Scaling-invariant functions versus positively homogeneous functions

Abstract: Scaling-invariant functions preserve the order of points when the points are scaled by the same positive scalar (with respect to a unique reference point). Composites of strictly monotonic functions with positively homogeneous functions are scaling-invariant with respect to zero. We prove in this paper that the reverse is true for large classes of scaling-invariant functions. Specifically, we give necessary and sufficient conditions for scaling-invariant functions to be composites of a strictly monotonic function with a positively homogeneous function. We also study sublevel sets of scaling-invariant functions generalizing well-known properties of positively homogeneous functions.