Comparing the Results of the Ranking of Alternatives Obtained by Several Options of the Analytic Hierarchy Process

Abstract

It is noted that the analytic hierarchy process is one of the most widely used multi-criteria methods, and its calculation procedures have repeatedly become the object of various improvements and modifications. The presence of many variants of the analytic hierarchy process may result in the dependence of the determination of the best alternatives on the used variant of this method. A description of three variants of the analytic hierarchy process is provided: original, simplified, and fuzzy. Based on the results of solving a known example, these three options confirmed that they can lead to different rankings. It was concluded that in order to increase the validity of the recommendations for the person making the decision, it is advisable to carry out calculations according to several options, and it is advisable to make a decision about the superiority of one alternative over another only in case of convergence of the results of their comparison according to the majority of used options. Keywords: analytic hierarchy process, fuzzy analytic hierarchy process, example of calculations, alternative ranking, simplified analytic hierarchy process.