BUILDING DYNAMIC MODELS OF TECHNICAL-ECONOMIC SYSTEMS USING CAUSAL DIAGRAMS

Serious games is one of the most efficient and productive methods of education. They allow to work out practical skills without practice. These are usually interactive computer-controlled business games. Selected fragments of the real economic system are modeled in these games. Environmental computer-aided realization of such games essentially consists of two parts: subsystem implementing the interaction with the participants of the game and simulator, which determine the consequences of decisions. The simulator solves differential and algebraic equations that represent a model of a fragment of reality. This model is created by the mathematisation of relationships between variables. Diagrams cause-and-effect (causal) can be used to relationships modeling.

The article presents the methodology of dynamic models of technico-economic systems construction using the method of System Dynamics. The essence of causal diagrams and examples of their practical use to build the structure of mathematical models used in serious business games are also presented in the paper.

Examples of the models come from following developed simulation games for managerial decision and logistics training: SERVICES – Market and Competitors Analysis, LOGCHAIN – Supply Chain Processes and ICT FIRM – ICT Firm on Competitive Market. These games are used to train logistics experts-practitioners during postgraduate studies and computer science students as part of raising their level of entrepreneurship and preparing for their entry into the job market. The games were developed as a result of educational project "A new quality of education in the MCSU" financed by European Social Fund.