In modern organizations where managers must constantly be dealing with an overload of information, it is often observed that participants in group decision processes either are not clearly aware of their specific preferences or that they are not capable of properly formulating those preferences. When this happens, inconsistent or incomplete expression of personal preferences and their use in decision making may lead to an unjustifiable outcome for the group. Due to this problem, the strengths and effectiveness of GDSS-supported group meetings may, in some situations, not be apparent. This dissertation develops a new approach to supporting group decision making, focusing on preference knowledge of individual participants in a group. A system architecture for the design of an MCDM (Multiple Criteria Decision Making) GDSS which facilitates the process of eliciting, formulating, utilizing, aggregating, and analyzing preferences for individuals within groups is presented. The architecture integrates multi-criteria decision making paradigms with a group decision support environment. A prototype has been developed in order to demonstrate the design feasibility of an architecture that centers around four phases of choice making: alternative generation, preference specification, alternative evaluation, and preference aggregation. The prototype is designed to support managerial choice and judgment processes in collaborative meetings. The intended problem domain of the model is semi-structured managerial decisions for which decision variables (attributes) can be represented in quantitative terms to some extent, yet for which evaluation of alternatives requires a high degree of intuition and personal analysis. The process of prototyping the proposed architecture and the results from a qualitative study have provided some instructive conclusions relating to MCDM GDSS design: (1) support for human choice strategies can be integrated into a GDSS, (2) appropriate management of preferences of group participants will facilitate collaborative decision processes, (3) hierarchical decomposition of a decision problem can provide structure to a problem and thereby reduce problem complexity, and (4) managerial decisions are appropriate problems to which the current approach can be applied.

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Previous studies show that firms, in general, die young, and that they are in dire needs for capital injections. However, for various reasons, startups are sometime not able to gain financing, and in certain cases one prefer a certain type of capital, which has led to the pecking-order theory, which assumes that internal capital is preferred over external, and debt is issued rather than equity. Furthermore, business angels and venture capitalists have very stringent criteria for investing in a startup, making the conditions very harsh. To remedy this problem, this study aims to see if startups can utilize Corporate Social Responsibility efforts to enhance their odds of gaining capital from business angels and venture capitalists, since it during the last decades has become increasingly popular to integrate in the businesses. Thus, we intend to see if Corporate Social Responsibility can be a new investment criterion that previous studies have not expressed. We identified a research gap in the literature, that investments can be made on other premises than economical, making us wonder whether or not this can be exploited through CSRactivities. This led us to the research questions of this qualitative study: How does CSR-activities within a startup affect the business angel or venture capitalist’s willingness to invest in the firm? To fulfill the purposes of this study, we concluded it would be best to conduct a mono-method qualitative study, wherein we intended to answer the question using data from semi-structured interviews. We gained invaluable information through eight semi-structured interviews, which were thematically analyzed into three global themes; investment criteria, networking and communication, and sustainable undertakings. From the themes we identified different characteristics which are important for both the startup and entrepreneur, as well as found evidence that ethical and environmental efforts of startups indeed increase the willingness of business angels and venture capitalists to invest, especially in economically strong organizations. However, the investors did not try to make the business model more sustainable post investment. These findings are very exciting, as they disclose Swedish investors to be following a triple bottom line approach when investing, meaning that the findings of Carol (1991, p. 42) and other researchers can be adopted when studying Swedish investment decisions. This cements social entrepreneurship as a strong contender to the classic notions of entrepreneurship.

Safety is an increasingly important aspect of vehicle design. Legislation requires minimum levels of safety through full scale tests. Customers are provided with information regarding the safety performance of vehicles so that they can make an informed buying decision. Vehicle crashes were responsible for 40000 fatalities and 5.2 million non fatally injured patients in the US during 1994. The direct and direct cost of head injuries in the US is estimated at $25 billion per year. Injury criteria that can predict the severity of head injuries are important engineering tools for improving vehicle safety. At present the injury that the human head is subjected to is predicted by the Head Injury Criterion (HIC). This criterion is inadequate as it is not based upon a thorough understanding of the underlying head injury mechanisms. The important blunt or non-contact head injury mechanisms are diffuse axonal injury, bridging vein disruption and surface contact contusions. The severity of these injury mechanisms is hypothesised to be related to the level of motion of the brain with respect to the skull. Finite element modelling is used to analyse these head injury mechanisms. Models are developed which include all the relevant anatomical entities and detail. Accurate material property information and boundary conditions are used in the modelling to ensure that the head injury mechanisms can be accurately simulated. Tissue failure criteria are developed to link the various field parameters monitored during the simulations with injury severity. The models are then comprehensively validated with information obtained from pathological observations, cadaver experiments, accident reconstructions and volunteer data. These models are then used to determine the biomechanics of head injury and to develop improved head injury tolerance curves. The simulations demonstrate that head injury severity is dependent upon the magnitude, pulse duration and direction of the applied translational and rotational acceleration pulses.

Le risque d’inondations dans les zones urbaines a considérablement augmenté au cours des dernières décennies avec la croissance rapide de la population et le processus d’urbanisation à proximité des cours d’eau et des zones inondables. Afin de faire face à ce risque, différents acteurs se réunissent dans le but de proposer une solution d’aménagement du territoire, capable de le maîtriser au mieux. La solution proposée doit répondre à plusieurs objectifs de natures différentes (économiques, sociaux, politiques,…) qui sont le plus souvent contradictoires. Des outils numériques d’aide à la décision sont actuellement disponibles et fréquemment utilisés par les aménageurs pour les aider dans leurs choix d’une solution adéquate. Cependant ces outils se basent généralement sur des approches empiriques et l’efficacité des solutions proposées reste incertaine. Dans ce contexte, l’objectif des travaux réalisés au cours de cette thèse, consiste à développer une approche complémentaire aux outils d’aide à la décision en se basant principalement sur des méthodes numériques directes, telles que la modélisation 3D, la simulation numérique et l’optimisation multicritères. L’approche consiste dans un premier temps à coupler la modélisation géométrique 3D issue de Système d’Information Géographique « SIG » avec la modélisation en mécanique des fluides « CFD », afin de représenter le phénomène d’inondation urbaine avec une précision proche du réel. Cette étape permet de fournir une cartographie tridimensionnelle de différentes caractéristiques de l’inondation (Vitesses, Hauteur d’eau, étendue de l’inondation, …), et par conséquent localiser les différentes parties de la ville à aménager en priorité. Dans un second temps, en se basant sur les résultats obtenus dans la première partie, des stratégies d'optimisation multicritères sont mises en œuvre afin de trouver parmi une multitude de solutions proposées, représentant des projets d’aménagement, celle la plus convenable pour la situation étudiée, et qui satisfasse simultanément les différentes contraintes techniques, économiques et environnementales. Une telle approche permet aux décideurs à la fois d’accélérer leur procédure d’analyse du risque dans la zone urbaine et de les rassurer sur l’efficacité de la solution choisie face à ce risque. / The risk and impact of floods in urban areas has been increased in the last few decades as population and urbanization processes rapidly increase and subsequently more and more people and properties are being concentrated in flood-prone coastal zones and river flood-plains. To cope with this risk, different stakeholders meet in order to provide a land planning solution able of better managing the risk. The proposed solution must meet different kinds of objectives simultaneously (geographical, economic, social, political,...). These ones are often contradictory. Digital tools for decision support are currently available and commonly used by developers to help them in their choice of an appropriate solution. However, these tools are usually based on empirical approaches and the effectiveness of the proposed solutions is uncertain. In this context, the principal objective of this research working is to develop a complementary numerical approach to the tools of decision support based primarily on direct numerical methods, such as 3D modeling, numerical simulation and multi-criteria optimization. As a first step, the proposed approach consists to couple the geometric modeling, based on 3D data of GIS (Geographic Information System) , with the CFD modeling (Computational fluid dynamics) in order to represent the urban flooding scenario with an accuracy close to the actual . This step will provide a three-dimensional mapping of the different characteristics of the flood (velocity and height of water, the flood extent ...). Thus we can easily and quickly locate different parts of the city that will be developed in priority. As a second step, based on the results obtained in the first step, some advanced strategies of the multi-criteria optimization are implemented to find among a multitude of proposed solutions, representing the most suitable development projects for the situation studied, and meets the various technical, economic and environmental constraints. Such approach allows decision makers to both accelerate their process of risk analysis, in the urban area, and reassure the effectiveness of the chosen solution against this risk.

The equity properties can be used to assess the quality of an equating. The degree to which expected scores conditional on ability are similar between test forms is referred to as first-order equity. Second-order equity is the degree to which conditional standard errors of measurement are similar between test forms after equating. The purpose of this dissertation was to investigate the use of a multidimensional IRT framework for assessing first- and second-order equity of mixed format tests. Both real and simulated data were used for assessing the equity properties for mixed-format tests. Using real data from three Advanced Placement (AP) exams, five different equating methods were compared in their preservation of first- and second-order equity. Frequency estimation, chained equipercentile, unidimensional IRT true score, unidimensional IRT observed score, and multidimensional IRT observed score equating methods were used. Both a unidimensional IRT framework and a multidimensional IRT framework were used to assess the equity properties. Two simulation studies were also conducted. The first investigated the accuracy of expected scores and conditional standard errors of measurement as tests became increasingly multidimensional using both a unidimensional IRT framework and multidimensional IRT framework. In the second simulation study, the five different equating methods were compared in their ability to preserve first- and second-order equity as tests became more multidimensional and as differences in group ability increased. Results from the real data analyses indicated that the performance of the equating methods based on first- and second-order equity varied depending on which framework was used to assess equity and which test was used. Some tests showed similar preservation of equity for both frameworks while others differed greatly in their assessment of equity. Results from the first simulation study showed that estimates of expected scores had lower mean squared error values when the unidimensional framework was used compared to when the multidimensional framework was used when the correlation between abilities was high. The multidimensional IRT framework had lower mean squared error values for conditional standard errors of measurement when the correlation between abilities was less than .95. In the second simulation study, chained equating performed better than frequency estimation for first-order equity. Frequency estimation better preserved second-order equity compared to the chained method. As tests became more multidimensional or as group differences increased, the multidimensional IRT observed score equating method tended to perform better than the other methods.

The notion of leisure is subjective and contradictory, therefore attempts to organise, manage and measure leisure experiences may be described as paradoxical. The evaluation of recreation and leisure services has been focused on performance indicators associated with specific programmes and facilities. At a macro level, evaluation from the broader perspectives of organisational effectiveness and leisure theory is a neglected area of research. This study examines a model of organisational effectiveness criteria as a way of exploring the "leisure management paradox" in local government recreation services. The focus of the research was local government recreation services in Western Australia.This study had two major purposes. The first purpose was to identify a range of criteria that are appropriate for evaluating organisational effectiveness in local government recreation services. Secondly, the study investigated the perceptions of these criteria held by recreation staff in different local government recreation services in Western Australia.The specific research objectives focused on the issues of effectiveness in local government recreation services, namely:1. To identify criteria for organisational effectiveness relevant to local government recreation services in Westem Australia.2. To develop a conceptual model of organisational effectiveness criteria.3. To test the developed model to confirm the appropriateness of the selected criteria for assessing local government recreation services.4. To determine if there are differences in the perceptions of organisational effectiveness held by different groups of recreation workers in different types of local government settings.The findings revealed that perceptions of the importance of organisational effectiveness criteria held by recreation workers in local government in Western Australia are relatively homogeneous. ++ / Differences appeared to be associated with geographic location, availability of resources, and the perceived organisational culture of the local government authority. These findings offer a practical framework for managers of recreation services and provide a benchmark for further research in local government and recreation services generally.

<p>Planning is what sustains an energy system. It is a process of analysis and ongoing decision making about what resources and energy technologies to use when supplying energy to society. This research focuses on integrated energy systems, i.e. systems that are comprised of several energy carriers – electricity, gas, hot water - and energy distribution networks. The planning of these kinds of systems is a complex process, influenced by many factors, among which the most important are the availability of energy resources and the competition between different energy carriers in satisfying energy demand. During the last 10-20 years significant changes have taken place on the world energy scene, which have important implications for energy planning. Two main factors have triggered these changes. The first factor is the immediate need to address environmental changes or more generally, to take measures that are sustainable in the long run. Sustainability can be defined in many ways and in relation to different issues such as economic and ecologic development, reduction of greenhouse gases, responsible use of natural resources, social equity, etc. In recent years, an increased awareness of these issues has been observed at all levels of the society. The second factor is the deregulation of national energy sectors in more than 50 countries. This process brought changes in the ownership of different parts of the formerly integrated energy systems. New business opportunities were created in power generation, wholesale power/gas trading and energy retailing, while the energy infrastructures remained state owned or/and under regulatory control. The newly created energy markets (many of them international) have attracted both new players (power, oil and gas companies and financial institutions) together with the old ones (integrated utilities). In parallel with this vertical separation of national energy sectors, recent studies have shown a tendency for horizontal integration at the regional/company level. For instance, in order to reduce their overall business risk, companies prefer to participate in several segments of the energy value chain (in both regulated and non-regulated activities), and often across more than one fuel commodity, such as gas and electricity or district heating. In this context, the competition between different energy carriers in satisfying the end-use energy demand became obvious in economic as well as in technological and environmental terms. Traditionally, in integrated planning, this competition did not play a big role, since the same state entity made decisions at both national and regional levels. However, in the post-deregulation era it is no longer obvious who the planner is. In many cases, planning decision at local levels involve at least three main interest groups: energy companies (and/or other investors), the state and the local community. This thesis is motivated by the need to help planners to cope with the changes in concepts and values concerning the planning of local energy supply systems. This thesis has two aims. The first aim is to improve the understanding of what planning of local systems implies and how such a process can be structured. The second aim is to contribute to the development of decision support methodologies and tools that can cope with the needs in planning. For this purpose, the use of energy modelling and Multi- Criteria Decision Analysis has been studied.</p>

A new method for multi-objective optimization of linear and mixed programs based on Lagrange multiplier methods is developed. The method resembles, but is distinct from, objective function weighting and goal programming methods. A subgradient optimization algorithm for selecting the multipliers is presented and analyzed. The method is illustrated by its application to a model for determining the weekly re-distribution of railroad cars from excess supply areas to excess demand areas, and to a model for balancing cost minimization against order completion requirements for a dynamic lot size model.