Lorentz Hyperbolic Weighted Regression: Theory for Fixed and Estimated Representations
Many applications provide each observation with a meaningful representation in addition to an ordinary response and covariates. When that representation is hierarchical, hub-periphery structured, or network derived, Euclidean or geographic proximity may define the wrong peer groups. We present Lorentz hyperbolic weighted regression (LHWR) as a practical local regression method for this setting. Responses and predictors remain real valued; only locality is defined by distances between observations represented on the Lorentz model of hyperbolic space. We describe coordinate construction, adaptive bandwidth selection, prediction, local coefficient summaries, collinearity checks, and residual autocorrelation diagnostics. Theoretical results explain consistency, bias-variance tradeoffs, curvature effects, and the extra uncertainty caused by estimated representations. Simulations show that the Lorentz geometry is most useful for sharply localized coefficient surfaces, whereas tangent-plane approximations can be competitive for smooth surfaces. In a 141-country World Development Indicators illustration, economic similarity based on income and trade openness defines local peer groups. Representation-based locality predicts GDP growth better than global least squares and geographically weighted regression, although differences among Lorentz, Poincare, and tangent metrics are modest. The main practical lesson is that the representation should be chosen scientifically and the distance geometry should be checked rather than assumed.