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ON THE SENSITIVITY OF BRAND‐CHOICE SIMULATIONS TO ATTRIBUTE IMPORTANCE WEIGHTS
Author(s) -
Curry David J.,
Louviere Jordan J.,
Augustine Michael J.
Publication year - 1981
Publication title -
decision sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.238
H-Index - 108
eISSN - 1540-5915
pISSN - 0011-7315
DOI - 10.1111/j.1540-5915.1981.tb00100.x
Subject(s) - sensitivity (control systems) , distortion (music) , econometrics , range (aeronautics) , computer science , domain (mathematical analysis) , mathematics , materials science , bandwidth (computing) , electronic engineering , engineering , amplifier , computer network , mathematical analysis , composite material
This paper critically reviews the report by Green, DeSarbo, and Kedia “on the insensitivity of brand‐choice simulations to attribute importance weights”. The review suggests that results from two of their four weight distortion conditions should be viewed with suspicion and that their procedure for selecting brand scores biased the sensitivity analysis and inflated individual‐level hit rates. The most unfortunate problem is that their simulation‐experimental design precludes a global test of the main research issue. Results are presented from an alternative simulation approach that has the power to detect the sensitivity of brand shares to a wide range of conditions that affect the shape of attribute weight distributions. The results suggest that conclusions of Green, DeSarbo, and Kedia apply only to a limited domain and would not obtain in many likely market situations. Extensions to nonadditive decision structures are suggested and several unresolved issues are outlined.