Decision Support System

Chapter 12 of Applied Choice Analysis: A Primer by David A. Hensher, John M. Rose and William H. Greene provides information on applying discrete choice models to real world applications. Within the chapter, the authors demonstrate how outputs from discrete choice models may be used to create decision support systems (DSS), which allow analysts and practitioners to conduct what-if scenario simulations to test potential policies under consideration. The book shows how to create a simple DSS using Microsoft Excel. In order to use the DSS for this text the first stage is to download and unzip the file, decision support systems (you may need to rename this to be consistent with whatever you wish to name the file). The file requires the use of Macros, requiring that the user enable either medium (recommended) or low security settings in Microsoft Excel. To do this, open Microsoft Excel before opening the decision support systems file and follow these steps: (1) Select the tools option from the toolbar. (2) Select Security. This will open the security dialogue box. (3) In the security dialogue box, within the Security Level tab, select either the Medium or Low security setting. (4) Open the decision support systems file in Excel. (5) If you choose the Medium security setting, select Enable Macros when prompted.