Requirements for the development of GIS-based group decision-support systems

Though GIS technology has progressed rapidly during the past decade, the focus of most research and development activity has been placed on the development of single-user systems. A mismatch exists, however, between the widespread single-user model of GIS and the group-based approach to decision making that is often adopted when semistructured public policy issues are addressed. GIS-based spatial analysis and display methods must be expanded to encompass group decision making processes, and new tools must be developed that will enable group members to generate, evaluate, and illustrate the strong and weak points of alternative scenarios and come to a consensus about how to proceed toward a decision.