# A unified analysis of likelihood-based estimators in the Plackett--Luce model

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.02821 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2306.02821/

## Key facts

- Cited by 9 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 5 Jun 2023.

## Built on by (most cited first, 9 of 9)

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- [Statistical inference for pairwise comparison models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2401.08463/) (2024)
- [Convergence analysis of a family of Zermelo-type iterations for the Bradley--Terry model](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2607.22221/) (2026)
- [Random pairing MLE for estimation of item parameters in Rasch model](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.13989/) (2024)
- [Population-Level Generative Modeling for Ranking Data](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2608.08422/) (2026)
- [Bradley-Terry model under general comparison graphs](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2610.06237/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

The Plackett--Luce model has been extensively used for rank aggregation in social choice theory. A central statistical question in this model concerns estimating the utility vector that governs the model's likelihood. In this paper, we investigate the asymptotic theory of utility vector estimation by maximizing different types of likelihood, such as full, marginal, and quasi-likelihood. Starting from interpreting the estimating equations of these estimators to gain some initial insights, we analyze their asymptotic behavior as the number of compared objects increases. In particular, we establish both uniform consistency and asymptotic normality of these estimators and discuss the trade-off between statistical efficiency and computational complexity. For generality, our results are proven for deterministic graph sequences under appropriate graph topology conditions. These conditions are shown to be informative when applied to common sampling scenarios, such as nonuniform random hypergraph models and hypergraph stochastic block models. Numerical results are provided to support our findings.