Concepts and criteria to assess acceptability of simulation studies

Abstract

The existing trend of application of computerized simulation studies to large and complex systems necessitates the development of an assessment methology for simulation studies. The basic concepts and criteria necessary for such an assessment methodology are presented in a systematic way. The proposed framework permits discussion of the concepts and criteria related to the acceptability of the following components of a simulation study: Simulation results, real world and simulated data, parametric model and the values of the model parameters, specification of the experimentation, representation and execution of the computer program, and modeling, experimentation, simulation, and programming methodologies or techniques used. The acceptability of the components of a simulation study are discussed with respect to the goal of the simulation study, the structure and data of the real system, the parametric model, the model parameter set, the specification of the experimentation, and the existing or conceivable norms of modeling methodology, experimentation technique, simulation methodology, and software engineering.