The Validity and Usefulness of Packaged Models in Game Play

Business simulation gaming provides a fertile area for teaching the application and use of models in the business environment. In traditional modeling courses which include gaming as a teaching vehicle, major emphasis has been placed on the mathematical/statistical process of building models of the competitive environment. Usually the topic coverage is limited to a few model types which are felt to be of utmost importance, are easiest to teach, and/or form the basic framework upon which other model types can be taught or learned in the future. Within the limited viewpoint of the models included in the course, other areas of the modeling process are discussed at a somewhat cursory level: identifying goals and alternative courses of action for attainment of those goals, obtaining data required in the model or use of surrogate variables, translating the output of the model into a decision or action, evaluating the effectiveness and usefulness of the model information, modifying the model to “better” reflect the competitive environment, and so fort