A model and case for supporting participatory public decision making in e-democracy

In this paper, focusing on participatory public decision making processes, I propose a framework for group support systems and discuss related research issues. As a case illustrating the feasibility of participatory public decision making, I present the participatory budgeting experience in Porto Alegre, Brazil. The case is analyzed based on the proposed framework.     

Digital transformation in maritime ports: analysis and a game theoretic framework

Digitalization is pushing the maritime industry beyond its traditional limits and provides many new opportunities to enhance the productivity, efficiency, and sustainability of logistics. The concept of smart ports, for instance, aims to adopt modern information technologies to enable a better planning and management within and between ports. Strong facilitators of the digitalization are investments into technology and cooperations for promoting information sharing and a better coordination and collaboration, often regarded as a stumbling block in highly competitive environments. Besides many new opportunities, important economic issues and problems arise. We provide an overview of the development and state-of-the-art of digital transformation in modern seaports in order to identify current potentials and barriers. Focusing on the crucial and challenging aspects of coordination and collaboration, we present a conceptual game theoretic framework that allows benefits and cost allocations considering inter-, intra-, and meta-organizational perspectives. We further demonstrate how this framework can be used to develop tools and methods for supporting strategic decision making for driving the digital transformation in seaports and addressing new economic issues and problems.     

The decision‐making process in viral marketing—A review and suggestions for further research

Viral marketing is used to widely distribute content. To achieve this goal, the basic decision‐making process from content reception to interaction must be clarified. This paper examines the decision‐making process of individuals in viral marketing using a new dynamic model. In addition, this work reviews the existing literature on viral marketing and structures to identify existing issues for further research. The decision‐making process is basically divided into two stages. In the first decision stage, individuals decide whether content should be considered. When individuals agree to view the content, they decide in the second stage whether they want to interact with it. These two decisions are influenced by three factors: the framework conditions, content, and interaction aims. With the help of the decision model, this paper summarizes the most important findings from viral marketing research over the last 20 years. In addition, this work provides new opportunities for further research in the field of viral marketing.     

An Intelligent Distributed System for Strategic Decision Making

The decision-making process in strategic planning is often too complex to be handled by conventional methods. Strategic planning problems (building new plans, new product planning, etc.) belong to the class of problems called ill-structured by H. Simon. They involve a decomposition of the main problem into a set of subproblems, a reasoning process at the subproblem level, and then a coordinated and aggregated process to build a global solution. Because partial solutions are generated without having a complete view of the global objective, this type of decision-making process very often generates incoherent and contradictory hypotheses and actions. Therefore, the main problem is to find a way to achieve coherence and coordination among decisions made locally by different agents, at different levels.Recent advances in Artificial Intelligence, particularly in the field of multi-agent theory, offer great promises in modeling strategic planning processes. In this article we present a general framework called 'A Coherent Plan of Coordinated Actions (CPCA)' for building intelligent distributed strategic decision making systems which integrates advances in both distributed decision making and Distributed Artificial Intelligence. We then describe a multi-blackboard system, ARISTOTE, which is aimed at helping corporate managers address the feasibility and coherence of a plan of actions.     

Configurable e-negotiation systems for large scale and transparent decision making

Participatory democracy is one of several conceptions of democracy which strives to create opportunities for all members of a group to contribute to the decision making process. Recent developments in information technologies in general and Internet technologies in particular are affecting the existing democratic mechanisms, hence enabling citizens and organizations to participate widely, efficiently and transparently in the decision making process and, most importantly, to arrive at better decisions faster, through negotiation. E-negotiation systems rely on such technologies to implement protocols ranging from motion raising and voting to auctions, and to make them available on the web for general use. E-negotiation systems can be used for political and societal decision making as well as business dealings within e-government and B2B settings. In order for these systems to fulfill their promise of bringing decision making opportunities to all, we need a structured approach and a configurable framework for designing, implementing and deploying them. The resulting systems should be web-based, easy to use, affordable, traceable, reliable, secure, flexible, efficient, and open for integration with other systems. This paper starts by examining leading research initiatives to devise such a framework and discussing the motivations behind them. We then introduce several design requirements derived from the expectations of e-negotiation systems providers and users. We argue that meeting these requirements fosters a more democratic and efficient decision making process. We also present our approach and vision of a configurable framework for designing, implementing and deploying e-negotiation systems.     

Modeling and supporting task-oriented group processes: Purposeful complex adaptive systems and Evolutionary Systems Design

Evolutionary Systems Design (ESD) is a universal general problem solving, formal modeling, design framework for purposeful complex adaptive systems (PCAS) and processes, i.e., task-oriented group processes. These processes constitute policy making, group decision, negotiation, and multiagent problem solving with human and/or artificial agents. ESD is also a framework for computer group support systems (GSS) that support these processes. The ESD general framework can be applied to define and solve specific problems. In this article the ESD framework is presented and illustrated by example. The article provides background for ESD computer implementations discussed in two other related articles (Lewis and Shakun 1996; Bui and Shakun 1996).     

From Rational to Wise Action: Recasting Our Theories of Entrepreneurship

In this article, I argue that if we challenge some tacit assumptions of narrow rationality that endure in much of entrepreneurial studies, we can elevate entrepreneurial ethics beyond mere external constraints on rational action, and move toward fuller integration of ethics as an intrinsic part of the process of value creation itself. To this end, I propose the concept of practical wisdom as a framework for exploring entrepreneurial decision making and action that can broaden the scope of our research to recognize entrepreneurship as an inherently normative enterprise. Specifically, I suggest that a framework built upon a concept of practical wisdom enables us to adopt a richer and more complex view of entrepreneurial decision making that is well suited to the dynamic and uncertain context of entrepreneurship. Further, this framework enriches our view of entrepreneurial ethics to include consideration of the personal character, values, and purpose of the entrepreneur. By examining entrepreneurship through a lens of practical wisdom, we can open up new avenues of fruitful inquiry for scholars of entrepreneurship.     

Process and context in choice models

We develop a general framework that extends choice models by including an explicit representation of the process and context of decision making. Process refers to the steps involved in decision making. Context refers to factors affecting the process, focusing in this paper on social networks. The extended choice framework includes more behavioral richness through the explicit representation of the planning process preceding an action and its dynamics and the effects of context (family, friends, and market) on the process leading to a choice, as well as the inclusion of new types of subjective data in choice models. We discuss the key issues involved in applying the extended framework, focusing on richer data requirements, theories, and models, and present three partial demonstrations of the proposed framework. Future research challenges include the development of more comprehensive empirical tests of the extended modeling framework.     

Executive GDSS: Behavioral considerations at individual,organizational, and environmental levels of analysis

This article emphasizes the importance of behavioral considerations at individual, organizational, and environmental levels of analysis when researching and evaluating the design, implementation, and use of group decision support systems (GDSS) within complex organizations. Discussion is based on interview and archival data collected on an executive level GDSS used within a corporate setting. Issues that are considered generalizable to organizational computing, coordination, and collaboration technologies concern (a) viewing organization participants as strategic, intuitive information processors, (b) understanding the importance of organizational power, politics, and situational constraints on decision making, and (c) appreciating the symbolic value of advanced information technologies to an organization's external environment.     

A Conceptual Framework for the Design of Geo-Collaborative Systems

Geo-collaborative systems address the computational support to situations where people are working in different locations, gathering geographically-related data in the field and sharing knowledge. We propose a conceptual framework identifying the design issues that fundamentally set the stage for eliciting the requirements of geo-collaborative systems. The conceptual framework has five elements: places, teams, tasks, artifacts and geo-referenced knowledge. We also highlight two important relationships between some of these elements: (1) a task-artifact relationship, related with the need to increase the organizational decision making abilities through concerted efforts; and (2) an artifact-knowledge relationship, related with the need to support mechanisms for jointly understanding geo-referenced data. The conceptual framework was applied to the development of a groupware tool aiming to increase the productivity of the geological mapping process followed by a national agency with competence in this area. The paper describes in detail how the conceptual framework influenced the groupware design. The obtained results indicate that the framework can focus the designers on the human aspects of geo-collaboration and guide them through the initial design stages.     

Cognitive Load in Collaboration: Convergence

Collaboration is inherent to complex participatory multi-actor and multi-agent social technical systems. Supporting collaborative problem solving is challenging, especially with the increased amount of data and information available for decision makers; they often experience information overload. Therefore, one of the key steps in problem solving is convergence; after considering many alternatives, the group converges their focus to a few for decision making. One of the key production factors in collaborative problem solving, and thus convergence is cognitive effort. Understanding cognitive load involved in convergence tasks is therefore important to the design of collaboration support. Convergence is a complex collaborative task, which is much less studied than the often preceding, divergence or brainstorming task. On the basis of an overview of convergence techniques and literature on convergence this paper presents a framework for the assessment of cognitive load during collaboration processes, and strategies to deal with cognitive load in convergence. Evaluation of the framework with experts and with participants in a convergence process provides the grounds for reflection on the use and implications of the framework.     

The interrelationships between brand and channel choice

We propose a framework for the joint study of the consumer’s decision of where to buy and what to buy. The framework is rooted in utility theory where the utility is for a particular channel/brand combination. The framework contains firm actions, the consumer search process, the choice process, and consumer learning. We develop research questions within each of these areas. We then discuss methodological issues pertaining to the use of experimentation and econometrics. Our framework suggests that brand and channel choices are closely intertwined, and therefore studying them jointly will reveal a deeper understanding of consumer decision making in the modern marketing environment.     

Towards a Design Science of Ethical Decision Support

Ethical decision making involves complex emotional, cognitive, social, and philosophical challenges. Even if someone wants to be ethical, he or she may not have clearly articulated what that means, or know how to go about making a decision consistent with his or her values. Information technology may be able to help. A decision support system could offer individuals and groups some guidance, assisting them in making a decision that reflects their underlying values. The first step towards a design science of ethical decision support is to develop a theoretical base on which first-generation systems can be built. This paper brings together work in cognitive, social and moral psychology, information systems, and philosophy relevant to ethical decision making. Attributes of a system that would support ethical decision making are described.     

A Framework for Adopting Collaboration 2.0 Tools for Virtual Group Decision Making

Decision making in virtual teams is gaining momentum due to globalization, mobility of employees, and the need for collective and rapid decision making by members who are in different locations. These factors resulted in a proliferation of virtual team software support tools for decision making, the latest of which is social software (also known as collaboration 2.0), which includes tools such as wikis, blogs, microblogs, discussion forums, and social networking platforms. This paper describes the potential use of collaboration 2.0 software for improving the process and the specific tasks in virtual group decision making. The paper proposes a framework for exploring the fitness between social software and the major activities in the group decision making process and how such tools can be successfully adopted. Specifically, we use a fit-viability model to help assessing whether social software fit a decision task and what organizational factors are important for such tools to be effective. Representative research issues related to the use of such tools are also presented.     

Enhancing National Security and Energy Security in the Post-911 Era: Group Decision Support for Strategic Policy Analysis under Conditions of Conflict

Energy source diversity has become a fundamental principle of both US energy security and national security. The decision of whether or not to approve a new power plant facility in the US involves complex group decision and negotiation processes. These contentious, value-laden, and multi-faceted self organizing processes involve many decision makers (broad constituencies) with conflicting priorities and dynamic preferences, high decision stakes, limited technical information (both in terms of quality and quantity), and difficult tradeoffs. As population pressures and energy demands continue to mount, advances in conflict resolution can help to improve power plant siting processes as well as US energy security and national security. Specifically, this paper uses advances in the Graph Model for Conflict Resolution and its associated decision support system (DSS) GMCR II to analyze strategic aspects of a multi-party energy dispute involving the co-management of a shared air shed in the Fraser Lowland Eco-Region based on Sumas Energy 2 (SE2), a contentious power plant project proposed for the US side of the international border between the city of Abbotsford, British Columbia and town of Sumas, Washington. GMCR II provides strategic insights for enhancing energy security, national security, and environmental risk management in the United States.     

Multi-party international joint ventures: Multiple post-formation change processes

Research on multi-party IJVs has been limited to a static context. Little attention has been paid to analyzing dynamic post-formation change processes. This study investigates the evolving influences of multi-party IJV complexity on performance in a dynamic context where the multi-party IJV goes through multiple waves of structural change. Using a static context, some previous studies found support for a negative impact of multi-party complexity on performance, while others did not. Analyzing 2652 multi-party IJVs over a period of 17 years, we attempt to reconcile previous work by investigating whether there is a threshold beyond which the negative impact of multi-party complexity on performance becomes salient.     

Risk analysis in the real property development process: a conceptual framework and a computer simulation model

Real property development is an interdisciplinary field that produces interesting time-risk questions for the various participants. The conceptual framework of the process is a normative staging of activities and related decision points. The framework provides the theoretical foundation for the application of management science techniques to this complex environment. The computer simulation model is a straightforward quantification of the conceptual framework. The equations incorporated in the model are common to financial and appraisal literature with alterations designed to encompass the unique aspects of the real property development process. The model is a tool for use in the application of sensitivity analysis to development period decision making. At various decision points in the process the decision maker can evaluate alternative risk control techniques on a cost-benefit basis using the model.     

An Analysis of U.S. Disinvestment from South Africa: Unity, Rights, and Justice

This study examines the issues associated with the disinvestment of U.S. interests from South Africa that took place in the mid-80s from the perspective of three dominant moral theories: utility, rights, and justice. By examining the issues in light of these three theories, the paper attempts to establish a decision framework from which managers and investors can evaluate similar decisions they are facing around the world today. Similarly, the reading may prove useful to educators who incorporate discussions of ethical decision making into the classroom.Training in business ethics too often takes a strictly utilitarian perspective, or worse, a relativistic one. This study attempts to illustrate how utilitarian theory and related rights and justice issues can he interwoven into the heuristics associated with the contemporary concepts of corporate social responsibility.