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Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis

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A special issue of Mathematics (ISSN 2227-7390). This special issue belongs to the section "Fuzzy Sets, Systems and Decision Making".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2021) | Viewed by 42179

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Dr. Santoso Wibowo

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Guest Editor

School of Engineering and Technology, Central Queensland University, Melbourne, QLD 4701, Australia
Interests: artificial intelligence; deep learning; machine learning; intelligent information systems; performance evaluation
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Prof. Dr. William Guo

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School of Engineering and Technology, Central Queensland University, North Rockhampton, QLD 4702, Australia
Interests: mathematics education; computational intelligence; data mining; modelling and simulation; geophysics
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Dear Colleagues,

Multi-criteria decision making refers to ranking all the alternatives available or selecting the most suitable one from those with respect to multiple, usually conflicting criteria involving either a single decision maker or multiple decision makers. Multi-criteria decision making problems are commonly encountered in our daily lives. For example, a customer wanting to select a car from various cars available would consider many factors, such as fuel consumption, safety, reliability, maintainability, style, brand, model, manufacturer and so forth, before making the final decision alone or by family members and friends together. On the other hand, an organization searching for developing new information system must make the final decision based on the economy/budget, risks, technical capability and other factors for each of the available proposals.

Over the last decades, numerous multi-criteria decision making approaches have been proposed and researched for solving various practical problems. These approaches are developed from various perspectives for helping the decision maker(s) deal with multi-criteria decision making problems with respect to special circumstances in the real world setting. Given the proliferation of such approaches, it is important to have a thorough understanding of their value and usability in different contexts.

This Special Issue aims to gather high-quality papers which identify trends, new developments and applications of multi-criteria decision making approaches.

Prof. Dr. Santoso Wibowo
Prof. William Guo
Guest Editors

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Keywords

Multicriteria Decision Making
Multicriteria Group Decision Making
Multiple Criteria Classiﬁcation, Ranking and Sorting
Multiple Objective Continuous and Combinatorial Optimization
Multiple Objective Metaheuristics
Fuzzy Multicriteria Decision Making
Multicriteria Decision Making Software
Applications of Multicriteria Decision Making

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Published Papers (12 papers)

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30 pages, 2290 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis of Sustainable Urban Public Transport Systems

by Alberto Romero-Ania, Lourdes Rivero Gutiérrez and María Auxiliadora De Vicente Oliva

Mathematics 2021, 9(16), 1844; https://doi.org/10.3390/math9161844 - 4 Aug 2021

Cited by 22 | Viewed by 3447

Abstract

Urban public transport systems must be economically efficient and additionally environmentally sustainable. Available decision support systems, including multiple criteria decision models, allow identifying which urban public transport vehicles are acceptable and those that should no longer be used in efficient and environmentally friendly cities. Previous research has ranked urban public transport vehicles by applying analytic hierarchy process multi-criteria decision-making models, from economic and non-polluting perspectives. However, until now, the types of vehicles acceptable for fleet renewal have not been identified. This study proposes a consistent combination of the ELECTRE TRI multiple criteria decision sorting method and the DELPHI procedure, the objective of which is to identify which urban public transport vehicles are acceptable, taking into consideration a suggested sustainable threshold, which includes economic and environmental strict requirements. The proposed model is based on 2020 Madrid urban public road transport data, published by Madrid City Council, which were compiled by the authors, and assessed by a panel of 20 experts to identify criteria and factors included in the model. Findings help local administrations to identify which urban public transport vehicles should be progressively replaced by those classified as economically efficient and additionally environmentally sustainable. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis)

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24 pages, 6119 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Interrelationship among CE Adoption Obstacles of Supply Chain in the Textile Sector: Based on the DEMATEL-ISM Approach

by Wen-Kuo Chen and Ching-Torng Lin

Mathematics 2021, 9(12), 1425; https://doi.org/10.3390/math9121425 - 19 Jun 2021

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3290

Abstract

Globally, in the innovative and distributional circular textiles, the textile sector of Taiwan has a prominent place. Within the textile industry, the circular economy (CE) obstacles adopted have been studied by several scholars. However, the interrelationships among these obstacles are easily ignored. The present study aimed to identify CE adoption obstacles from the supply chain (SC) perspective in Taiwan’s textile sector by analyzing the interrelationships among the CE adoption obstacles and establishing a hierarchical network and the causal inter relationships of the identified obstacles. Furthermore, the CE adoption obstacles and interrelationships were analyzed using interpretative structural modeling and the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (ISM-DEMATEL). The common results of the two methods demonstrated that two obstacles, consumers not having sufficient knowledge and awareness of reuse/recycling (B1) and a lack of successful business models and frameworks for CE implementation (B3), were the significant obstacles influencing adopting CE in the textile supply chain, while the obstacle making the most efficient way (B12) of the right decision to implement CE was minor. Thus, the government should formulate friendly laws and regulations that encourage CE adoption, while textile firms should monitor and control recycling and efficiency approaches handling the CE adoption problems. Our results could offer first-hand knowledge to textile firms or managers to effetely achieve CE implementation objectives. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis)

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12 pages, 396 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Reducing the Computational Time for the Kemeny Method by Exploiting Condorcet Properties

by Noelia Rico, Camino R. Vela, Raúl Pérez-Fernández and Irene Díaz

Mathematics 2021, 9(12), 1380; https://doi.org/10.3390/math9121380 - 15 Jun 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2418

Abstract

Preference aggregation and in particular ranking aggregation are mainly studied by the field of social choice theory but extensively applied in a variety of contexts. Among the most prominent methods for ranking aggregation, the Kemeny method has been proved to be the only one that satisfies some desirable properties such as neutrality, consistency and the Condorcet condition at the same time. Unfortunately, the problem of finding a Kemeny ranking is NP-hard, which prevents practitioners from using it in real-life problems. The state of the art of exact algorithms for the computation of the Kemeny ranking experienced a major boost last year with the presentation of an algorithm that provides searching time guarantee up to 13 alternatives. In this work, we propose an enhanced version of this algorithm based on pruning the search space when some Condorcet properties hold. This enhanced version greatly improves the performance in terms of runtime consumption. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis)

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11 pages, 1256 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Using Linguistic VIKOR and Fuzzy Cognitive Maps to Select Virtual Reality Games Development Project

by Shu-Fen Huang

Mathematics 2021, 9(11), 1253; https://doi.org/10.3390/math9111253 - 30 May 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1852

Abstract

In the entertainment industry, providing games to players is a main business activity with a long history. There are various kinds of game types such as the computer game, web game, pocket game, mobile game developed for play. Virtual reality is a new technology which can integrate into the computer or mobile for generating virtual reality games. The goal of this study is to develop a framework to evaluate and select the virtual reality games development project. In the proposed framework, Linguistic VIKOR is integrated with fuzzy cognitive maps to select the project. For readers to understand the proposed method, a case study has been introduced to evaluate the project based on the proposed method. Finally, the conclusion and future research are discussed as an ending. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis)

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23 pages, 3040 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Hybrid, Data-Driven Causality Exploration Method for Exploring the Key Factors Affecting Mobile Payment Usage Intention

by Ching Ching Fang, James J. H. Liou, Sun-Weng Huang, Ying-Chuan Wang, Hui-Hua Huang and Gwo-Hshiung Tzeng

Mathematics 2021, 9(11), 1185; https://doi.org/10.3390/math9111185 - 24 May 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3243

Abstract

Several methodologies for academically exploring causality have been addressed in recent years. The decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL), one of the multiple criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques, relies on expert judgements to construct an influential network relation map (INRM), revealing the mutual causes and effects of the criteria and dimensions for presentation of the results in a visual manner. The interactional impacts may be evaluated without considering the presumed hypotheses. The DEMATEL has been successfully utilized to assist in complex decision-making problems in various contexts. However, there is controversy about the reliance upon expert judgements, which could be subjective. Thus, this study seeks to overcome this dispute by developing a data-driven, concept-based novel hybrid model which the authors call SEM-DEMATEL. The model first constructs the direct effects between indicators based on structural equation modeling (SEM) and then utilizes DEMATEL to confirm the interdependence among the variables and identify their causes and effects. Finally, an empirical study exploring the key factors affecting mobile payment usage intention is further conducted to demonstrate the feasibility, validity, and reliability of the novel SEM-DEMATEL research approach. The results identify that the perceived value is the key influencing indicator of m-payment usage intention, and the objectivity and efficiency of the research results are compared. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis)

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34 pages, 3191 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Developing a Fuzzy TOPSIS Model Combining MACBETH and Fuzzy Shannon Entropy to Select a Gamification App

by María Carmen Carnero

Mathematics 2021, 9(9), 1034; https://doi.org/10.3390/math9091034 - 2 May 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3478

Abstract

Due to the important advantages it offers, gamification is one of the fastest-growing industries in the world, and interest from the market and from users continues to grow. This has led to the development of more and more applications aimed at different fields, and in particular the education sector. Choosing the most suitable application is increasingly difficult, and so to solve this problem, our study designed a model which is an innovative combination of fuzzy Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) with the Measuring Attractiveness by a Categorical Based Evaluation Technique (MACBETH) and Shannon entropy theory, to choose the most suitable gamification application for the Industrial Manufacturing and Organisation Systems course in the degree programmes for Electrical Engineering and Industrial and Automatic Electronics at the Higher Technical School of Industrial Engineering of Ciudad Real, part of the University of Castilla-La Mancha. There is no precedent in the literature that combines MACBETH and fuzzy Shannon entropy to simultaneously consider the subjective and objective weights of criteria to achieve a more accurate model. The objective weights computed from fuzzy Shannon entropy were compared with those calculated from De Luca and Termini entropy and exponential entropy. The validity of the proposed method is tested through the Preference Ranking Organisation METHod for Enrichment of Evaluations (PROMETHEE) II, ELimination and Choice Expressing REality (ELECTRE) III, and fuzzy VIKOR method (VIsekriterijumska optimizacija i KOmpromisno Resenje). The results show that Quizizz is the best option for this course, and it was used in two academic years. There are no precedents in the literature using fuzzy multicriteria decision analysis techniques to select the most suitable gamification application for a degree-level university course. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis)

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27 pages, 2828 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

A Compromised Decision-Making Approach to Third-Party Logistics Selection in Sustainable Supply Chain Using Fuzzy AHP and Fuzzy VIKOR Methods

by Chia-Nan Wang, Ngoc-Ai-Thy Nguyen, Thanh-Tuan Dang and Chen-Ming Lu

Mathematics 2021, 9(8), 886; https://doi.org/10.3390/math9080886 - 16 Apr 2021

Cited by 103 | Viewed by 9180

Abstract

With the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the e-commerce trend is driving faster, significantly impacting supply chains around the world. Thus, the importance of logistics and supply chain functions has been amplified in almost every business that ships physical goods. In Vietnam, the logistics service sector has seen rapid expansion. Since more and more businesses are seeking third-party logistics (3PL) providers to outsource the logistics functions, this article aims to offer decision-makers an integrated and consistent model for evaluating and selecting the most efficient 3PLs. To this end, the authors exploit a hybrid multi-criteria method which is fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP) and fuzzy vlsekriterijumska optimizacija i kompromisno resenje (FVIKOR) while examining the most influential and conflicting criteria regarding economic, service level, environmental, social, and risk aspects. Fuzzy information in the natural decision-making process is considered, linguistic variables are used to mitigate the uncertain levels in the criteria weights. First, FAHP (the weighting method) is adopted to evaluate and calculate each criterion’s relative significant fuzzy weight. FVIKOR (the compromised ranking method) is then used to rank the alternatives. The combination of FAHP and FVIKOR methods provides more accurate ranking results. As a result, reliability and delivery time, voice of customer, logistics cost, network management, and quality of service are the most impactful factors to the logistics outsourcing problem. Eventually, the optimized 3PLs were determined that fully meet the criteria of sustainable development. The developed integrated model offers the complete and robust 3PLs evaluation and selection process and can also be a powerful decision support tool for other industries. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis)

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16 pages, 776 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Multicriteria Analysis Approach for Evaluating the Performance of Agriculture Decision Support Systems for Sustainable Agribusiness

by Sophia Xiaoxia Duan, Santoso Wibowo and Josephine Chong

Mathematics 2021, 9(8), 884; https://doi.org/10.3390/math9080884 - 16 Apr 2021

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2883

Abstract

Agriculture decision support systems (DSSs) play an important role in facilitating evidence-based agricultural decision-making for improving agribusiness productivity. Evaluating and selecting the most appropriate agriculture DSS for sustainable agribusiness is, however, challenging due to the existence of production and marketing alternatives, a variety of objective functions from economic to lifestyle to long-term sustainability, and the subjectiveness and imprecision involved in the evaluation process. To help decision makers effectively deal with these issues, this paper presents a multicriteria analysis approach for evaluating and selecting the most appropriate agriculture DSS for sustainable agribusiness. The subjective assessments of decision makers in the evaluation process are formulated using linguistic variables approximated by fuzzy numbers. The concept based on the positive and the negative ideal solutions is applied for producing a performance index value for every agriculture DSS alternative across all evaluation criteria based on which the most appropriate agriculture DSS is. An empirical study is presented for demonstrating the step-wise process for evaluating and selecting the most appropriate agriculture DSS for sustainable agribusiness. The outcome from the performance evaluation process allows agribusinesses to effectively adopt appropriate agriculture DSSs for achieving competitive advantages. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis)

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43 pages, 3202 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Fuzzy TOPSIS Model for Assessment of Environmental Sustainability: A Case Study with Patient Judgements

by María Carmen Carnero

Mathematics 2020, 8(11), 1985; https://doi.org/10.3390/math8111985 - 6 Nov 2020

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2199

Abstract

Health care organisations have broadened their commitment to corporate social responsibility, since, as well as providing health care to patients, their activities negatively affect world pollution. This is a result of the products and technologies they use, the resources they consume, the waste they produce, and the buildings they occupy and operate. This, in turn, affects the health of the community. For this reason, a growing number of health care organisations have become involved in improvements to environmental sustainability, in order to promote public health. These improvements need to be controlled by a system whose effects can be assessed within a process of continuous improvement. This research, therefore, sets out a model constructed by extension to a fuzzy environment of the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal situation (TOPSIS), to assess the environmental responsibility of health care organizations. The weights were obtained from judgements given by both an expert in environmental matters, and a group of patients, and the judgements of both types of stakeholder were combined. The model has been applied in a Spanish public hospital over a period of five years. The closeness coefficients obtained with the judgements from the patient group are on average 6.59% higher than those obtained from the expert, and so it can be said that patients are less demanding on environmental matters. The similarity of the models was assessed, by comparing the model that combines both sets of judgements with the model constructed from the judgements of the expert and the model built from the judgements of the patient groups. The similarity is seen to be high, but it is greater in the case of the ranking obtained from the patient judgements. The results in all cases suggest a low risk of a serious environmental problem in the hospital. Nonetheless, it also implies that there are opportunities for continuous improvement. The use of a model with judgements from a patient group was intended to take into account the increasingly important need to include the judgements and opinions of different stakeholders in decision and assessment processes in the hospital environment. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis)

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17 pages, 2054 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Capital City as a Factor of Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis—Application on Transport Companies in the Czech Republic

by Roman Vavrek and Jiří Bečica

Mathematics 2020, 8(10), 1765; https://doi.org/10.3390/math8101765 - 13 Oct 2020

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 2485

Abstract

The manuscript applied multi-criteria analysis using several indicators to evaluate 18 transport companies established on the level of the Czech statutory towns during period of 2001–2016 that provided for a mass commuting system. Transport companies were chosen for evaluation in the towns being company establishers in the area of mass commuting systems. Based on the prepared analysis outcomes, we suppose that transport companies in big Czech cities and towns using combination of various transport means within the mass commuting system reached lower effectiveness. The Transport Company of the Czech capital city Prague only one operates subway, i.e., it works with specific requirements laid on assurance of this public transport type. Nevertheless, its inclusion in the analysis didn’t affect total results, thus we are able to work with a complete group of transport companies in the Czech Republic when evaluating their economic effectiveness. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis)

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19 pages, 34553 KiB

Open AccessArticle

TOPSIS Method Based on Complex Spherical Fuzzy Sets with Bonferroni Mean Operators

by Zeeshan Ali, Tahir Mahmood and Miin-Shen Yang

Mathematics 2020, 8(10), 1739; https://doi.org/10.3390/math8101739 - 10 Oct 2020

Cited by 137 | Viewed by 3756

Abstract

The theory of complex spherical fuzzy sets (CSFSs) is a mixture of two theories, i.e., complex fuzzy sets (CFSs) and spherical fuzzy sets (SFSs), to cope with uncertain and unreliable information in realistic decision-making situations. CSFSs contain three grades in the form of polar coordinates, e.g., truth, abstinence, and falsity, belonging to a unit disc in a complex plane, with a condition that the sum of squares of the real part of the truth, abstinence, and falsity grades is not exceeded by a unit interval. In this paper, we first consider some properties and their operational laws of CSFSs. Additionally, based on CSFSs, the complex spherical fuzzy Bonferroni mean (CSFBM) and complex spherical fuzzy weighted Bonferroni mean (CSFWBM) operators are proposed. The special cases of the proposed operators are also discussed. A multi-attribute decision making (MADM) problem was chosen to be resolved based on the proposed CSFBM and CSFWBM operators. We then propose the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) method based on CSFSs (CSFS-TOPSIS). An application example is given to delineate the proposed methods and a close examination is undertaken. The advantages and comparative analysis of the proposed approaches are also presented. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis)

12 pages, 900 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Fuzzy Approach for Ranking Discrete Multi-Attribute Alternatives under Uncertainty

by Lihui Liu and Hepu Deng

Mathematics 2020, 8(6), 945; https://doi.org/10.3390/math8060945 - 8 Jun 2020

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2378

Abstract

This paper presents a fuzzy approach for ranking discrete alternatives in multi-attribute decision-making under uncertainty. Linguistic variables approximated by fuzzy numbers were applied for facilitating the making of pairwise comparison by the decision maker in determining the alternative performance and attribute importance using fuzzy extent analysis. The resultant fuzzy assessments were aggregated using the simple additive utility method for calculating the fuzzy utility of each alternative across all the attributes. An ideal solution-based procedure was developed for comparing and ranking these fuzzy utilities, leading to the determination of the overall ranking of all the discrete multi-attribute alternatives. An example is provided that shows the proposed approach is effective and efficient in solving the multi-attribute decision making problem under uncertainty, due to the simplicity and comprehensibility of the underlying concept and the efficiency and effectiveness of the computation involved. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis)

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