A fuzzy set-based accuracy assessment of soft classification

Despite the sizable achievements obtained, the use of soft classifiers is still limited by the lack of well-assessed and adequate methods for evaluating the accuracy of their outputs. This paper proposes a new method that uses the fuzzy set theory to extend the applicability of the traditional error matrix method to the evaluation of soft classifiers. It is designed to cope with those situations in which classification and/or reference data are expressed in multimembership form and the grades of membership represent different levels of approximation to intrinsically vague classes. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.