Solved – How to back-transform negative Beta coefficients of linear regression after log transformation

back-transformationregression

For a linear regression model, I have had to perform a natural log transformation of a response variable due to non-normal distribution in R. I am in the process of back-transforming the coefficients, which seems simple enough. However, some of my independent variables have a negative Beta associated with them. If I back-transform these Beta with an exponential function, as I would after a log transformation, these negative Beta would become positive. In order to retain the negative relationship, would I just add a negative sign to the back-transformed Beta? Thank you in advance.

Best Answer

You don't just exponentiate the parameter when you back-transform (even when it's positive).

You still have a decreasing relationship after exponentiation.

e.g. if you fit a model like $\log(Y) = \beta_0+\beta_1x+\epsilon$ then you will have a fitted relationship on the log scale like $\widehat{\log(Y)} = \widehat{\beta_0}+\widehat{\beta_1}x$. Then

\begin{eqnarray} e^\widehat{\log(Y)} &=& e^{\widehat{\beta_0}+\widehat{\beta_1}x}\\ &=& e^{\widehat{\beta_0}}\,e^{\widehat{\beta_1}x}\\ &=& B_0\,e^{\widehat{\beta_1}x} \end{eqnarray}

What does this relationship look like when $\widehat{\beta_1}$ is negative? It's a decreasing function of $x$.

plot of an example exponential fit with negative coefficient on x

Be warned however; if you just exponentiate a least squares fit on the log scale, you don't have a mean any more after transforming back.