Large Number Of Criteria Research Articles

Delphi: A Democratic and Cost-Effective Method of Consensus Generation in Transplantation.

The Thrombotic Microangiopathy Banff Working Group (TMA-BWG) was formed in 2015 to survey current practices and develop minimum diagnostic criteria (MDC) for renal transplant TMA (Tx-TMA). To generate consensus among pathologists and nephrologists, the TMA BWG designed a 3-Phase study. Phase I of the study is presented here. Using the Delphi methodology, 23 panelists with >3years of diagnostic experience with Tx-TMA pathology listed their MDC suggesting light, immunofluorescence, and electron microscopy lesions, clinical and laboratory information, and differential diagnoses. Nine rounds (R) of consensus resulted in MDC validated during two Rs using online evaluation of whole slide digital images of 37 biopsies (28 TMA, 9 non-TMA). Starting with 338 criteria the process resulted in 24 criteria and 8 differential diagnoses including 18 pathologic, 2 clinical, and 4 laboratory criteria. Results show that 3/4 of the panelists agreed on the diagnosis of 3/4 of cases. The process also allowed definition refinement for 4 light and 4 electron microscopy lesions. For the first time in Banff classification, the Delphi methodology was used to generate consensus. The study shows that Delphi is a democratic and cost-effective method allowing rapid consensus generation among numerous physicians dealing with large number of criteria in transplantation.

SEAFARER SELECTION FOR SUSTAINABLE SHIPPING: CASE STUDY FOR TURKEY

Sustainability and safety in the maritime sector mostly relies on seafarers for ensure the safe and secure operation of ships. Selection of personnel in the maritime sector is based on a large number of criteria, and is dictated by the seafarer’s qualification and the type of ship. The present study identifies 24 criteria in the form of personal, professional, physical, and technical competencies, categorized under four main headings, and calculates the weights of these criteria in terms of their importance. It goes on to present the general seafarer criteria and the different criteria required by different types of companies, and finally presents a model that can serve as a guide the in the selection of the best seafarer depending on the ship type. The study makes use of Step-Wise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis and Additive Ratio Assessment methods, which are multi-criteria decision making methods.

Regionale Energiestrategieën vergen meer democratie

In the Paris Agreement of 2015, a reduction of 49% CO2 emissions compared to 1990 was agreed. To implement this, the Netherlands has concluded a Climate Agreement, part of which will include the drawing up of Regional Energy Strategies (RES). As a ‘RES region’, provinces, municipalities and water authorities must work together to make broadly supported regional choices for the sustainable generation of electricity. In this study we examine the extent to which the RES in Groningen, Fryslân and Drenthe are democratically legitimized. A broad understanding of democracy is central to this: on the basis of a scorecard with a large number of criteria, we sketch a picture of the ‘democratic content’ of the decision-making on the RES. We look at representative democracy, stakeholder participation and citizen involvement. For each category, we look at input, throughput and output legitimacy. The research shows that there is still a lot to be gained in all these areas. Legitimacy through represen­tative democracy is on the thin side. Furthermore, although stakeholders can participate in the discussion, it is often unclear how their input will affect the plans. Citizens hardly participate at the regional level. Decision-making regarding RES 2.0 will have to be strengthened in all these areas.

Hybridizations of Archimedean copula and generalized MSM operators and their applications in interactive decision-making with q-rung probabilistic dual hesitant fuzzy environment

The q-rung probabilistic dual hesitant fuzzy sets (qRPDHFSs), which outperform dual hesitant fuzzy sets, probabilistic dual hesitant fuzzy sets, and probabilistic dual hesitant Pythagorean fuzzy sets, are used in this research to develop an interactive group decision-making approach. We first suggest the Archimedean Copula-based operations on q-rung probabilistic dual hesitant fuzzy (qRPDHF) components and investigate their key features before constructing the approach. We then create some new aggregation operators (AOs) in light of these operations, including the qRPDHF generalized Maclaurin symmetric mean (MSM) operator, qRPDHF geometric generalized MSM operator, qRPDHF weighted generalized MSM operator, and qRPDHF weighted generalized geometric generalized MSM operator. These aggregation operators are better than current operators on qRPDHF because they can take into account the interactions between a large number of criteria and probability distributions. The evaluation findings are distorted since the present methodologies do not take expert involvement into account in order to achieve the required consistency level. We employ the idea of interaction, consistency, resemblance, and consensus-building among the decision-makers in our method to get around this. We create an optimization model based on the cross-entropy of the qRPDHF components to estimate the weights of the criterion. We provide contextual research on the choice of open-source software LMS in order to demonstrate the relevance of the recommended AOs. Likewise, we ran a sensitivity test on the weights of the criterion to make sure that our model is consistent. The comparison investigation has demonstrated that the suggested approach can overcome the challenges of previous works.

Towards a Self- sustained House: Development of an Analytical Hierarchy Process System for Evaluating the Performance of Self-sustained Houses

Nowadays self-sustained buildings have gained a great attention to minimize the ecological impact of buildings on the environment. Houses are one of the building types that have tremendous effect on the environment and need to be self-sustained. Their design need to encounter a holistic approach that deals with a large number of criteria. Most of these criteria are qualitative and are often in conflict with each other making decisions during the preliminary design stage a hard task for architects. Architects need an easy evaluation method that can deal with multi- criteria and can quantify subjective data into numerical values to give the right decisions. The aim of this paper is to present a comprehensive application of Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP)-a Multi Criteria Decision Making Method (MCDM). It can aid architects in selecting the most optimal design alternative while taking into account multiple, and even conflicting decision criteria. Herein, it will be

Sustainable Lean Six Sigma project selection in manufacturing environments using best-worst method

Manufacturing organizations have struggled with selecting right projects for sustainable LSS (SLSS) programs for operational excellence. This study is to propose a method for effective assessment of optimal SLSS projects. The importance weight of project selection criteria and prioritization of available projects are calculated using the novel best-worst-method (BWM) approach. The proposed methodology was authenticated through a real case example. The outcome reveals that out of five SLSS projects, P1 is the optimal project. Project P1 is the most significant production line for deploying the SLSS in case organization. The optimality in project ranking is tested through sensitivity analysis, the outcome noticed minimum sensitivity that claimed robust findings. This study is to be unique as there was very little evidence of prioritizing SLSS projects by utilizing a large set of criteria and applying the BWM approach. Further, BWM is the most suitable and reliable approach for prioritizing the alternatives when a large number of criteria are involved and it provides consistent outcomes with fewer inputs. The applied methodology will help top management to select the right project and opportunities in complex situations. Decision-makers and LSS consultants can also adopt the same approach for effective assessment of optimal SLSS projects for sustainable development.

Solving Decision-Making Problems Using a Measure for Information Values Connected to the Equilibrium Points (IVEP) MCDM Method and Zakeri–Konstantas Performance Correlation Coefficient

In this paper, a new multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) method, called a measure for information values connected to the equilibrium points (IVEP) method, and a new statistical measure for measuring the similarities of performances of MCDM algorithm outputs in a comparison process, called the Zakeri–Konstantas performance correlation coefficient, are introduced. The IVEP method uses Shannon’s entropy as the primary tool to measure the information embedded in the decision matrix in order to evaluate the decision’s options/alternatives for complex decision-making problems with a large number of criteria and alternatives. The second concept that drives the IVEP method is the equilibrium points, which signify the points in a vector space where scores for the decision’s options/alternatives are equilibrated. Instead of using linear functions to compute similarities between the data sets generated by the MCDM algorithms by the calculation of the distance using different methods, the Zakeri–Konstantas performance correlation coefficient focuses on the evaluation of the ranking performance of MCDM methods in an analytic comparison process in order to determine the degree of the similarities. The IVEP method is applied to a real-world decision-making problem—a material selection problem. A comparison analysis was performed on the results obtained from the IVEP, TOPSIS, WPM, COPRAS, and ARAS MCDM methods by the Zakeri–Konstantas performance correlation coefficient and the Hamming distance. The results of both measures revealed that the IVEP algorithm’s outputs have the highest similarity to TOPSIS outputs, among others. Nevertheless, the degree of the similarities is distinct due to the different approaches of the measures used.

Evaluation on service quality in institutional pensions based on a novel hierarchical DEMATEL method for PLTSs

In recent years, to address the continued aging of China’s population, the Chinese government has focused on the issue of pensions through a series of pension policies. The traditional system of institutional pensions is facing serious challenges, with a variety of novel pension modes placing them under enormous pressure. Furthermore, the development of institutional pensions has been restricted by many factors, such as long construction cycles and high fees, meaning that this traditional system no longer meets the pension needs of the elderly. Improving the service quality of institutional pensions is inevitable for future progress. Thus, identifying the key factors that influence the service quality of institutional pensions, and understanding the relationships between these factors, is hugely significant. Furthermore, traditional decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) method can not solve this problem because the number of factors is too large. To address these issues, we establish an evaluation system for Chinese pension institutions, and propose a hierarchical DEMATEL model based on probabilistic linguistic term sets (PLTSs), which can help decision makers to find the key factors influencing service quality in institutional pensions and deal with the evaluation problem with a large number of criteria. The proposed hierarchical DEMATEL model based on PLTSs fully reflects experts’ preferences and evaluation information, and is able to identify the directions in which China’s pension institutions should improve their quality of service. In addition, we use the best-worst method (BWM) to calculate the importance values of each subsystem, which makes the cause-effect relationship between subsystems more reasonable than the traditional DEMATEL method. Finally, we apply our method to evaluate nursing homes in Zhenjiang, Jiangsu province and propose some managerial implications.

Evaluation and Selection of the Railroad Route between Rijeka and Zagreb

One of the biggest issues in railroad planning and design is determining the optimal railroad route. After the railroad route variants are determined, the major challenge is to identify and select the criteria which will be used for the analysis and evaluation of the variants. This paper is primarily concerned with the evaluation and selection of an optimal railroad route between Rijeka and Zagreb as part of the Mediterranean Corridor. The large number of criteria used to analyze solutions makes this decision-making complex. The objectives are usually in conflict with each other, and there are usually several groups of decision makers involved in the process. The aim of this paper was to analyze alternative railroad route variants using the optimization method of multi-criteria analysis. To achieve the research aim, a model comprising the defined criteria and sub-criteria including their weighting coefficients was set. To perform the analysis, the authors applied the defined model for evaluation and selection of a railway route between Rijeka and Zagreb using the PROMETHEE II method for multi-criteria ranking of alternatives and the computer software “Visual PROMETHEE”. The value of the defined model is expressed by the presented methodology of multi-criteria optimization, which is used in railroad planning and designing.

Чутливість розв’язків при моделюванні динаміки інвестицій

The efforts of researchers for analysis of the financial investment market are largely aimed at considering multi-criteria problems with a large number of criteria, studying and solving investment management problems in static and dynamic settings, building procedures for an adequate description of random processes of market price changes, developing applied numerical methods and algorithms for solving large-scale problems. These problems as tasks of management under conditions of uncertainty refer equally to the fundamental problems of the applied theory of decision-making. The researches of R. Bellman, J. Danzig, R. Merton, and G. Markowitz are aimed at establishing the fundamental foundations and studying various meaningful interpretations of financial analysis processes. Thus, in the static case, they obtained fundamental results that had a wide practical application. The property of the distribution of the optimal portfolio into risk-free and risky components for the case of the presence of a risk-free asset on the market was established, and the fundamental properties of the equilibrium market of optimal portfolios were investigated. Dynamic models of asset and liability management have found the most successful application in the field of long-term financial planning, where the need for repeated decision-making is determined by the essence of the process.

A new application for multi criteria decision making processes in e-government scenarios

Most of the group decision making methods used in e-government scenarios deal not only with a high number of alternatives, but also a large number of criteria. Sometimes, criteria are even the most important think to manage. In such a way, we propose the use of fuzzy ontologies in order to tackle this problem, dealing with a high number of alternatives and criteria. Our application combines the different criteria using a clustering method and filter the alternatives by using the appropriate criteria in each case making the decision process easier for the experts. Finally, the application uses a consensus reaching mechanism that collect the knowledge stored in the fuzzy ontology.

Некоторые особенности планирования профилактических мероприятий

Purpose. The article describes the experience of the hierarchy analysis method to develop management decision making support systems to ensure fire safety prevention. The possibilities of using special computer programs as information decision making support subsystems with a library of models based on the analytical hierarchy method of planning working time of state fire supervision inspecting officers are studied. Methods. The existing models of management decision support systems built using the hierarchy analysis method developed by Th. Saaty have been analyzed. Hierarchical ideas about the actual performance in state supervision bodies in modern conditions have been developed. Findings. Layerings of some issues in implementing supervisory activities in protecting educational facilities, residential and industrial buildings have been developed. Separately layering the issue of planning small segments of working time for a state fire supervision inspecting officer is considered. Research application field. The results of the study can be used in working out effective technical solutions in state fire supervision of EMERCOM of Russia management. The constructed models can be used to optimize the inspector's workload and to support managerial decision-making by Chief State Inspecting Officer for Fire Supervision. The models allow considering a large number of criteria and alternatives, and determining their weights taking into account various situations. Conclusions. The possibilities of using special computer programs based on the analytical hierarchy method, considered in the article, will reduce experts' interviewing time. This optimizes workload when planning the working time of state fire supervision inspecting officers, which will increase the time for implementing preventive and other measures and improve their quality.

Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Processes for Damage State Assessment of Arch Masonry Bridge

The present work proposes a fuzzy analytical hierarchy approach for decision making in the maintenance programming of masonry arch bridges. As a practical case, we propose to classify the degradation state of the Mohammadia masonry bridge. A large number of criteria and sub-criteria are combined to classify this type of bridges through visual inspections. The main criteria (level 1) considered in this work are the history of the bridge, the environmental conditions, the structural capacity and the professional involvement of the bridge. In addition, these criteria are subdivided into several sub-criteria (level 2) which are, in turn, subdivided into sub-criteria (level 3). Considering these criteria and sub-criteria, weights Wiare calculated by fuzzy geometric mean method of Buckley. Subsequently, expert scores were assigned to calculate the overall score CS reflecting the degradation of the considered infrastructure. Thereafter, the masonry arch bridges are classified respecting the French IQOA scoring system using the overall scores value CS. The proposed classification method gave similar results provided by an expert’s study realized previously as part of a national patrimony preservation policy. The obtained results are in good agreement, which makes this method an effective scientific tool for decision-making in view of prioritization of the maintenance after systematic inspection of masonry bridges such as the bridge studied in this work. Doi: 10.28991/cej-2021-03091770 Full Text: PDF

Designing a model to estimate the level of university social responsibility based on rough sets

The social responsibility of universities is conceived as an ethical and integral administration model that promotes a mutual benefit for both universities and societies. Despite the scholars and decision-makers acknowledging the importance of university social responsibility (USR), a review of previous research indicates that on one hand, not much agreement has been reached on the criteria and dimensions proposed by previous conceptual models, and on the other hand, no particular model and framework has yet been introduced to measure USR. The proposed measurement framework must be capable of dealing with large numbers of criteria and dimensions as well as the incomplete and inaccurate university data in this field. Therefore, this study aims to design a model to measure social responsibility in universities. In this survey, the initial model is extracted from the literature review and then presented to the experts to confirm and extract weights for the indicators. The required data for the indicators of the model were collected through various tools and from different groups of stakeholders. Given the Rough Set Theory's ability in dealing with similar situations, it has been used to determine the level of university social responsibility. Besides, this theory provides the chance to predict a university's USR based on the values of conditional variables by providing decision-making principles. The model is applied for the University of Tehran to illustrate the availability and utility of the proposed model in a real-world case. The results show that using the proposed approach, universities can accurately estimate their social responsibility level while they can save time and expense by measuring only a few indicators.

Combination of MOORA and WASPAS Methods in Selecting the Best Hafidzoh

The combination of the Multi-Objective Optimization method on the basis of Ratio Analysis (MOORA) and the Weight Aggregated Sum Product Assessment (WASPAS) is used by researchers in selecting the best hafidzoh so as to produce effective and efficient research objectives and make it easier for leaders to determine the best hafidzoh. Choosing the best hafidzoh is not an easy matter due to the large number of students and the large number of criteria given. Furthermore, the best students or candidates for hafidzoh are called alternatives, while the things that are assessed are called criteria. Based on the results of interviews and references that the researchers conducted, the criteria for helping the Chairperson of the Dzunnur'ain Simalungun Institute in determining the best hafidzoh were letter makhorijul, tajwid, itqon hifzd, adabul qiroah and Arabic. Meanwhile, the best alternative or candidate for hafidzoh is the total number of students in Lambaga Dzunnur 'ain, which is 30 students. Furthermore, researchers conducted analysis and calculations based on the formula of the MOORA method and the formula of the WASPAS method. The results of the analysis and calculations are that the Moora and WASPAS methods get the same best santri, namely the alternative name Santri 7, while for the second rank the alternatives obtained are santri 16 and santri 25.

Modeling the Stress-Induced Transformation Behavior of Shape Memory Alloys under Multiaxial Loading Conditions

A large number of criteria to model the onset of plasticity for ductile metals have been proposed by researchers in the last century. Strangely, very few researchers have tried to model the stress-induced crystalline phase transformation of Shape Memory Alloys (SMAs) according to yield criteria. This paper focuses on the question: is a yield criterion originally proposed for describing the plastic behavior of metals suitable to model the “pseudoelastic” behavior of SMAs? To answer this question, two yield criteria originally proposed by the present author are used to predict the initial surface of transformation onset of two different SMAs: Cu-Al-Be and Ni-Ti alloy. The predicted initial transformation onset surfaces of the two SMAs are compared with experimental results and existing theories reported in the literature and some significant conclusions and recommendations are given.

Complementary use of the Ecosystem Service Concept and Multi-criteria Decision Analysis in Water Management

The ecosystem service (ES) concept has increasingly been applied in environmental planning, while there are several decades of experience in applying multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) in complex planning situations. The aim of this article is to assess how the ES concept has been used in water management projects together with MCDA and to examine the experiences gained and make recommendations to overcome any identified challenges. Our conclusions are based on a systematic analysis of 23 articles that were selected among 206 articles focused on water-related studies using, for example, the terms multi-criteria and ecosystem services in the title, abstract or keywords. Here, we explore (i) at what level of detail ESs are included in the decision hierarchy, (ii) the pros and cons of the complementary use of the two approaches, and (iii) how the potential challenges related to the use of MCDA, such as the large number of criteria, double-counting, or assigning criteria weights, are addressed in the selected cases. The results reveal large differences between the case studies. It is shown that only a few case studies used ES categories to classify criteria in the decision hierarchy, that these cases included different numbers of ES criteria and non-ES criteria, and that most case studies elicited stakeholder preferences in MCDA. Although the paper focuses on water management projects, the conclusions regarding the advantages and pitfalls of the complementary use of the methods, as well as our recommendations, are also applicable to other environmental management contexts.

Indicators of the quality of life in the subjective evaluation of residents living in the area of influence of the Vostochny cosmodrome

The purpose of the study is to characterize the subjective perception of the quality of life by residents living in the zone of influence of the Vostochny cosmodrome. Materials and methods. According to the results of a sociological study conducted by the method of questionnaires (n = 353) in 2020 in the Closed Administrative Territorial Formation «Tsiolkovsky», the features of the respondents› perception of the quality of life, which characterize the level and living conditions, which allows satisfying the basic non-interchangeable needs of the population, were revealed. Results. It was found that 21 % of the respondents rate their quality of life as «good», of which 3 % — as «very good», 64 % of respondents believe that the answer option «neither bad nor good» is more appropriate for assessing the quality of life (there were no differences in assessments between the groups formed on the basis of age and sex criteria). For representatives of all age categories, according to the survey, all aspects of life are important — this is the state of health, and financial situation, and housing, the environment, the development of social infrastructure, the quality of medical services, the availability and quality of education, the quality of social services for leisure activities, the quality of trade and transport services, the degree of security, etc. The results obtained in this study are consistent with modern concepts of «quality of life», which encompasses not only income and consumption levels, but also health and environmental conditions, access to cultural heritage, family and interpersonal relationships, etc. Conclusions. The study of the quality of life, which includes a large number of criteria, makes it possible to track the relationship between them and assess the degree of mutual influence, to make a comparison between different groups of the population, which makes it possible to identify the weakest and most vulnerable places and adjust the activities for the further development of the municipality and preventive measures aimed at improving the quality of life of the population.

Sustainable Supplier Selection in Construction Industry through Hybrid Fuzzy-Based Approaches

Due to increase in the public and stakeholders’ awareness regarding economic, environmental, and social issues, the construction industry tends to follow the sustainability policies and practices in supply chain management. Hence, one of the most crucial aspects for a construction company in this regard is sustainable supplier selection, and, to this end, an accurate and reliable model is required. In this paper a hybrid fuzzy best-worst method and fuzzy inference system model is developed for sustainable supplier selection. In the first phase of this study, after determining 19 criteria in three main aspects, the final weight of each aspect and criterion is obtained using fuzzy best-worst method approach. In the second phase, the most sustainable supplier is selected by running the weighted fuzzy inference system both in aspect and criterion level, providing more accurate results compared to the use of other available models. Finally, two different tests are employed to validate the results and evaluate the robustness of the proposed model. The novel developed model enables the decision-maker to simulate the decision-making process, reduce the calculations loads, consider a large number of criteria in decision making, and resolve the inherited uncertainties in experts’ responses.

Enhanced façade design: A data-driven approach for decision analysis based on past experiences

The selection of an optimal building façade system is a challenging process that can be facilitated by using decision-analysis methods. However, current commonly-used decision-analysis tools in civil engineering cannot deal with the interactions among multiple design criteria. The Choquet integral is the only well-known method capable of accounting for such interactions. However, the process of assigning the fuzzy measures (importance weights) for this method is complex, particularly when there is a large number of criteria be considered. This paper proposes two supervised methods to estimate these fuzzy measures. The first method estimates the relative importance weights by using a statistical approach based on Principal Component Analysis, while the second method is elicited from a machine learning algorithm using Neural Networks. These two methods are used in an illustrative example to find the fuzzy measures related to façade design with respect to four criteria; and their merits and limitations are discussed.