The Influence of Non-Strategic Customers in Service Networks

I study the behaviour of strategic customers in the presence of non-strategic customers in an open routing service network. This network consists of two stations, which customers have to visit both. When a customer arrives, he chooses his route through the system. Strategic customers want to minimise their system time, non-strategic customers choose their route randomly. I compare two systems in a simulation study, one with strategic customers only and one with a combination of strategic and non-strategic customers. I find that strategic customers herd, which means they all choose the same route. If non-strategic customers are present in the system, this behaviour is even stronger.