A Qualitative Linear Utility Theory for Spohn's Theory of Epistemic Beliefs
نویسندگان
چکیده
In this paper, we formulate a qualitative "lin ear" utility theory for lotteries in which un certainty is expressed qualitatively using a Spohnian disbelief function. We argue that a rational decision maker facing an uncertain decision problem in which the uncertainty is expressed qualitatively should behave so as to maximize "qualitative expected utility." Our axiomatization of the qualitative util ity is similar to the axiomatization developed by von Neumann and Morgenstern for prob abilistic lotteries. We compare our results with other recent results in qualitative de cision making.
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