Efficiency decomposition in three-stage data envelopment analysis with undesirable and returnable factors

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to evaluate the efficiency of a series network system with undesirable and unreturnable simultaneously.Design/methodology/approachThe research was conducted by applying data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach to measure the efficiency score of a system and substages with an undesirable output of the second and third stages separately. For each case, new production technology was introduced, and based on them, novel DEA models were proposed.FindingsOne of the most important issues in the development of a country is the banking industry. In this study, 51 branches of commercial banks as a three-stage system with undesirable and unreturnable outputs in the second stage are considered. Then, the efficiency of each branch and substages is measured by using proposed models.Originality/valueThe efficiency of a three-stage network in the presence of undesirable and unreturnable outputs was assessed. In this model, Kousmanen's technology was used.