Standards for the Weighting of Criteria and the Measurement of Interaction

Abstract

This article discusses the need for standards for the assignment of importance to criteria and the measurement of interaction between them in multiple criteria analyses of complex systems. A strategy for criteria evaluation is considered that is suitable to account for the interaction among a wide variety of imprecisely assessed criteria applied simultaneously. It is based on the results of collecting sample information on preferences according to the specified criteria instead of merely an abstract comparison of the criteria. The comparison of alternatives is based on objectives that determine the formation of preferences. It is facilitated by a rating in terms of preference probabilities. Probabilistic standards grant homogeneity of measurements by different criteria, which is useful for the combination of the criteria. These standards apply to a sampling evaluation conducted via pairwise trichotomic comparison of the alternatives according to each criterion, followed by the combination of these multiple evaluations into a single global score by means of the Choquet Integral with respect to a capacity determined by applying preference concentration to the sets of probabilistic assessments. Examples of practical application are discussed.