“I don’t know why nobody asks questions during my training sessions,” said Mary. “Even though they understand English well and I give plenty of time for them to speak up…”
“Do they avoid looking at you as well?” asked Todd.
“Well.. most of the time they avoid eye contact. It’s as if they are shy.”
A frown formed on Mary’s face as she tried to remember their faces.
“A couple of them did look directly at me sometimes.”
“Was that when you asked if they had any questions?” Todd asked.
“I think so… Why do you ask?”
“Ah…” replied Todd. “In this culture, it is considered impolite to look directly at a teacher or someone in authority. If they did look directly at you, that probably meant they wanted to ask a question and expected you to notice.”
“How am I supposed to know that? People should communicate clearly, don’t you think?”
In 15+ years of producing and delivering intercultural awareness training, I noticed that experiences like Mary’s are common. This is particularly the case when well-meaning and qualified members of more direct cultures enter the environments of indirect cultures (for cross-cultural ministry). Despite the myriad of documentation and resources in this area, putting theory into practice can be hard. This is where a game like Harbinger can help.
Through providing the player with an array of interactive and informative scenarios within an immersive cross-cultural simulation, Harbinger invites those living within new cultures to interrogate their own perspectives and biases. In the process they are given the choice to act as positive or negative agents – or harbingers – of change.
Aim
To empower the next generation of cross-cultural workers to overcome cultural assumptions and grow in interpersonal sensitivity so that relationships and ministry can thrive.
Output
Players are:
- Exposed to real-life scenarios from cross-cultural contexts in an exploratory setting
- Offered non-judgemental insight into the impact of their decisions on in-game characters and relationships
- Presented with a detailed psychometric evaluation for their own spiritual and social development
Outcome
Cross-cultural workers will:
- Have opportunity to explore and interrogate their assumptions and decision-making processes in non-critical pre-field contexts
- Players equipped to evaluate daily choices in a self-aware and interculturally-intelligent framework
- Grow in personal and spiritual journeys
Impact
- Reduction of damage caused to relationships and cultures by cultural insensitivity
- Increased intercultural intelligence leading to greater flourishing of individuals and ministry teams
- Enhanced worth given to local cultures through dialogue and understanding
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