Analytic Hierarchy Process Study Research Articles

Identifying quality indicators for home care services: a modified Delphi and Analytic Hierarchy Process study

BackgroundAs the recipients of home care services, patients have the most direct and profound experience of service quality. There is limited knowledge as to quality indicators for home care services from patients’ perspective. This study aimed to identify quality indicators for home care services based on the Service Quality model and determine the weights of these indicators.MethodsA two-round Delphi survey and Analytic Hierarchy Process consultation were conducted to gather opinions from national experts on quality indicators for home care services developed on the basis of the Service Quality model. Consensus was defined as at least 80% agreement on the importance (important and very important) of indicators among experts. The Analytic Hierarchy Process was used to calculate the weight coefficients of the identified indicators.ResultsThe response rate was 95.0% and 97.4% in the first and second round, respectively. After two rounds, five first-level (tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy) and 23 second-level indicators were identified. The Kendall’s W values were 0.54 and 0.40 for the first-level and second-level indicators (p < 0.001). The weight coefficients for the first-level and second-level indicators were 0.110–0.298 and 0.019–0.088, respectively.ConclusionQuality indicators for home care services were identified based on the Service Quality model. These indicators can be used to evaluate the service quality of home care from patients’ perspective and facilitate to determine work priorities and improve the quality of home care.

Do They Align? Congruence Between Patient Preferences of People Living with Cognitive Impairments and Physicians' Judgements for Person-Centered Care: An Analytic Hierarchy Process Study.

Person-centered care (PCC) requires knowledge about patient preferences. Among people living with cognitive impairments (PlwCI), evidence on quantitative, choice-based preferences, which allow to quantify, weigh, and rank care elements, is limited. Furthermore, data on the congruence of patient preferences with physicians' judgements for PCC are missing. Such information is expected to support the implementation of PCC; state-of-the-art medical care aligned with patients' preferences. To elicit patient preferences and physicians' judgements for PCC and their congruence. Data from the mixed-methods PreDemCare study, including a cross-sectional, paper-and-pencil, interviewer-assisted analytic hierarchy process (AHP) survey conducted with n = 50 community-dwelling PlwCI and n = 25 physicians. Individual AHP weights (preferences/judgements) were calculated with the principal eigenvector method and aggregated per group by aggregation of individual priorities mode. Individual consistency ratios (CRs) were calculated and aggregated per group. Group differences in preferences/judgements were investigated descriptively by means and standard deviations (SDs) of AHP weights, resulting ranks, and boxplots. Additionally, differences between groups were investigated with independent paired t-test/Mann Whitney U-test. Sensitivity of AHP results was tested by inclusion/exclusion of inconsistent respondents, with an accepted threshold at CR≤0.3 for patients, and CR≤0.2 for physicians, due to better cognitive fitness of the latter group. Patient preferences and physicians' judgements did not differ significantly, except for the criterion Memory Exercises (AHP weights (mean (SD)): 0.135 (0.066) versus 0.099 (0.068), p = 0.01). We did not see rank-reversals of criteria after exclusion of inconsistent participants. Mean CR for patients at the criteria level was 0.261, and 0.181 for physicians. Physicians' judgements in our setting aligned well with patients' preferences. Our findings may be used to guide the implementation of preference-based PCC.

Examining the differences between information professional groups in perceiving information ethics: An analytic hierarchy process study.

Information and communication technology (ICT) has a great impact on contemporary society and people’s lives. Especially with the pervasive access to rapidly developing technology, the impact of ICT on society and human values, the norms of ICT use, and the ethical issues derived from them are beyond the past ethical framework and deserve more research attention. The purpose of this study was to explore the key factors that influence the decision-making behaviors of information professionals when they are faced with information ethics issues. The study adopted the analytic hierarchical process method to develop the evaluation framework and criteria for information professional ethics and employed the professional fields of library and information science and information technology as examples to compare whether information professionals in different fields make different judgments on the aforementioned decision-making criteria. The results of the study validated the professional information ethics hierarchy and criteria and contributed to the field of information ethics research by providing information on the aspects that need attention in the cultivation of professionals in different fields.

Smart and Green Buildings Features in the Decision-Making Hierarchy of Office Space Tenants: An Analytic Hierarchy Process Study

In the paper, we investigate the role of smart building or green building innovations on the Polish real estate market using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method on the group of experts (consultants, managers, brokers) that are active on the office market in Krakow (study area). The findings point towards the highest relevance of the localisation factor, but also at the relatively low importance of the features of a sustainable building: building automation and information technology systems, as well as energy efficiency or certification. The findings suggest that despite the growing interest in sustainability and technological advancement amongst office market participants in Krakow, the relative importance of smart and green building features in their decision-making processes is relatively low. The study has some interesting practical implications. The knowledge regarding the relative importance of decision criteria can be valuable for developers and investors because the anticipation of tenants’ expectations is directly linked with return on investment and innovation premiums.

Establishment and application of an index system for prevention of coal workers’ pneumoconiosis: a Delphi and analytic hierarchy process study in four state-owned coal enterprises of China

ObjectiveTo explore the difference of cumulative incidence rate of coal workers’ pneumoconiosis (CWP) among four large state-owned coal enterprises in northern China, we created an index system for evaluating the...