Decision Sciences Journal
Volume 30, Number 2
Spring 1999
Axiomatic Justification for a Geometric Quality Aggregation
Function
Scott E. Sampson
Department of Business Management, Marriott School of Management,
Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, email: scott_sampson@byu.edu
ABSTRACT
A central issue in many decision-making situations is the need
to consider multiple factors. A special case of multifactor modeling
is the quality aggregation problem, which is to derive an overall
quality measurement from a set of component quality measurements.
Although much research has been published regarding the components
of a quality construct, alternative methods for aggregating quality
components have been largely ignored. The function generally
used for this aggregation is an arithmetic weighted average.
This article proposes four axioms that are intuitively desirable
in a quality aggregation function. Concepts are drawn from related
disciplines such as utility theory, decision theory, and microeconomics.
Empirical evidence is presented to support the axioms. The arithmetic
weighted average function is found to be inconsistent with all
four axioms. A geometric, or multiplicative, function form is
presented as a superior alternative, consistent with the four
axioms. Model specification issues and other implications are
discussed.
Subject Areas: Multiattribute Modeling, Parameter Estimation,
and Quality. |