Die Transformation von Entscheidungsproblemen in Entscheidungschancen durch eine geführte Reflexion von Werten

Hannes, Christian; von Nitzsch, Rüdiger (Thesis advisor); Paape, Björn (Thesis advisor)

Aachen : RWTH Aachen University (2022, 2023)
Dissertation / PhD Thesis

Dissertation, Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen, 2022

Abstract

Decision theory supports people in making decisions by helping them to choose the best alternative given existing criteria. There is the assumption in decision theory that decision situations, including alternatives and criteria, arise and cannot be influenced. Keeney (2020) challenges this assumption and proposes a proactive approach in which decision situations can be self-created. He suggests value-focused decision support to create or transform undesirable decision situations, which Keeney calls decision problems, into desirable decision situations (decision opportunities). This dissertation addresses the value-focused approach and presents four papers that examine various aspects of Keeney's approach. In the first chapter, Keeney's approach is placed within the existing body of research. The resulting research gaps are presented in the second chapter. The individual papers are introduced in the subsequent chapters, and the key findings are presented. In chapter three, the different decision situations are theoretically founded, and a connection of satisfaction with the respective decision situation is shown empirically. Chapter four examines how stable value priorities are in the context of the Corona pandemic. It is shown that value priorities can be classified as stable overall and are thus suitable as an instrument for transforming decision problems into decision opportunities. The following chapter presents how decision support can be designed to transform decision problems into decision opportunities. When the concept is tested, it is shown that it helps 87.3% of the subjects. This support is also successfully verified in the sixth chapter for group decision-making. Overall, the implications are that people should actively generate decision opportunities and that decision theory holds methods for decision support that need further empirical investigation.

Institutions

• Decision Theory and Financial Services Group [812520]