165. What larp can do that a simulation can’t
Understanding the role of the player in immersive learning
What is larp? That’s a discussion with many answers, and quite a few of them contradictory. There’s the wikipedia page and a workable definition on nordiclarp.org. Or maybe the Crash Course video below is more to your liking.
Whichever definition you end up choosing, at the end of the day it usually comes down to what larp evangelist Anders Berner describes this way:
“Larp is pretending to be someone else, somewhere else, doing something else.”
But isn’t that the same as a simulation, some ask? Aren’t there millions of larps out there, with people pretending to be someone else, while being somewhere else and doing something else? How about US military simulations, theatre plays and coaching workshops? This, you might ask, and probably you’d get an answer that starts like this:
Well, actually…
The short version is that it’s complicated, but for the purpose of this article I’ll make it less so. I want to touch briefly upon the CESL model, created by Jesper Toft, Chief Advisor at the Danish Center for Leadership (CfL).
It’s constructed as a simple 2x2 matrix, with an x-axis that reads Reality/Fiction and a y-axis with Role/You. Here’s how to interpret it.
You/Reality = Coaching. If you’re pretending to be you (which most of us generally are!) and you’re talking about day-to-day reality, what’s happening is likely to be a coaching session. Of course anything that happens to you in the real world could also be labeled “life”, but this comes from a leadership training angle. Coaching is about looking at You in Reality.
Role/Reality = Empathy. If — on the other hand — you’re thinking “What would someone else do in my shoes?” then that’s an empathy exercise. By looking at your own situation through someone else’s eyes you may gain valuable knowledge and new perspectives. When focus shifts to that of the Role in Reality, we often call it an Empathy exercise.
You/Fiction = Simulation. This is a different approach. Pretend you’re in someone else’s shoes and see where that takes you. It might give you new insights and it’ll definitely provide you with experiences you wouldn’t otherwise have had. Many organisations make use of simulations as a way to test out “What if?” scenarios. When You meet Fiction, we have Simulation.
Role/Fiction = Larp. Not only are you pretending to be someone else in this case, but you’re also pretending to be somewhere else, and due to these two factors doing something else as well. Berner’s words ring true, and the possibilities are endless. When reality gives way to Fiction and it’s not about You, but about a Role, we refer to it as Larp.
Now, why is this relevant?
Simply put, each of these approaches has strengths and limitations, but only by allowing ourselves to choose between the four do we give ourselves the maximum number of options.
Coaching is great for helping actual people deal with their problems.
Empathy exercises are wonderful for getting the feel for others.
Simulations are powerful ways of asking “What if?” questions.
Larps let us explore the dark sides and the unspoken taboos.
For example, a CEO of a company might benefit from Coaching sessions with a business coach as a way to figure out how to overcome challenges her company faces. Empathy exercises would help her learn how others think and what she could do to get them on her side, while a simulation would give some rough data on the effects of a new policy or product. And the larp? That would let her dive into the harsh realities of a fake real world, where jealousy and incompetence are incorporated into the simulation.
In general, simulations are wonderful tools for exploring alternate futures, but they’re generally “clean” and “nice”. If you want to roll out a new organisational structure and do a simulation of that, you’ll learn some interesting things about how people (pretend to) react, but you won’t get the really juicy stuff.
During a simulation, everyone’s on their best behaviour, because they know it’ll end and that their personas will exist on Monday as well. The petty grudges, the bitter intrigues and the human factor is often stowed away for the purpose of the exercise and everyone gives it 110%.
With a larp, you control the personas as well, and participants have the alibi to be terrible people without having to fear for their social ranking when reality is reimposed. It’s a way to let us dare live out artificial feelings because we don’t have to defend them when the music stops.
And make no mistake. Humans have the capacity for both extreme good and extreme evil. While the good often comes out in simulations, the bad sides usually get ignored. Personally, I’d much rather learn from the whole gamut of human expression and acknowledge the fact that role reversals can be dangerous if they’re not accompanied by the proper alibi.
Thank you for reading.
If you want to get into contact, you can find me at clausraasted.dk, or you can find our company at dziobak.studio.
Editors note: Role playing can be a key part of the immersive learning experience and understanding how that role affects your behaviours and ultimately outcomes is critical to success.
