Bayes binomial sampling by attributes with a general-beta prior distribution

摘要

In binomial sampling the standard beta is frequently used as a prior due to its conjugate property for a sample from a Bernoulli distribution. This article looks into the case when this prior is a general beta. Practical advantages in the elicitation of expert opinion (to obtain the prior) and a convenient expression of the posterior are presented. A computer program (in double precision) on an IBM-PC (or compatible) permits the simple use of the general beta. This program was used to solve the numerical examples, showing the advantages of using the general beta as a prior.