3. Multi-Criteria Assessment

Multi-criteria Assessment is a field comprising a wide variety of approaches and methods, depending on assumptions and criteria like: the objective of the exercise, its context, the level of participation, the degree of formalization sought, etc. Different types of approaches can be summarized by the following table:

 

Multicriteria Assessment methods
  Objective Participation Method
Multicriteria Analysis Produce an analysis which takes into account different evaluation criteria Experts Expertise
Social Multicriteria Evaluation Produce an analysis which takes into account different evaluation criteria and different perspectives and choices from stakeholders Stakeholders Formalized
Deliberation The above + seeking a process of collective Intelligence All stakeholders Open

 

To underline the difference between multicriteria analysis and participative methods, we will quote a definition of MC analysis by Vallejo et al. (we translate from Spanish):

“Multicriteria analysis is a sophisticated mathematical tool which facilitates comparability in complex decision settings which require a multidimensional analysis, frequently using different measure scales, and a knowledge of the issue often suffering from a certain degree of uncertainty”.

While to notions of “complex decision” and “uncertainty” are common to all MCA methods  the emphasis on a “sophisticated mathematical tool” expresses the impetus for formalized methods. More participatory methods, such as deliberative democracy, emphasized by O’Connor et al. often rely on less formalized tools. Though participation and mathematics are not by principal opposed, in common use of MCA methods they are scarcely found together. The first steps [see Integraal] can be seen as common to all MCA methods: