Boundary games: How teams of OR practitioners explore the boundaries of intervention

Velez-Castiblanco, Jorge Ivan; Brocklesby, John; Midgley, Gerald

doi:10.1016/j.ejor.2015.08.006

Cited by 40 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 61 publications

(74 reference statements)

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“…The idea of boundaries is not something new, not even in the OR discipline. The work of Midgley, et al [34] serves as an example of boundaries in an OR application while Velez-Castiblanco, et al [60] provide details on how teams of OR practitioners may explore the boundaries of intervention in an OR application. The work of Midgley [7] and Ulrich [9] introduced in Section 3.1 also confirms the existence and importance of boundaries in the work of other researchers.…”

Section: Setting Of Boundariesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Epistemological Implications of Critical Complexity Thinking for Operational Research

Kruger

Verhoef

Preiser

2019

Systems

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Classical operational research (OR) is mainly concerned with the use of mathematical techniques and models used in decision-making situations. The basic assumptions of OR presuppose that the structure of the world is one of order and predictability. Although this positivistic approach produces significant results when levels of certainty and initial conditions are stable, it is limited when faced with an acknowledgement of the complex nature of the real world. This paper aims to highlight that by drawing on a general understanding of complexity theory, classical OR approaches can be enriched and broadened by adopting an epistemology based on the assumption that the underlying mechanisms governing the world are complex. It is argued that complexity theory (as interpreted by the philosopher Paul Cilliers) acknowledges the complex nature of the real world and helps to identify the characteristics of complex phenomena. By aligning OR epistemologies with the acknowledgment of complexity, new modelling methods could be developed. In addition, the implications for knowledge generating processes through boundary setting, as well as the provisional nature of such knowledge and what (ethical) responsibilities accompany the study of complex phenomena, will be discussed. Examples are presented to highlight the epistemological implications of complexity thinking for OR.

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Section: Setting Of Boundariesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Epistemological Implications of Critical Complexity Thinking for Operational Research

Kruger

Verhoef

Preiser

2019

Systems

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“…Britain for several decades before a parallel movement, with a different branding (Community-Based Operations Research), emerged in the USA (Johnson and Smilowitz, 2007;Johnson, 2012). It was only towards the end of the 20 th Century, and early in the 21 st , that applications outside the UK and USA, often in developing countries, started to appear regularly (e.g., Rosenhead, 1993;Ochoa-Arias, 1994Waltner-Toews et al, 2004;Foote et al, 2007;Midgley et al, 2007;Shen and Midgley, 2007;White, Smith & Curry, 2011;Thunhurst, 2013;Barros-Castro et al, 2015;Sova et al, 2015;Tirivanhu et al, 2016;Velez-Castiblanco et al, 2016). Even as late as 2004, Midgley and Ochoa-Arias were able to make the claim that international development was a new application area for Community OR practitioners, with a relatively small number of people involved at that time.…”

Section: The Internationalization Of Community Ormentioning

confidence: 99%

Community Operational Research: Innovations, internationalization and agenda-setting applications

Johnson

Midgley

Wright

et al. 2018

European Journal of Operational Research

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We are proud and excited to be introducing this special issue to you, for several reasons. First, the quantity, quality and diversity of the papers all exceeded our expectations. Second, for us, this collection of papers exemplifies what it is possible for OR to aspire to in terms of both benefit to society and academic publishing. In the context of this last comment, we want to say something about how we approached our editorial role, which is consistent with our normative vision of OR. The Editorial Process: Towards a Normative Vision of ORWe received 90 proposals of potential papers in response to our special issue callmany more than expected.

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“…Mandated here, therefore, is the kind of micro-level examinations of praxis that are common in practice and decision making studies within the behavioural, social and organization sciences, and which are beginning to appear in the OR literature (e.g. Horlick-Jones & Rosenhead, 2007;Lahtinen & Hämäläinen, 2016;Velez-Castiblanco, Brocklesby, & Midgley, 2016). At issue here is to publish accounts of how OR methods are actually used by conducting empirical and close interrogations of their claimed effects in the field or the lab.…”

Section: Foregrounding or Praxis In Academic Papersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Behavioral Operational Research

Franco¹,

Hämäläinen²

2016

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In this chapter, we highlight the importance of the behavioural perspective to advance the discipline of operational research (OR). The power of this perspective lies in its ability to identify the conditions under which the impact of OR-supported processes is enhanced or hindered by behavioural factors, with a view to developing more effective OR practice. To help organise and guide the conduct of empirical studies in the sub-discipline of behavioural OR (BOR), we draw on practice theories from the social and organisational sciences to propose an integrative framework based on the three central concepts of OR methods, OR actors, and OR praxis. In discussing these concepts, we refer to the developing empirical BOR literature to highlight alternative analytical foci. We end the chapter by discussing the implications of the behavioural perspective for advancing the OR discipline, particularly with regards to foregrounding OR praxis in academic papers, attending to a wide diversity of OR actors, developing OR competences, and the role of theory and research methodology.

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Boundary games: How teams of OR practitioners explore the boundaries of intervention

Cited by 40 publications

References 61 publications

The Epistemological Implications of Critical Complexity Thinking for Operational Research

The Epistemological Implications of Critical Complexity Thinking for Operational Research

Community Operational Research: Innovations, internationalization and agenda-setting applications

Behavioral Operational Research

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