The induced generalized OWA operator

We present the induced generalized ordered weighted averaging (IGOWA) operator. It is a new aggregation operator that generalizes the OWA operator, including the main characteristics of both the generalized OWA and the induced OWA operator. This operator uses generalized means and order-inducing variables in the reordering process. It provides a very general formulation that includes as special cases a wide range of aggregation operators, including all the particular cases of the IOWA and the GOWA operator, the induced ordered weighted geometric (IOWG) operator and the induced ordered weighted quadratic averaging (IOWQA) operator. We further generalize the IGOWA operator via quasi-arithmetic means. The result is the Quasi-IOWA operator. Finally, we present a numerical example to illustrate the new approach in a financial decision-making problem. (C) 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.