Problem: A common prioritization process involves a matrix to make pair-wise decisions when the list of choices is difficult. The pair-wise decision-making grid for a list of ten items might look like the following:
1-2
1-3 2-3
1-4 2-4 3-4
1-5 2-5 3-5 4-5
1-6 2-6 3-6 4-6 5-6
1-7 2-7 3-7 4-7 5-7 6-7
1-8 2-8 3-8 4-8 5-8 6-8 7-8
1-9 2-9 3-9 4-9 5-9 6-9 7-9 8-9
1-10 2-10 3-10 4-10 5-10 6-10 7-10 8-10 9-10
Using the matrix as a guide and the following numbered list, determine the priorities of the following ten items, assuming you will have enough resources to solve only one of the problems.
1. World Hunger
2. Sufficient Energy
3. Violent Crime, Terrorism, and War
4. World Health
5. Economic Prosperity for Everyone
6. Religious Conflict
7. Extra-Terrestrial Colonization
8. Environmental Preservation (Clean Water and Air, Wildlife Territory Preservation)
9. Working Stress
10. Improving Public Education
Follow this process for prioritizing:
1. For each box in the matrix, compare the items numbered in the box. For example, the upper left box tells you to compare item one against item two.
2. Circle the number in the box that you believe has higher priority. For example, if you think World Hunger is a bigger problem than Sufficient Energy, you would circle the number.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 for all of the boxes.
4. Add up the number of times you circled each number, looking in all the rows and columns. For example, the number five occurs in the fourth row and the fifth column, so you have to look across the row and down the column to find all the numbers that you had circled. If you have captured all of the numbers correctly, the total should add up to 45. Record the answers below.
Item Your Count
1
2
3
4
5