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Fuzzy Sets and Fuzzy Logic in the Human Sciences

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Fuzzy Logic in Its 50th Year

Part of the book series: Studies in Fuzziness and Soft Computing ((STUDFUZZ,volume 341))

Abstract

The development of fuzzy set theory and fuzzy logic provided an opportunity for the human sciences to incorporate a mathematical framework with attractive properties. The potential applications include using fuzzy set theory as a descriptive model of how people treat categorical concepts, employing it as a prescriptive framework for “rational” treatment of such concepts, and as a basis for analysing graded membership response data from experiments and surveys. However, half a century later this opportunity still has not been fully grasped. This chapter surveys the history of fuzzy set applications in the human sciences, and then elaborates the possible reasons why fuzzy set concepts have been relatively under-utilized therein.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research School of Psychology, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia

    Michael Smithson

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  1. Michael Smithson
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Correspondence to Michael Smithson .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Industrial Engineering, Istanbul Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey

    Cengiz Kahraman

  2. School of Industrial Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

    Uzay Kaymak

  3. Department of Computer Engineering, Middle East Technical University (M, Ankara, Turkey

    Adnan Yazici

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Smithson, M. (2016). Fuzzy Sets and Fuzzy Logic in the Human Sciences. In: Kahraman, C., Kaymak, U., Yazici, A. (eds) Fuzzy Logic in Its 50th Year. Studies in Fuzziness and Soft Computing, vol 341. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31093-0_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31093-0_8

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