A STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF RETRIEVAL TESTS: A BAYESIAN APPROACH

Abstract

A model is proposed to explain the retrieval characteristics of an IR system. It is assumed that, for a given system and a given question, there are probabilities of retrieving relevant or non‐relevant documents, but that these probabilities are not necessarily the same for different questions. A Bayesian method is outlined for estimating these probabilities, on the basis of a model relating them. The method is applied successfully to some Cranfield data. Potentialities of the method are discussed.

Citation

ROBERTSON, S.E. and TEATHER, D. (1974), "A STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF RETRIEVAL TESTS: A BAYESIAN APPROACH", Journal of Documentation, Vol. 30 No. 3, pp. 273-282. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb026582