Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) is a relatively new "data-oriented"
approach for evaluating the performances of a set of entities called Decision-
Making Units (DMUs) which convert multiple inputs into multiple outputs.
DEA has been used in evaluating the performances of many different kinds
of entities engaged in many different kinds of activities in many different
contexts. It has opened up possibilities for use in cases which have been
resistant to other approaches because of the complex and often unknown
nature of the relations between the multiple inputs and outputs involved in
many of these activities, which are often reported in non-commeasurable
units. DEA has also been used to supply new insights into activities and
entities that have previously been evaluated by other methods.
This handbook is intended to represent a milestone in the progression of
DEA. Written by experts, who are often major contributors to the topics to
be covered, it includes a comprehensive review and discussion of basic DEA
models, extensions to the basic DEA methods, and a collection of DEA
applications in the areas of banking, education, sports, retail, health care, and
a review of current DEA software technology.