 1
Estimand name: backdoor
Estimand expression:
  d
─────(E[y|W3,W4,W1,W2,W0])
d[v₀]
Estimand assumption 1, Unconfoundedness: If U→{v0} and U→y then P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0,U) = P(y|v0,W3,W4,W1,W2,W0)

## Realized estimand
b: y~v0+W3+W4+W1+W2+W0
Target units: ate

## Estimate
Mean value: 9.999731553249543

Causal Estimate is 9.999731553249543

[ ]: