Developing a serious game to evaluate and train group decision making skills

The current paper describes the building of a serious game designed to teach group decision making skills to a unique audience; people who co-ordinate responses to real-world emergencies such as floods, fires, volcanoes and chemical spills. Eighteen participants were recruited and videotaped while playing a paper prototype of the game. Players' actions within the game were analysed in terms of whether the challenges that are present in real world decision-making environments are also present in the game-world decision making environment. It appears that the defining characteristics of group decision making behaviour, especially the mistakes, are evident in groups that play our game. In addition, the round-based game structure allows a tutor the opportunity to deliver in-depth qualitative feedback without interrupting game play. Thus, the game design should prove to be a valid environment in which to train, practice and evaluate the decision making behaviour of groups and function as a valuable and engaging part of a group decision making skills training course.