Showing papers by "Liang Liang published in 2021"

Methods and applications of DEA cross-efficiency: Review and future perspectives

Abstract: The field of engineering management usually involves evaluation issues, such as program selection, team performance evaluation, technology selection, and supplier evaluation. The traditional self-evaluation data envelopment analysis (DEA) method usually exaggerates the effects of several inputs or outputs of the evaluated decision-making unit (DMU), resulting in unrealistic results. To address this problem, scholars have proposed the cross-efficiency evaluation (CREE) method. Compared with the DEA method, CREE can rank DMUs more completely by using reasonable weights. With the extensive application of this technique, several problems, such as non-unique weights and non-Pareto optimal results, have arisen in CREE methods. Therefore, the improvement of CREE has attracted the attention of many scholars. This paper reviews the theory and applications of CREE, including the non-uniqueness problem, the aggregation of cross-efficiency data, and applications in engineering management. It also discusses the directions for future research on CREE.

Land use efficiency and technology gaps of urban agglomerations in China: An extended non-radial meta-frontier approach

Abstract: With the rapid development of urban agglomerations (UAs), the contradiction between the shortage of land resources and the sustainable development has become increasingly apparent. Considering regional heterogeneity, this paper proposes a generalized non-radial meta-frontier DEA framework to measure the land use performance of 12 typical UAs covering 184 cities in China during 2006–2015. To be specific, this approach effectively avoids unreasonable technology gap ratio values in non-radial DEA models, and decomposes the land use performance loss into technology gaps and management inefficiency. The results show that 1) In terms of the efficiency values under meta-frontier, the land use performance of most UAs is relatively low, whereas the development of cities within each UA are balanced with high group efficiencies. 2) The technology levels of the 12 UAs are inconsistent, in which Yangtze River Delta UA equips with the most advanced technology while Southern Liaoning UA has the lowest technology level. 3) The improvement direction and potential efficiencies of cities also differ. Based on technical potential and management potential, the cities and UAs are divided into three categories. Finally, based on the assessment results, related policy implications to promote the land use performance of China's UAs are proposed.

Data envelopment analysis cross efficiency evaluation with reciprocal behaviors

Abstract: Data envelopment analysis (DEA) has proven to be a powerful technique for performance evaluation since its inception. Since the traditional DEA approaches lack discrimination power among efficient decision-making units (DMUs), the cross efficiency method has been proposed for peer appraisal in the literature. However, the previous cross efficiency approaches imposed a single and identical evaluation strategy across all DMUs simultaneously. In addition, all the related studies have considered a static issue without the dynamic alternation of evaluation strategies. In this paper, the reciprocal behaviors among DMUs are considered to address the cross efficiency evaluation, and a novel threshold value is used to determine positive or negative reciprocal behaviors by comparing the peer-evaluated efficiency with the threshold value based efficiency. This study assumes that a DMU would show positive behavior and apply a benevolent strategy toward other DMUs that evaluate it friendly, while it also shows negative behavior and apply an aggressive strategy toward DMUs that evaluate it hostilely. Furthermore, a game-like iteration process is developed for each DMU to determine and further adjust its evaluation strategy toward other DMUs in the evaluation process. Afterward, we calculate the optimal ultimate cross efficiency score with reciprocal behaviors. Finally, the proposed approach is applied to both a numerical example and an empirical study of 31 Chinese manufacturing industries to demonstrate its usefulness and efficacy.

Performance evaluation of China’s industry: a generalized equilibrium data envelopment analysis approach with fixed-sum undesirable output

Abstract: With the rapid development of economy, China faces a considerable challenge from environmental problems especially with the waste of gas pollution emitted by China’s industry. To assess the environ...

Linking doctor-patient relationship to medical residents' work engagement: The influences of role overload and conflict avoidance.

Abstract: BACKGROUND Chinese residents' practical work experiences are different from those described in Western studies. To explore potential mechanisms underlying the effects of doctor-patient relationships on medical residents' work engagement, verifying a posited mediating effect of role overload, and moderating effect of conflict avoidance, in the Chinese context. METHODS Based on the conservation of resources theory, a composite model was constructed. This study's data were collected from four different Chinese tertiary hospitals; 195 residents undergoing regularization training took this survey. Hierarchical moderated and mediated regression analyses were utilized. RESULTS Doctor-patient relationship were found to be positively related to residents' work engagement (β=0.31, p≤0.001). Role overload partially mediated the effect of these relationships on work engagement, and the moderating role of conflict avoidance in the relationship between doctor-patient relationship and conflict avoidance was negative. CONCLUSION Maintaining good doctor-patient relationship can prompt residents to increase their engagement in work in order to meet their patients' needs. Furthermore, role overload has a particular influence in early career stages. Not only is it necessary for residents to gain a sense of recognition and support while they carry out their job responsibilities, especially while dealing with complex doctor-patient relationship, but it is also important to create work environments that can help residents shape their professional competency.

Solving data envelopment analysis models with sum-of-fractional objectives: a global optimal approach based on the multiparametric disaggregation technique

Abstract: The majority of data envelopment analysis (DEA) models can be linearized via the classical Charnes–Cooper transformation. Nevertheless, this transformation does not apply to sum-of-fractional DEA efficiencies models, such as the secondary goal I (SG-I) cross efficiency model and the arithmetic mean two-stage network DEA model. To solve a sum-of-fractional DEA efficiencies model, we convert it into bilinear programming. Then, the obtained bilinear programming is relaxed to mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) by using a multiparametric disaggregation technique. We reveal the hidden mathematical structures of sum-of-fractional DEA efficiencies models, and propose corresponding discretization strategies to make the models more easily to be solved. Discretization of the multipliers of inputs or the DEA efficiencies in the objective function depends on the number of multipliers and decision-making units. The obtained MILP provides an upper bound for the solution and can be tightened as desired by adding binary variables. Finally, an algorithm based on MILP is developed to search for the global optimal solution. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by using it to solve the SG-I cross efficiency model and the arithmetic mean two-stage network DEA model. Results of the numerical applications show that the proposed approach can solve the SG-I cross efficiency model with 100 decision-making units, 3 inputs, and 3 outputs in 329.6 s. Moreover, the proposed approach obtains more accurate solutions in less time than the heuristic search procedure when solving the arithmetic mean two-stage network DEA model.