A REALISM COMPARISON OF SIMULATION TECHNOLOGIES/METHODOLOGIES Developments In Business Simulation & Experiential Exercises, Volume 17, 1990 230 A REALISM COMPARISON OF SIMULATION TECHNOLOGIES/METHODOLOGIES Patricia Sanders, Central Connecticut State University- Eugene G. Gomolka, University of Dayton James B. Thurman, George Washington University William A. Ward, Susquehanna University Tracy Rishel, Susquehanna University SYMPOSIUM OVERVIEW The five members of the symposium will present comparative data and findings concerned with two simulation technologies/methodologies. The data, findings, and subsequent discussions will center on comparing the degree of reality that each technology/methodology generates and simulates while it is being used in an interactive way with students in a classroom or learning module situation. The eight-(8) technologies/methodologies to be addressed by this symposium are: cases, games, exercises, role-plays, critical incidents, assessment centers, cooperative/internship programs and the real job. The advantages and disadvantages with regard to use of each of the technologies/methodologies will be enumerated and discussed by the symposium participants. THE REALISM OF CASES AND EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES (by Eugene G. Gomolka) The educational objectives for management courses vary by the level of the course, and the complexity of the material to be taught. Cases and experiential exercises are often used by instructors as a means to achieve the educational objectives sought, including knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. The effectiveness of cases and experiential exercises, as well as other teaching methods, is somewhat influenced by the perceived realism which students attach to the teaching method. Experiential exercises often suffer from a perceived lack of realism by students, limiting their effectiveness. Exercises, which are simple and straightforward need to be well set up by the instructor, and extensively debriefed, to make sure that the relation of the exercise to real business administration situations is clearly identified. Otherwise, students will feel that the simple classics such as the NASA exercise, building paper airplanes, etc., are a waste of their time. More complex experiential exercises, particularly those with business settings, generally score better on perceived reality. The tradeoff inherent in more complex experiential exercises is the lengthy staging time necessary to make them work. Exercises, which are multi-staged, or contain a number of parts, which can be spread out over several class sessions, are effective in addressing this problem. The question of realism for experiential exercises seems to be of sore importance in graduate level and executive training courses. Exercises at these levels need to be more realistic to meet more focused expectations. ROLE PLAYING AND SIMULATION GAMES (by James B. Thurman) Role-playing requires trainees to actually respond to specific problems, making it possible to “learn by doing.’ Adaptable to a wide range of problem situations. They are used for teaching such behavioral skills as interviewing, grievance handling, performance reviews, leadership styles, conference leadership, team problem solving, and effective communications. Simulation games require participants to play themselves in a variety of possible scenarios. They are used for teaching general management principles such as financial policy, long-range planning, strategic management, decision making, communications, marketing, and production. ASSESSMENT CENTERS AND CRITICAL INCIDENTS (by Patricia Sanders) Assessment Centers are one of the relatively new behavioral simulation technologies/methodologies that have come into more widespread use within the past ten- (10) years. Among the advantages/disadvantages to be discussed are: performance vs. the inhibition factor, confidentiality vs. openness, the scoring/rating validation/invalidation methods, and comparative vs. standard factor/performance rating. In addition, the degree of realism the assessment center generates/simulates will be discussed so that comparisons to other technologies/methodologies can be made. Critical Incidents are a much newer from of behavioral simulations, and the use of this technology/ methodology has not as yet reached its full development or potential. In many aspects, it is in need of further delineation and standardization. COOPERATIVE/INTERN PROGRAMS AND THE REAL JOB (by William A. Ward and Tracy Rishel) The symposium will examine the advantages/ disadvantages of COIP’s and additional discussions will be engendered by the members of such items as: commitment vs. tune-out” (alienation) in COIP’s, value generation and adjustments, laboratory vs. participation syndromes, etc. In addition, the high degree of realism generated by COIP’s will be contrasted and compared to other simulation technologies/methodologies. The Real Job (working--Studs Terkel Style) is the supposed comparative standard for the other technologies/methodologies. Theoretically the Real Job should generate 100% realism. However, is this the Case? Why? Is it possible for other simulation technologies/methodologies to more accurately portray behaviors and interactions under controlled conditions and situations? How? This portion of the symposium will align all eight (8) items of the comparative matrix with regard to realism generation, and offer appropriate discussions regarding the comparisons, etc. using The Real Job as the baseline. Table of Contents Volume 17, 1990 The Impact of Decision Support Systems on the Effectiveness of Small Group Decisions - Revisited The Relationship Between Financial Performance and Other Measures of Learning on a Simulation Exercise Use and Effectiveness of an Analogy-Based Expert System Suggestions for Computerized Business Authors Dealing with Power: An Experiential Exercise Using Movie and Personal Diary Analysis Techniques A Model for Developing Student Skills and Assessing Outcomes Through Outdoor Training Computer-Aided Exercises Versus Workbook Exercises as Learning Facilitator in the Principles of Marketing Course An Exposition of Guilford's Si Model as a Means of Diagnosing and Generating Pedagogical Strategies in Collegiate Business Education Formal Planning and Simulation Team Performance: A Cross Sectional Approach Cases: Real Organizations in Real Time in the Classroom An Empirical Investigation of the Internal Validity of Marketing Simulation Game An Empirical Evaluation of the Pedagogical Value of Playing a Simulation Game in a Principles of Marketing Course Factors Affecting Effective Teaching of Strategic Planning: Some Preliminary Evidence An Experiential Exercise for Learning About the Relationship Between Organizational Form & the Project Management Process Accounting Communication Skills can be Taught in the Auditing Course Modeling Cost Functions in Computerized Business Simulation: An Application of Duality Theory and Sheppard's Lemma A Life Cycle Analysis of Decision Making for a Strategic Management Team What's the Problem? A Dynamic Model for Teaching Problem Solving Skills Experientially International Currency Fluctuations: Money$im, A Simulation Superstores: A Specialized Retailing Simulation Within a Specialized Marketing Curriculum Factors Affecting Student Perceptions of Learning in a Business Policy Game VC + EL = VL The Name Game: An Experiential Exercise in Intergroup Relations The Effects of Experiential Accounting Work Experience on Student Performance in Intermediate Accounting Courses The Results of Using the Experiential Activity Group Performance Evaluation in a Business Policy Setting Using a Legal Database to Describe the Legal Environment of Marketing (and Business) Matching Environmental Uncertainty and Organizational Configuration An Instructional Computer Simulation of Tampering in QC Executive Evaluation of Student Learning in the Looking Glass Simulation Group Personality Composition and Total Enterprise Simulation Performance An Expert System for Selecting Analytical Techniques for Analyzing Marketing Research Data Effects of Cognitive Styles on Responses in an In-Basket Simulation A Psychometric Analysis of Kolb's Revised Learning Style-Inventory Selecting and Developing Experiential Exercises Using Movies Application of a Real-World Strategic Management Model in the Classroom Demand Equations which Include Product Attributes Consumption as the Objective in Computer-Scored Total Enterprise Simulations The Effects of Decision Format and Evaluation on Simulation Performance, Decision Time, and Team Cohesion The Effects of Computer Related Assignments on Student Performance in Business Administration The Money Game: A Dynamic Simulation Including Random Shocks for Money and Banking Courses Methods for Evaluating Performance on Business Simulations: A Survey The Effects of Synergogy on the Policy Course: Significant Improvements in Student Learning and Teacher Evaluation Conditions and Outcomes of Trust in a Two-Person Bargaining Exercise Bankgame Enhancing Computer Business Simulation with the Use of VGA Graphics An Experiential Approach to Entrepreneurship An Advanced Simulation Method (ASM) for Multiple Objective Problems The Influence of Experiential learning Techniques on Student Recognition of Non-Primary Learning Styles Negotiating Mergers and Acquisitions: A Cocktail Napkin Approach Identification of Unintended Effects in Experiential Laboratory Exercises An Experimental Comparison of Paper and Pencil and Computer Aided Decision Support Tools Porting a Simulation from the IBM World to the Macintosh World A Transaction Cost Analysis of Experiential Learning The Development of Experiential Exercises for Courses in Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management The Assessment Center as and Experiential Classroom Exercise Pricing Strategy Algorithms for Playing Business Simulations Organizational Structures for International Operations: An Experiential Activity Simulation Emphasis in the Business School Capstone Course An Integrated Approach to Computerizing the Business Curriculum Cross-Cultural Business Negotiations Exercise Organizational Socialization and Gender Differences in Students at Work Understanding Student Work Experience: A Content-Analytic Approach Introducing Executive MBA Programs with Management Games An Analysis of Improvement in Business Decision Outcome with Sequential Use of Two Simulation Games Teaching Business Policy Utilizing Mass Lecture and Individual Case Labs Potholes Along the Road to Evaluating Learning Outcomes: The Case of Outdoor Management Training Experiential Learning for Interior Design Students: Using CADD, Lotus 1-2-3, and Wordperfect Cognitive Learning Using a Computer-Based, Qualitative Interactive Business Simulation Sex Discrimination: Does the Woman get the Job or Does the Best Man Win? A Search for Visual Aids to Support Experiential Learning Through the 1990's An Experimental Analysis fo the Effectiveness of Student Role-Playing in Sales Training How to Have Students Learn from their Term Projects Self-Evaluation Exercise (SEE): An Assessment of Class Contribution A Study of the Influence of Team Formation on Attitudes and Performance in Management Games A Hardware Based CIM Simulation Laboratory Model Test Substance Abuse in Organizations Micro Computer Training Models Teaching Forecasting, Cash Budgeting and Inventory Model Building Using SBTools A Comparison of the Effects of Experiential Learning Activities and Traditional Lecture Classes An Adjunct Writing Instruction Assistant, The Computer; With an Illustration Classroom Software for ABC Analysis Utilizing Information Processing Technology to Enhance the Business Policy Simulation Experience Progressive Cases Realistic Job Previews Vs. Traditional Job Previews: Experiencing the Differences and Understanding the Consequences Investment Analysis Using the Pragmatic Multiplier Approach A Computer Simulation Interface for Competitive and Firm Analysis Self-Assessment of Ethical Decision Making Predispositions Preparing Managers for Overseas Assignments An Inquiry into Japanese Marketing: Workshop on Teaching Japanese Marketing The Performance Appraisal Feedback Interview: A Role Play for Human Resources Management Teaching Counselor Selling techniques Using Experiential Techniques to Teach International Topics International Management Simulation Gaming: Current Status and Future Developments A Realism Comparison of Simulation Technologies/Methodologies A Time-Efficient Game to Illustrate Concepts Taught in Management Courses and Management Development Programs Teaching the Management of Technology The Concept of Face and the Applicability of Experiential Exercises in an Oriental Culture's