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We generalize the notion of an absorbent element of aggregation operators. Our construction involves tuples of values that decide the result of aggregation. Absorbent tuples are useful to model situations in which certain decision makers may decide the outcome irrespective of the opinion of the others. We examine the most important classes of aggregation operators in respect to their absorbent tuples, and also construct new aggregation operators with predefined sets of absorbent tuples. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this paper we introduce an algorithm to aggregate the preference relations provided by experts in multi-expert decision making problems. Instead of using a single aggregation function for the whole process, we start from a set of aggregation functions and select, by means of consensus done through penalty functions, the most suitable aggregation function in order to aggregate the individual preferences for each of the elements. An advantage of the method that we propose is that it allows us to recover the classical methods, just by using a single aggregation function. We also present a generalization of the concepts of restricted dissimilarity function and distance between sets for the case where we are working with a Cartesian product of lattices and use such concepts to build penalty functions. Finally, we propose an algorithm that allows us to choose the best combination of aggregation functions for a multi-expert decision making problem. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]