A Group Decision-Making Model Integrating Information Consensus and Polarity Quianlei, Jia Cabrerizo Lorite, Francisco Javier Pérez Gálvez, Ignacio Javier Herrera Viedma, Enrique Information evolution Group decision-making Linguistic environment This work was supported by the grant PID2022-139297OB-I00 funded by MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033, ERDF/EU, Grant C-ING-165-UGR23 funded by Consejería de Universidad, Investigación e Innovación and by ERDF Andalusia Program 2021-2027 In opinion dynamics (OODs), the DeGroot and Hegselmann–Krause (HK) bounded confidence models are foundational tools for studying information evolution. However, both models have unavoidable limitations, particularly in group decision-making scenarios. This article proposes a novel OODs model that integrates the strengths of both the DeGroot and HK models within a unified framework. The proposed model balances ultimate consensus and diversity without requiring a subjectively chosen threshold by introducing an improved hyperbolic tangent function. Adjusting the function’s parameter enables a smooth transition between the DeGroot and HK models, enhancing adaptability across various scenarios. To determine the weights of agents during information evolution, we develop a calculation method based on a distance measure. Furthermore, the model’s properties are thoroughly analyzed through theoretical derivations. The model is extended to the linguistic environment, aligning with natural expression habits in real-world contexts. Comprehensive examples and comparisons validate the proposed model’s effectiveness, demonstrating its superiority and robustness. 2026-01-09T10:46:09Z 2026-01-09T10:46:09Z 2025-07-22 journal article Jia, Q., Cabrerizo, F. J., Pérez, I. J., & Herrera-Viedma, E. (2025). A Group Decision-Making Model Integrating Information Consensus and Polarity. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics: Systems, 55, 7379-7394. DOI:10.1109/TSMC.2025.3585186 2168-2216 2168-2232 https://hdl.handle.net/10481/109376 10.1109/TSMC.2025.3585186 eng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ open access Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internacional IEEE