Making decision‐making research matter: some issues and remedies

The purpose of this paper is to provide an appraisal of decision‐making research noting key contributions, issues posed by past work and suggestions for future work that address the issues.

The appraisal stems from a meta analysis of decision‐making research efforts. Summative analyses of decision‐making research, found in key papers and books published in the past two decades, were examined integrating the conclusions to offer an assessment of the field.

The key findings were “what” and “how” questions that need be addressed. The what questions identify some of the dilemmas that must be confronted before decision making can progress. The how questions consider some of the difficulties inherent in doing the recommended research. Suggestions to overcome these difficulties are offered.

The paper's key contribution stems from pinpointing the failures of past efforts and steps identified to overcome these failings, which should be of interest to researchers.