Agent-based models combine data and theory during both development and use of the model. As models have become increasingly data driven, it is easy to start thinking of agent-based modelling as an empirical method, akin to statistical modelling, and reduce the role of theory. We argue that both types of information are important where the past is…

Education planning provides the policy maker and the decision maker a logical framework in which to develop and implement education policy. At the international level, education planning is often confounded by both internal and external complexities, making the development of education policy difficult. This research presents a discrete event…

In this article, the authors discuss the development of the "Sudan Game," an interactive model of the country in the time period leading up to the Sudanese referendum on the secession of the South. While many simulations are designed to educate about their subjects, the "Sudan Game" is intended to be a prototype for policy…

Simulation models provide decision support to long-term planning processes. The Bergen Learning Environment for National Development (BLEND) is a game based on a simplified version of Millennium Institute's Threshold 21 model (T21) that sensitizes policy makers in sub-Saharan African nations to the need for simulation-based decision support. The…

This is a unique and groundbreaking collection of questions and answers coming from higher education institutions on diverse fields and across a wide spectrum of countries and cultures. It creates routes for further innovation, collaboration amidst the Sciences (both Natural and Social), the Humanities, and the private and public sectors of…

Synthesizes lessons from school finance research that employs computational structural models to investigate different policy proposals. Suggests that full equilibrium analysis may lead to outcomes that differ from those predicted by partial equilibrium models. (Contains 50 references and 47 notes.) (JOW)

The purpose of this evaluation of DEMOS, a system for decision modeling and uncertainty analysis, was to identify some generic issues of interest in the design of such information systems, obtain insights about the causes of problems in their use, and to suggest hypotheses about how to deal with them. (EM)

To help assess the consequences of food policies, the world's food system is being assembled into models. These models should help planners evaluate the impact of food-related policies and will try to account for the interactions of all food-related supply and demand factors. (BT)

The model considered in this paper, the G.A.M.E. Educational Planning Model, provides a means of studying the interrelationships among education, manpower, and the economy. The model was originally constructed for use at the Training Seminar, Global Accounts for Manpower and Education (G.A.M.E.), held in Dublin, Ireland, September 4-20, 1967.…

Dynamic analysis offers a comprehensive view of the cost benefit and cost effective dimensions of policy problems. It also provides the computational power to investigate the long term effects of policy decisions on the flow of resources in organizations and government agencies. (Author/MV)

A Rand evaluation of activity and products of gaming, model-building, and simulation carried out under the auspices of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency aimed not only to assess the usefulness of gaming in military-political policymaking, but also to contribute to the definition of common standards and the refinement of objectives for…

Concentrates on studies of growth, composition (industry and population), and spatial form of urban areas--models of growth and intraurban land use, and urban simulation and efforts to build large scale statistical models for analyzing the impact of government policies on patterns of urban development. (RJ)

The Career Area Rotation Model (CAROM) was developed as a result of the need for a computer based model describing the rotation of airmen within a specific career area (occupational specialty) through various categories of tour duty, accommodating all policies and interactions which are relevant for evaluation purposes. CAROM is an entity…

Universities are challenged to educate their students, to administer themselves effectively, and to show fiscal responsibility. In order to meet these responsibilities, a simulation model is developed that serves as both an administrative as well as a predictive tool. (LBH)