Evaluating Randomness Assumption: A Novel Graph Theoretic Approach

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Gehlot, Shriya, Laha, Arnab Kumar
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Gehlot, Shriya
Laha, Arnab Kumar
author_facet Gehlot, Shriya
Laha, Arnab Kumar
contents Randomness or mutual independence is a fundamental assumption forming the basis of statistical inference across disciplines such as economics, finance, and management. Consequently, validating this assumption is essential for the reliable application of statistical methods. However, verifying randomness remains a challenge, as existing tests in the literature are often restricted to detecting specific types of data dependencies. In this paper, we propose a novel graph-theoretic approach to testing randomness using random interval graphs (RIGs). The key advantage of RIGs is that their properties are independent of the underlying distribution of the data, relying solely on the assumption of independence between observations. By using two key properties of RIGs-edge probability and vertex degree distribution-we develop two new randomness tests: the RIG-Edge Probability test and the RIG-Degree Distribution (RIG-DD) test. Through extensive simulations, we demonstrate that these tests can detect a broad range of dependencies, including complex phenomena such as conditional heteroskedasticity and chaotic behavior, beyond simple correlations. Furthermore, we show that the RIG-DD test outperforms most of the existing tests of randomness in the literature. We also provide real-world examples to illustrate the practical applicability of these tests.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2506_21157
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Evaluating Randomness Assumption: A Novel Graph Theoretic Approach
Gehlot, Shriya
Laha, Arnab Kumar
Methodology
62A09 (Primary) 62G99 (Secondary)
Randomness or mutual independence is a fundamental assumption forming the basis of statistical inference across disciplines such as economics, finance, and management. Consequently, validating this assumption is essential for the reliable application of statistical methods. However, verifying randomness remains a challenge, as existing tests in the literature are often restricted to detecting specific types of data dependencies. In this paper, we propose a novel graph-theoretic approach to testing randomness using random interval graphs (RIGs). The key advantage of RIGs is that their properties are independent of the underlying distribution of the data, relying solely on the assumption of independence between observations. By using two key properties of RIGs-edge probability and vertex degree distribution-we develop two new randomness tests: the RIG-Edge Probability test and the RIG-Degree Distribution (RIG-DD) test. Through extensive simulations, we demonstrate that these tests can detect a broad range of dependencies, including complex phenomena such as conditional heteroskedasticity and chaotic behavior, beyond simple correlations. Furthermore, we show that the RIG-DD test outperforms most of the existing tests of randomness in the literature. We also provide real-world examples to illustrate the practical applicability of these tests.
title Evaluating Randomness Assumption: A Novel Graph Theoretic Approach
topic Methodology
62A09 (Primary) 62G99 (Secondary)
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.21157