Abstract

Option Generation: Problems, Principles, and Computer-Based Aiding

Madni, A.M., Brenner, M.A., Costea, I., MacGregor, D., Meshkinpour, F.

Abstract

Option Generation, an iterative process at the heart of decision making, is concerned with creating a set of alternatives, making choices, and taking actions. The option generation process tends to be a difficult, knowledge-intensive process. Human deficiencies in option generation stem from imperfect human recall and fallible human judgment. Computer-based formal methods for characterizing options are incapable of suggesting options or providing the means for creating novel ones.

This paper discusses some of the critical problems confronting humans in option generation and suggests some promising principles for aiding and/or stimulating option generation. Also included is a conceptual framework for the creation of shared man-machine initiative option generation aids, along with applicable aiding techniques and models for enriching human-computer option generation performance.

From:

Brenner, M.A., Madni, A.M., Schwalm, N., and Otsubo, S., Proceedings of 1985 IEEE International Conference on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics, Tuscon, Arizona, November 1985, pp. 757-760.