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Leader Training And Development: A Case Study

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Impact of Virtual Worlds, Massive Multiplayer Online Games, and Other Gaming Technologies Impact Future Soldier and Leader Training and Development
During its formative years, the computer gaming industry was exclusively associated with the younger generation. According to Blumberg et al. (2013), 58% of Americans play video games while 51% of all households in the United States own at least one dedicated game console (2013). This means that the popularity of the concept of gaming has not waned. However, technological advances have led to the emergence of a new phenomenon characterized by a rapid increase in the use of massive multiplayer online games (MMOGs), virtual worlds, and other gaming technologies many areas, including military training …show more content…

Political and interpersonal skills often lay down the ground for how a leader is able to relate and communicate with both team members in the military world as well as stakeholders in the civilian world, for example, political leaders. A leader can only lead well if their team members listen to them and follow their orders as instructed (Creutzfeldt, Hedman, & Felländer-Tsai, 2016). Project management skills, on the other hand, are needed when it comes to planning an attack and organizing the teams into different entities and delegating duties to them (Maratou, Chatzidaki, & Xenos, 2016). A leader who is equipped with these skills through exposure to simulated environments is better equipped to undertake military planning in the real world than one without, and this explains why the virtual world will remain an excellent training …show more content…

Over the past few years it has become clear that getting human subjects or real-life situations with which to train individuals is sometimes difficult or impossible. However, the simulated environment created by gaming technologies offers an opportunity for soldiers to acquire valuable skills without necessarily exposing themselves to unwarranted risk.
Moreover, the world at large is increasingly embracing gaming as a training, learning and skill development tool. As time goes by, the gaming world will experience rapid changes in terms of sophistication and range of military applications, but so will the needs of military planners. Enhancements in the way MMOGs and virtual worlds are calibrated to evaluate and improve soldiers’ leadership, cognitive, technical and interpersonal skills will go a long way in helping them to adapt well to changing operational needs through effective decision-making, problem-solving, deployment and project

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