Simulation Development (POL142)

The course focuses on applying simulation game-based learning to analysing politics, economics, and public policy, often through the lens of conflict. While scientific theories offer an understanding of political and economic processes and standard modelling tools such as game theory help explain these processes, simulation games build upon this knowledge by applying it to real (or expected) events. During the course, student groups will select a political and/or economic topic of their choice and develop analogue simulation games for it. By combining theory, literature analysis and other tools, the course will help understand how simulation games can serve as a means for research, education, and analysis through the lenses of modelling and agency.

In addition to lectures, the course will strongly focus on trying out various simulation games to help develop students their own games. Therefore, there will be classes, where the focus will be on hands-on work rather than on theory. In this case, students may be required to pre-read texts dealing with the topics of games used in class to better understand how modelling works in these cases. The selection of games to be run in the classroom remains at the discretion of the lecturer but will be done in consultation with students and will depend on the topic choices for their projects. Non-obligatory activities for trying simulation games outside of the classroom will also be arranged.