Glossary
Elimination By Aspects
What is elimination by aspects?
Elimination by aspects is Amos Tversky’s model of choosing by successively removing options. Select a feature, discard the options that lack it, then repeat until one remains.
How it works
In the original model, an aspect is selected with a probability proportional to its weight. More heavily weighted features are more likely to be considered, but the model does not require a fixed order.
A familiar practical version is screening cars by price, safety features, or fuel efficiency. A buyer might remove any car that fails a minimum requirement, then consider another feature. This illustrates sequential elimination; a fixed checklist is a simplification of Tversky’s probabilistic model.
How is it different from a lexicographic rule?
A lexicographic rule gives priority to the most important attribute, using another if needed to break a tie. Elimination by aspects removes options that lack a selected feature. A cutoff need not choose the option with the highest score, and a feature’s weight is not the same thing as its cutoff.
Why it matters
This is a noncompensatory approach: strengths on another feature do not compensate for failing the selected aspect. Screening can make a large choice set manageable. It also makes the criteria consequential: an option removed early never gets credit for its other strengths. Personal preferences can legitimately determine which features matter.