A Framework for Sensitivity Analysis in Spatial Multiple Criteria Evaluation

The paper presents a framework for sensitivity analysis (SA) in spatial multiple criteria evaluation (S-MCE). The framework focuses on three aspects of S-MCE: spatiality, scope, and cardinality. Spatiality stresses the importance of spatial criteria and spatial weights that should be explicitly considered in GIS-based MCE. Scope relates to the extent of SA, ranging from local one-at-a-time criterion examination to global testing of interdependencies among the multiple criteria model components. Cardinality addresses the duality of motivation for performing SA, namely, single-user learning and group consensus building. The framework organizes the existing SA techniques according to spatiality and scope and can be used as a conceptual guide in selecting SA techniques fitting a task at hand.