Marketing simulation games: student and lecturer perspectives

The paper aims to contribute to the wider adoption of simulation games in marketing teaching. The purposes of the research reported here are to understand marketing students' perceptions of the learning achieved from the use of simulation games, and marketing lecturers' perceptions of the barriers to increased use of simulation games.

A structured questionnaire was administered to 137 final‐year marketing undergraduates studying at two British universities and eight semi‐structured interviews were conducted with marketing lecturers currently using simulation games in their marketing teaching.

Students perceive the simulation game to be a highly effective learning method, delivering valuable knowledge and skills. In addition, students find the game to be an enjoyable learning approach. Lecturers are enthusiastic about this learning method, but note some barriers to adoption; particularly cost, the steep learning curve, and the difficulty of finding unbiased advice about suitable games to deliver desired learning outcomes.

Limitations are that the empirical base for the quantitative study was only two universities in the UK, and the questionnaire concerned only student perceptions of their learning, not an objective assessment of actual learning. It is recommended that the study be extended to a wider sample of universities, and that the approach be widened to include an assessment of the measurable learning outcomes achieved rather than just student perceptions.

The degree of student enthusiasm for simulation games is striking. Lecturers also find the method very engaging, but acknowledge that there are important barriers to more widespread simulation game adoption.