Differential Game Models in Management Science: A Survey

The number of MS/OR applications of differential games theory has increased quite remarkably during the last ten or fifteen years. This article reviews a selection of papers from the following functional areas: Investment, consumption, and employment; Production, inventories, and maintenance; Marketing (including advertising, pricing, and R&D); Bargaining; Natural resources and pollution control. We start with a brief sketch of what differential games are about and point out some conceptual problems. Then we proceed to present selected models within the areas mentioned above. The paper concludes with some remarks on solution methods and related problems.