Systematic decision making: a extended multi-criteria decision making model

Abstract

Considering some complex multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) problems, in which decision environment is dynamic, there are various interdependences among criteria, and plans (systematized alternatives) consisting of multiple time sequential interdependent actions, cannot be well handled by means of the existing MCDM methods, therefore, we develop a systematic decision making (SDM) as an improvement and supplement of the classic MCDM in this paper. The SDM is for prescribing methods of evaluating and selecting the most favourite plan (a system) from a group of feasible ones concerning influences of time-varying criteria system under dynamic external environment. Through detailed analysis, we separate a SDM problem into multi-period MCDM sub-problems, and then a plan can be a combination of time sequential strategies in which each strategy (a subset of actions) is a feasible decision choice of corresponding MCDM sub-problem. After clarifying variety of interdependences, interactions and interrelationships in the SDM problems, such as criteria-interdependences, action-interdependences, interactions between criteria and criteria system, interactions between actions and strategies, interactions between strategies and plans, interactions between internal environment (criteria system) and external environment, feedbacks from external environment to the corresponding MCDM sub-problems, and interrelationships among MCDM sub-problems and so on, we transform the SDM into multi-period interrelated MCDM model which can be dealt with more easily by using multiple optimization models. At the end of the paper, three typical properties of the SDM are proposed and most of the existing MCDM models are pointed out as special cases of the SDM.