Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/316969 
Year of Publication: 
2024
Citation: 
[Journal:] Operations Research Forum [ISSN:] 2662-2556 [Volume:] 5 [Issue:] 4 [Article No.:] 92 [Publisher:] Springer International Publishing [Place:] Cham [Year:] 2024
Publisher: 
Springer International Publishing, Cham
Abstract: 
Abstract Research has shown that decision-makers omit a significant number of their objectives when making a decision. This study examines the consequences of incomplete objectives on decision making, i.e., how does omitting objectives affect identifying the most promising alternative? We investigate this question using a dataset of 945 observed decisions. These decisions were developed by students using the decision-skills and training tool entscheidungsnavi.com. The tool guides students in a step-by-step process based on value-focused thinking, multi-attribute utility theory, and debiasing methods. Results show that omitting objectives significantly reduces the chances of identifying the most promising alternative. Hence, neglecting only 20% of the objectives is sufficient to mislead more than one in four decisions. We have found three factors that influence this risk of misidentifying the most promising alternative: (1) the weight of the omitted objectives; (2) the consensus on the best alternative across all objectives; and (3) the consensus on the ranking of all alternatives across all objectives.
Subjects: 
Decision analysis
Decision support systems
Value-focused thinking
Multi-attribute utility theory
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Creative Commons License: 
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Document Type: 
Article
Document Version: 
Published Version
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