Question 1

AHP allows a decision maker to express personal preferences about the various aspects of a multicriteria problem.

Accepted Answer

AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process) is a decision-making method that allows a decision maker to express their personal preferences for multiple criteria in a hierarchical structure. AHP helps in making complex decisions by breaking them down into smaller, more manageable components and comparing them to each other based on their relative importance. Through pairwise comparison of the criteria and alternatives, AHP helps in generating a ratio scale that measures the relative priorities of different criteria and alternatives. Thus, AHP allows a decision maker to express their personal preferences about the various aspects of a multicriteria problem.

Question 2

In goal programming,deviation variables allow for the possibility of not meeting the target value exactly.

Accepted Answer

Deviation variables are used in goal programming to allow some flexibility in meeting the target values. They allow for a deviation from the target value, indicating that it is not necessary to achieve the target value exactly.

Question 3

In a goal programming model,there can only be one goal at each priority level.

Accepted Answer

In a goal programming model, there can be multiple goals at each priority level. The model seeks to identify the optimal solution that minimizes deviations from all goals simultaneously.

Question 4

Goal priorities are referred to as preemptive priorities because the satisfaction of a higher level goal cannot be traded for the satisfaction of a lower level goal.

Accepted Answer

Preemptive priorities mean that higher level goals (such as survival, safety, or physiological needs) take precedence over lower level goals (such as social, esteem, or self-actualization needs) and cannot be sacrificed or traded for the latter.

Question 5

A problem involving only one priority level is not considered a goal programming problem.

Accepted Answer

The answer of A problem involving only one priority level...

Question 6

To solve a goal programming problem with preemptive priorities,successive linear programming programs,with an adjustment to the objective function and an additional constraint,must be solved.

Accepted Answer

Preemptive priorities in goal programming require solving successive linear programming programs with adjustments to the objective function and an additional constraint.

Question 7

If a problem has multiple goals at different priority levels,then it is rare that all the goals will be achieved with existing resources.

Accepted Answer

It is difficult to achieve multiple goals with limited resources, especially when the goals have different priority levels. Prioritizing the most important goals and allocating resources accordingly is necessary to address the problem effectively.

Question 8

A decision with more than one objective
A)cannot have an optimal solution.
B)requires the decision maker to place the objectives in some order of importance.
C)depends on the probability of satisfying each objective.
D)should be decomposed into a separate model for each objective.

Accepted Answer

When there are multiple objectives, it is difficult or impossible to find a single optimal solution that satisfies all objectives simultaneously. Thus, the decision maker needs to prioritize the objectives and assign some weights or importance to each objective. This allows the decision maker to evaluate the alternatives based on their performance against each objective and trade-offs between them. Therefore, option B is the most appropriate answer. Option A is not accurate because it implies that there is no way to make a good decision with multiple objectives. Option C is also not necessarily true, as satisfying some objectives may have lower or higher probabilities depending on the context. Option D is not a practical approach since it can make the problem more complex to manage, and it may not be possible to integrate the individual models into a comprehensive solution.

Question 9

The priority matrix shows the priority for each item on each criterion.

Accepted Answer

The priority matrix is used to determine the priority for each item based on each criterion, so it shows the priority for each item on each criterion, making statement A true.

Question 10

An item's priority reveals how it compares to its competitors on a specific criterion.

Accepted Answer

An item's priority is determined by how it ranks in comparison to its competitors on a specific criterion or set of criteria, making the statement true.

Question 11

The objective function in a goal programming model calls for minimizing a function of the
A)goal variables.
B)target variables.
C)deviation variables.
D)preemptive variables.

Accepted Answer

The objective function in goal programming is intended to minimize the overall deviation between the goal and target values of decision variables. These deviations are known as "deviation variables." Therefore, the correct choice is C.

Question 12

Requiring a decision maker to provide judgments about the relative importance of each criterion and then specifying a preference for each decision alternative using each criterion is the purpose of the analytic hierarchy process.

Accepted Answer

The statement accurately describes the purpose of the analytic hierarchy process.

Question 13

One limitation of a scoring model is that it uses arbitrary weights that do not necessarily reflect the preferences of the individual decision maker.

Accepted Answer

The answer of One limitation of a scoring model is...

Question 14

For a scoring model,the decision maker evaluates each decision alternative by considering the weight or importance of each criterion.

Accepted Answer

In a scoring model, each decision alternative is evaluated based on the importance of each criterion. The weight or importance of each criterion is taken into consideration by the decision maker while evaluating the alternatives. Therefore, the statement is true.

Question 15

Preemptive priorities in goal programming
A)show the target values for the problem.
B)prevent sacrifice of a priority level goal to satisfy a lower level one.
C)force the problem to be a standard linear program.
D)limit deviations to d− only.

Accepted Answer

Preemptive priorities in goal programming ensure that higher priority goals are not sacrificed in order to satisfy lower priority goals. This is important to ensure that the most important goals are achieved first, rather than just focusing on achieving all goals equally. The other options listed are not directly related to preemptive priorities.

Question 16

A consistency ratio greater than 0.10 indicates inconsistency in the pairwise comparisons.

Accepted Answer

A consistency ratio greater than 0.10 indicates inconsistency in the pairwise comparisons.

Question 17

Target values will never be met precisely in a goal programming problem.

Accepted Answer

In goal programming, it is possible to meet target values precisely if the solution space allows for it and the model is correctly specified to achieve these targets.

Question 18

Objectives in multicriteria problems seldom conflict.

Accepted Answer

Objectives in multicriteria problems often conflict with each other, as fulfilling one objective might lead to sacrificing another objective. The decision maker must prioritize the objectives and determine the trade-offs between them.

Question 19

The goal programming approach can be used when an analyst is confronted with an infeasible solution to an ordinary linear program.

Accepted Answer

The goal programming approach can be used to handle infeasible solutions in linear programming by allowing the analyst to identify multiple goals and minimizing the deviations from these goals, even if they are not all achievable simultaneously.

Question 20

Goal equations consist of a function that defines goal achievement and deviation variables that measure the distance from the target.

Accepted Answer

This is a correct description of goal equations.

Quiz 14: Multicriteria Decisions

AHP allows a decision maker to express personal preferences about the various aspects of a multicriteria problem.

In goal programming,deviation variables allow for the possibility of not meeting the target value exactly.

In a goal programming model,there can only be one goal at each priority level.

Goal priorities are referred to as preemptive priorities because the satisfaction of a higher level goal cannot be traded for the satisfaction of a lower level goal.

A problem involving only one priority level is not considered a goal programming problem.

To solve a goal programming problem with preemptive priorities,successive linear programming programs,with an adjustment to the objective function and an additional constraint,must be solved.

If a problem has multiple goals at different priority levels,then it is rare that all the goals will be achieved with existing resources.

A decision with more than one objective

The priority matrix shows the priority for each item on each criterion.

An item's priority reveals how it compares to its competitors on a specific criterion.

The objective function in a goal programming model calls for minimizing a function of the

Requiring a decision maker to provide judgments about the relative importance of each criterion and then specifying a preference for each decision alternative using each criterion is the purpose of the analytic hierarchy process.

One limitation of a scoring model is that it uses arbitrary weights that do not necessarily reflect the preferences of the individual decision maker.

For a scoring model,the decision maker evaluates each decision alternative by considering the weight or importance of each criterion.

Preemptive priorities in goal programming

A consistency ratio greater than 0.10 indicates inconsistency in the pairwise comparisons.

Target values will never be met precisely in a goal programming problem.

Objectives in multicriteria problems seldom conflict.

The goal programming approach can be used when an analyst is confronted with an infeasible solution to an ordinary linear program.

Goal equations consist of a function that defines goal achievement and deviation variables that measure the distance from the target.