Environmental Education by Playing an Industrial Waste Game: A Comparison Between Chinese, Korean, and Japanese University Students

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the validity of the Industrial Waste Game as a tool for environmental education in both developed and developing countries. Players are expected to understand first-order dilemmas in illegal dumping: the individual benefits and the total costs of environmental pollution. They are also expected to consider second-order social dilemmas and solutions: these relate to effective measures, such as monitoring, as well as understanding that these measures require cooperation. Regarding the environmental educational effect, we examined players' interest in the industrial waste issue and their understanding of the second-order dilemma. We conducted the game in three countries in 2008, with 46 Chinese, 54 Japanese, and 33 Korean university students. In addition, a control group of 26 Korean nonplayers answered the questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of four indices: degree of interest in the industrial waste problem, effectiveness of the social solutions for illegal dumping, effectiveness of the individual solutions for illegal dumping, and necessity of cooperation. The Chinese players came to think that the social solutions were more effective. The Japanese players showed a greater degree of interest, as well as a more positive attitude toward the effectiveness of both the social and individual solutions after the game. The Japanese and Korean players demonstrated a more positive attitude toward the effectiveness of both the social and individual solutions than did the Chinese players. We confirmed these environmental educational effects not only in Japan but also in other Asian countries.