This book constitutes revised selected papers from the 16th International Conference on Group Decision and Negotiation, GDN 2016, held in Bellingham, WA, USA, in June 2016. The GDN meetings aim to bring together researchers and practitioners from a wide spectrum of fields, including economics, management, computer science, engineering, and decision science. The 12 papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 70 submissions. They deal with the fundamental part of all decision processes and individual preferences; the situations of group decision making; the collective decision making in situations characterized by a higher level of conflict; and the group processes and negotiations in different subject areas.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 23rd International Conference on Group Decision and Negotiation, GDN 2023, which took place in Tokyo, Japan during June 11–15, 2023. The field of Group Decision and Negotiation focuses on decision processes with at least two participants and a common goal but conflicting individual goals. Research areas of Group Decision and Negotiation include electronic negotiations, experiments, the role of emotions in group decision and negotiations, preference elicitation and decision support for group decisions and negotiations, and conflict resolution principles. This year’s conference focusses on multimodal interactions. The 11 full papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 102 submissions. They were organized in the following topical sections: Taking a step back: Critically re-examining technology interactions with group decision and negotiation; preference modeling and multi-criteria decision-making; and conflict modeling and distributive mechanisms.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 17th International Conference on Group Decision and Negotiation, GDN 2017, held in Stuttgart, Germany, in August 2017. The field of Group Decision and Negotiation focuses on decision processes with at least two participants and a common goal but conflicting individual goals. Research areas of Group Decision and Negotiation include electronic negotiations, experiments, the role of emotions in group decision and negotiations, preference elicitation and decision support for group decisions and negotiations, and conflict resolution principles. The 14 full papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 87 submissions. They were organized in topical sections named: general topics in group decision and negotiation; conflict resolution; emotions in group decision and negotiation; negotiation support systems and studies; and preference modeling for group decision and negotiation. The book also contains two invited talks in full paper length.

Publication of the Handbook of Group Decision and Negotiation marks a milestone in the evolution of the group decision and negotiation (GDN) eld. On this occasion, editors Colin Eden and Marc Kilgour asked me to write a brief history of the eld to provide background and context for the volume. They said that I am in a good position to do so: Actively involved in creating the GDN Section and serving as its chair; founding and leading the GDN journal, Group Decision and Negotiation as editor-in-chief, and the book series, “Advances in Group Decision and Negotiation” as editor; and serving as general chair of the GDN annual meetings. I accepted their invitation to write a brief history. In 1989 what is now the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS) established its Section on Group Decision and Negotiation. The journal Group Decision and Negotiation was founded in 1992, published by Springer in cooperation with INFORMS and the GDN Section. In 2003, as an ext- sion of the journal, the Springer book series, “Advances in Group Decision and Negotiation” was inaugurated.

Current perspectives on approaches to problem structuring in operational research and engineering and prospects for problem structuring methods applicable to a wide range of practice. Bridging between operational research (OR) and engineering practice, Problem Structuring: Methodology in Practice is grounded in the emergence of soft OR and its development over time as a distinctively new field, broadening the scope of OR to deal with issues of transforming, strategising, and planning in the context of wicked problems. The book is centred on a methodological framing of intervention processes known as problem structuring methods (PSMs) and the techniques presented are suitable for practitioners across a broad range of disciplines. Written by a highly qualified professor of engineering and management, Problem Structuring: Methodology in Practice contains four linked sections that cover: I. Problem formulation when dealing with wicked problems, justification for a methodological approach, the emergence of soft OR, the relevance of pragmatic philosophy to OR practice. II. Traces debates and issues in OR leading to the emergence of soft OR, comparative analysis of PSMs leading to a generic framework for soft OR practice, addressing practical considerations in delivering PSM interventions. III. Charts the emergence of a problem structuring sensibility in engineering practice, introduces a new PSM based on hierarchical process modelling (HPM) supported by teaching and case studies, makes the case for a processual turn in engineering practice supported by HPM with relevance to OR practice. IV. Evaluation of PSM interventions, survey of applications, use of group support systems, new developments supported by machine learning, recontextualising soft OR practice. Problem Structuring: Methodology in Practice is a thought-provoking and highly valuable resource relevant to all “students of problems.” It is suitable for any UK Level 7 (or equivalent) programme in OR, engineering, or applied social science where a reflective, methodological approach to dealing with wicked problems is an essential requirement for practice.