Doubly Robust Proximal Causal Inference under Confounded Outcome-Dependent Sampling

TL;DR

This paper introduces a doubly robust method for causal inference under outcome-dependent sampling that accounts for unmeasured confounding and selection bias, improving robustness over previous approaches.

Contribution

It develops a doubly robust estimator leveraging two confounding bridge functions, ensuring consistency if either is correctly specified, under an odds ratio model.

Findings

The estimator performs well in simulations, effectively addressing confounding and selection bias.

It provides valid confidence intervals across various scenarios where standard methods fail.

The approach enhances robustness compared to existing proximal causal inference methods.

Abstract

Unmeasured confounding and selection bias are often of concern in observational studies and may invalidate a causal analysis if not appropriately accounted for. Under outcome-dependent sampling, a latent factor that has causal effects on the treatment, outcome, and sample selection process may cause both unmeasured confounding and selection bias, rendering standard causal parameters unidentifiable without additional assumptions. Under an odds ratio model for the treatment effect, Li et al. 2022 established both proximal identification and estimation of causal effects by leveraging a pair of negative control variables as proxies of latent factors at the source of both confounding and selection bias. However, their approach relies exclusively on the existence and correct specification of a so-called treatment confounding bridge function, a model that restricts the treatment assignment mechanism. In this article, we propose doubly robust estimation under the odds ratio model with respect to two nuisance functions -- a treatment confounding bridge function and an outcome confounding bridge function that restricts the outcome law, such that our estimator is consistent and asymptotically normal if either bridge function model is correctly specified, without knowing which one is. Thus, our proposed doubly robust estimator is potentially more robust than that of Li et al. 2022. Our simulations confirm that the proposed proximal estimators of an odds ratio causal effect can adequately account for both residual confounding and selection bias under stated conditions with well-calibrated confidence intervals in a wide range of scenarios, where standard methods generally fail to be consistent. In addition, the proposed doubly robust estimator is consistent if at least one confounding bridge function is correctly specified.