Simulation efficacy and applicability: Reported learning from a virtual computer-based pandemic simulation on skill-based competencies among public affairs students

ABSTRACT

Computer-based simulations in public affairs curricula are thought to better prepare graduates for responding to an increasingly complex public policy environment upon entering into or advancing within public sector careers. Using survey results from 221 participants in the 2021 NASPAA-Batten Pandemic 2.0 simulation competition, the authors analyze the extent to which participants reported skill-improvement across constructs that align with the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration’s (NASPAA) Universal Competencies. A factor analysis suggests a relationship between students’ participation in the simulation and their perceived improvement of important practical skills relevant to NASPAA’s universal competencies.

KEYWORDS:

• Simulations
• experiential learning
• NASPAA universal competencies
• pandemic
• COVID-19

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge Andy Ortiz (Systems Analyst) and Adam Roux (Center Coordinator and Writer), Center for Leadership, Simulation and Gaming at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, University of Virginia for their roles in modeling, designing, and implementing the Pandemic 2.0 simulation. The authors also thank Chuck Harris, Systems Administrator, Social Science Research Laboratory at the University of Montana for his expertise and assistance with the analysis and interpretation of data.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Notes

1. Survey respondents were invited to select all racial and ethnic identifiers that described them in the survey.

2. Fewer than five respondents identified their gender as something other than woman or man.

3. Respondents were asked to select all the categories that described them, from nine options (including “prefer not to answer”). These categories were 1) American Indian or Alaska Native (e.g., Navajo nation, Blackfeet tribe, Mayan, Aztec, Native Village or Barrow Inupiat Traditional Government, Nome Eskimo Community, etc.); 2) Asian (e.g., Chinese, Pilipino, Asian Indian, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese, etc.); 3) Black or African American (e.g., African American, Jamaican, Hattian, Nigerian, Ethiopian, Somalian, etc.); 4) Hispanic, Latinx, or Spanish origin (e.g., Mexican or Mexican American, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Salvadoran, Dominican, Columbian, etc.); 5) Middle Eastern or North African (e.g., Lebanese, Iranian, Egyptian, Syrian, Moroccan, Algerians, etc.); 6) Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander (e.g., Native Hawaiian, Samoan, Chamorro, Tongan, Fijian, etc.).; 7) white (e.g., German, Irish, English, Italian, Polish, French, etc.); 8) other race, ethnicity, or origin; and 9) prefer not to answer.

4. “Other” includes students that selected either “Master of Public Health” (N < 5) or “Other” in response to the program in which they are currently enrolled.

5. Extraction Method: Principal Component Analysis; Rotation Method: Varimax with Kaiser Normalization; Coefficients < .40 supressed

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Dana Michael Harsell

Dana Michael Harsell is an associate professor of Political Science and Public Administration at the University of North Dakota. He teaches courses in state and local government, public administration, the intersection of business and government, and the presidency. Harsell holds a BA in political science and psychology and an MA in political science, both from the University of Montana, and a PhD in political science from Syracuse University. Dana’s research interests include public management and performance, public service provision, arts and culture policy, and the scholarship of teaching and learning. Harsell is a fellow for the American Council on Education (ACE) and served as a NASPAA Simulation Fellow from 2019-2021.

Christina Barsky

Christina Barsky is an assistant professor at the Baucus Institute Department of Public Administration and Policy at the University of Montana. She teaches courses on research methods, public budgeting and finance, state and local government, public policy, program evaluation, nonprofit administration, and American government and serves as the faculty advisor for the University of Montana Chapter of Pi Alpha Alpha. Her research focuses on election administration and administrators as well as themes surrounding representative bureaucracy and front-line workers. Previously, Christina spent more than a decade leading transformative change efforts across the Western U.S. in her roles with a premier public affairs firm and a regional nonprofit collaborative. She holds a BA from Skidmore College, an MPA from the University of Montana, and a Ph.D. from Northern Arizona University.

Supriya Golas

Supriya Golas is Career Programing Director at SMASH, a nonprofit organization that provides STEM-focused education to promote a strong, diverse and socially conscious tech workforce by leveling the playing field through academic learning and experiential engagement for high school and college students. Supriya previously served as the NASPAA Simulation Education Program Director where she expanded the Annual NASPAA-Batten Simulation competition to participants from over 114 universities in 46 countries. She has been active in the impact space, running beekeping trainings in rural Kenya and volunteering for Urban Compassion Project in Oakland, CA. Golas holds a BA in political science and international affairs and an MA in public policy, both from The George Washington University. She is currently pursuing a Master of Business Administration at the Haas School of Business, University of California Berkeley.