Research & Evidence-Based Practice Flashcards
7 cards from real Insurance practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Research & Evidence-Based Practice flashcards as text
An actuary applies the Bornhuetter-Ferguson method to estimate ultimate losses. What two inputs does this method blend?
Answer: A priori expected losses and development-pattern-based projections
The Bornhuetter-Ferguson method combines a prior estimate of ultimate losses with emerging loss development data for a credibility-weighted projection.
What is 'moral hazard' in the context of insurance research and behavioral economics?
Answer: The increased risk-taking behavior that occurs because a party is protected by insurance
Moral hazard describes how insurance coverage can reduce incentives to prevent losses, since the insured bears less of the financial consequence.
In a systematic literature review for insurance topics, what is the primary purpose of the PRISMA checklist?
Answer: To provide transparent reporting standards for systematic reviews and meta-analyses
PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) ensures comprehensive and transparent documentation of the review process and findings.
What does 'adverse selection' mean in insurance underwriting research?
Answer: Higher-risk individuals disproportionately seeking or retaining insurance coverage
Adverse selection occurs when people with higher-than-average risk are more likely to purchase or maintain insurance, distorting the insured pool.
A researcher computes Cronbach's alpha for a multi-item insurance knowledge test. What does a high alpha (e.g., 0.85) indicate?
Answer: The test items are highly correlated and measure a consistent underlying construct
Cronbach's alpha measures internal consistency reliability; a value near 1.0 indicates that items on the scale are strongly interrelated.
Which research methodology would be most appropriate for exploring WHY policyholders decide to lapse their life insurance policies?
Answer: In-depth qualitative interviews with former policyholders
Qualitative interviews capture nuanced motivations, attitudes, and experiences that quantitative methods cannot easily quantify.
What is the purpose of a 'holdout sample' (or test set) in building an insurance predictive model?
Answer: To evaluate model performance on data not used during training
A holdout sample allows unbiased assessment of how well the model generalizes to new, unseen data after training.