Group Decision Support Systems Research Research Articles

Voting tools in group decision support systems: theory and implementation

Group decision making is essential in organisations. Group decision support systems (GDSS) can aide groups in making decisions by providing tools and process support. Voting tools have been considered valuable assets in groups’ decision processes. However, there is an insufficiency of theory and experiments in voting research in GDSS particularly web-based. This paper makes the following contributions: first, a theoretical framework for studying and using voting in GDSS is presented. This framework can be used as a basis for future research and applications of voting in GDSS. Next, the factors related to voting are carefully examined. This is followed by proposing and discussing classifications of voting methods. This paper also examines issues for implementing advanced voting tools in GDSS and suggests specific methods of augmenting voting functionalities in existing GDSS.

Urban Modeling and Contemporary Planning Theory: Is There a Common Ground?

This article provides a critical review of the history of urban modeling in North America, with a focus on unraveling some fundamental issues that militated against incorporating the first-generation urban models into planning practice. After examining the underlying theoretical context in social practice, I demonstrate that the re-emergence of a different form of rationality creates the conditions for incorporating new forms of urban models. Finally, I highlight the developments in group decision support systems research and suggest how these systems, together with a geographic information systems component, can be designed for critical planning practice.

Examining the conflicting results of GDSS research

The growing interest in group decision support systems (GDSS) was supported by, and gave rise to, a burgeoning academic literature on GDSS during the 1980s. However, GDSS research is now rare. One possible reason is the difference between field experience and many experimental studies. Another reason is that GDSS research over the past years mainly focused on decision rooms. The important question posed is: what are the reasons for the conflicting results of GDSS research? The contradictory findings among GDSS studies are indeed a problem if academic research is to be applied effectively in business settings. Now that group collaborative support is becoming more widespread, it is natural to wish to achieve a better understanding of the implications for organizations in their adoption of GDSS. Thus, this study systematically reviews existing GDSS studies and explores the probable reasons for inconsistent findings.

GDSS research: An overview and historical analysis

Group Decision Support Systems (GDSS) is a relatively new area of Information Systems research, but some patterns have begun to emerge in the focus of this research and in the approaches to conducting it. This article represents a substantial review of a large body of GDSS literature and an analysis of that literature according to a specific classification scheme. The dimensions of the classification scheme include the age of the research publication, the general research approach, the philosophy underlying the data collection, the type of GDSS support, whether the research is longitudinal, and the primary focus of the research, as well as a few demographic variables such as author and source. The results of the literature analysis lead to recommendations to GDSS researchers by the authors of a need for greater use of the available research approaches and other data analysis philosophies, a greater emphasis on field work, more longitudinal research, and some changes in the focus of the research.

Interacting effects of GDSS and leadership

Effects of Group Decision Support Systems (GDSS) on decision making have been extensively studied in various contexts, involving important variables such as group task and group size. However, a factor of significant relevance to group meeting, leadership, has been little dealt with in GDSS research. This paper reports on an experimental investigation of the interacting effects of GDSS and elected leadership on influence attempts in a decision-room setting. Findings reveal that while the use of GDSS caused the influence distribution to be more equal among group members in the absence of leadership, the system did not withstand the overriding force of leadership when a group leader was present.

Group Decision Support Systems: Clarifying The Concept And Establishing A Functional Taxonomy

AbstractResearch in Group Decision Support Systems (GDSS) has intensified in recent years. However, there is evidence of fragmented research and considerable lack of clarity regarding this concept. A functional taxonomy is proposed based on two dimensions, content support and process support, which give rise to sixteen possible GDSS types. The validity of the taxonomy is then demonstrated by fitting a large number of implemented or proposed systems in GDSS research onto one of the 16 types. This should lead to greater precision in systems categorization and enhance the usefulness of GDSS research by reducing ambiguity in the attribution of research results.

Theoretical Frameworks for the Study of Structuring Processes in Group Decision Support Systems.

Most theoretical perspectives used to explain the use and effects of communication and decision support technologies assume some form of technological determinism. Inconsistencies in the research findings have prompted theorists to reject the assumptions of technological determinism in favor of an emergent perspective. To date, only adaptive Structuration theory (AST) offers the promise of satisfying two requirements for explanation based on an emergent perspective: recursivity and unique effects. The current article reviews the application of AST to the study of a relatively recent technology in the work place—group decision support systems (GDSS). Next it discusses AST's challenge to capture, dynamically and precisely, GDSS processes and outcomes. In response to these concerns, self-organizing systems theory (SOST) is reviewed and applied to problematic areas in GDSS research with the aim of advancing AST.

An examination of four GDSS experiments

Group decision support systems (GDSS) have been offered as an approach to dealing with the increasing com plexity of organizational environments in post-industrial soci cty. GDSS development and research enjoy a recent popularity in the academic community. with many US universities having GDSS facilities. GDSS'S can vary greatly from each other, how ever. They can differ in such basic respects as facility configu ration. software tools supported, and type of facilitation. The experiments designed to test the effects of GDSS also differ from each other, along many dimensions The net result is that findings from various GDSS expermients are not strictly comparable. This paper illustrates the differences in GDSS and GDSS expertments by examining four recently published GDSS experiments. It is recommended that the general grouping together of various systems under the term GDSS be re-ex amined It is also recommended that researchers take care in generalizing the results across GDSS studies.

A framework for supporting distributed group decision-making

Group decision support systems (GDSS) have been proposed as tools for aiding the group decision making process. Research in GDSS has focused primarily on facilitating group meetings. However, meetings form only one aspect of the group decision problem solving process. In fact it is desirable to reduce the number of meetings, especially if the group members are in geographically distant locations. The need for meetings can be reduced if the group is provided with a system which will allow the group members to exchange information and expertise on a continuous basis rather than only during meetings. In this paper we propose a framework for such a system which we designate a distributed group decision support system (DGDSS). The DGDSS works in conjunction with an organizational information system composed of a network of knowledge based systems. This network is utilized to support information and expertise exchange between group members on a continuous basis.

An experimental study of GDSS support application effectiveness

This study exammes the effect of two computerized appli cations, voting/rating and brainstorming, on small decision making groups. A review of the literature on Group Decision Support Systems (GDSS) provides Justification and back ground for the study. A theoretical rationale for predictive hypotheses based on social psychological theories of small group interaction is developed, and an experimental design to test the hypotheses is presented. Four sets of small groups receive different treatments. The "control" groups receive no computerized support, the second receive computerized voting/rating, the third computerized brainstorming, and the fourth a combination of the two. Group level dependent variables are decision time and quality of decision; individual level dependent variables are quality of interaction, proclivity to participate and attitude toward deci sion. The individual dependent variables are analyzed using the MANOVA procedure and the group dependent variables using the Kruskal-Wallis procedure. There were no significant re sults on any of the analyses; alpha was set at 0.05. It concludes that this study helps build upon past studies by narrowing the scope of GDSS effectiveness and could be used as a guide for future GDSS research.

Interaction analysis in GDSS research: description of an experience and some recommendations

An emerging body of research in group decision support systems (GDSS) provides evidence that computer technology impacts the quality of decision making in groups. Most GDSS research focuses on the effects of computer support on outcomes, such as decision quality, commitment, or consensus. This article discusses the analysis of group process, rather than outcomes, via the technique of interaction analysis. Interaction analysis provides a micro-level examination of group behavior by the use of coding schemes for verbal interaction. The application and extension of interaction analysis in GDSS research is reviewed and illustrated.

A Study of Influence in Computer-Mediated Group Decision Making

An emerging body of research in group decision support systems (GDSS) provides evidence that computer technology can and does impact the quality of decision making in groups. Most GDSS research is oriented toward examining the effects of a computer system on group outcomes, typically decision quality or group consensus, with the process itself often treated as a black box. The research reported in this article addresses the need for a closer, micro-level examination of group process. An important group variable, namely influence behavior, was isolated and examined at various levels and by multiple methods. A model of specific GDSS effects on influence behavior was developed, based on an information exchange view of decision making and on the impact of a GDSS as a communication channel. Based on the research questions of interest in the study, several propositions and hypotheses were advanced and empirically tested on a specific implementation of a GDSS. Results were analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively. The major empirical findings of the study showed no significant difference between the overall amount of influence behavior attempted in computer-supported versus unsupported groups, although significant differences were found in the pattern of influence behaviors, i.e., the different types of behaviors used. In addition, the distribution of influence behavior was more even in GDSS groups than in unsupported groups in one of two measures used. Empirical findings partially supported th research model, with indications that decision-making groups need more active guidance in understanding how to adapt computer support technology to their view of decision-making processes.