A novel extension of the TOPSIS method adapted for the use of single-valued neutrosophic sets and hamming distance for e-commerce development strategies selection

Abstract

Neutrosophic sets have been recognized as an effective approach in solving complex decision-making (DM) problems, mainly when such problems are related to uncertainties, as published in numerous articles thus far. The use of the three membership functions that can be used to express accuracy, inaccuracy, and indeterminacy during the evaluation of alternatives in multiple-criteria DM can be said to be a significant advantage of these sets. By utilizing these membership functions, neutrosophic sets provide an efficient and flexible approach to the evaluation of alternatives, even if DM problems are related to uncertainty and predictions. On the other hand, the TOPSIS method is a prominent multiple-criteria decision-making method used so far to solve numerous decision-making problems, and many extensions of the TOPSIS method are proposed to enable the use of different types of fuzzy as well as neutrosophic sets. Therefore, a novel extension of the TOPSIS method adapted for the use of single-valued neutrosophic sets was considered in this paper.