Modeling is a method of inquiry that belongs to the general scientific methods applicable at both the empirical and theoretical levels of knowledge. Virtually all other methods of inquiry can be employed in the construction and investigation of a model.
By "model" (from the Latin modulus — measure, pattern, standard), we mean a material or mentally conceived object that, in the process of investigation, stands in for the original object while preserving certain features essential to the given research. The process of constructing and using a model is called modeling.
In systems analysis, modeling is regarded as the principal method of scientific inquiry, one connected with the refinement of methods for obtaining and recording information about the objects under study, as well as with the acquisition of new knowledge through model-based experiments. Today, most models are developed using computer technology; such models may be created with software or may themselves be software.
When constructing a model, the researcher always proceeds from the stated goals and considers only the factors most essential to achieving them. Consequently, no model is identical to the original object and is therefore inherently incomplete, since the researcher has considered only those factors deemed most important from their point of view.
The most important and most widespread purpose of models is their use in studying and predicting the behavior of complex processes and phenomena. It should be borne in mind that some objects and phenomena cannot be studied directly at all. Another equally important purpose of models is that they help identify the most significant factors shaping an object's properties, since the model itself reflects only certain fundamental characteristics of the original object whose consideration is necessary when investigating a given process or phenomenon. A model makes it possible to learn to control an object properly by testing various control strategies. Using the real object for this purpose is often risky or simply impossible. When the properties of an object change over time, the task of forecasting the object's state under the influence of various factors becomes particularly important.
The goal of modeling dictates which aspects of the original must be reflected in the model. Different goals give rise to different models of the same object.
Models can be constructed through thought (abstract models) or through the material world (physical models). A special place among abstract models is occupied by linguistic models. The ambiguity and vagueness of natural language, so useful in many situations, can be a hindrance in certain kinds of practice. In such cases, more precise (professional) languages are created — an entire hierarchy of languages of ever-increasing precision, culminating in the ideally formalized language of mathematics.