C. Riggle et G. Madey, AN ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACT OF CHAOTIC DYNAMICS ON MANAGEMENT INFORMATION-FLOW MODELS, European journal of operational research, 103(1), 1997, pp. 242-254
Citations number
21
Categorie Soggetti
Management,"Operatione Research & Management Science","Operatione Research & Management Science
Defined very broadly, Chaos Theory is the study of the behavior of dyn
amic, nonlinear, feedback equations which, with certain parameters, pr
oduce random-appearing output, although all parts of the equation syst
em are deterministic. In this research we use the insights provided by
the study of Chaos Theory to investigate how chaos can impact managem
ent dynamics and thus influence managerial decision-making. It is comm
on to use dynamic mathematical models as aids to management. If model
formulation is such that the model produces chaotic output under certa
in circumstances, decisions based on the use of that model are serious
ly compromised. Further, when several models are used concurrently, th
e interactions between them may cause output to be chaotic even if no
individual model exhibits such behavior. We provide an explanation of
the reasons why this may happen, and illustrate the consequences throu
gh an example. (C) 1997 Published by Elsevier Science B.V.