Much of the literature on model evaluation focuses on what amount to absolute measures, that are independent of the context in which a particular model is used. This paper argues in favor of situation-dependent measures. Whether or not a model is “good enough” depends on the job it is being asked to do and the mid set of the people who must use the results. The relationships between model adequacy and successful implementation of model-based recommendations are discussed. While rejecting the classical paradigm, the author emphasizes model realism and historical accuracy as important determinants of implementation. The life of the model involves many evaluations of whether it is “worth the costs”, “believable”, “useful”, and “right”. Issues surrounding these judgements are explored. How differences in circumstances can lead to different, but in each case quite adequate, models is illustrated by contrasting two models developed five years apart for the same organization. The paper concludes that successful models are persuasive, not simply to modeling technicians but to high-level decision makers.

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Date created

• 1983

Type

• Document

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• Processing documentation available at: https://wiki.albany.edu/display/SCA/Processing+Ingested+Digital+Files

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• Creative Commons BY-NC-ND Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International

  
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b0aa2a699b54f0d19f6a9d93bdbcfa18

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Collection

System Dynamic Society Records

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• This collection is part of the University Archives