Discrete Approximations of Probability Distributions
- 1 March 1983
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS) in Management Science
- Vol. 29 (3) , 352-362
- https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.29.3.352
Abstract
Practical limits on the size of most probabilistic models require that probability distributions be approximated by a few representative values and associated probabilities. This paper demonstrates that methods commonly used to determine discrete approximations of probability distributions systematically underestimate the moments of the original distribution. A new procedure based on gaussian quadrature is developed in this paper. It can be used to decrease the error in the approximation to any desired level.decision analysis, approximations, approximate probability distributionsThis publication has 1 reference indexed in Scilit:
- Numerical Methods for Scientists and Engineers.Journal of the Royal Statistical Society. Series A (General), 1962