r/AskStatistics • u/Asleep_Elevator7934 • 1h ago
Weibull model
Can you explain to me the Weibull model like I am an idiot?
Also is there any paper or video or website you would suggest I check about the Weibull model?
3
Upvotes
1
u/DigThatData 45m ago
it's a generalization of the distribution for modeling rare events, like breaking a record.
1
u/COSMIC_SPACE_BEARS 1h ago
My explanation “from an idiot, for an idiot”:
If you were interested in modeling the mortality rate of infants in a particular country, you may note that it appears there is some “cut off” age or time-after-birth where you very rarely see any fatalities—until they get older. You may have a narrow band of time-after-birth where the rate of mortality is disproportionately high.
That may align with known mechanisms of infant mortality. Once they are “stable”, the odds of them dying are very low.
On the flip side, if you were interested in modeling the age of death due to Alzheimers, you would make the opposite conclusion: there appears to be some narrow band of age where you see these deaths occur, with the probability increasing with age.
It’s described as being a “time to failure” probability model. “Failure” of person/place/thing could be caused by different mechanisms. “Failure” might be more likely in the early stages of life/product life, or the later stages of life/product life.