An Examination of Male and Female Monthly Employment Rates over Time in Canada and the United States Using Hidden Markov Probability Models

摘要

In this paper, we will illustrate the use and power of Hidden Markov models in analyzing multivariate data over time. The data used in this study was obtained from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD. Stat database url: https://stats.oecd.org/) and encompasse d monthly data on the employment rate of males and females in Canada and the United States (aged 15 years and over; seasonally adjusted from January 1995 to July 2018) . Two different underlying patterns of trends in employment over the 23 year s observation period were uncovered.