Decision Support Fundamentals

Abstract

Rational approaches to decision-making are classified in one of the following categories: descriptive, normative, or prescriptive. The main normative models that are presented concern value functions, expected utility and subjective expected utility. Several alternative normative frameworks that have appeared in the literature of the last thirty years particularly for attacking the problem of conflicting objectives—the analytic hierarchical process, multi-criteria decision-making movement, outranking—are described. A Framework to align decision support-driven initiatives with the decision-making vision is given in the chapter. It divides the objective-oriented systems that determine the structure of decision-making domain from the strategic actions in this domain that have to determine the decision-making process. The latter serves as the basis for defining the main objectives, which have to be achieved in the development of Decision-Making Support Systems (DMSS). A classification scheme of the main categories of such systems is suggested. The development of DMSSs depends on the accepted implementation method, architectural representation of these systems, implementation approaches and used information, communication and computer technologies. They guarantee not only the capabilities of decision-making support systems, but its characteristics as well.