Abstract
Operations research (OR) is a scientific approach for solving various types of societal problems and making decisions to deal with these problems appropriately. First, we briefly describe the history of OR, focusing on applying OR to public sectors, and then provide its characterization as a scientific method for decision making. Then, OR activities in Japan are introduced, emphasizing three major roles: (i) quantitative data analysis, (ii) mathematical modeling analysis, and (iii) theory building analysis. We provide an example for each of these three types of major roles. Based upon the analyses, we seek an Asian OR applicable to policy making in the public sector. Finally, we provide a summary and discuss future perspectives for OR.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Oyama, T.: OR activities for the public sector in Japan. IFORS Newsl. 3(2), 2–3 (2009)
Oyama, T.: Role and contribution of OR. In: Communications of OR Society of Japan, January, vol. 62, no. 1, pp. 2–3 (2017a). (in Japanese)
Oyama, T.: OR’s future and future OR. In: Communications of OR Society of Japan, January, vol. 62, no. 6, pp. 365–367 (2017b). (in Japanese)
Oyama, T.: ORSJ @60: revisiting the past, redefining the future. In: IFORS news, March, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 12–14 (2017c)
Oyama, T.: Applying OR theory and techniques to social systems analysis. In: FOTA 2016: Operations Research and Optimization, pp. 249–268 (1st International Conference on Frontiers in Optimization: Theory and Applications (FOTA2016), Kolkata, India, 2016) (2018)
Yamashita, Y., Giang, H.N., Oyama, T.: Investigating the performance of Japan’s competitive grant grants-in-aid for scientific research system. Int. J. High. Educ. 7(5), 167–184 (2018). https://doi.org/10.5430/ijhe.v7n5p167
Yamashita, Y., Giang, H.N., Oyama, T.: Assessing the performance of Japanese major universities through the research funding system. Int. J. High. Educ. 8(1), 1–18 (2018). https://doi.org/10.5430/ijhe.v8n1p1
Miwa, M., Oyama, T.: All-integer type linear programming model analyses for the optimal railway track maintenance scheduling. In: OPSEARCH, vol. 41, no. 3, pp. 35–45. Operational Research Society of India (2004)
Miwa, M., Oyama, T.: An optimal track maintenance scheduling model analysis taking the risk of accidents into consideration. Int. Trans. Oper. Res. 25, 1465–1490 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1111/itor.12425
Oyama, T., Miwa, M.: Mathematical modeling analyses for obtaining an optimal railway track maintenance schedule. Jpn. J. Ind. Appl. Math. 23(2), 207–224 (2006)
Oyama, T.: On a parametric divisor method for the apportionment problem. J. Oper. Res. Soc. Jpn. 34(2), 187–221 (1991)
Oyama, T., Ichimori, T.: On the unbiasedness of the parametric divisor method for the apportionment problem. J. Oper. Res. Soc. Jpn. 38(3), 301–321 (1995)
Oyama, T., Hall, N.G., Kobayashi, K.: A generalized parametric divisor method. Int. Trans. Oper. Res. (2018). https://doi.org/10.1111/itor.12622
Balinski, M.L., Young, H.P.: Fair Representation: Meeting the Ideal of One Man, One Vote. Yale University Press, New Haven (1982)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Oyama, T. Looking for and Aiming for an Asian OR Applicable to the Public Sector. J. Oper. Res. Soc. China 8, 537–559 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40305-019-00291-8
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40305-019-00291-8
Keywords
- Operations research
- Societal problem
- Decision making
- Public sector
- Policy making
- Mathematical model
- Data analysis