Applying a fuzzy consensus scheme to enhance the group decision making of a building envelope design team

This study applies a fuzzy consensus scheme integrated with a multicriteria decision making method and fuzzy set theory to mitigate groupthink and disagreements among members of a building envelope design team. This fuzzy consensus scheme consists of freezing conditions and a standardized procedure to govern group decision making. The study employs a case study as a research design to test effectiveness of the fuzzy consensus scheme in mitigating groupthink and disagreements among the building design team members. In the case study, the design team is engaged and then tasked to apply the fuzzy consensus scheme when assessing different building envelope designs of a representative building project. A semi-structured interview is conducted to collect perspectives of the design team members regarding the effectiveness of the fuzzy consensus scheme applied in the case study in relation to their previous experience in similar actual projects. Results from the case study suggest that the fuzzy consensus scheme is useful in promoting group cohesiveness and generation of a variety of decision solutions. The scheme also assists the team members to express their opinions, listen to each other voices, and seek the optimal solutions that everyone in the team agrees with. These as a whole help mitigate both groupthink and disagreements among the teammembers. The main contributions of this study lie in the achievement of more effective group decision making and agreed design solutions. Future studies can incorporate the fuzzy consensus scheme into decision support tools to promote integration among project team members in several project development phases