Use of multiattribute utility theory for personal decision making

Almost all of the issues that decision makers face in actuality involve multiple objectives that conflict in some measure with each other. In such issues, decisions that serve some objectives well will generally satisfy other objectives less well than alternative decisions. This paper is concerned with the personal decision-making problem of deciding where to go for a Ph.D. program in industrial engineering and operations research. The problem is modelled as a multiobjective decision-making problem. Then selected techniques are used to find the best course of action among the various alternatives. The methodology used here is based upon identifying simple underlying preference structures that enable the analyst to break down the assessment of a multidimensional utility function into that of several one-dimensional utility functions.