The impact of role-playing democratic innovation on civic education: The case of EMPAVILLE
The impact of role-playing democratic innovation on civic education: The case of EMPAVILLE
This paper describes the evolution of the EMPAVILLE hybrid role-playing game simulation of Participatory Budgeting (PB), one of the most widely adopted democratic innovation, and examines its effects on participants based on classical performance indicators of deliberative practices. Using exit surveys and participant observation from 62 players across four game sessions the study explores how game design influences learning about PB, engagement in discussion, intellectual humility, perspective-taking, and conflict resolution. This exploratory research highlights the importance of modern user testing techniques in iteratively optimizing serious games and demonstrates the potential of RPGs as tools for creating engaging civic education experiences that foster deliberative outcomes.
Democratic innovations, gamification, methods, participatory budgeting, pedagogy, serious games
904-914
Spada, Paolo
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Meloni, Marco
1c99ba03-fb1d-4e73-bab9-1ed7596f9795
Ryan, Matt
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Gomer, Richard
71c5969f-2da0-47ab-b2fb-a7e1d07836b1
Wanick, Vanissa
d2941cae-269e-4672-b448-8cb93e22e89e
13 November 2025
Spada, Paolo
aa830424-63f7-4baa-aecc-0bba595b8221
Meloni, Marco
1c99ba03-fb1d-4e73-bab9-1ed7596f9795
Ryan, Matt
f07cd3e8-f3d9-4681-9091-84c2df07cd54
Gomer, Richard
71c5969f-2da0-47ab-b2fb-a7e1d07836b1
Wanick, Vanissa
d2941cae-269e-4672-b448-8cb93e22e89e
Spada, Paolo, Meloni, Marco, Ryan, Matt, Gomer, Richard and Wanick, Vanissa
(2025)
The impact of role-playing democratic innovation on civic education: The case of EMPAVILLE.
Journal of Curriculum and Pedagogy, 22 (4), .
(doi:10.1080/15505170.2025.2571539).
Abstract
This paper describes the evolution of the EMPAVILLE hybrid role-playing game simulation of Participatory Budgeting (PB), one of the most widely adopted democratic innovation, and examines its effects on participants based on classical performance indicators of deliberative practices. Using exit surveys and participant observation from 62 players across four game sessions the study explores how game design influences learning about PB, engagement in discussion, intellectual humility, perspective-taking, and conflict resolution. This exploratory research highlights the importance of modern user testing techniques in iteratively optimizing serious games and demonstrates the potential of RPGs as tools for creating engaging civic education experiences that foster deliberative outcomes.
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Accepted/In Press date: 3 October 2025
Published date: 13 November 2025
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Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 Crown Copyright. Reproduced with the permission of the Controller of His Majesty’s Stationery Office and Politics and International Relation. Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.
Keywords:
Democratic innovations, gamification, methods, participatory budgeting, pedagogy, serious games
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 507318
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/507318
ISSN: 1550-5170
PURE UUID: 0d5f0e1e-f77b-4b25-88c1-65d1820e2f39
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Date deposited: 03 Dec 2025 17:43
Last modified: 11 Dec 2025 03:05
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Author:
Marco Meloni
Author:
Richard Gomer
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