When a continuous probability distribution is used to approximate a discrete probability distribution, a value of 0.5 is added to and/or subtracted from the
A) area.
B) value of x.
C) value of z.
D) value of µ.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

When approximating a discrete probability distribution with a continuous one, we typically use the normal distribution and need to find the corresponding z-score. Since the z-score is calculated by subtracting the mean and dividing by the standard deviation, we need to adjust the value of x so that it represents the midpoint of the corresponding interval. Adding or subtracting 0.5 ensures that we are finding the correct midpoint for the interval. Therefore, the correct choice is B (the value of x).

When a Continuous Probability Distribution Is Used to Approximate a Discrete