décision

Décision is a noun in French meaning the act of deciding or the result of that act; in English it corresponds to "decision." Etymology: from Old French decision, borrowed from Latin decisio, from decidere "to cut off" (de- "off" + caedere "to cut").

Across disciplines, a decision is the outcome of a decision-making process. In law, a decision is a ruling issued by a court or administrative body after consideration of the arguments and evidence. In business, decisions guide strategy, operations, and resource allocation, and in everyday life they determine actions and courses of behavior.

Decision-making often involves defining a problem, generating alternatives, evaluating consequences, and choosing among options. Methods range from informal judgment to formal techniques such as cost-benefit analysis, decision trees, and risk assessment, sometimes supported by decision-support systems. Psychological research highlights biases that can influence choices, such as overconfidence or framing effects.

In philosophy and cognitive science, decision theory examines how and why rational agents should choose, contrasting normative accounts with descriptive findings about actual human behavior. The concept also features prominently in fields like economics, political science, and behavioral sciences, where models seek to explain and predict decisions under uncertainty, risk, and strategic interaction.

In French usage, décision appears in expressions like prendre une décision (to make a decision) and prise de décision (decision-making). The plural form is décisions, and related terms include décision judiciaire, décision administrative, and décision stratégique. The term thus spans legal, organizational, and everyday contexts as a central element of action and judgment.