Abstract
An approach to the concept of error in utility assessment is proposed. Three components of error are considered and each component is related to four separate clicitation methods. The most serious error-method combination is the case of a substantial degree of error occurring in a single holistic judgement which is being used in a Holistic Orthogenal Parameter Estimation (HOPE). The major emphasic is an expanded HOPE procedure used in conjunction with a convergent validation strategy to estimate error in individual holistic judgements and thus guide consistency checks.