Operations Research

Operations Research (OR)

In the broadest meaning is OR research that is designed to determine the most efficient way to accomplish something. In more specific meanings of the term is the use of certain methods or mathematical models involved.

"Operations research, operational research, or simply OR, is the use of mathematical models, statistics and algorithms to aid in decision-making. It is most often used to analyze complex real-world systems, typically with the goal of improving or optimizing performance. It is one form of applied mathematics." (Wikipedia, 2005).

OR is an independent subject with its own organizations, e.g. Operations Research Society. The application of this subject on problems within Library and Information Science (LIS) began in the 1960s (cf., Dahlin, 1991). The literature about the application of OR to libraries and information systems seems to culminate about 1977, which is an indication that OR may just represented a "bubble".

As is the case with other approaches represents OR a set of theories and methods, the fruitfulness and applicability of which are discussed among researchers. To define OR as the scientific approach is an exaggeration. OR is an approach that favors the application of statistical models and which is best used on very narrow problems. An example of such a narrow application is Buckland's (1972) use of OR to study the optimization of the relation between circulation and duplication of books in libraries. Other examples are Kraft & Pitt's (1974) investigation of the relation between buying or coping documents for libraries and Gupta's (1974) optimization of storage capacity by storing books by size.

Brophy; Buckland & Hindle (1976) is an anthology about OR in libraries with case studies and discussions of methodological problems.

Critical discussions of OR include Bommer (1975) and Dahlin (1991). Leimkuhler (1977) writes that there have never been serious attempts to develop analytical models of libraries in OR, which include political and human aspects.

Buchanan; Henig & Henig (1998) discuss epistemological problems in OR. Classical operations research assumed objectivity. Operations researchers hardly bothered to ask the decision maker about his or her preferences, assuming that a well-defined single objective function was an adequate representation of the decision problem. Many multicriteria decision methods began in response to this failure of operations research. Other methods took a totally different and more subjective point of view. The paper discusses objective and subjective descriptions, their interpretation and use in decision making. In the center of the ability to distinguish between these objective and subjective components stand scientific methods and scientists. It is argued that it is possible and necessary to understand where and how objective measures should be replaced by subjective measures and judgment in the decision making process.

Literature:

Adeyemi, N. M. (1977). Library operations research-purpose, tools, utility, and implications for developing libraries. Libri, 27(1), 22-30.

Gupta, S. M. (1974). Optimal storage of books by size: an operations research approach. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 25(6), 354-357.

Bommer, M. (1975). Operations research in libraries: a critical assessment. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 26(3), 137-139.

Brophy, P.; Buckland, M. K. & Hindle, A. (eds) (1976). Reader in operations research for libraries. Englewood, Colorado, Information Handling Services (An Indian Head Company). (Reader Series in Librarianship and Information Science, no.19).

Buchanan, J. T.; Henig, E. J. & Henig, M. I.(1998). Objectivity and subjectivity in the decision making process. Annals of Operations Research, 80, 333-345.

Buckland, M. K. (1972). An operations research study of a variable loan and duplication policy at the University of Lancaster. Library Quarterly, 42(1), 97-106.

Chen, C.-C. (1976). Applications of operations research models to libraries: a case study of the use of monographs in the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, Harvard University. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press.

Churchman, C. W. (1972). Operations research prospects for libraries: the realities and ideals. Library Quarterly, 42(1), 6-14.

Dahlin, T. C. (1991). Operations research and organizational decision-making in academic libraries. Collection Management, 14(3/4), 49-60.

Kraft, D. H. & Royce, B. R. (1991). Operations research for libraries and information agencies. San Diego, CA: Academic Press.

Kraft, D. H.; Polacsek, R. A.; Soergel, L.; Burns, K. & Klair, A. (1976). Journal selection decisions: a biomedical library operations research model. I. The framework. Bulletin of the Medical Library Association, 64(3), 255-264.

Kraft, D. H. & Pitt, W. B. (1974). Buy or copy? A library operations research model. Information Storage & Retrieval, 10(9/10), 331-341.

Kraft, D. H.: A decision theory view of the information retrieval situation: an operations research approach. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 14(5), 1973, 368-376.

Leimkuhler, F. F. (1979). The practice of operations research in libraries. Collection Management, 3(2/3), 127-138.

Leimkuhler, F. F. (1977). Operations research and systems analysis. In: Evaluation and scientific management of libraries and information centres, 131-163. Edited by F. W. Lancaster , C. W. Cleverdon. Leyden, Noordhoff.

Leimkuhler, F. F. (1973). ASIS distinguished lecture-1972: operations research and information science - a common cause. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 24(1), 3-8.

Leimkuhler, F. F. (1970). Library operations research―an engineering approach to information problems. Engineering Education, 60(5), 363-365.

Rowley, J. E. & Rowley, P. J. (1981). Operations research. A tool for library management. Chicago, American Library Association.

Swanson, D. R. & Bookstein, A. (Eds.). (1972). Operations research: implications for libraries: the thirty-fifth Annual Conference of the Graduate Library School, August 2-4. 1971. Chicago and London, The University of Chicago Press.

Wikipedia. The free encyclopedia. (2005). Operations research. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operations_research

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OR Society: http://www.orsoc.org.uk/

Birger Hjørland

Last edited: 13-06-2006

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