Multiple Criteria Analysis for Agricultural Decisions (Developments in Agricultural Economics) Book

Despite the recognition given to the existence of multiple objectives in agricultural decision making, very little seems to have been done by agricultural economists to develop and use methodologies that model the decision situations realistically. This is particularly intriguing when one notices the amount of effort that has been devoted to the development and use of multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) techniques in disciplines such as management science, water resources research and forest planning. There are virtually no (text) books available in agricultural economics which explain the nature and structure of MCDM techniques and demonstrate how they can be used to model decisions involving multiple objectives. There is a need for such a book and this book attempts to fill the gap.It is divided into three parts. The first, comprising two chapters, is philosophical in nature and deals with the rationale behind the use of multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) techniques in decision making, and the fundamental concepts that must be understood to grasp the nature of these methods. The second and largest part contains five chapters, each dealing with the logical structure of a specific MCDM technique, and how it is used to model a particular decision problem. Some applications to agricultural problems are presented in the last five chapters contained in the final part.The book is designed to be used both as a reference and a text. An understanding of the conceptual basis of most of the MCDM techniques presented here should not be beyond those with basic knowledge of linear algebra and linear programming.Read More