On the Elicitation of an Optimal Outer Approximation of a Coherent Lower Probability

The process of outer approximating a coherent lower probability by a more tractable model with additional properties, such as 2- or completely monotone capacities, may not have a unique solution. In this paper, we investigate whether a number of approaches may help in eliciting a unique outer approximation: minimising a number of distances with respect to the initial model, or maximising the specificity of the outer approximation. We apply these to 2- and completely monotone approximating lower probabilities, and also to possibility measures.

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