Empirically Evaluating the Flexibility of the Johnson Family of Distributions: A Crop Insurance Application

This article examines the flexibility of the Johnson system of distributions by assessing its per-formance in terms of modeling crop yields for the purpose of setting actuarially fair crop in-surance premiums. Using data from corn farms in Illinois coupled with Monte Carlo simula-tion procedures, we found that average crop insurance premiums computed on the basis of the Johnson system provide reasonably accurate estimates even when the data are normal or come from a non-normal distribution other than the Johnson system (i.e., a beta). These results sug-gest that there is potential for using the Johnson system to rate previously uninsured crops that do not have historical insurance performance data upon which to base premium calculations.