Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences |
Publisher | Elsevier Science Ltd. |
Pages | 9910-9915 |
ISBN (Print) | 9780080430768 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 2001 |
Abstract
Mixture models are a discrete or continuous weighted combination of distributions aimed at representing a heterogeneous population comprising of several (two or more) distinct subpopulations. Such models are often used to approximate nonstandard distributions when the underlying population can be regarded as homogenous. A mathematical definition of mixture models is provided, several of the diverse applications of such models are outlined, and the main methods of estimating the model's parameters are discussed.