mudiff.mbl.varknown {SampleSizeMeans}

Bayesian sample size determination for differences in normal means when variances are known using the Mixed Bayesian/Likelihood criteria

Description

The function mudiff.mbl.varknown returns the required sample sizes to reach a given posterior credible interval length and coverage probability for the difference between two normal means - using a mixed Bayesian/likelihood approach - when variances are known.

Usage

mudiff.mbl.varknown(len, lambda1, lambda2, level = 0.95, equal = TRUE)

Arguments

len

The desired total length of the posterior credible interval for the difference between the two unknown means

lambda1

The known precision (reciprocal of variance) for the first population

lambda2

The known precision (reciprocal of variance) for the second population

level

The desired coverage probability of the posterior credible interval (e.g., 0.95)

equal

logical. Whether or not the final group sizes (n1, n2) are forced to be equal:

		when equal = TRUE,	final sample sizes n1 = n2;
		when equal = FALSE,	final sample sizes (n1, n2) minimize the posterior variance given a total of n1+n2 observations

Details

Assume that a sample from each of two populations will be collected in order to estimate the difference between two independent normal means when the variances are known. The function mudiff.mbl.varknown returns the required sample sizes to attain the desired length len and coverage probability level for the posterior credible interval for the difference between the two unknown means.

This function uses a Mixed Bayesian/Likelihood (MBL) approach. MBL approaches use the prior information to derive the predictive distribution of the data, but use only the likelihood function for final inferences. This approach is intended to satisfy investigators who recognize that prior information is important for planning purposes but prefer to base final inferences only on the data.

Value

The required sample sizes (n1, n2) for each group given the inputs to the function.

Note

The sample sizes returned by this function are exact.

Author(s)

Lawrence Joseph [e-mail] and Patrick Bélisle

References

Joseph L, Bélisle P.
Bayesian sample size determination for Normal means and differences between Normal means
The Statistician 1997;46(2):209-226.

See Also

mudiff.mblacc, mudiff.mblalc, mudiff.mblmodwoc, mudiff.mblacc.equalvar, mudiff.mblalc.equalvar, mudiff.mblmodwoc.equalvar, mudiff.varknown, mudiff.acc, mudiff.alc, mudiff.modwoc, mudiff.acc.equalvar, mudiff.alc.equalvar, mudiff.modwoc.equalvar, mudiff.freq, mu.mbl.varknown, mu.mblacc, mu.mblalc, mu.mblmodwoc, mu.varknown, mu.acc, mu.alc, mu.modwoc, mu.freq

Examples

mudiff.mbl.varknown(len=0.2, lambda1=1, lambda2=1/1.5)