Search results for "Model building"

Gossip: The Architecture of SpreadPlots

2003

A spreadplot is a visualization that simultaneously shows several different views of a dataset or model. The individual views can be dynamic, can support high-interaction direct manipulation, and can be algebraically linked with each other, possibly via an underlying statistical model. Thus, when a data analyst changes the information shown in one view of a statistical model, the changes can be processed by the model and instantly represented in the other views. Spreadplots simplify the analyst's task when many different plots are relevant to the analysis at hand, as is the case in regression analysis, where there are many plots that can be used for model building and diagnosis. On the othe…

Using System Dynamics and Group Model Building to conceptualise Quality of Hospital Services

Despite the well-established Donabedian model of hospital quality and the notion that Performance Measurement (PM) leads to improved quality of healthcare services (Donabedian, 1988; 2005), a growing part of literature during the last two decades has started doubting those favourable outcomes of PM on quality (De Vos, et al., 2009; Nolan & Berwick, 2006; Werner et al., 2008a, 2008b; Werner & Bradlow, 2006; Wright & Hershman, 2014). The purpose of this research study is to build a more comprehensive conceptual model of hospital quality, able to encompass the feedback mechanisms between elements that the Donabedian model fails to capture. More specifically, we empirically establis…

Pitfalls in the Development of Agent-Based Models in Social Sciences: Avoiding Them and Learning from Them

2019

The references on the principles and methodology for developing agent-based models of social phenomena usually describe general principles and illustrate the process using worked examples, but seldom focus on the pitfalls and errors that make practical model building a tortuous and difficult task. This chapter contains a discussion of the positive and negative aspects of my personal experience in a PhD work on simulation of large scale social conflict. The purpose will be to describe the process from the initial plan to the final dissertation, analyze the pitfalls and their overcoming in terms of principles of model development, and summarize the ideas that I found useful for practical deve…

Unintended Effects of Energy Efficiency Policy: Lessons Learned in the Residential Sector

2021

The European Union has set an ambitious goal to tackle climate change, and energy efficiency in the residential sector is among the measures required to close the gap between targeted and actual greenhouse gas emissions. While different policy tools have been applied, the diffusion rate of these measures remains low. A system dynamics simulation model of the residential sector was developed to assess the advantages and drawbacks of energy efficiency policy in the multi-family building sector based on experience accumulated over the last twelve years in Latvia. The model was validated in expert group model building sessions and with historical trends. Simulating the model, a hypothesis was t…