Simulation & Gaming recent issues

Large Emergency-Response Exercises: Qualitative Characteristics - A Survey

Lee, Y.-I., Trim, P., Upton, J., Upton, D. — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 21:02:06 PST

Exercises, drills, or simulations are widely used, by governments, agencies and commercial organizations, to simulate serious incidents and train staff how to respond to them. International cooperation has led to increasingly large-scale exercises, often involving hundreds or even thousands of participants in many locations. The difference between ‘large’ and ‘small’ exercises is more than one of size: (a) Large exercises are more ‘experiential’ and more likely to undermine any model of reality that single organizations may create; (b) they create a ‘play space’ in which organizations and individuals act out their own needs and identifications, and a ritual with strong social implications; (c) group-analytic psychotherapy suggests that the emotions aroused in a large group may be stronger and more difficult to control. Feelings are an unacknowledged major factor in the success or failure of exercises; (d) successful large exercises help improve the nature of trust between individuals and the organizations they represent, changing it from a situational trust to a personal trust; (e) it is more difficult to learn from large exercises or to apply the lessons identified; (f) however, large exercises can help develop organizations and individuals. Exercises (and simulation in general) need to be approached from a broader multidisciplinary direction if their full potential is to be realized.

Advances in Games Technology: Software, Models, and Intelligence

Prakash, E., Brindle, G., Jones, K., Zhou, S., Chaudhari, N. S., Wong, K.-W. — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 21:02:06 PST

Games technology has undergone tremendous development. In this article, the authors report the rapid advancement that has been observed in the way games software is being developed, as well as in the development of games content using game engines. One area that has gained special attention is modeling the game environment such as terrain and buildings. This article presents the continuous level of detail terrain modeling techniques that can help generate and render realistic terrain in real time. Deployment of characters in the environment is increasingly common. This requires strategies to map scalable behavior characteristics for characters as well. The authors present two important aspects of crowd simulation: the realism of the crowd behavior and the computational overhead involved. A good simulation of crowd behavior requires delicate balance between these aspects. The focus in this article is on human behavior representation for crowd simulation. To enhance the player experience, the authors present the concept of player adaptive entertainment computing, which provides a personalized experience for each individual when interacting with the game. The current state of game development involves using very small percentage (typically 4% to 12%) of CPU time for game artificial intelligence (AI). Future game AI requires developing computational strategies that have little involvement of CPU for online play, while using CPU’s idle capacity when the game is not being played, thereby emphasizing the construction of complex game AI models offline. A framework of such nonconventional game AI models is introduced.

A Review of Humor for Computer Games: Play, Laugh and More

Dormann, C., Biddle, R. — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 21:02:06 PST

Computer games are now becoming ways to communicate, teach, and influence attitudes and behavior. In this article, we address the role of humor in computer games, especially in support of serious purposes. We begin with a review of the main theories of humor, including superiority, incongruity, and relief. These theories and their interrelationships do well in helping us understand the humor process, but they have been developed in the context of traditional human activity. To explore how they relate to computer games, we present the findings of a qualitative study of player experience of humor and show how it relates to the theoretical perspectives. We then review the main functions of humor, especially its effects on social, emotional, and cognitive behavior. We show how each of these functions can be used in game design to support the specific experiences and outcomes of game-play. Finally, we address the issue of serious games and make suggestions on how humor can inform and support the design of those games. We suggest that humor can support design by smoothing and sustaining the game mechanics. Moreover, games can draw on the functions of humor in the real world for enhancing communication, learning, and social presence. Using humor makes games richer and more powerful, as well as fun.

The Gaming of Policy and the Politics of Gaming: A Review

Mayer, I. S. — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 21:02:06 PST

This article examines the foundations of gaming and related concepts, such as policy exercises and serious gaming, in a public policy making context. Examining the relevant publications in Simulation & Gaming since 1969, the author looks back at the development of gaming simulation for purposes such as public policy analysis and planning, and reviews the underlying theories and empirical evidence. The author highlights the recognition that the success of gaming for policy making derives largely from the unique power of that gaming to capture and integrate both the technical-physical and the social-political complexities of policy problems.

Yoshinobu Kumata--1939-2009

Kaneda, T. — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 23:49:10 PDT

It Is Not Just a Game!

Shubik, M. — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 23:49:10 PDT

An overall view of the development of gaming and simulation is presented. This includes a consideration of some observations on what had been predicted and what happened, as well as some predictions concerning the future. Stress is given to prediction based on what is technically feasible and prediction based on the sociopolitical environment. It is suggested that "to plan" is an irregular verb with four tenses: the past imperfect, the present unclear, the future perfect, and finally, the future probable.

Playful Urban Spaces: A Historical Approach to Mobile Games

de Souza e Silva, A., Hjorth, L. — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 23:49:10 PDT

This article provides a historical overview of the development of urban, location-based, and hybrid-reality mobile games. It investigates the extent to which urban spaces have been used as playful spaces prior to the advent of mobile technologies to show how the concept of play has been enacted in urban spaces through three historical tropes of urbanity: first, the transformation of Baudelaire’s flâneur into what Robert Luke (2006) calls the "phoneur"; second, the idea of dérive as used by situationist Guy Débord; and last, the wall subculture called parkour. The authors present a classification of the major types of mobile games to date, addressing how they reenact this older meaning of play apparent within these former tropes of urbanity. With this approach, they hope to address two weaknesses in the current scholarship—namely, differentiating among a range of types of games mediated by mobile technologies and assessing the important effects of playful activities.

Promoting Social and Emotional Learning With Games: "It's Fun and We Learn Things"

Hromek, R., Roffey, S. — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 23:49:10 PDT

This article has two broad objectives: (a) It reviews the theoretical and practical literature on the use of games to facilitate social and emotional learning (SEL). (b) Based on this review, it argues that games are a powerful way of developing social and emotional learning in young people. In addition, we draw on our collective experience as educational psychologists to identify effective practice when using games to teach SEL. The social and emotional skills needed to play successfully with others are those needed to succeed at work and in adult life. Prosocial skills involve regulating negative emotions, taking turns and sharing, support orientations to others that are fair, just, and respectful. The natural affiliation between children, play, and the desire to have fun with others makes games an ideal vehicle for teaching SEL. Circle Time games are used to support universal programs for teaching SEL to whole classes. Therapeutic board games provide an effective intervention for young people who have been targeted for further guided practice in small group settings. Verbatim quotations from students and teachers demonstrate ways in which SEL has generalized to real-life situations. The role of facilitator is crucial to the success of this approach, both in modeling appropriate skills and making the learning connections for students. In this article, facilitation and debriefing are deconstructed and the value of collaborative, rather than competitive, aspects of games highlighted.

Playing to Learn: A Review of Physical Games in Second Language Acquisition

Tomlinson, B., Masuhara, H. — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 23:49:10 PDT

This article focuses on the potential of competitive games involving physical movement to facilitate the acquisition of a second or foreign language and argues that such activities can promote educational development too. It first provides a critical overview of the literature on physical games in language learning. Then, it outlines our theoretical position and puts forward a flexible framework for the development of principled learning materials that are designed to make use of physical games in language lessons at all levels and for all ages. This framework is text driven, in that it treats the game as a text that provides the learners with a rich, engaging, and purposeful exposure to language in use. It is also task driven, in that it provides the learners with a physical outcome that can only be achieved through language use. This framework operates in ways designed to stimulate the multidimensional mental representation and the deep processing required for effective and durable learning. The framework is exemplified by reference to physical games we have played with language learners of different levels and ages in different cultures, and then the principles and potential benefits of these games are discussed. In our conclusion, we summarize the benefits of physical games for language learners and point out the potential benefits of physical games in all educational contexts.

Digital Games in eLearning Environments: Current Uses and Emerging Trends

Moreno-Ger, P., Burgos, D., Torrente, J. — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 23:49:10 PDT

The notion of using games in education is as old as games themselves. In addition, the massive market opened by the digital games industry has caused great interest regarding their specific potential in education. However, this interest is sometimes thwarted by the resistance of traditional educational settings toward technology-enhanced learning and digital games. The future, on the contrary, is much more promising within the eLearning field. This field is in a process of evolution and reinvention, seeking new features and ideas to improve the learning experience. We believe that educational games are a perfect medium for these new directions in eLearning. In this article, the synergies between the new eLearning environments and educational games are explored and reviewed.

Challenges of Online Game Development: A Review

Morgan, G. — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 23:49:10 PDT

The focus of this article is to determine how the engineering practices common in online game development may be approached differently to promote more diverse online gaming scenarios. The technical difficulties in providing online gaming are not trivial, requiring substantially larger budgets compared with their non-online counterparts: Commercial failure of an online game could be costly. Therefore, when considering alternate engineering approaches, those that appear tried and tested in other domains, and hence may be lower-cost solutions, are considered.

Terminological Ambiguity: Game and Simulation

Klabbers, J. H. G. — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 03:20:25 PDT

Since its introduction in academia and professional practice during the 1950s, gaming has been linked to simulation. Although both fields have a few important characteristics in common, they are distinct in their form and underlying theories of knowledge and methodology. Nevertheless, in the literature, hybrid terms such as gaming/simulation and simulation gaming are used for practical or pragmatic reasons, causing confusion and ambiguity about the marking out of gaming versus simulation. Generally it is not clear whether authors are talking about games and simulations as artifacts of certain forms or whether they are referring to their functionality. The author elaborates on the confusion about these terms and offers a frame of reference to bring more terminological coherence and reduce methodological ambiguity.

Developments in Business Gaming: A Review of the Past 40 Years

Faria, A.J., Hutchinson, D., Wellington, W. J., Gold, S. — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 03:20:25 PDT

This article examines developments in business simulation gaming during the past 40 years. Covered in this article are a brief history of business games, the changing technology employed in the development and use of business games, changes in why business games are adopted and used, changes in how business games are administered, and the current state of business gaming. Readers interested in developments in other areas of simulation gaming (urban planning, social studies, ecology, economics, geography, health, etc.) are encouraged to look at other articles appearing during the 40th anniversary year of Simulation & Gaming and at the many fine articles that appeared in the silver anniversary issue of Simulation & Gaming (December 1995).

Social Choice in a Computer-Assisted Simulation

Thavikulwat, P. — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 03:20:25 PDT

Pursuing a line of inquiry suggested by Crookall, Martin, Saunders, and Coote, the author applied, within the framework of design science, an optimal-design approach to incorporate into a computer-assisted simulation two innovative social choice processes: the multiple period double auction and continuous voting. Expectations that the multiple-period-double-auction market would be bustling, that the continuous voting process would be adaptive, and that the simulation would be a suitable candidate for the assessment of learning were met in an administration of the simulation involving about 87 participants. The author suggests that the technology is ready for computer-assisted simulations to be much more widely used than they are today, but that progress may nevertheless be slow because a great deal of personal investment of time and energy is needed to do good work.

Simulation, Rhetoric, and Policy Making

Thorngate, W., Tavakoli, M. — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 03:20:25 PDT

Many simulations are undertaken in hopes of forming or changing the beliefs and policies of policy makers. A simulation used for this purpose becomes a rhetorical device, a tool of social influence. The authors review some of the important principles of attitude change incorporated in modern rhetoric and show how they might be employed to increase the influence of simulations in policy-making processes.

Nursing Simulation: A Review of the Past 40 Years

Nehring, W. M., Lashley, F. R. — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 03:20:25 PDT

Simulation, in its many forms, has been a part of nursing education and practice for many years. The use of games, computer-assisted instruction, standardized patients, virtual reality, and low-fidelity to high-fidelity mannequins have appeared in the past 40 years, whereas anatomical models, partial task trainers, and role playing were used earlier. A historical examination of these many forms of simulation in nursing is presented, followed by a discussion of the roles of simulation in both nursing education and practice. A viewpoint concerning the future of simulation in nursing concludes this article.

Assessment in Simulation and Gaming: A Review of the Last 40 Years

Chin, J., Dukes, R., Gamson, W. — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 03:20:25 PDT

This article examines the state of assessment in simulation and gaming over the past 40 years. While assessment has come slowly to many disciplines, members of the simulation and gaming community have been assessing the educational effectiveness of their experiential activities for years, in part because of skepticism from more traditional quarters that gaming and simulation are appropriate techniques to use in the classroom. These past efforts to demonstrate educational value usually went by names other than "assessment." This article reviews research published in this journal using the keyword "assessment" plus a sample of pre-1990 meta-studies on evidence of educational effectiveness. The authors conclude with a discussion of two games, one familiar (SIMSOC) and one new (GLOBAL JUSTICE GAME) that may assist the reader in thinking about assessment strategies and related issues that need to be considered, in particular the role of agency versus structure.

Association News & Notes

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 03:20:25 PDT

Evolving

Crookall, D. — Thu, 14 May 2009 23:36:25 PDT

The Learning Way: Meta-cognitive Aspects of Experiential Learning

Kolb, A. Y., Kolb, D. A. — Thu, 14 May 2009 23:36:25 PDT

Contemporary research on meta-cognition has reintroduced conscious experience into psychological research on learning and stimulated a fresh look at classical experiential learning scholars who gave experience a central role in the learning process—William James, John Dewey, Kurt Lewin, Carl Rogers, and Paulo Freire. In particular James's contributions are foundational for experiential learning and research on meta-cognition. Research on meta-cognition and the role it plays in the learning process are described. The meta-cognitive model is used to describe how fundamental concepts of experiential learning theory—a learning self-identity, the learning spiral, learning style, and learning spaces—can guide meta-cognitive monitoring and control of learning. Meta-cognitive strategies to help individuals improve their learning effectiveness are outlined. Learners can chart their path on the learning way by developing their meta-cognitive learning capacities, and educators can pave the way by placing learning about learning on the agenda of their educational programs.

Performance Measurement in Simulation-Based Training: A Review and Best Practices

Salas, E., Rosen, M. A., Held, J. D., Weissmuller, J. J. — Thu, 14 May 2009 23:36:25 PDT

Simulation-based training (SBT) is a methodology for providing systematic and structured learning experiences. The effectinvess of this methodology is dependent on the quality of performance measurement practices in place. Performance measurement during SBT must be diagnosed; that is, the causes of effective and ineffective performance must be determined. This diagonstic measurement drives the systematic decisions concerning corrective feedback and remediation. The purpose of this article is to provide a state of the science review of human performance measurement systems in SBT. To this end, three specific goals are addressed. First, a review of the theoretical foundations being used to drive performance measurement systems in SBT is provided. Second, an overview of the methodologies and approaches to measurement in SBT is provided. Third, a set of best practices for designing performance measurement systems for use in SBT are provided. These best practices are based on the scientific and practice-based literatures.

Video Game Effects--Confirmed, Suspected, and Speculative: A Review of the Evidence

Barlett, C. P., Anderson, C. A., Swing, E. L. — Thu, 14 May 2009 23:36:25 PDT

This literature review focuses on the confirmed, suspected, and speculative effects of violent and non-violent video game exposure on negative and positive outcomes. Negative outcomes include aggressive feelings, aggressive thoughts, aggressive behavior, physiological arousal, and desensitization, whereas positive outcomes include various types of learning. Multiple theories predict, and empirical findings reveal, that violent video game exposure is causally related to a host of negative outcomes and a few positive outcomes. Some non-violent video games have been causally related to some specific positive learning effects as well as certain types of visual cognition (e.g., spatial rotation abilities) and may be associated with some negative effects on executive control and attention disorders.

Hybrid Reality and Location-Based Gaming: Redefining Mobility and Game Spaces in Urban Environments

de Souza e Silva, A. — Thu, 14 May 2009 23:36:25 PDT

Hybrid reality games and location-based mobile games use urban spaces as the game scenario and are played with the aid of mobile technologies equipped with location awareness and Internet connection. This article conceptualizes hybrid reality and location-based mobile games within the area of game studies via their three main characteristics: mobility, sociability, and spatiality. In addition, the article proposes a theoretical framework for studying these games focusing on the possible implications of transforming urban spaces in playful environments. Last, one location-based mobile game, BOTFIGHTERS, and one hybrid reality game, CAN YOU SEE ME NOW? are used as examples of how these games (a) create a new logic of game space, (b) transform the relationship between serious life and playful spaces, and (c) transform the perception of urban spaces and patterns of mobility through the city.

Association News & Notes

Thu, 14 May 2009 23:36:25 PDT

Recent references

Thu, 14 May 2009 23:36:25 PDT