A problem structuring method framework for value-focused thinking

Abstract

• Value Focused Thinking (VFT) is used in many situations to identify and structure a complex decision problem with value-based objectives. • VFT have no a repeatable and systematic framework. • Researchers adopt various ways of structuring VFT that most commonly range from 2 to 10 steps. • VFT is widely used for structuring problems of a qualitative nature in a similar way to other Problem Structuring Methods. Value-Focused Thinking (VFT) is used in many situations to identify and structure value-based objectives. VFT shares motivations with the consolidated field of Operations Research (OR), called Problem Structuring Methods (PSMs). This study presents a historical outline of the origins of PSMs and how VFT fits into the literature. The procedures adopted involve a literature review on VFT applications. The results confirmed that VFT is applied in problematic situations in which PSMs are used without a definite framework. The structure adopted for VFT varies between 2 and 10 steps. The contribution of this study is to promote a dialogue with the related literature and demonstrate how the VFT is used in the PSM field. In addition, based on an analysis of the most frequently adopted practices in the literature, we present a systematic structure of VFT in four stages that makes it more similar to the traditional PSM.