Calculating nonparametric confidence intervals for quantiles using fractional order statistics

Abstract

In this paper, we provide an easy-to-program algorithm for constructing the preselected 100(1 - alpha)% nonparametric confidence interval for an arbitrary quantile, such as the median or quartile, by approximating the distribution of the linear interpolation estimator of the quantile function Q L ( u ) = (1 - epsilon) X \[ n u ] + epsilon X \[ n u ] + 1 with the distribution of the fractional order statistic Q I ( u ) = Xn u , as defined by Stigler, where n = n + 1 and \[ . ] denotes the floor function. A simulation study verifies the accuracy of the coverage probabilities. An application to the extreme-value problem in flood data analysis in hydrology is illustrated.