  We define common thermodynamic concepts purely within the framework of
general Markov chains and derive Jarzynski's equality and Crooks' fluctuation
theorem in this setup. In particular, we regard the discrete time case that
leads to an asymmetry in the definition of work that appears in the usual
formulation of Crooks' fluctuation theorem. We show how this asymmetry can be
avoided with an additional condition regarding the energy protocol. The general
formulation in terms of Markov chains allows transferring the results to other
application areas outside of physics. Here, we discuss how this framework can
be applied in the context of decision-making. This involves the definition of
the relevant quantities, the assumptions that need to be made for the different
fluctuation theorems to hold, as well as the consideration of discrete
trajectories instead of the continuous trajectories, which are relevant in
physics.
