Editing Decision support system (section)

== Classification ==
There are several ways to classify DSS applications. Not every DSS fits neatly into one of the categories, but may be a mix of two or more architectures.

Holsapple and Whinston<ref name="Holsapple Whinston 1996">Holsapple, C.W., and A. B. Whinston. (1996). Decision Support Systems: A Knowledge-Based Approach. St. Paul: West Publishing. {{ISBN|0-324-03578-0}}</ref> classify DSS into the following six frameworks: text-oriented DSS, database-oriented DSS, spreadsheet-oriented DSS, solver-oriented DSS, rule-oriented DSS, and compound DSS. A compound DSS is the most popular classification for a DSS; it is a hybrid system that includes two or more of the five basic structures.<ref name="Holsapple Whinston 1996" />

The support given by DSS can be separated into three distinct, interrelated categories:<ref>Hackathorn, R. D., and P. G. W. Keen. (1981, September). "[https://www.jstor.org/stable/249288 Organizational Strategies for Personal Computing in Decision Support Systems]." MIS Quarterly, Vol. 5, No. 3.</ref> Personal Support, Group Support, and Organizational Support.

DSS components may be classified as:
# ''Inputs'': Factors, numbers, and characteristics to analyze
# ''User knowledge and expertise:'' Inputs requiring manual analysis by the user
# ''Outputs'':  Transformed data from which DSS "decisions" are generated
# ''Decisions'':  Results generated by the DSS based on user criteria

DSSs which perform selected [[cognitive]] decision-making functions and are based on [[artificial intelligence]] or [[intelligent agent]]s technologies are called [[intelligent decision support system]]s (IDSS)<ref>{{cite book|author1=F. Burstein|title=Handbook on Decision Support Systems. Berlin: Springer Verlag|author2=C. W. Holsapple|year=2008}}</ref>

The nascent field of [[decision engineering]] treats the decision itself as an engineered object, and applies engineering principles such as [[design]] and [[quality assurance]] to an explicit representation of the elements that make up a decision.