English

Closed-form approximations of the two-sample Pearson Bayes factor

Computation 2026-01-14 v4

Abstract

In this paper, I present three closed-form approximations of the two-sample Pearson Bayes factor, a recently developed index of evidential value for data in two-group designs. The techniques rely on some classical asymptotic results about Gamma functions. These approximations permit simple closed-form calculation of the Pearson Bayes factor in cases where only minimal summary statistics are available (i.e., the t-score and degrees of freedom). Moreover, these approximations vastly outperform the classic BIC method for approximating Bayes factors from experimental designs.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2310.11313,
  title  = {Closed-form approximations of the two-sample Pearson Bayes factor},
  author = {Thomas J. Faulkenberry},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2310.11313},
  year   = {2026}
}

Comments

revised version: January 7, 2026. Accepted for publication in Lithuania Journal of Statistics

R2 v1 2026-06-28T12:53:26.483Z