Decision Support Systems and Data Science

Abstract

Decision support systems (DSS) are information systems that facilitate human decision-making through the presentation and analysis of data. Primarily, these information systems allow people to improve decisions by using additional data and information that they have access to but do not always use to make a more informed decision. DSS efforts enable military and civilian leaders to improve strategic plans and make decisions. Increasingly, DSS are seen in use by both the public and decision makers to make sense of big data, as seen with COVID-19 presentations. Artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to provide rapid interpretation of the raw data and results for use within DSS systems. DSS is colloquially termed a “dashboard” and involves three main components: the database, model, and the user interface. This article explores archetypes of DSS and aims to discuss each component in equal measure since ignoring one aspect leads to various issues (e.g., a DSS employing a good model with appropriate data but poor implementation).