Aim. Although cultural dimensions theory is a topical strand of quantitative cultural research, few intercultural simulation games use it. We present the design and review of the application of OASISTAN, an intercultural role-playing simulation game that is specifically based on cultural dimensions theory. Method. OASISTAN was first designed in 1999 for use in Master’s courses on cross-cultural management at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, attracting 20-23 year old students with a Bachelor degree in engineering and from various cultural backgrounds. Since its first design the game has been played approximately 45 times at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands and three times at Harbin Institute of Technology in China in the years 2006-2008. We reviewed their experiences designing and facilitating OASISTAN since 1999. Results. The game has a no-tech role-play design and revolves around the geopolitically complex region of the Caspian Sea, specifically the fictional country of ‘Oasistan’. The game consists of students forming small teams of Oasistani, Western and non-Western public/private actors collaborating with each other to try and reach the common goal of oil exploration and production in this country. In total 15-30 students were involved. We found that OASISTAN allowed its players not only to intensely experience the difficulty and awkwardness of being confronted with cultural differences, but also to interpret and understand these differences through cultural dimensions. Students who played OASISTAN identified ten out of the 12 dimensions by Maleki and De Jong. The two dimensions that students were not able to identify are uncertainty avoidance and collaborativeness. Conclusion. OASISTAN shows how a game design field (i.e., intercultural simulation gaming) can be reinvigorated in light of new or updated scientific theories pertaining to the field’s subject matter (i.e., cultural dimensions). Several opportunities for future research are identified.
MULTIFILE
The Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) Challenge simulation platform helps planners and stakeholders understand and manage the complexity of MSP. In the interactive simulation, different data layers covering an entire sea region can be viewed to make an assessment of the current status. Users can create scenarios for future uses of the marine space over a period of several decades. Changes in energy infrastructure, shipping, and the marine environment are then simulated, and the effects are visualized using indicators and heat maps. The platform is built with advanced game technology and uses aspects of role-play to create interactive sessions; it can thus be referred to as serious gaming. To calculate and visualize the effects of planning decisions on the marine ecology, we integrated the Ecopath with Ecosim (EwE) food web modeling approach into the platform. We demonstrate how EwE was connected to MSP, considering the range of constraints imposed by running scientific software in interactive serious gaming sessions while still providing cascading ecological feedback in response to planning actions. We explored the connection by adapting two published ecological models for use in MSP sessions. We conclude with lessons learned and identify future developments of the simulation platform.
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In deze rede wil ik ingaan op de paradox van serious games. Over het spel en de knikkers. Het lijkt tegenstrijdig dat je met een spel naast plezier ook serieuze verandering of kennisoverdracht wilt bewerkstelligen. De paradox gaat echter nog een stap verder, want voor wie is het spel eigenlijk en van wie zijn dan de knikkers. In ons vakgebied is de partij die het spel ontwikkelt veelal een andere dan de partij die het spel speelt en zelfs binnen de partij van potentiële spelers wordt er gewezen naar medespelers: “het zou toch zo goed zijn voor de buurman"
The MSP (Marine Spatial Planning) Challenge Simulation Platform uses game technology and role-play to support communication and learning for Marine and Maritime Spatial Planning. Since 2011, a role-playing game, a board game and a digital interactive simulation platform have been developed. The MSP Challenge Simulation Platform editions have been used in workshops, conferences, education, as well as for real life stakeholder engagement. The researchers give an overview of the development of the MSP Challenge Simulation Platform and reflect on the value of the approach as an engaging and ‘fun’ tool for building mutual understanding and communicating MSP. We apply MSP Challenge Simulation Platform in workshops and demos to help develop a global learning MSP community. Funding: NorthSEE, Baltic LINes, the Scottish Government, thanks to SIMCelt.
Governments, fishermen, dredgers, nature organizations and researchers see that sand stocks are dwindling worldwide, while more and more sand from the North Sea will be needed to protect our coast against rising sea levels. We also extract a lot of sand in the Netherlands, especially from the North Sea. Every year we extract about 12 to 15 million cubic meters to protect our coast and about 15 million cubic meters as filling sand for roads and residential areas and for concrete and masonry sand. Every year we excavate a piece of seabed with the surface of the Schiermonnikoog island at a depth of about eighty centimeters. But our sand requirement continues to rise. Not only because we want to build more roads, homes and residential areas, but also because rising sea levels mean we need more and more sand for coastal protection. In this project a consortium of 21 partners and stakeholders will develop new knowledge and tools about the effects of sand extraction, with the goal to understand how it may be done sustainably despite the rising need for it. The project is led by Wageningen Marine Research and has been awarded funding under the ‘Onderzoek op Routes door Consortia’ (NWA ORC-call 2020/2021) scheme of the Dutch Research Council (NWO). Breda University of Applied Sciences will contribute with its MSP Challenge Simulation Platform, thereby developing and applying a bespoke sand extraction oriented North Sea edition, in close collaboration with data and simulation providing partners in the project.
Client: ERA-NET Cofund Smart Cities and Communities, JPI Urban EuropeUrban tourism generates income for cities and create opportunities for its businesses and employment for its residents. However, it can also lead to overcrowding, pollution, noise and numerous other problems, thus reducing quality of life for residents and other local stakeholders and potentially leading to public discontent. This project introduces SCITHOS as a concept that consists of guidelines and tools to help cities find solutions to make the transition towards environmentally and socially responsible urban tourism that simultaneously contributes to long-term prosperity.Within SCTHOS this is done by combining hospitality principles, simulation tools, apps and serious gaming techniques to support policymakers and other stakeholders in generating collaborative deep reflections about barriers to sustainable urban tourism and the need for transition or adaptation strategies. The project supports the assessment of intervention strategies based on an interactive simulation-supported multi-stakeholder approach that triggers social learning and behavior change, while stimulating shared governance and smart citizenship.Guidelines/ tools and the full concept are developed through a series of living labs and field experiments in participating cities. What is more, a Smart City Hospitality network is set up to ensure accessibility to this concept, including all tools and experiences with using them. The final results of the projects are presented 10 and 11 September 2019 in Vienna, as a pre-session to the popular annual Tourism conference (TOURMIS).
