Revisiting Fuzzy and Linguistic Decision Making: Scenarios and Challenges for Making Wiser Decisions in a Better Way

This article provides a brief tour through the main fuzzy and linguistic decision-making trends, studies, methodologies, and models developed in the last 50 years. Fuzzy and linguistic decision-making approaches allow to address complex real-world decision problems where humans exhibit vagueness, imprecision, and/or use natural language to assess decision alternatives, criteria, etc. The aim of this article is threefold. First, the main fuzzy set theory and computing with words-based representation paradigms of decision information, with their different levels of expressive richness and complexity, are reviewed. Second, three core decision-making frameworks are examined: 1) multicriteria decision making; 2) group consensus-driven decision making; and 3) multiperson multicriteria decision making. Third, the article discusses new complex decision-making frameworks that have emerged in recent years, where decisions are guided by the “wisdom of the crowd”: their associated challenges are highlighted and considerations on much needed key guidelines for future research in the field are provided.