Performance Evaluation: Proven Approaches for Improving Program and Organizational Performance

SIMULATIONS AND GAMES

The use of simulation and game theory to create performance improvement treatments is on the increase following successful applications in business and military settings. The objective of a simulation is to enable participants to experience the problematic factors of events but under controlled and safer conditions than occur in the real setting. Simulations have been used to teach the operation of the court system, the U.S. political system, flight training, electrical systems, and parenting and child care, among many other examples. In all cases, the participants experience some, but not all, of the aspects of the actual situation being modeled.

Determining What to Model in a Game or Simulation

The game or simulation should ...