Research Design and Model Formalization

In order to give a comprehensive and systematic overview of the simulation model, there are three aspects that have to be discussed in detail. First, the formal model of the costing system has to be specified. On the one hand, this model defines the way in which data is processed by the different components of the costing system; on the other hand, this section focuses on how the different components of the costing system logically interact with each other and how different agents interact with the costing system in order to introduce or manipulate data. As the second component of the simulation model, the behavioral model has to be worked out. The behavioral model is the basis for all biases under investigation. The third section of this chapter discusses how the different types of biases are incorporated into the model of the costing system.