This study proposes a three-stage holistic methodology combining an interval type-2 fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (IT2F-AHP) and data envelopment analysis (DEA) to deal with the performance evaluation problems encountered in fuzzy decision environments. In the first stage, prospective inputs and outputs are determined by field studies. The second stage employs IT2F-AHP to identify the most appropriate performance indicators based on vague expert judgements. Finally, DEA is applied to the decision-making units (DMUs) based on the selected set of input and output measures. The proposed methodology proves its merit on a case study addressing the performance of real estate investment trusts (REITs) in Turkey during their 10-year journey of trading on Borsa Istanbul (BIST). The results demonstrate that the average scores for technical, pure technical and scale efficiencies are 66%, 80% and 80%, respectively. Considering the technical efficiency scores, Turkish REITs could have reduced their input factors by an average of 34%. The findings also reveal that the majority of Turkish REITs suffer from economies of scale and could have improved their performance by expansion.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.