Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems - Volume 40, issue 2

Authors: Daniel, Jay | Merigó, José M.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The main motivation of this research is to develop an innovative multidimensional model through multi attribute decision making (MADM) methods for strategic plans selection process in the Balanced Scorecard (BSC). The current study adopted MADM analytical methods including AHP, ELECTRE, BORDA, TOPSIS and SAW to rank the initiatives / strategic plans in BSC. Then the results of those methods were compared against each other in order to find a robust model for selecting strategic plans. The correlation coefficient between methods indicated that multidimensional and ELECTRE methods with 0.944 are the best performing and AHP with negative correlation (–0.455) is the …worst performing method for selecting strategic plans in BSC. The high correlation demonstrates that the model can be a useful and effective tool to finding the critical aspects of evaluation criteria as well as the gaps to improve company performance for achieving desired level. Developing multidimensional model is the core model for the selection of strategic plans. This study addresses the problem and issues of group decision making process for selecting strategic plans in BSC. It has numerous contributions that particularly includes; 1) Determination of the explicit criteria sub-criteria and criteria to improve ranking strategic plans in BSC, 2) Adopting MADM analytical methods including AHP, ELECTRE, BORDA, TOPSIS and SAW for the selection of strategic plans decision problem in BSC, 3) Developing multidimensional model to address the selection of strategic plans problems in BSC. The proposed model will provide an approach to facilitate strategic plans decision problem in BSC. Show more

Keywords: Balanced scorecard model, MADM, group decision making, strategic management

DOI: 10.3233/JIFS-189188

Citation: Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 1817-1826, 2021

Authors: Mariño-Becerra, Gladys | Blanco-Mesa, Fabio | León-Castro, Ernesto

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The objective of the paper is to present an extension of the ordered weighted average (OWA) operator, probability OWA (POWA) operator, distance measures and Pythagorean membership grades. These new operators are called the Pythagorean membership grade OWA distance (PMGOD) operator and the probabilistic Pythagorean membership grade OWA distance (PPMGOD) operator. This extension includes in one formulation the ability to measure the ideal vs. real situation of the distance operators, the weighting vector and reordering step of the OWA operator and the way in which it includes uncertainty based on the satisfaction of the criteria of the Pythagorean membership degree. These …propositions are applied to new business ventures in the city of Colombia, where the decision maker can express his/her concerns about the uncertainty and probabilities of the current business environment and, thus, generate a better decision-making process. Show more

Keywords: Pythagorean membership grades, distance operators, OWA operator, start business, decision making.

DOI: 10.3233/JIFS-189189

Citation: Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 1827-1836, 2021

Authors: Perez-Arellano, Luis A. | Leon-Castro, Ernesto | Blanco-Mesa, Fabio | Fonseca-Cifuentes, Gina

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The main aim of this paper is to propose a new aggregation operator to improve the evaluation of the transparency index. This new operator is called the prioritized induced ordered weighted average weighted average (PIOWAWA) operator. The main characteristics of the PIOWAWA operator are that it allows considering the degree of importance, reordering and weight factors given to the information in the same formulation by the decision maker. A mathematical application is performed using a Colombia transparency case. The findings highlight that according to the operator used, there are significant changes in the ranking. The main implications are given by …using these aggregation operators for the generation of scenarios by considering the changes in the allocation of weights, the level of importance and the ordering of information simultaneously. Show more

Keywords: Transparency, OWA operator, Colombia, decision making, aggregation operators

DOI: 10.3233/JIFS-189190

Citation: Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 1837-1849, 2021

Authors: de Paula, Luciano Barcellos | Gil-Lafuente, Anna María | Alvares, Daniela F.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: Society is increasingly concerned about environmental, social and economic issues. According to the World Tourism Organization, over the past six decades, tourism has experienced a continuous expansion and diversification to become one of the fastest-growing economic sectors in the world. Furthermore, studies affirm the complexity of the tourism sector and the fact that sustainable development depends on various topics that are not correctly identified by managers and policymakers. For these reasons, this paper aims to reflect on the effects of tourism and to propose alternatives that can be sustainably managed. In terms of results, knowledge gaps have been identified and, …through a case analysis in Brazil, the forgotten effects of tourism activity that can have an impact on sustainable development have been exposed. Also, an algorithm has been presented to manage uncertainty and facilitate decision-making. Show more

Keywords: Sustainable tourism, sustainability, decision-making, fuzzy logic, forgotten effects

DOI: 10.3233/JIFS-189191

Citation: Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 1851-1864, 2021

Authors: Coronado, Freddy C. | Merigó, José M. | Cancino, Christian A.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: Bibliometrics is a scientific discipline that studies quantitatively the bibliographic material of a particular topic. This study analyzes management research published by Latin American countries between 1990 and 2019. The work uses the Web of Science database and provides several country-level bibliometric indicators including the total number of publications and citations, and the h-index. The results indicate that Brazil, Chile and Mexico have constantly led the region’s scientific publications. The temporal evolution shows a significant increase on the number of publications during the last years that seems to continue in the future. The results also show that operations research and …finance are the most significant topics in the region. Show more

Keywords: Latin America, management research, bibliometrics, web of science, Country analysis

DOI: 10.3233/JIFS-189192

Citation: Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 1865-1878, 2021

Authors: Sánchez-Franco, Manuel J. | Troyano, José A. | Alonso-Dos-Santos, Manuel

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to guide pricing policies of Airbnb accommodation rentals to reduce inefficient pricing strategies through a novel application of topic modelling and a fuzzy clustering. In particular, the method proposes the application of Structural Topic Modelling, which explains a set of observations from latent topics. The associations between topics by Fuzzy C-Means Clustering are analysed to obtain new, more compact representations of topics (i.e., metatopics). This research identifies 15-metatopics related to Airbnb accommodations based on location and connectivity, enjoyment of domestic and everyday services, and the possibility of more authentic local experiences, among others. The …influence of key metatopics on the price of Airbnb accommodations is determined by applying Extreme Gradient Boosting (an efficient and scalable implementation of gradient boosting framework) and Shapley Additive Explanations values. To sum up, our research provides an explicit contribution of user-generated content to promote the development of mutually beneficial relationships between guests and hosts, and detects future lines of research and practical and conceptual implications of the findings. Show more

Keywords: Sharing economy, Airbnb, price, fuzzy c-means clustering, structural topic model

DOI: 10.3233/JIFS-189193

Citation: Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 1879-1891, 2021

Authors: García-Orozco, Dalia | Alfaro-García, Víctor G. | Espitia-Moreno, Irma C. | Gil-Lafuente, Anna M.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The world’s population has increased exponentially in recent decades, and the rising demand for resources presents crucial challenges that need to be addressed to ensure humanity’s current pace of development without compromising the means of future generations. The purpose of the present study is to quantify the first- and second-order cause-effect degree of incidence that drives consumer behavior when selecting a sustainable product based on the opinions of academic experts in the field. The forgotten effects theory is employed for the treatment of information. The main advantage of this methodology is the combination of expert opinions with a robust mathematical …procedure that allows obtaining not only the direct but also the indirect or hidden degree of incidence. The selected experts are academic leaders in the field of sustainability in Mexico. The results show a high direct incidence of variables such as education, income and culture and a strong indirect incidence of sustainable knowledge, environmental awareness and recommendations. The present study attempts to shed light on quantifying the direct and indirect elements that encourage consumers’ choice of sustainable food products and to understand the in-depth reasons for the discrepancy between the will and actions of consumers. Show more

Keywords: Consumer behavior, sustainable food products, forgotten effects, sustainable consumption

DOI: 10.3233/JIFS-189194

Citation: Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 1893-1902, 2021

Authors: Arenas, Laura | Gil-Lafuente, Anna María

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The empirical evidence suggests that stock returns in the emerging technology environment exhibit high stock return volatility. The fundamental aim of the article is to investigate the dynamic, time series properties of the correlations between daily log returns and magnitude of the volatility transmissions from the emerging technologies environment to the Spanish banking sector, the Spanish market portfolio and the finance industry in the EU area. Using daily log returns for the performance variables and an equally weighted index was constructed as proxy to represent the emerging technology phenomena covering a period from the 7th of July of 2015 …to the 20th of September of 2019. The study applies generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity GARCH followed by the diagonal BEKK approach. One key finding is that the emerging technology environment is important in capturing volatility of Spanish banking sector, the Spanish market portfolio and the finance industry in the EU area through significant volatility clustering, volatility spillover and volatility persistence. Results exhibit very large GARCH and relatively low ARCH effects indicating a long persistence of resulting shocks over volatility. Broadly, the Spanish banking sector seems to be the most exposed to volatility spillover. Nevertheless, it is the finance industry across the EU which is more affected by the volatility persistence from emerging technology shocks in terms of volatility and cross – volatility point of view. Additionally, high volatility periods provide insights about an increased integration and volatility spillover. From an investor perspective, one important implication is that adding stocks from different emerging technologies to a portfolio does not necessarily lead to risk reduction. Show more

Keywords: Emerging technologies, volatility spillovers, volatility persistence, GARCH, multivariate GARCH

DOI: 10.3233/JIFS-189195

Citation: Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 1903-1919, 2021

Authors: Azad, Md Abul Kalam | Talib, Muzalwana Binti Abdul | Kwek, Kian-Teng | Saona, Paolo

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: This study compares the efficiency of conventional and Islamic banks in Malaysia by engaging in a dynamic three-step (production, intermediation, and profitability) network data envelopment analysis (DEA). The inputs and outputs for the DEA model are selected based on the CAMELS rating. The major contributions of this study are threefold. First, this study investigates the efficiency of Malaysian banks using a novel dynamic network DEA model. Second, the Malaysian banking industry is found to be efficient in creating earning assets rather than in creating loans or profit. The results reveal that only a few banks in Malaysia have been efficient …in converting deposits and equities into profit. Third, Islamic banks, in general, have been performing efficiently in the production and profitability approaches. Conventional banks, in contrast, are found to have been efficient in the intermediation approach. Policy implications are derived from the main conclusions. Show more

Keywords: Data envelopment analysis, efficiency, network DEA, Malaysia

DOI: 10.3233/JIFS-189196

Citation: Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 1921-1933, 2021

Authors: Callejas-Cuervo, Mauro | Martínez-Tejada, Laura Alejandra | Alarcón-Aldana, Andrea Catherine

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: This paper presents a system that allows for the identification of two values: arousal and valence, which represent the degree of stimulation in a subject, using Russell’s model of affect as a reference. To identify emotions, a step-by-step structure is used, which, based on statistical data from physiological signal metrics, generates the representative arousal value (direct correlation); from the PANAS questionnaire, the system generates the valence value (inverse correlation), as a first approximation to the techniques of emotion recognition without the use of artificial intelligence. The system gathers information concerning arousal activity from a subject using the following metrics: beats …per minute (BPM), heart rate variability (HRV), the number of galvanic skin response (GSR) peaks in the skin conductance response (SCR) and forearm contraction time, using three physiological signals (Electrocardiogram - ECG, Galvanic Skin Response - GSR, Electromyography - EMG). Show more

Keywords: Emotion recognition, personality traits, Russell’s model of affect, eysenck personality theory, physiological signals

DOI: 10.3233/JIFS-189197

Citation: Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 1935-1943, 2021