Knowledge

Independence of irrelevant alternatives

Source 📝

66: 136: 919: 25: 183: 601:
all satisfy the IIA criterion and Pareto efficiency. Note that if new candidates are added to ballots without changing any of the ratings for existing ballots, the score of existing candidates remains unchanged, leaving the winner the same. Generalizations of
324:. There are several different variations of this axiom, which are generally equivalent under mild conditions. As a result of its importance, the axiom has been independently rediscovered in various forms across a wide variety of fields, including 421:
Morgenbesser, ordering dessert, is told by a waitress that he can choose between blueberry or apple pie. He orders apple. Soon the waitress comes back and explains cherry pie is also an option. Morgenbesser replies "In that case, I'll have
526:
introduces models that weaken or remove many assumptions of consumer rationality, including IIA. This provides greater accuracy, at the cost of making the model more complex and more difficult to falsify.
606:
show that if the voters change their rating scales depending on the candidates who are running, the outcome of cardinal voting may still be affected by the presence of non-winning candidates.
522:
shows that inserting a $ 5 medium soda between a $ 3 small and $ 5.10 large can make customers perceive the large as a better deal (because it's "only 10 cents more than the medium").
490:
by claiming some irrelevant circumstance must have changed when repeating the experiment. Often, the axiom is justified by arguing that any irrational agent will be
38: 302: 282: 204: 322: 1126: 95: 992: 954: 157: 44: 625:
Deterministic voting methods that behave like majority rule when there are only two candidates can be shown to fail IIA by the use of a
1619: 191: 1520: 968: 1104: 929: 1434: 1227: 1060: 1039: 486:. If agents' behavior or preferences are allowed to change depending on irrelevant circumstances, any model could be made 1019: 1680: 1256: 1282: 229: 117: 52: 88: 1364:
Cerreia-Vioglio, Simone; Lindberg, Per Olov; Maccheroni, Fabio; Marinacci, Massimo; Rustichini, Aldo (2021-09-01).
603: 574: 357: 899:
returns a three-way tie. If A is removed, then B becomes the sole winner, making C lose. Hence it, too, fails IIA.
153: 1268: 1690: 1685: 1513: 1157: 1543: 960: 598: 1659: 1634: 1274: 1238: 1365: 1594: 148: 78: 1506: 1003:
skated, whereupon she and Hughes exchanged places in the rankings. Two years later the ISU adopted
426:
Independence of irrelevant alternatives rules out this kind of arbitrary behavior, by stating that:
82: 74: 1654: 345: 196: 1415:"A Consistency Theory of Public Opinion and Political Choice: The Hypothesis of Menu Dependence" 1096:
Discusses and deduces the not always recognized differences between various formulations of IIA.
777:. Regardless of the voting method and the actual votes, there are only three cases to consider: 1649: 1614: 1564: 1252: 909: 578: 515: 361: 99: 1414: 1629: 855: 1644: 1548: 983:
exchanging second and third place, even though they had already skated, due to the way the
896: 542: 523: 372: 333: 1270:
Making Democracy Count: How Mathematics Improves Voting, Electoral Maps and Representation
8: 1579: 988: 875: 859: 614: 483: 475: 414: 1624: 1479: 1440: 1377: 1206: 1177: 1149: 1087: 511: 482:
of behavior to ensure agents have well-defined preferences that can be used for making
479: 356:. It is closely tied to many of the most important theorems in these fields, including 349: 287: 267: 967:, to change the voting method its judges use during competition. The first was at the 1471: 1430: 1395: 1346: 1278: 1244: 1223: 1153: 1056: 1035: 863: 329: 1609: 1574: 1422: 1387: 1336: 1328: 1198: 1141: 1127:"The Invariant Proportion of Substitution Property (IPS) of Discrete-Choice Models" 1113: 1079: 742:(These are preferences, not votes, and thus are independent of the voting method.) 307: 498:, making their preferences unobservable or irrelevant to the rest of the economy. 1569: 1529: 1419:
Studies in Public Opinion: Attitudes, Nonattitudes, Measurement Error, and Change
1102:
Callander, Steven; Wilson, Catherine H. (July 2006). "Context-dependent voting".
1050: 1029: 1000: 626: 590: 341: 261: 975:'s fourth-place performance near the end of the ladies' competition resulted in 545:, independence of irrelevant alternatives is often stated as "if one candidate ( 1604: 964: 890: 879: 871: 774: 770: 570: 536: 487: 400: 243: 1444: 1391: 1264: 1674: 1475: 1399: 1350: 1248: 995:, the system produced another IIA failure regardless. Kwan had been ahead of 984: 972: 582: 388: 376: 337: 1426: 1145: 1004: 996: 980: 976: 867: 594: 586: 519: 1363: 135: 1639: 1117: 893:
both elect C in the scenario above, and thus fail IIA after A is removed.
886: 518:
have shown that real human decisions often violate IIA. For example, the
507: 353: 1317:"Independence of Irrelevant Alternatives and Revealed Group Preferences" 918: 882:
all elect B in the scenario above, and thus fail IIA after C is removed.
1483: 1316: 1210: 1181: 1091: 495: 491: 365: 1459: 1341: 610: 506:
While economists must often make do with assuming IIA for reasons of
325: 1332: 1202: 1083: 1382: 1070:
Ray, Paramesh (1973). "Independence from Irrelevant Alternatives".
585:
system can satisfy IIA. However, Arrow's theorem does not apply to
392: 1498: 987:
worked out afterwards. Two years afterwards the ISU switched to a
1589: 1584: 1189:
Sen, Amartya (July 1997). "Maximization and the Act of Choice".
182: 304:
should not depend on the quality of a third, unrelated outcome
413:
This is sometimes explained with a short story by philosopher
396: 257: 955:
Elimination from postseason contention § Spoiler effect
1599: 1168:
Sen, Amartya (1994). "The Formulation of Rational Choice".
1052:
Limited-Dependent and Qualitative Variables in Econometrics
851:
For particular voting methods, the following results hold:
632:
Consider a scenario in which there are three candidates
831:
is elected. IIA is violated because the 65% who prefer
808:
is elected. IIA is violated because the 60% who prefer
785:
is elected. IIA is violated because the 75% who prefer
1460:"Interpersonal Comparability and Social Choice Theory" 474:
In economics, the axiom is connected to the theory of
310: 290: 270: 264:which codifies the intuition that a choice between 1417:. In Saris, Willem E.; Sniderman, Paul M. (eds.). 316: 296: 276: 549:) would win an election without a new candidate ( 1672: 1421:. Princeton University Press. pp. 337–358. 1412: 959:On two occasions the failure of IIA has led the 87:but its sources remain unclear because it lacks 1101: 644:, and the voters' preferences are as follows: 1514: 1007:to prevent the recurrence of such paradoxes. 242:For the same principle in social choice, see 1314: 589:methods, which can (and often do) pass IIA. 478:. Economists often invoke IIA when building 16:Axiom of decision theory and social sciences 565:should win the election." Situations where 53:Learn how and when to remove these messages 1620:Heuristics in judgment and decision-making 1521: 1507: 1413:Sniderman, Paul M.; Bullock, John (2018). 1124: 577:shows that no reasonable (non-random, non- 1381: 1340: 230:Learn how and when to remove this message 118:Learn how and when to remove this message 1257:a51c1c0b707a028be4337c348c95c52b548db0e3 999:, the eventual gold medal winner, until 620: 207:of all important aspects of the article. 1457: 1048: 1027: 969:1995 World Figure Skating Championships 501: 250:Independence of irrelevant alternatives 1673: 1366:"A canon of probabilistic rationality" 1105:Quarterly Journal of Political Science 510:or to make sure they are addressing a 203:Please consider expanding the lead to 1502: 1263: 1236: 1016: 1315:Peters, Hans; Wakker, Peter (1991). 1310: 1308: 913: 903: 609:Other methods that pass IIA include 557:is added to the ballot, then either 176: 129: 59: 18: 1528: 1451: 1217: 1188: 1167: 1112:(3). Now Publishing Inc.: 227–254. 1069: 1020:Social Choice and Individual Values 13: 14: 1702: 1305: 34:This article has multiple issues. 917: 769:. The presence of this societal 530: 181: 134: 64: 23: 1240:Menu dependence in risky choice 1010: 569:affects the outcome are called 195:may be too short to adequately 42:or discuss these issues on the 1464:The Review of Economic Studies 1406: 1357: 1125:Steenburgh, Thomas J. (2008). 1055:. Cambridge University Press. 1017:Arrow, Kenneth Joseph (1963). 447:}, introducing a third option 205:provide an accessible overview 1: 1458:Roberts, Kevin W. S. (1980). 1299: 604:Arrow's impossibility theorem 575:Arrow's impossibility theorem 480:descriptive (positive) models 408: 375:, failures of IIA (caused by 358:Arrow's impossibility theorem 1222:. Harvard University Press. 1170:The American Economic Review 469: 7: 1544:Expected utility hypothesis 1034:(5th ed.). MIT Press. 961:International Skating Union 464: 147:to comply with Knowledge's 10: 1707: 1660:Evidential decision theory 1370:Journal of Economic Theory 1275:Princeton University Press 989:pairwise-comparison method 952: 907: 534: 241: 1681:Electoral system criteria 1595:Principle of indifference 1557: 1536: 1392:10.1016/j.jet.2021.105289 948: 710:35% of the voters prefer 679:40% of the voters prefer 648:25% of the voters prefer 160:may contain suggestions. 145:may need to be rewritten 73:This article includes a 1655:Emotional choice theory 1220:Rationality and Freedom 1049:Maddala, G. S. (1983). 1031:A Guide to Econometrics 1028:Kennedy, Peter (2003). 963:(ISU), which regulates 516:experimental economists 387:. Violations of IIA in 346:artificial intelligence 102:more precise citations. 1650:Causal decision theory 1615:St. Petersburg paradox 1565:Decision-matrix method 1427:10.2307/j.ctv346px8.16 1237:Saini, Ritesh (2008). 1146:10.1287/mksc.1070.0301 1023:(2nd ed.). Wiley. 926:This section is empty. 462: 424: 362:Balinski-Young theorem 318: 298: 278: 1630:Bayesian epistemology 1218:Sen, Amartya (2002). 856:Instant-runoff voting 847:were not a candidate. 824:were not a candidate. 801:were not a candidate. 621:Common voting methods 428: 419: 319: 299: 279: 1691:Social choice theory 1686:Econometric modeling 1645:Social choice theory 1549:Intertemporal choice 1118:10.1561/100.00000007 993:2002 Winter Olympics 543:social choice theory 524:Behavioral economics 502:Behavioral economics 484:testable predictions 476:revealed preferences 373:behavioral economics 366:money pump arguments 308: 288: 268: 1580:Strategic dominance 910:Luce's choice axiom 876:First-past-the-post 860:Kemeny-Young method 615:random dictatorship 451:must not result in 439:in the choice set { 415:Sidney Morgenbesser 1625:Probability theory 1277:. pp. 84–85. 991:. However, at the 985:ranked voting rule 512:well-posed problem 455:being chosen over 314: 294: 274: 75:list of references 1668: 1667: 1436:978-0-691-18838-6 1229:978-0-674-01351-3 1134:Marketing Science 1062:978-1-107-78241-9 1041:978-0-262-61183-1 946: 945: 904:Stochastic choice 897:Copeland's method 864:Minimax Condorcet 761:, and 60% prefer 330:cognitive science 297:{\displaystyle B} 277:{\displaystyle A} 240: 239: 232: 222: 221: 175: 174: 149:quality standards 128: 127: 120: 57: 1698: 1610:Ellsberg paradox 1575:Expected utility 1523: 1516: 1509: 1500: 1499: 1494: 1493: 1491: 1490: 1470:(2). : 421–439. 1455: 1449: 1448: 1410: 1404: 1403: 1385: 1361: 1355: 1354: 1344: 1327:(6): 1787–1801. 1312: 1295: 1293: 1291: 1260: 1233: 1214: 1185: 1164: 1162: 1156:. Archived from 1131: 1121: 1095: 1066: 1045: 1024: 941: 938: 928:You can help by 921: 914: 323: 321: 320: 315: 303: 301: 300: 295: 283: 281: 280: 275: 235: 228: 217: 214: 208: 185: 177: 170: 167: 161: 138: 130: 123: 116: 112: 109: 103: 98:this article by 89:inline citations 68: 67: 60: 49: 27: 26: 19: 1706: 1705: 1701: 1700: 1699: 1697: 1696: 1695: 1671: 1670: 1669: 1664: 1570:Decision matrix 1553: 1532: 1530:Decision theory 1527: 1497: 1488: 1486: 1456: 1452: 1437: 1411: 1407: 1362: 1358: 1333:10.2307/2938291 1313: 1306: 1302: 1289: 1287: 1285: 1230: 1203:10.2307/2171939 1160: 1129: 1084:10.2307/1913820 1063: 1042: 1013: 1001:Irina Slutskaya 957: 951: 942: 936: 933: 912: 906: 627:Condorcet cycle 623: 591:Approval voting 571:spoiler effects 539: 533: 504: 472: 467: 435:is chosen over 411: 402:spoiler effects 385:menu dependence 342:rational choice 309: 306: 305: 289: 286: 285: 269: 266: 265: 262:decision theory 247: 236: 225: 224: 223: 218: 212: 209: 202: 190:This article's 186: 171: 165: 162: 152: 139: 124: 113: 107: 104: 93: 79:related reading 69: 65: 28: 24: 17: 12: 11: 5: 1704: 1694: 1693: 1688: 1683: 1666: 1665: 1663: 1662: 1657: 1652: 1647: 1642: 1637: 1632: 1627: 1622: 1617: 1612: 1607: 1605:Allais paradox 1602: 1597: 1592: 1587: 1582: 1577: 1572: 1567: 1561: 1559: 1555: 1554: 1552: 1551: 1546: 1540: 1538: 1534: 1533: 1526: 1525: 1518: 1511: 1503: 1496: 1495: 1450: 1445:j.ctv346px8.16 1435: 1405: 1356: 1303: 1301: 1298: 1297: 1296: 1283: 1261: 1234: 1228: 1215: 1197:(4): 745–779. 1186: 1176:(2): 385–390. 1165: 1163:on 2010-06-15. 1140:(2): 300–307. 1122: 1098: 1097: 1078:(5): 987–991. 1067: 1061: 1046: 1040: 1025: 1012: 1009: 965:figure skating 953:Main article: 950: 947: 944: 943: 924: 922: 908:Main article: 905: 902: 901: 900: 894: 891:Bucklin voting 883: 880:Schulze method 872:top-two runoff 849: 848: 825: 802: 775:voting paradox 771:intransitivity 740: 739: 708: 677: 622: 619: 537:Spoiler effect 535:Main article: 532: 529: 503: 500: 471: 468: 466: 463: 461: 460: 410: 407: 317:{\textstyle C} 313: 293: 273: 244:Spoiler effect 238: 237: 220: 219: 199:the key points 189: 187: 180: 173: 172: 142: 140: 133: 126: 125: 83:external links 72: 70: 63: 58: 32: 31: 29: 22: 15: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 1703: 1692: 1689: 1687: 1684: 1682: 1679: 1678: 1676: 1661: 1658: 1656: 1653: 1651: 1648: 1646: 1643: 1641: 1638: 1636: 1635:Risk aversion 1633: 1631: 1628: 1626: 1623: 1621: 1618: 1616: 1613: 1611: 1608: 1606: 1603: 1601: 1598: 1596: 1593: 1591: 1588: 1586: 1583: 1581: 1578: 1576: 1573: 1571: 1568: 1566: 1563: 1562: 1560: 1556: 1550: 1547: 1545: 1542: 1541: 1539: 1535: 1531: 1524: 1519: 1517: 1512: 1510: 1505: 1504: 1501: 1485: 1481: 1477: 1473: 1469: 1465: 1461: 1454: 1446: 1442: 1438: 1432: 1428: 1424: 1420: 1416: 1409: 1401: 1397: 1393: 1389: 1384: 1379: 1375: 1371: 1367: 1360: 1352: 1348: 1343: 1338: 1334: 1330: 1326: 1322: 1318: 1311: 1309: 1304: 1286: 1284:9780691248806 1280: 1276: 1272: 1271: 1266: 1262: 1258: 1254: 1250: 1246: 1242: 1241: 1235: 1231: 1225: 1221: 1216: 1212: 1208: 1204: 1200: 1196: 1192: 1187: 1183: 1179: 1175: 1171: 1166: 1159: 1155: 1151: 1147: 1143: 1139: 1135: 1128: 1123: 1119: 1115: 1111: 1107: 1106: 1100: 1099: 1093: 1089: 1085: 1081: 1077: 1073: 1068: 1064: 1058: 1054: 1053: 1047: 1043: 1037: 1033: 1032: 1026: 1022: 1021: 1015: 1014: 1008: 1006: 1002: 998: 994: 990: 986: 982: 978: 974: 973:Michelle Kwan 970: 966: 962: 956: 940: 931: 927: 923: 920: 916: 915: 911: 898: 895: 892: 888: 884: 881: 877: 873: 869: 865: 861: 857: 854: 853: 852: 846: 842: 838: 834: 830: 826: 823: 819: 815: 811: 807: 803: 800: 796: 792: 788: 784: 780: 779: 778: 776: 772: 768: 764: 760: 756: 753:, 65% prefer 752: 748: 743: 737: 733: 729: 725: 721: 717: 713: 709: 706: 702: 698: 694: 690: 686: 682: 678: 675: 671: 667: 663: 659: 655: 651: 647: 646: 645: 643: 639: 635: 630: 628: 618: 616: 612: 607: 605: 600: 599:median voting 596: 592: 588: 584: 583:ranked voting 580: 576: 572: 568: 564: 560: 556: 552: 548: 544: 538: 531:Social choice 528: 525: 521: 517: 513: 509: 499: 497: 493: 489: 488:unfalsifiable 485: 481: 477: 458: 454: 450: 446: 442: 438: 434: 430: 429: 427: 423: 418: 416: 406: 404: 403: 398: 394: 390: 389:social choice 386: 382: 379:) are called 378: 377:irrationality 374: 369: 367: 363: 359: 355: 351: 347: 343: 339: 338:fair division 335: 334:social choice 331: 327: 311: 291: 271: 263: 259: 256:) is a major 255: 251: 245: 234: 231: 216: 206: 200: 198: 193: 188: 184: 179: 178: 169: 159: 155: 150: 146: 143:This article 141: 137: 132: 131: 122: 119: 111: 101: 97: 91: 90: 84: 80: 76: 71: 62: 61: 56: 54: 47: 46: 41: 40: 35: 30: 21: 20: 1487:. Retrieved 1467: 1463: 1453: 1418: 1408: 1373: 1369: 1359: 1324: 1321:Econometrica 1320: 1288:. Retrieved 1269: 1265:Volić, Ismar 1239: 1219: 1194: 1191:Econometrica 1190: 1173: 1169: 1158:the original 1137: 1133: 1109: 1103: 1075: 1072:Econometrica 1071: 1051: 1030: 1018: 1011:Bibliography 1005:score voting 997:Sarah Hughes 981:Nicole Bobek 977:Surya Bonaly 958: 934: 930:adding to it 925: 868:Ranked Pairs 850: 844: 840: 839:would elect 836: 832: 828: 821: 817: 816:would elect 813: 809: 805: 798: 794: 793:would elect 790: 786: 782: 766: 762: 758: 754: 750: 746: 744: 741: 735: 731: 727: 723: 719: 715: 711: 704: 700: 696: 692: 688: 684: 680: 673: 669: 665: 661: 657: 653: 649: 641: 637: 633: 631: 624: 608: 595:score voting 587:rated voting 566: 562: 558: 554: 550: 546: 540: 520:decoy effect 505: 494:until going 492:money pumped 473: 456: 452: 448: 444: 440: 436: 432: 425: 420: 412: 401: 384: 381:menu effects 380: 370: 253: 249: 248: 226: 210: 194: 192:lead section 163: 154:You can help 144: 114: 105: 94:Please help 86: 50: 43: 37: 36:Please help 33: 1640:Game theory 887:Borda count 745:75% prefer 579:dictatorial 508:computation 437:B(lueberry) 422:blueberry." 399:are called 354:game theory 350:probability 100:introducing 1675:Categories 1489:2024-09-25 1383:2007.11386 1376:: 105289. 1342:1765/23217 1300:References 1243:(Thesis). 937:April 2024 878:, and the 409:Motivation 364:, and the 213:April 2024 166:April 2024 108:April 2024 39:improve it 1537:Decisions 1476:0034-6527 1400:0022-0531 1351:0012-9682 1249:857236573 1154:207229327 611:sortition 470:Economics 393:elections 326:economics 197:summarize 158:talk page 45:talk page 1558:Concepts 1267:(2024). 1253:CiteSeer 827:Case 3: 804:Case 2: 781:Case 1: 640:, & 496:bankrupt 465:By field 449:C(herry) 1590:Leximin 1585:Minimax 1484:2297002 1290:June 4, 1255::  1211:2171939 1182:2117864 1092:1913820 971:, when 773:is the 553:), and 433:A(pple) 96:improve 1482:  1474:  1443:  1433:  1398:  1349:  1281:  1247:  1226:  1209:  1180:  1152:  1090:  1059:  1038:  949:Sports 858:, the 718:, and 687:, and 656:, and 597:, and 397:sports 395:, and 360:, the 352:, and 156:. The 1480:JSTOR 1441:JSTOR 1378:arXiv 1207:JSTOR 1178:JSTOR 1161:(PDF) 1150:S2CID 1130:(PDF) 1088:JSTOR 835:over 812:over 789:over 765:over 757:over 749:over 734:> 730:> 722:over 714:over 703:> 699:> 691:over 683:over 672:> 668:> 660:over 652:over 258:axiom 81:, or 1600:Risk 1472:ISSN 1431:ISBN 1396:ISSN 1347:ISSN 1292:2024 1279:ISBN 1245:OCLC 1224:ISBN 1057:ISBN 1036:ISBN 979:and 889:and 885:The 613:and 284:and 1423:doi 1388:doi 1374:196 1337:hdl 1329:doi 1199:doi 1142:doi 1114:doi 1080:doi 932:. 843:if 820:if 797:if 726:. ( 695:. ( 664:. ( 561:or 541:In 431:If 383:or 371:In 260:of 254:IIA 1677:: 1478:. 1468:47 1466:. 1462:. 1439:. 1429:. 1394:. 1386:. 1372:. 1368:. 1345:. 1335:. 1325:59 1323:. 1319:. 1307:^ 1273:. 1251:. 1205:. 1195:65 1193:. 1174:84 1172:. 1148:. 1138:27 1136:. 1132:. 1108:. 1086:. 1076:41 1074:. 874:, 870:, 866:, 862:, 636:, 629:: 617:. 593:, 581:) 573:. 514:, 443:, 405:. 391:, 368:. 348:, 344:, 340:, 336:, 332:, 328:, 85:, 77:, 48:. 1522:e 1515:t 1508:v 1492:. 1447:. 1425:: 1402:. 1390:: 1380:: 1353:. 1339:: 1331:: 1294:. 1259:. 1232:. 1213:. 1201:: 1184:. 1144:: 1120:. 1116:: 1110:1 1094:. 1082:: 1065:. 1044:. 939:) 935:( 845:A 841:B 837:C 833:B 829:C 822:C 818:A 814:B 810:A 806:B 799:B 795:C 791:A 787:C 783:A 767:B 763:A 759:C 755:B 751:A 747:C 738:) 736:B 732:A 728:C 724:B 720:A 716:A 712:C 707:) 705:A 701:C 697:B 693:A 689:C 685:C 681:B 676:) 674:C 670:B 666:A 662:C 658:B 654:B 650:A 642:C 638:B 634:A 567:Y 563:Y 559:X 555:Y 551:Y 547:X 459:. 457:A 453:B 445:B 441:A 417:: 312:C 292:B 272:A 252:( 246:. 233:) 227:( 215:) 211:( 201:. 168:) 164:( 151:. 121:) 115:( 110:) 106:( 92:. 55:) 51:(

Index

improve it
talk page
Learn how and when to remove these messages
list of references
related reading
external links
inline citations
improve
introducing
Learn how and when to remove this message

quality standards
You can help
talk page

lead section
summarize
provide an accessible overview
Learn how and when to remove this message
Spoiler effect
axiom
decision theory
economics
cognitive science
social choice
fair division
rational choice
artificial intelligence
probability
game theory

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.