Analysis of methods aimed at decision-making support (adapted from Velasquez & Hester, 2013).
| Method . | Benefits . | Application areas . |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-attribute utility theory (MAUT) | Takes into account uncertainty; can incorporate preferences | Economy, finance, actuarial, water, management, energy management, agriculture |
| Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) | Easy to use; scalable; the hierarchical structure can easily be adjusted to fit many size issues; non-data intensive | Performance type issues, resource management, corporate and strategic policy, public policy, political strategy, planning |
| Case-based reasoning | Non-data intensive; requires little maintenance; may improve over time; can adapt to changes in the environment | Business, vehicle insurance, medicine and engineering design |
| Data envelopment analysis (DEA) | Able to handle multiple inputs and outputs; efficiency can be analyzed and quantified | Economics, medicine, utilities, road safety, agriculture, retail and business issues |
| Diffuse set theory | Allows inaccurate input; takes into account insufficient training | Engineering, economics, management, environment, sociology and medicine |
| Simple multi-attribute rating technique (SMART) | Simple; allows any type of weighting technique; less effort by decision-makers | Environment, construction, transportation and logistics, military, manufacturing and assembly issues |
| Goal programming (GP) | Able to deal with large-scale problems; can produce endless alternatives | Production planning, scheduling, health care, portfolio selection, distribution systems, energy planning, water reservoir management, wildlife management |
| ELECTRE | It takes into account uncertainty and inaccuracy | Energy, economy, environment, water management and transportation issues |
| PROMETHEE | Easy to use; requires no assumption that the criteria are proportionate | Environment, hydrology, water management, business and finance, chemistry, logistics and transportation, manufacturing and assembly, energy, agriculture |
| Simple additive weighting (SAW) | Ability to offset criteria; intuitive for manufacturers' decision; the calculation is simple, does not require complex computer programs | Water resources management, business and financial management |
| Technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution | It has a simple process; easy to use and program; the number of steps remains the same regardless of the number of attributes | Supply chain and logistics management, engineering, manufacturing systems, business and marketing, environment, human resources and water resources management |
| Method . | Benefits . | Application areas . |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-attribute utility theory (MAUT) | Takes into account uncertainty; can incorporate preferences | Economy, finance, actuarial, water, management, energy management, agriculture |
| Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) | Easy to use; scalable; the hierarchical structure can easily be adjusted to fit many size issues; non-data intensive | Performance type issues, resource management, corporate and strategic policy, public policy, political strategy, planning |
| Case-based reasoning | Non-data intensive; requires little maintenance; may improve over time; can adapt to changes in the environment | Business, vehicle insurance, medicine and engineering design |
| Data envelopment analysis (DEA) | Able to handle multiple inputs and outputs; efficiency can be analyzed and quantified | Economics, medicine, utilities, road safety, agriculture, retail and business issues |
| Diffuse set theory | Allows inaccurate input; takes into account insufficient training | Engineering, economics, management, environment, sociology and medicine |
| Simple multi-attribute rating technique (SMART) | Simple; allows any type of weighting technique; less effort by decision-makers | Environment, construction, transportation and logistics, military, manufacturing and assembly issues |
| Goal programming (GP) | Able to deal with large-scale problems; can produce endless alternatives | Production planning, scheduling, health care, portfolio selection, distribution systems, energy planning, water reservoir management, wildlife management |
| ELECTRE | It takes into account uncertainty and inaccuracy | Energy, economy, environment, water management and transportation issues |
| PROMETHEE | Easy to use; requires no assumption that the criteria are proportionate | Environment, hydrology, water management, business and finance, chemistry, logistics and transportation, manufacturing and assembly, energy, agriculture |
| Simple additive weighting (SAW) | Ability to offset criteria; intuitive for manufacturers' decision; the calculation is simple, does not require complex computer programs | Water resources management, business and financial management |
| Technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution | It has a simple process; easy to use and program; the number of steps remains the same regardless of the number of attributes | Supply chain and logistics management, engineering, manufacturing systems, business and marketing, environment, human resources and water resources management |