A stated preference analysis comparing the Analytical Hierarchy Process versus Choice Experiments

Our paper compares individual preferences for attributes and levels of an agro-food product using two different methodologies. A key question is whether different results are obtained when asking consumers what they "prefer" versus what they would w"buy". Within this context, we compare empirical results obtained from Choice Experiments (CE) versus the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) due to their capacity to simulate the "purchasing" and "theoretical" stated preferences, respectively. We utilize a survey of restaurateurs' stated preferences to include rabbit meat in their menus in Catalonia (Spain) in this exploratory study. Results demonstrate similarities and differences in the stated preferences for attributes and attribute levels with a 55.6% coincidence in their ranking between methods. Utility variation between levels in both approaches follows a similar shape for two of the three analyzed attributes. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.