On the dispersion measure of OWA operators

We describe some basic features of the OWA operator. We turn to the problem of determining the weights associated with this operator and particularly the maximal dispersion (entropy) approach. We consider the possibility of using minimization of dispersion. After discussing concerns with both maximization and minimization of dispersion we investigate the possibility of finding an optimal solution intermediate to these extremes. We next consider alternative measures of dispersion. We introduce a fundamental requirement for a measure of dispersion called the Preference for Equal Division. A number of general classes of dispersion measures are provided notable among these are those based on t-norm and t-conorm operators. (c) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.