The Gas Mileage Game – A Policy Simulation Developments in Business Simulation and Experiential Learning, Volume 33, 2006 THE GAS MILEAGE GAME – A POLICY SIMULATION Nathan Bos University of Michigan nbos@umich.edu Why aren’t cars more fuel efficient? Why does the average American-made vehicle have worse gas mileage than those produced in 1987, even and technology has improved (Hellman & Heavenrich, 2004)? The Gas Mileage Game is a role-playing simulation that helps students better understand the dynamics that govern the American automobile market. Students play one of three roles: • Companies have a choice of new technologies that can improve fuel efficiency, but also affect fleet average mpg, average price, and consumer preference for their vehicles. There are three companies in the game, two American and one Japanese. Companies must anticipate what other players in the market will do, because sales will suffer if one company unilaterally increases their cost or decreases preferences too much. Companies can also lobby Congress using political action committees, consulting reports, and other forms of persuasion. • Congresspeople can pass legislation to increase fuel efficiency standards, but this may cost them with their constituencies. Each of the five Congresspersons (Michigan, Tennessee, New York, Colorado and California) has a profile of how much their constituencies are concerned with the environment, the American automobile companies, and the preferrability of cars sold. Each congressperson stands for re-election at the end of the game, and can be ousted if their constituencies are unhappy with their performance. • Non-governmental advocacy groups (NGO’s) try to influence companies and congress to raise fuel efficiency standards. NGO’s can conduct a limited number of grass-roots political or consumer actions to try to influence Congresspersons and Companies. They can also provide consulting reports to the government with cost estimates. Although the basic interactions of the games remain fairly simple, each role has a variety of realistic, winnable strategies they can pursue. While companies usually lobby for lower standards to keep their costs down, they can sometimes be in a competitive position where higher standards benefit them. NGO’s can use either rewards or threats, and can focus on providing the most accurate information or leveraging the most political power, but not both. Congresspersons must choose their alliances carefully and keep an eye on their home district popularity at all times. The dynamics are designed to mimic realistic dynamics and strategic possibilities present in the American automobile market. The game was developed collaboratively by a former auto executive, a policy expert, and a game specialist. This simulation has been used twice in MBA level classes with good student and instructor feedback. The ABSEL demonstration will show the interface and a ‘game within a game’ spreadsheet simulator used by players. Design considerations and feedback from classroom usage will be discussed. REFERENCES Hellman K.H. & Heavenrich, R.M. (April 2004). Light- Duty Automotive Technology and Fuel Economy Trends: 1975 Through 2004. EPA420-R-05-001. Environmental Protection Agency. http://www.epa.gov/otaq/fetrends.htm 242 mailto:nbos@umich.edu http://www.epa.gov/otaq/fetrends.htm Table of Contents Volume 33, 2006 Learning Assurance Using Business Simulations Applications To Executive Management Education Team Teaching In An Integrated Business Course Using Critical Problem Based Learning Factors In An Integrated Undergraduate Business Curriculum: A Business Course Success Personality Type And Strategic Planning Business Games As Strategic Management Laboratories The Relationship Between Students' Success On A Simulation Exercise And Their Perception Of Its Effectiveness As A PBL Problem Forecasting Accuracy And Learning: The Key To Measuring Simulation Performance The Business Strategy Game: A Performance Review Of The New Online Edition Using The Socratic Method And Bloom's Taxonomy Of The Cognitive Domain To Enhance Online Discussion, Critical Thinking, And Student Learning Using Negotiation Exercises To Promote Critical Thinking Skills Effective Leadership Experiences For Management Majors In A Futures Class The Role Of Learning Versus Performance Orientations When Reacting To Negative Outcomes In Simulation Games Is Pay Inversion Ethical? A Three-Part Exercise Simulations And Experiential Exercises - Do They Result In Learning? Have We Figured It Out Yet? Examining Program Management In Business Simulations: Student And Faculty Views Validating Business Simulations: Do Simulations Exhibit Natural Market Structures? Characterizing Business Games Used In Distance Education Utilizing Games In A Graduate Level Instructional Game Course Employment Interview Preparation: Assessing The Writing-To-Learn Approach Simulations - Bridging From Thwarted Innovation To Disruptive Technology Creating An Authentic Cultural Lens Using Case Dialogue Learning By Fire: Reflections Of A First Time Online Instructor An International Internship With A Service-Learning Focus Learner Participation In The Online Learning Experience: Help Or Hindrance? Any Given Sunday: Intervention In Pursuit Of Simulation Team Parity Beginning With The End: Creating An Experiential Exercise From Assessment Criteria Simulating Life Cycles: Life Span As The Measure Of Performance In Business Gaming Simulations It's Puzzling: Communications, Competition, And Cooperation Balanced Scorecard Implementation For Strategy Management: Variation Of Manager Opinion In Real And Simulated Companies Cases And Business Games: The Perfect Match! Three-Attribute Interrelationships For Industry-Level Demand Equations Using A Web-Based Module To Teach Information Literacy Decision Support System For Demand Forecasting In Business Games The Invalidity Of Profit=F(Market Share) PIMS Validation Of Marketing Games Online Market Test Laboratory With The MINSIM* Program The Gas Mileage Game - A Policy Simulation Delivered Cost And Differentiation Applied To Threshold 3rd Ed. The Effect Of Team-Leadership Modes On Team Performance: A Preliminary Study The Design And Use Of A Macroeconomics Simulation Using Maple Software: A Pilot Study The Instructor's Toolbox: A Meaning-Centered Framework For The Social Construction Of Experiential Learning Incorporating Strategic Product-Mix Decisions Into Simulation Games: Modeling The 'Profitable-Product Death Spiral' Group Composition And Groupthink In A Business Game A Direct Approach To Teaching Business Ethics A Decision Support System For Planning Sales, Production, And Plant Addition With Manager: A Computer Simulation Polish - American Entrepreneurial Business Cooperation Workshop Utilizing The Income/Outcome Simulation Student Leader Training Exercise Student Preference To Mode Of Learning In Hong Kong Experiential Learning For Technology-Based And Management Programme In Hong Kong: A China Study Tour A Price Game With Product Differentiation In The Classroom Discrete Event Modeling In A New Transportation Simulation Supply-Side Modeling In A Total Enterprise Simulation The Quality Game Towards A Massive Multiplayer Online Business Simulation Making The Connection: Improving Virtual Team Performance Through Behavioral Assessment Profiling And Behavioral Cues Individual Learning Producing A Learning Organization: 'Playing Dice With Polar Bears' Narratology and Ludology: Competing Paradigms or Complementary Theories in Simulation Framework For Evaluating Internet Research Using Children's Games To Illustrate Strategy Concepts: Is Less Better?