Games: Why & How Trainers Play Them.

Trainers in 82 organizations completed a questionnaire that explored the use of training games for instructional and group process purposes. Respondents reported that they had little formal education on the use of games for which they spend an average of 18 percent of their training time. Trainers tended to use games for a variety of instructional and group process purposes. Many games were self-made and were used in several ways: to reinforce previously covered information, teach new concepts, and introduce new ideas. For the most part, trainers felt that competitive games were more motivating to participants than noncompetitive games. Common problems associated with the use of games included finding games that were relevant to one's training objectives, a reluctance on the part of some learners to play games, and the large amount of time it takes to play games. The results of the study indicate a need to offer college courses on the theory and use of instructional games, a need to research their effectiveness as an adult learning strategy, and the opportunity for adult educators to develop instructional games specifically designed for adult learners. (Author/YLB)