FROM ENGAGEMENT TO SUSTAINABLE ACTION. GAMIFIED DESIGN THINKING AND BUSINESS SIMULATION AS A STRATEGIC LEARNING ARCHITECTURE

• DOI: 10.37572/EdArt_30092626016

• Palavras-chave: Design Thinking; Business simulation; Sustainability strategy; Academic engagement; Experiential learning.

• Keywords: Design Thinking; Business simulation; Sustainability strategy; Academic engagement; Experiential learning.

• Abstract:

  This chapter assesses a strategic educational framework that merges Design Thinking, gamified business simulation, interdisciplinary collaboration, and sustainability challenges. A matched within-subject pretest-posttest design was employed with 37 students from engineering and business disciplines. Academic engagement was evaluated through vigor, dedication, absorption, and an overall score; sustainable behavior was assessed via pro-ecological behavior, frugality, equity, and altruism. Various statistical methods—including descriptive statistics, paired-samples t-tests, Wilcoxon sensitivity tests, false-discovery-rate correction, Cronbach's alpha, bootstrap confidence intervals for Cohen's dz, ceiling diagnostics, and change-score correlations—were utilized. Notable increases were found in the sustainability index, pro-ecological behavior, frugality, altruism, vigor, absorption, and overall engagement. Equity remained statistically stable due to ceiling effects, while dedication showed inconsistent results across different tests. Changes in engagement were not significantly correlated with changes in sustainability, indicating parallel rather than sequential outcomes. This chapter adds to business strategy literature by highlighting Design Thinking as a capability-building framework that combines systems framing, iterative experimentation, simulated decision feedback, and cross-functional dialogue. Due to the absence of a control group, results should be interpreted as changes associated with the intervention rather than definitive causal effects. The chapter concludes with a concise framework for deploying and evaluating gamified Design Thinking in business strategy education.