Statistical properties of Pollack's PEST procedure

Abstract

The bias and variability of threshold estimates produced by Pollack's PEST procedure were studied by means of repeated computer simulations of PEST runs. The influence of the size of the exit criterion, the bumping-into-zero rule, and three methods for obtaining the estimate from the data are discussed. Pollack's PEST procedure is found to result in a highly variable number of trials per run, and to be approximately as good as a simpler staircase procedure in terms of the bias and variability of the estimates obtained. © 1970 Psychonomic Journals, Inc.