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Bayesian Inference


Bayesian inference is the process of using a Bayesian model to draw conclusions about an unknown parameter or unobserved data. Given observed data x, a likelihood function p(x|theta), and a prior distribution with density pi(theta), Bayes' theorem gives the posterior distribution with density

 p(theta|x)=(p(x|theta)pi(theta))/(intp(x|u)pi(u)du).

For a discrete parameter, the integral in the denominator is replaced by a sum.

The resulting posterior distribution may be summarized to estimate the parameter, predict unobserved data, compare models, or choose actions using a loss function. The uncertainty in these conclusions is therefore conditional on both the observed data and the assumptions encoded in the Bayesian model.


See also

Bayes' Theorem, Bayesian Analysis, Bayesian Model, Bayesian Probability, Likelihood Function, Posterior Distribution, Posterior Probability, Prior Distribution

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References

Gelman, A.; Carlin, J.; Stern, H.; and Rubin, D. Bayesian Data Analysis. Boca Raton, FL: Chapman & Hall, 1995.Sivia, D. S. Data Analysis: A Bayesian Tutorial. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996.

Cite this as:

Weisstein, Eric W. "Bayesian Inference." From MathWorld--A Wolfram Resource. https://mathworld.wolfram.com/BayesianInference.html

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