Organizational Behavior Control in Social and Economic Systems

Classification of the game theory models in project management: literature review

A. M. Gintciak

Peter the Great Saint-Petersburg Polytechnic University, Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation

Abstract: The article provides a review of existing project management models and methods using particular game theory tools. The purpose of the review is to determine the current level of the research in this scientific topic, and to determine the most applicable classes of game-theoretic models and methods for the study of particular strategic interactions types that arise at certain stages of the project life cycle. Scientific papers published in international peer-reviewed journals and conferences proceedings over the past 10 years are used as an information base for analytical research.
The first part of the article is devoted to the description of the most successful examples of the game-theoretic models' application for the study of strategic interactions within project management processes. Based on this part, a conclusion is made about the locality of the game theory tools application for solving project management problems, as well as the expediency of developing an integrated approach that allows describing strategic interactions in project management processes in an invariant form.
The second part of the article is devoted to the definition of criteria for the existing game-theoretic models' classification. The classification criteria selected in this part of the article are used later in the third and fourth parts.
The third part of the article is devoted to the classification of existing models by the composition of agents participating in the strategic interaction. According to this criterion, the models and methods are divided into the classes “Public-private partnership”, “Contractor – contractor”, “Contractor – subcontractor”, “Subcontractor – subcontractor”, “Interactions within the team”, “Others”. Based on the results of this classification, a conclusion is made about the dominant attention of researchers to the problems of organizing contractual relations and a clear lack of attention to non-contractual relations of performers within the project team.
The fourth part of the article is devoted to the classification of existing models by their type. In this classification method, game-theoretic models are divided in two changes: strategic interactions are divided into simultaneous and sequential, as well as cooperative and non-cooperative (within the last class, into zero-sum games and non-zero-sum games). Based on the results of this classification, certain classes of game-theoretic models are determined that are most applicable in the study of strategic interactions in project management processes.
The results of the work confirm the prospects of developing both particular game-theoretic models for describing specific strategic interactions that arise during the project implementation, and an invariant approach for describing a project as a complex of the stakeholders' strategic interactions. The results of the work can be used by researchers to substantiate the relevance of their own research on this topic.

UDC: 519.83

Received: 30.08.2021

DOI: 10.15593/2499-9873/2021.03.07

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