NSF Org:	SES Division of Social and Economic Sciences
Recipient:	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA IRVINE
Initial Amendment Date:	March 16, 1990
Latest Amendment Date:	March 21, 1991
Award Number:	8921494
Award Instrument:	Continuing Grant
Program Manager:	Shelton White SES  Division of Social and Economic Sciences SBE  Directorate for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences
Start Date:	April 1, 1990
End Date:	March 31, 1993 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount:	$138,362.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date:	$138,362.00
Funds Obligated to Date:	FY 1990 = $77,744.00 FY 1991 = $60,618.00
History of Investigator:	R. Duncan Luce (Principal Investigator) rdluce@uci.edu
Recipient Sponsored Research Office:	University of California-Irvine 160 ALDRICH HALL IRVINE CA  US  92697-0001 (949)824-7295
Sponsor Congressional District:	47
Primary Place of Performance:	DATA NOT AVAILABLE
Primary Place of Performance Congressional District:
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI):	MJC5FCYQTPE6
Parent UEI:	MJC5FCYQTPE6
NSF Program(s):	Decision, Risk & Mgmt Sci
Primary Program Source:
Program Reference Code(s):
Program Element Code(s):	132100
Award Agency Code:	4900
Fund Agency Code:	4900
Assistance Listing Number(s):	47.075

ABSTRACT

The proposal outlines a valuable extension of research on expected utility theory. Forty years of experience has led to two conclusions. One, stressed by empirical researchers, is that the theory does not adequately describe behavior in many experimental and real-world situations. The other, stressed by decision analysts, is that the axioms of the theory are normatively appealing and difficult to dismiss. The gap between the descriptive inadequacy and normative appeal has widened in the past ten years. As a result, researchers have challenged not only the descriptive validity, but the normative basis of expected utility theory. The proposed research begins by identifying a common ground for descriptive and normative research in a newly developed rank and sign dependent (RSD) linear utility theory. The investigators propose (1) to extend the range of concepts included in RSD, (2) to test key assumptions of RSD, (3) to develop connections between RSD and traditional utility theory, and (4) to explore the normative-descriptive distinction in the context of RSD. Thus, the research combines theoretical development, experimental research, and applied experience in an effort to bridge the normative- descriptive gap in the theory of decision making under uncertainty.

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