What is the purpose of the General Addition Rule in probability?

The General Addition Rule in probability is specifically designed to determine the likelihood of either of two events occurring. This rule is crucial when you need to calculate the probability of at least one of the events happening, especially when the events might not be mutually exclusive—meaning they can occur at the same time.

When utilizing the General Addition Rule, you gather the probabilities of each event occurring and subtract the probability that both events occur, to avoid double-counting the overlap. This approach allows for a clear understanding of how likely it is for either event to take place, which is essential in many real-world applications, such as risk assessment and decision-making processes.

Understanding the specific role of the General Addition Rule supports the analysis of events in probabilistic terms and is foundational to more complex probability concepts.