Do blondes raise more funds? Refer to the Economic Letters (Vol. 100, 2008) study of whether the color of a female solicitor’s hair affects the level of capital raised, Exercise 12.88 (p. 731). Recall that 955 households were contacted by a female solicitor to raise funds for hazard mitigation research. In addition to the household’s level of contribution (in dollars) and the hair color of the solicitor

(blonde Caucasian, brunette Caucasian, or minority female), the researcher also recorded the beauty rating of the solicitor (measured quantitatively on a 10-point scale).

a. Write a first-order model (with no interaction) for mean contribution level, E(y), as a function of a solicitor’s hair color and her beauty rating.

b. Refer to the model, part

a. For each hair color, express the change in contribution level for each 1-point increase in solicitor’s beauty rating in terms of the model parameters.

c. Write an interaction model for mean contribution level, E(y), as a function of a solicitor’s hair color and her beauty rating.

d. Refer to the model, part

c. For each hair color, express the change in contribution level for each 1-point increase in solicitor’s beauty rating in terms of the model parameters.

e. Refer to the model, part

c. Illustrate the interaction with a graph.