ABSTRACT
So far in this work, cost has been a minor consideration. In Chapters 6 through 11, issues related to costs have been considered as one of many variables in methods such as Pareto analysis (Section 6.1) and decision analysis (Section 7.10). Questions that are based on economics have a substantial influence on decisions about user-centered products and deserve substantial examination. Research and development teams need to understand how economic issues such as life cycle costs and perceptions of concept value influence choices among alternatives. For these reasons, this chapter discusses value, how value is created and how value is shared among those who make and use product. Cost-benefit analysis is compared with cost-effective analysis. Approaches to cost-effectiveness analysis are reviewed. A method to account for cost-effectiveness is presented, then demonstrated in two examples.
