Lesson 2.

Probability Mass Function

of a Discrete Random
Variable
Learning Competencies

At the end of the lesson, the learners should be able

to do the following:

● Construct the probability mass function of a

discrete random variable and its corresponding
histogram.
● Compute probabilities corresponding to a given
random variable (M11/12SP-IIIa-6).
 Objectives

At the end of this lesson, the learners should be able to

do the following:
● Construct a probability mass function of a given
discrete random variable.
● Graph values and probabilities of a discrete random
variable in a histogram.
● Illustrate discrete random variables in real-life
situations.
Imagine a quiz taken by a certain
number of students. The result of
the quiz is posted in a histogram,
where the independent variable is
the quiz scores ranging from 0 to 10
points, while the dependent variable
is the relative frequency of the
individuals for each specific score.
We can say that these relative
frequencies are an example of a
discrete random variable since these
frequencies have a countable finite
number of possible values.
Now, how about if we would like to determine the probability that a
random student would get a particular score?

For instance, how do we find the probability of any random student

getting a score of 8 points in this quiz? How about finding the probability
that a random student can pass the test if the passing score is 7?
Using the probability mass function, we can easily solve for the
probability of such events.

In this lesson, we shall learn about how to construct and calculate the
probability mass function of a discrete random variable.
 Essential Questions

• Why is it important to distinguish a discrete random

variable from a continuous random variable in determining
the probability mass function of a variable?

• What is the advantage of constructing a histogram in

illustrating the probability mass function of a discrete
random variable?
 Learn about It!

Probability Mass Function of a Discrete Random

Variable

A probability mass function of a discrete random variable 𝑋

is a function that satisfies the following properties:
a. 𝑓(𝑥) = 𝑃(𝑋 = 𝑥)
b. 0 ≤ 𝑓(𝑥) ≤ 1
c. The sum of the probabilities, 𝑓 𝑥𝑖 , is equal to 1.
 Learn about It!

Probability Mass Function of a Discrete Random

Variable
Example:
A coin is flipped three times. Let 𝑋 represent the number of
heads that appear in flipping a coin. The probability mass
function can be represented using a table.
 Learn about It!

Probability Mass Function of a Discrete Random

Variable
Example:
𝑿 0 1 2 3
𝑷(𝑿 = 𝒙) 1 3 3 1
8 8 8 8
 Learn about It!

Histogram
A histogram is a graph of a probability mass function.

The possible values of the discrete random variable are on

the horizontal axis while its probabilities are on the vertical
axis. The total area under a histogram is 1.
 Learn about It!

Histogram
Example:
A coin is flipped three times. Let 𝑋 be the number of heads
that appear in flipping a coin. The histogram that represents
the probability mass function is shown on the next slide.
 Learn about It!

Histogram
Example:
 Try it!Practice
Let’s

Example 1: Two coins are tossed. Let 𝐻 be the number of

heads that occur. Construct the probability distribution for
the random variable 𝐻 and its corresponding histogram.
 Solution to Let’s Practice

Example 1: Two coins are tossed. Let 𝐻 be the number of heads that occur. Construct the
probability distribution for the random variable 𝐻 and its corresponding histogram.

Solution:
1. Determine the values for the random variable 𝐻.

In this problem, two coins are tossed. By the Fundamental

Counting Principle, there will be 𝟐 ∙ 𝟐 = 𝟒 possible
outcomes. The sample space of the experiment is
𝐒 = 𝑯𝑯, 𝑯𝑻, 𝑻𝑯, 𝑻𝑻 .
 Solution to Let’s Practice

Example 1: Two coins are tossed. Let 𝐻 be the number of heads that occur. Construct the
probability distribution for the random variable 𝐻 and its corresponding histogram.

Solution:
In this sample space, we will Outcomes 𝑯
have the following values for 𝐻𝐻 2
the random variable 𝐻. 𝐻𝑇 1
𝑇𝐻 1
Thus, 𝐻 = 0, 1, 2. 𝑇𝑇 0
 Solution to Let’s Practice

Example 1: Two coins are tossed. Let 𝐻 be the number of heads that occur. Construct the
probability distribution for the random variable 𝐻 and its corresponding histogram.

Solution:
2. Construct the probability distribution for the random
variable.

𝑯 0 1 2
1 1 1
𝑷(𝑯)
4 2 4
 Solution to Let’s Practice

Example 1: Two coins are tossed. Let 𝐻 be the number of heads that occur. Construct the
probability distribution for the random variable 𝐻 and its corresponding histogram.

Solution:
3. Construct the histogram for the probability distribution.

The horizontal axis will have the values for 𝐻, and the
vertical axis will have the probability values. The height of
each bar is the same with the probability value.
 Solution to Let’s Practice

Example 1: Two coins are tossed. Let 𝐻 be the number of heads that occur. Construct the
probability distribution for the random variable 𝐻 and its corresponding histogram.

Solution:
 Try it!Practice
Let’s

Example 2: A train contains girls and boys. If three persons

are taken from the train one after the other, determine the
possible values of the random variable 𝐺 representing the
number of girls. Construct its corresponding histogram.
 Solution to Let’s Practice

Example 2: A train contains girls and boys. If three persons are taken from the train one
after the other, determine the possible values of the random variable 𝐺 representing the
number of girls. Construct its corresponding histogram.

Solution:
1. Determine the values for the random variable 𝐺.

If three persons are going to be taken, then there will be

𝟐 ∙ 𝟐 ∙ 𝟐 = 𝟖 possible outcomes according to the
Fundamental Counting Principle.
 Solution to Let’s Practice

Example 2: A train contains girls and boys. If three persons are taken from the train one
after the other, determine the possible values of the random variable 𝐺 representing the
number of girls. Construct its corresponding histogram.

Solution:
1. Determine the values for the random variable 𝐺.

The sample space is

𝐒 = 𝑮𝑮𝑮, 𝑮𝑮𝑩, 𝑮𝑩𝑮, 𝑩𝑮𝑮, 𝑩𝑩𝑮, 𝑩𝑮𝑩, 𝑮𝑩𝑩, 𝑩𝑩𝑩 .
 Solution to Let’s Practice

Example 2: A train contains girls and boys. If three persons are taken from the train one
after the other, determine the possible values of the random variable 𝐺 representing the
number of girls. Construct its corresponding histogram.

Solution:
Outcomes 𝑮 Outcomes 𝑮
𝐺𝐺𝐺 3 𝐵𝐵𝐺 1
𝐺𝐺𝐵 2 𝐵𝐺𝐵 1
𝐺𝐵𝐺 2 𝐺𝐵𝐵 1
𝐵𝐺𝐺 2 𝐵𝐵𝐵 0
 Solution to Let’s Practice

Example 2: A train contains girls and boys. If three persons are taken from the train one
after the other, determine the possible values of the random variable 𝐺 representing the
number of girls. Construct its corresponding histogram.

Solution:
Thus, 𝐺 = 0, 1, 2, 3.
 Solution to Let’s Practice

Example 2: A train contains girls and boys. If three persons are taken from the train one
after the other, determine the possible values of the random variable 𝐺 representing the
number of girls. Construct its corresponding histogram.

Solution:
2. Construct the probability distribution for the random
variable.
𝑮 0 1 2 3
1 3 3 1
𝑷(𝑮)
8 8 8 8
 Solution to Let’s Practice

Example 2: A train contains girls and boys. If three persons are taken from the train one
after the other, determine the possible values of the random variable 𝐺 representing the
number of girls. Construct its corresponding histogram.

Solution:
3. Construct the histogram for the
probability distribution.
 Try It!

Individual Practice:

1. Determine whether or not the formula below describes a

probability distribution.

𝑋−1
𝑃(𝑋) = , where 𝑋 = 0, 1, 2, 3
2
 Try It!

Individual Practice:

2. Create the histogram of the probability function below.

𝑋+1
𝑃 𝑋 = , where 𝑋 = 0, 1, 3
7
 Try It!

Group Practice: To be done in two to five groups

A box of light bulbs has five defective bulbs and three

working bulbs. If three bulbs are taken simultaneously,
determine the possible values of the random variable 𝐷 that
represents the number of defective light bulbs. Create a
histogram for the probability distribution.
 Key Points

● Given a discrete random variable 𝑋, the probability mass

function of a discrete random variable is a function
that satisfies the following properties:
a. 𝑓(𝑥) = 𝑃(𝑋 = 𝑥)
b. 0 ≤ 𝑓(𝑥) ≤ 1
c. The sum of the probabilities, 𝑓 𝑥𝑖 , is equal to 1.

● A histogram is a a graph of a probability mass function.

 Bibliography

Pishro-Nick, H. “Probability Mass Function (PMF).” Probability Course. Retrieved 27 June 2019 from
http://bit.ly/30Apjws