Independence between random variables $X$ and $Y$ implies that $text{Corr}left(f(X),g(Y)right)=0$ for arbitrary functions $f(cdot)$ and $g(cdot)$ (here is a related thread).
But is the following statement, or a similar one (perhaps more rigorously defined), correct?
If $text{Corr}left(f(X),g(Y)right)=0$ for all possible functions $f(cdot)$ and $g(cdot)$, then $X$ and $Y$ are independent.
Best Answer
Using indicator functions of measurable sets like$$f(x)=mathbb I_A(x)quad g(x)=mathbb I_B(x)$$leads to$$text{cov}(f(X),g(Y))=mathbb P(Xin A,Yin B)-mathbb P(Xin A)mathbb P(Yin B)$$therefore implying independence. As shown in the following snapshot of A. Dembo's probability course, proving the result for indicator functions is enough.
This is due to this monotone class theorem:
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