Identifying and ranking the factors influencing the decision-making of managers in the cultural sector of the country using the TOPSIS model (a case study of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance)

Dissertation for Master's degree (M.A)

Field and orientation:

Government management-organizations and methods

Abstract

According to the depth and breadth of the cultural principles and goals of the system, the centers in charge of cultural affairs, in order to realize these goals, should have high decision-making power. Making a decision according to logical and principled bases is an important part of all decisions based on the scientific method, and experts try to present their knowledge to areas where decisions in those areas have a structure. In this regard, the main goal of the current research is to identify and rank the factors affecting the decision-making process among the country's cultural managers. The statistical population of the research consists of the staff managers of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, and the TOPSIS method was used for ranking. The results of the identification phase led to the extraction of 29 final factors affecting the decision-making process in 4 dimensions: rational factors, psychological factors, social factors and cultural factors. These 29 identified factors were ranked. The results showed that in the dimension of rational factors, the degree of alignment of the decision with the cultural policies of the political system, in the dimension of psychological factors, the way managers and colleagues deal with the decision made, in the dimension of social factors, the degree of impact of the decision in the field of social issues and social security, and in the dimension of cultural factors, considering the dominant culture of the society, ranked first.

Key words: decision-making, TOPSIS, cultural managers, rational factor, social factors, cultural factors, psychological factors

                Generalities of the research

- Introduction

The practical and executive actions of each groups are based on the decisions that are taken before the action. In any organizational complex, whether it is a company, ministry, or the entire government, many decisions are made every day in order to implement and continue the life of the organization. The quality of administration of each complex and how it functions depends on the quality and consequences of the decisions made in that complex. One of the important factors in determining the quality of decisions is the decision-making system. This research identifies and ranks the factors affecting the decision-making of managers in the cultural sector of the country in the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, and in this chapter, the generalities of the research are discussed. In determining the policies of the organization, in formulating goals, designing the organization, choosing, evaluating, and in all actions and actions of management, decision-making is the main component and the main pillar. Decision-making is so important as the first task of a manager in managing the affairs of organizations that some experts have defined the organization as a decision network and management as a decision-making act (Alvani, 2005). For example, Herbert Simon [1] (1947) considers decision-making to be the main essence of management. In his opinion, the decision maker is a person who is ready to step on one of the paths at the crossroads, at the moment of choice (Alvani, 2005). Hui and Miskel [2] (2008) also consider decision-making to be the main responsibility of all managers, and in their opinion, management is a process that not only leads to decision-making, but also leads to implementation. All managers deal with the decision-making process because their profession requires it (Parsaian & Arabi, 1996). According to Wagner and Hellenbruck [4] (2005), decision-making means the process of gathering information to evaluate options and choosing the best ones to solve the problem. In general, decision-making means choosing a solution from two or more options in a preventive behavior and in order to achieve a specific goal or achievement with the least risk possible (Korooni, 2005). For this reason, decision-making forms the core of planning. Therefore, there will be no planning without decision-making (Weinz & Koontz, 1993).

Managers are always faced with situations that require them to make a decision. For this reason, the decision-making task is one of their important and fundamental tasks in organizational processes (Moghadam & Tehrani, 2008). Of course, managers make their decisions in different styles, but these styles are not the same and change during their working life.People's decision-making style refers to the habitual pattern they use when making decisions. In other words, each person's decision-making style is his personality approach in understanding and reacting to his decision-making task (Tanelhom, 2004). In this regard, researchers have presented different decision-making styles.

Life in all organizations, including cultural organizations, requires the adoption of various and continuous measures and solutions. Managers must perform various tasks and functions in order to guide and lead their organization (Mirkamali, 2007). In general, decision-making is one of the challenges of managers over time; Because during their organizational mission, they face issues and situations that require decision-making (Kaucher, 2010). The decisions that managers make during their organizational mission affect the performance of employees and their lives and also affect the effectiveness of the organization. Therefore, they should be familiar with their duties and their field of work and consider themselves responsible for their actions, deeds, decisions and behavior at any moment and have a reason for each action and a reasonable justification for each decision (Delshad, 2007). But the main question of the current research is that considering the importance of the decision-making process in the organization - as stated, according to some management thinkers, the main task of the manager is decision-making and management is equal to decision-making - what factors influence the managers' decision? Undoubtedly, knowing these factors can be very important because the decision-making process can be significantly improved based on knowing these factors and knowing their priority and rank. Considering that cultural institutions are considered one of the most important social pillars, the quality of decision-making in them is also of increasing importance. This quality can be affected by various factors, including different decision-making styles of managers. It is obvious that any defect in this field can lead to poor decisions that have harmful consequences for the society. In this regard, the main effort of the current research is to identify and rank the factors influencing the decision-making of managers in the cultural sector of the country. Achieving this goal will help the decision-making process in the studied organization to be significantly improved and help to make decisions at the right time, by the right person and in the right way. 1-3- The importance and necessity of research Cultural managers play an important role in the political, social and economic life of a nation Managers can affect their lives and the employees of their organization with the decisions they make (Willson, 2010).  Considering that the success of any organization is influenced by the quality and decision making of its managers. And a wrong decision can cause irreparable losses, therefore, research in the field of decision-making is considered an organizational necessity.

It should be noted that the managers of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance have an influential and decisive role in the fate of the society due to their organizational missions, which are policy-making, planning, support and supervision of cultural and artistic programs and activities and the promotion of human and religious values. Based on this, research in the field of factors influencing the decision-making of cultural managers is very important. In addition, conducting such research can add to the wealth of research in this field. Also, the results of such researches can be very important not only for cultural environments but also for other public and government organizations.

1-4- Research objectives

Identifying the factors influencing the decision-making of managers in the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance

Ranking the factors influencing the decision-making of managers in the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance

1-5- Assumptions

Rational factors on the decision of managers They influence the cultural sector of the country. Psychological factors influence the decision of managers in the cultural sector of the country. Social factors influence the decision of managers in the cultural sector of the country. Cultural factors influence the decision of managers in the cultural sector of the country. management and decision-making. The present research identifies and ranks the factors influencing the decision-making of managers in the cultural sector of the country.