TY - JOUR
T1 - The application of Z-numbers in fuzzy decision making
T2 - the state of the art
AU - Alam, Nik Muhammad Farhan Hakim Nik Badrul
AU - Ku Khalif, Ku Muhammad Naim
AU - Jaini, Nor Izzati
AU - Gegov, Alexander
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors would like to thank Universiti Malaysia Pahang for laboratory facilities as well as additional financial support under the UMP Postgraduate Research Grants Scheme (PGRS) No. PGRS220301.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 by the authors.
PY - 2023/7/13
Y1 - 2023/7/13
N2 - A Z-number is very powerful in describing imperfect information, in which fuzzy numbers are paired such that the partially reliable information is properly processed. During a decision-making process, human beings always use natural language to describe their preferences, and the decision information is usually imprecise and partially reliable. The nature of the Z-number, which is composed of the restriction and reliability components, has made it a powerful tool for depicting certain decision information. Its strengths and advantages have attracted many researchers worldwide to further study and extend its theory and applications. The current research trend on Z-numbers has shown an increasing interest among researchers in the fuzzy set theory, especially its application to decision making. This paper reviews the application of Z-numbers in decision making, in which previous decision-making models based on Z-numbers are analyzed to identify their strengths and contributions. The decision making based on Z-numbers improves the reliability of the decision information and makes it more meaningful. Another scope that is closely related to decision making, namely, the ranking of Z-numbers, is also reviewed. Then, the evaluative analysis of the Z-numbers is conducted to evaluate the performance of Z-numbers in decision making. Future directions and recommendations on the applications of Z-numbers in decision making are provided at the end of this review.
AB - A Z-number is very powerful in describing imperfect information, in which fuzzy numbers are paired such that the partially reliable information is properly processed. During a decision-making process, human beings always use natural language to describe their preferences, and the decision information is usually imprecise and partially reliable. The nature of the Z-number, which is composed of the restriction and reliability components, has made it a powerful tool for depicting certain decision information. Its strengths and advantages have attracted many researchers worldwide to further study and extend its theory and applications. The current research trend on Z-numbers has shown an increasing interest among researchers in the fuzzy set theory, especially its application to decision making. This paper reviews the application of Z-numbers in decision making, in which previous decision-making models based on Z-numbers are analyzed to identify their strengths and contributions. The decision making based on Z-numbers improves the reliability of the decision information and makes it more meaningful. Another scope that is closely related to decision making, namely, the ranking of Z-numbers, is also reviewed. Then, the evaluative analysis of the Z-numbers is conducted to evaluate the performance of Z-numbers in decision making. Future directions and recommendations on the applications of Z-numbers in decision making are provided at the end of this review.
KW - fuzzy decision making
KW - fuzzy ranking
KW - multi-criteria decision making
KW - SWOT
KW - Z-number
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85166394569&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/info14070400
DO - 10.3390/info14070400
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85166394569
SN - 2078-2489
VL - 14
JO - Information (Switzerland)
JF - Information (Switzerland)
IS - 7
M1 - 400
ER -