Answer:
[tex]\dfrac{1}{27}[/tex]
Step-by-step explanation:
Let the required probability be denoted by P(1A 2A 3B 4B).
This means a shopper chooses brand A first. Then by choosing brand A as the second purchase, the same brand is used. The third purchase is brand B; hence he switches brand. The fourth purchase is also brand B, maintaining the same brand as the third.
On the first purchase, the probabilities of A and B are both equal. Hence, each probability = 1/2
[tex]P(\text{1A 2A 3B 4B}) = P(\text{A}) \times P(\text{same brand}) \times P(\text{different brand}) \times P(\text{same brand})[/tex]
[tex]P(\text{1A 2A 3B 4B}) = \dfrac{1}{2}\times\dfrac{1}{3}\times\dfrac{2}{3}\times\dfrac{1}{3} = \dfrac{1}{27}[/tex]