A model of multiattribute decisionmaking and trade-off weight determination under uncertainty

Several behaviourally relevant extensions of the standard decision analysis paradigm are generalized by the model, and an inverse decision-aiding feature is included that permits the use of directly expressed preferences among the alternatives. Parameter values (lowest-level-attribute utility scores and trade-off weight) are described by set membership which can be used to describe many natural language expressions of preference, interval descriptions of value, and ordinal and cardinal rankings. Procedures are presented for ranking the alternatives and determining trade-off weights if the preference information gleaned from utility score assessment, trade-off weight assessment, and directly expressed preferences among the alternatives is consistent. For inconsistent information, procedures are presented for identifying the inconsistencies.