On the Existence of the Optimal Stopping Rule in the $S_n/n$ Problem When the Second Moment is Infinite
Thompson, M. E. ; Basu, A. K. ; Owen, W. L.
Ann. Math. Statist., Tome 42 (1971) no. 6, p. 1936-1942 / Harvested from Project Euclid
Let $X_1, X_2, \cdots$ be i.i.d. random variables with mean 0, and let $S_n = \sum^n_{i=1} X_i$. The $S_n/n$ optimal stopping problem is to maximize $E(S_\tau/\tau)$ among finite-valued stopping times $\tau$ relative to the process $(S_n, n \geqq 1)$. In this paper we prove partially Dvoretzky's (1967) conjecture that an optimal stopping time should exist when $E|X_1|^\beta < \infty$ for some $\beta > 1$, by showing that the result holds if $\lim \sup_{n\rightarrow\infty} P(S_n \geqq c\|S_n\|) > 0$ for some $c > 0$, where $\|S_n\| = (E|S_n|^\beta)^{1/\beta}$. This condition is shown to hold in some special cases, including the case where the $X_i$ are in the domain of attraction of a stable distribution with exponent greater than one.
Publié le : 1971-12-14
Classification: 
@article{1177693060,
     author = {Thompson, M. E. and Basu, A. K. and Owen, W. L.},
     title = {On the Existence of the Optimal Stopping Rule in the $S\_n/n$ Problem When the Second Moment is Infinite},
     journal = {Ann. Math. Statist.},
     volume = {42},
     number = {6},
     year = {1971},
     pages = { 1936-1942},
     language = {en},
     url = {http://dml.mathdoc.fr/item/1177693060}
}
Thompson, M. E.; Basu, A. K.; Owen, W. L. On the Existence of the Optimal Stopping Rule in the $S_n/n$ Problem When the Second Moment is Infinite. Ann. Math. Statist., Tome 42 (1971) no. 6, pp.  1936-1942. http://gdmltest.u-ga.fr/item/1177693060/