Adjusting ordinal and cardinal inconsistencies in decision preferences based on gower plots

Abstract

Gower plots provide a powerful graphical tool to detect cardinal and ordinal inconsistencies in a pairwise preference matrix. However, there is no systematical way to help a decision maker to reduce these inconsistencies. This paper develops a model that can assist in making a consistent decision. Gower plots are used to detect major inconsistencies. A multi-objective program is then formulated to adjust both the cardinal inconsistencies and the preference changes subjected to the constraints of ordinal consistency.