1. ¹University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, USA
2. ² Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
3. ³ Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, USA

Correspondence: MJ Schniederjans, College of Business Administration, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588-0491, USA. E-mail: Mschniederjans1@unl.edu

Received May 2005; Accepted March 2008; Published online 18 June 2008.

Abstract

This paper applies life cycle concepts to forecast and explore trends in the publication rates of operations research (OR) methodology journal articles. The confirmatory part of this study seeks to show the accuracy of life cycles to forecast a trend for a single OR methodology. The exploratory part of this study extends the use of life cycle forecasting to a broader collection of OR methodologies. This part of the study entails a collection of keywords for OR methodologies from over 8000 journal articles. The results show a life cycle can be used to forecast a trend in OR journal article methodology productivity based on keyword listings. This paper also reveals trends in methodology usage for leading OR journals in Europe and the US. The existence and use of life cycle trends in the OR methodology research have ramifications on new directions for research, research funding, and OR textbook content.