If that assumption is accepted, utility theory can be used to predict or prescribe the choice that the decision maker will make, or should make, among the available alternatives. There exist various methods for constructing utility functions. This means that it applies to cases where each of the mutually exclusive consequences has several attributes. Several special forms of multiattribute utility functions have been developed, including the additive and the multiplicative forms. An attribute denoting the capacity to satisfy human desires, usually measured by the price someone is willing to pay.
Marginal utility is the change in utility due to a one-unit change in the quantity consumed.