ABSTRACT
This chapter describes a research project that deals with the design and construction of computer simulation in decision training systems, in particular with the development of simulation systems for training of commanders and staff in emergency decision-making and crisis management. This description focuses on the emergency management charac teristics that influence the design and construction of a proper emergency management training system. The underlying assumption in this work is this: decision training sys tems, for emergency management, can be more effective if pedagogical strategies are integrated into the computer simulations. To examine how emergency management train ing can be generated, we have developed C3FIRE - a microworld simulation system. The microworld generates a task environment for a forest fire-fighting staff, where we can train a staff in commanding and controlling the fire-fighting units. The goal of the micro world is to have an experimental platform where we can study distributed decision-making and situation awareness, and at the same time experiment with different control strategies in order to obtain certain specified pedagogical goals. This work is based on empirical studies of an existing military training system used to train infantry battalion staffs.
