DESIGNING SIMULATION GAMES TO TEACH DECISION-MAKING SKILLS

Alarge proportion of commercially available simulation games are designed to teach participants to make better decisions about difficult questions and problems (VanSickle, 1975). Very little research has been done to assess the effects of simulation games in this area or to assess the characteristics of games that tend to lead to higher cognitive gains (Wentworth and Lewis, 1973; VanSickle, 1977a). Consequently, designers have had to act on their best hunches when designing simulation games to teach higher cognitive skills. The purpose of this paper is to suggest some propositions that designers should consider when devel-oping, evaluating, and revising simulation games to teach decision-making skills. The following propositions are derived from research and evaluation efforts; however, the literature is not extensive enough to warrant calling them anything other than reasonable hypotheses. For the sake of clarity, it will be helpful to specify the defini-tions of simulation game and decision making. &dquo;Game&dquo; means a setting in which participants make choices, implement those choices, and receive consequences of those choices in an effort to achieve given objectives. Explicit rules govern the choices an