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How to Translate Words into Numbers? A Fuzzy Approach for the Numerical Translation of Verbal Probabilities

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Computational Intelligence for Knowledge-Based Systems Design (IPMU 2010)

Abstract

The paper describes a general two-step procedure for the numerical translation of linguistic terms using parametric fuzzy potential membership functions. In an empirical study 121 participants estimated numerical values that correspond to 13 verbal probability expressions. Among the estimates are the most typical numerical equivalent and the minimal and maximal values that just correspond to the given linguistic terms. These values serve as foundation for the proposed fuzzy approach. Positions and shapes of the resulting membership functions suggest that the verbal probability expressions are not distributed equidistantly along the probability scale and vary considerably in symmetry, vagueness and overlap. Therefore we recommend the proposed empirical procedure and fuzzy approach for future investigations and applications in the area of decision support.

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Bocklisch, F., Bocklisch, S.F., Krems, J.F. (2010). How to Translate Words into Numbers? A Fuzzy Approach for the Numerical Translation of Verbal Probabilities. In: Hüllermeier, E., Kruse, R., Hoffmann, F. (eds) Computational Intelligence for Knowledge-Based Systems Design. IPMU 2010. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 6178. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-14049-5_63

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-14049-5_63

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-14048-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-14049-5

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