Pairwise comparison matrices and the error-free property of the decision maker

Pairwise comparison is a popular assessment method either for deriving criteria-weights or for evaluating alternatives according to a given criterion. In real-world applications consistency of the comparisons rarely happens: intransitivity can occur. The aim of the paper is to discuss the relationship between the consistency of the decision maker—described with the error-free property—and the consistency of the pairwise comparison matrix (PCM). The concept of error-free matrix is used to demonstrate that consistency of the PCM is not a sufficient condition of the error-free property of the decision maker. Informed and uninformed decision makers are defined. In the first stage of an assessment method a consistent or near-consistent matrix should be achieved: detecting, measuring and improving consistency are part of any procedure with both types of decision makers. In the second stage additional information are needed to reveal the decision maker’s real preferences. Interactive questioning procedures are recommended to reach that goal

Consistency of the decision-maker in pair-wise comparisons

Most authors assume that the natural behaviour of the decision-maker is being inconsistent. This paper investigates the main sources of inconsistency and analyses methods for reducing or eliminating inconsistency. Decision support systems can contain interactive modules for that purpose. In a system with consistency control, there are three stages. First, consistency should be checked: a consistency measure is needed. Secondly, approval or rejection has to be decided: a threshold value of inconsistency measure is needed. Finally, if inconsistency is ‘high’, corrections have to be made: an inconsistency reducing method is needed. This paper reviews the difficulties in all stages. An entirely different approach is to elaborate a decision support system in order to force the decision-maker to give consistent values in each step of answering pair-wise comparison questions. An interactive questioning procedure resulting in consistent (sub) matrices has been demonstrated

Defining block character

In this paper I propose a clear, efficient, and accurate method for determining if a block of contiguous buildings has an overall character. The work is needed because most contemporary design reviews presuppose the existence of visual character, but existing design principles are often too vague to make the required determination. Clarity is achieved by shifting from vague notions to a definite concept for block character: a design feature will be perceived as part of the overall character of that block if the frequency of the feature is greater than a critical threshold. An experiment suggested that the critical frequency was quite high: over 80%. A case history illustrates how the new concept of visual character could greatly increase the efficiency and accuracy of actual planning decisions.

Intelligent protocol adaptation for enhanced medical e-collaboration

Copyright @ 2003 AAAIDistributed multimedia e-health applications have a set specific requirements which must be taken into account effective use is to be made of the limited resources provided by public telecommunication networks. Moreover, there an architectural gap between the provision of network-level Quality of Service (QoS) and user requirements of e-health applications. In this paper, we address the problem bridging this gap from a multi-attribute decision-making perspective in the context of a remote collaborative environment for back pain treatment. We propose intelligent mechanism that integrates user- related requirements with the more technical characterisation Quality of Service. We show how our framework is capable of suggesting appropriately tailored transmission protocols, by incorporating user requirements in the remote delivery e-health solutions