A HOLISTIC FRAMEWORK FOR USING SYSTEMS

ENGINEERING, COGNITIVE MODELING AND VIRTUAL SIMULATION TO EXPLORE

TECHNOLOGICAL LEADERSHIP

Presenter: Charles W. Davis, Jr.

Institution: University of Central Florida

Conference: Dissertation Proposal Presentation

Date: August 17, 2018

COMMITTEE MEMBERS

• Chair, Dr. Luis Rabelo

• Dr. Ahmad Elshennawy

• Dr. Pamela McCauley

• Dr. Falecia Williams

• Introduction & Background• Problem Definition• Research Objectives• Contributions to the Body of Knowledge

• Dissertation Synopsis/Significance of Research

• Research Question/Research Hypothesis

• Technological Leadership Approaches,

Classification and Strategies

• Engineering Leadership Development

PRESENTATION OVERVIEW

• Utilizing Simulation in Education

• Research Gaps

• Research Methodology

• Research Methodology & Idea

• Preliminary Analysis Leadership Test

• Ongoing Research and Future

• Proposed Research and Methodology

• Conclusion

• References

INTRODUCTION & BACKGROUND

• Systems Engineering traditionally focused on technological aspects of system design such as

hardware, software and automation, while predominately ignoring the fact that systems will

ultimately be utilized in the service of humans to fulfill the challenges that work demands.

Forward-thinking business leaders realized the wisdom of staging simulations in team based

education can be conducted in a cost and time effective manner to prepare future leaders for the

unexpected complexities of operating in a global environment.

• Not a replacement for face-to-face interaction, virtual simulation can mirror real-life challenges

and opportunities and allow students to learn from and bond with peers in an experiential

environment.

• Using role-playing simulations in engineering students have proven to develop higher-order

thinking skills, ability to communicate clearly, visualize multiple perspectives in ways they

wouldn’t have been able to replicate in other environments.

• Today’s engineers require a skill set that was not nearly as important to possess even ten (10)

years ago.

• For this reason it is essential to have students assume a character or perspective for experiential

learning and development of technological leadership, thus simulations are in symbolic realities

where the objective is to test subjects and see potential changes in leadership skills and mental

models.

• In this research, an overview of utilizing systems engineering to capture guidelines from

psychologists and concepts of technological leadership will be tested to changed behavior of

subjects.

PROBLEM DEFINITION

• Engineers normally work in teams and to satisfy industry

demands with achieving leadership capabilities, engineers must

possess the cognitive skills necessary to accomplish industry

challenges.

• Engineers should be effective communicators in dealing with

customer relations, making decisions and working in teams

(Crumpton-Young et al., 2010)

• This is a complex problem because unpredictability of business

and impact of technology on many tasks and functions has

resulted in increased demands on cognitive skills of workers.

• It is important that we address this problem because more

procedural or predictable tasks are now handled by smart

machines, while humans have become responsible for difficult

cognitive tasks, thus creates the need for training that targets

cognitive skills.

RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

• To develop a framework of cognitive modeling, systems

engineering and integrate virtual simulation to develop

technological skills.

• Systems engineering based on cognitive input and situational

leadership models will develop the requirements and technical

specifications to create virtual worlds to teach students leadership

skills. The emphasis is on changing mental models.

• The research will tie the psychological aspect to evaluate and

study the behavior and research, the system engineering tools

that will be applied, the specifications required for virtual

simulation and we will build the environment based on the

specifications.

FRAMEWORKSYSTEMS ENGINEERING TO DEVELOP VIRTUAL WORLDS

THAT WILL CHANGE MENTAL MODELS AND PROVIDE TECHNOLOGICAL SKILLS TO STUDENTS

CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE BODY OF KNOWLEDGE

• Develop an innovative approach to a

promising step in testing of attitudes

and the potential to change mental

models with the support of psychology

and systems engineering. The further

modeling implementation and

experimental evaluation of this

methodology will bring us one step

closer to teach the ubiquitous and

complex subject of technological

leadership in a practical and

nontraditional way of training.

DISSERTATION SYNOPSISSIGNIFICANCE OF RESEARCH

Dissertation will commence with:

• a literature review;

• Identify the efforts put into this subject and what other

experts have discovered to be possible solutions to the

problem of undergraduate leadership development;

• After further examination of the literature, certain gaps will

become evident and will be outlined;

• After the literature gaps are identified, the model and

methodology will be developed and explained,

acknowledging how they are best applied to the problem;

• And finally, the conclusion will compile all of this information

and provide various educational (college, universities, etc.,)

with a better understanding of how to develop technological

leadership skills.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

• Can the evaluation, study of behavior,

and mental processes tied to the

psychological aspect lead to changing

colors as they relate to the individual

students in the research?

• Can the research be effective in

creating an interest in expanding the

limited pedagogy in undergraduate

development of engineering

technology leadership?

RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

• H0: Contributing factors: Utilization of

systems engineering, cognitive modeling and

virtual world simulation will not have an

impact on the attitudes and the potential to

change mental models .

• H1: Contributing factors: Utilization of systems

engineering, cognitive modeling and virtual

world simulation will have an impact on the

attitudes and the potential to change mental

models.

TECHNOLOGICAL LEADERSHIP APPROACHES, CLASSIFICATION

AND STRATEGIESAPPROACHES

Olsen (2003) “team work skills are the set of interpersonal and

communication skills that help individuals function in a team decision-

making environment.”

• Individual approach

• Systems Engineering approach

System Engineering process creates a framework

to leverage creativity and innovation to deliver results

that are the emergent properties of process, organization

and leadership (Sillitto, 2011)

CLASSIFICATION AND STRATEGIES

• 4-D Leadership System

• Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)

4-D LEADERSHIP SYSTEM

• 4-D Leadership System illustrated by Pellerin (2009) was

based on leadership social context. Pellerin indicated his

principal conviction that “social contexts drive our behaviors,

and hence drive a technical team’s ability to perform or not.”

Each Dimension contains a deep human need.

You therefore must address all four.

MYERS-BRIGGS INDICATOR (MBTI)PERSONALITY AND LEADERSHIP STYLES

• The MBTI based on Jung’s

comprehensive theory revealed that

humans use four (4) basic mental

functions and processes on a daily

basis. These are sensing (S), intuition

(N), thinking (T), and feeling (F)

(Briggs Myers et al., 1985). The MBTI

based on Jung’s philosophy about

perception, judgement, and attitude

(Briggs Myers et al., 1985) and that

people are motivated to strive for

excellence in their lives (Quenk,

2000)

ENGINEERING LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

• A very common objective of engineering programs in the U.S. is to produce

future engineering leaders, however very few programs actually have

curricular content that specifically addresses the skill set of leaders.

Typical engineering program design would call for a linear, progressive

sequence of courses in the general order as shown in the table below,

where a student starts with a solid foundation of Gen Ed. , science and math

components and builds on that foundation framework via engineering

topics.

PROGRAMMATIC COMPONENTS

Component Title Credits

General Education 27

Science and Mathematics 30

Engineering Topics 45

Management Track or Education

Track or Entrepreneurship Track

18

Total Program 120

ENGINEERING LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

• Purdue University launched an engineering leadership development program January 2013 and is a

model building off other successful models (Bayless, 2010). This innovative program aims to provide

engineering students with multiple paths to engagement in engineering leadership, with avenues for the

development of next-generation engineering and technical leadership knowledge, and with skills to

navigate the demands of leadership, particularly in engineering practice. The students learn core

leadership principles taught within business schools and learn how to translate these theories and

principles into engineering concepts through Engineering Leadership Learning Outcomes.

ENGINEERING LEADERSHIP LEARNING OUTCOMES

Leadership • Ability to motivate and empower others to solve problems.

• Ability and willingness for initiative-taking, goal-setting, and follow-through.

• Ability to identify characteristics and talents of others.

• Understanding of the impact of ethics and morals on leadership and professional

responsibility.

• Demonstrate a commitment to life-long learning.

Change • Ability to participate in multidisciplinary, multicultural and multifunctional groups.

• Ability to understand change processes and overcoming human inertia to change.

• Ability to adjust objectives and priorities to changing environments.

Synthesis • Ability to comprehend, synthesize, interpret and apply knowledge to address

technical and non-technical problems.

• Ability to recognize social and business factors in engineering work.

• Ability to see the impact of engineering work on the broader society.

• Ability to drive leadership development with personal experiences.

Practical

Competence

• Demonstrate competence of practical and transferrable skills essential to leadership

practice and professional interactions.

• Ability to communicate using written language, verbal and non-verbal language, and

electronic and multimedia tools.

• Ability to articulate acquired skills and tools on a resume, portfolio and other

professional mediums.

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT IN VIRTUAL WORLDS

UTILIZING SIMULATION IN EDUCATION

• The implementation of simulations and

games began in the 1950s. Since that time,

the utilization of simulation has increased

exponentially in education (Showanasai et al.,

2013). Simulation is an experimental

education process whereby an individual can

simulate any situation to mimic the

environment or interaction (Putnam, 2013). In

the current curricula in many universities,

students have not had the chance to handle

complexity of real challenges, however,

(Siewiorek et al., 2012) found that simulation

encouraged students to take risks and

explore for the sake of learning new ideas

and techniques.

VIRTUAL SIMULATION

• Virtual simulation is a 3D simulation that takes place in an artificial environment which

enables users to interact, connect and design using free voice and text chat. Leaders

have recognized the importance of virtual simulations in education. Education that

includes virtual simulation can familiarize students to real challenges in the virtual

environment, granting them to accost those challenges in both individual and team

settings. Due to the educational benefits that can be acquired, virtual simulations have

been used as pedagogy in many occupational settings, such as medicine,

rehabilitation, baseball and firefighting (Williams-Bell et al., 2015). According to

Lepsinger, 2012 “as virtual simulations continue to evolve, many of their challenges

from leadership issues to communication limitations will be resolved through

advances in technology and as younger generations grow into leadership roles.”

RESEARCH GAP• For the research, a major gap was identified in the literature in

that there was no extensive study of engineering leadership

planning for undergraduate students with industry case studies

that could be utilized and executed in team-based classroom

settings. More than 90% of higher-level manager’s ranked

teamwork to be central to organizational success (Morgeson,

DeRue, & Karam).

• Research questions were in the areas of:

- Lack of team-based leadership development;

- 3D virtual world simulation has not yet been exploited in a

systematic manner to enhance the leadership development;

- Identification in classification schemes utilizing the 4-D system;

- Based on confirmation, there was not established and validated

framework that could assist undergraduate engineering students in

improving their leadership skills.

ENGINEERING LEADERSHIP LITERATURE GAPS

Technological Leadership

Classification

Systems Engineering Virtual Simulation

Engineering Leadership Development for

Undergraduate Students

Researchers Systems Avatar Agent Other Team Individuals Others

Study Research Framework 4-D √ √ √ √

Schuhmann, 2010 √

C. Pellerin, 2009 4-D

Hartmann & Jahren, 2015 √ √ √

Farr and Brazil, 2009 √

Froh, 2003 √

Özgen et al., 2013 √

Kotnour, Hoekstra, Reilly, √

Knight, & Selter, 2014

Crumpton-Young et al., 2010 √ √ √

Olude-Afolabi, 2011 √

Babuscia, Craig, and Connor, 2012 √

Cox et al., 2010 √

Caza and Rosch, 2014 √

Varvel, Adams, Pridie, and Ruiz Ulloa, 2004 MTBI √ √

Elattar, 2014 √ √

Rosch, 2015 √

Rodríguez Montequín et al., 2013 MTBI √

National Academy of, 2004 √ √

Laglera et al., 2013 √

M. Anderw Life, 1990 √

Pappo, 1998 √

Bayless, 2010 √

Cox, Cekic, Ahn, and Zhu, 2012 √

Putman, 2013 √

Showanasai et al., 2013 √

von der Pütten et al., 2010 √ √

Fox et al., 2015 √ √

Hasler et al., 2013 √ √

Lin & Wang, 2014 √

Conine, 2014 √

Sequeira & Morgado, 2013 √

Hudson et al., 2015 √

Cruz-Benito et al., 2015 √

Williams-Bell et al., 2015 √ √

Hooi & Cho, 2014 √

Lemheney et al., 2016 √

Chorafas & Steinmann, 1995 √

Siewiorek et al., 2012 √

Lesko & Hollingsworth, 2013 √

OpenSimulator, 2014 √

Kahai, Jestire, & Huang, 2013 √

Callaghan, McCusker, Lopez √

Losada, Harkin, and Wilson, 2009

Alrayes & Sutcliffe √

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND IDEA

• The research methodology will show the leadership body

of knowledge the application of any real-life industrial

case study and how it can enhance the leadership of

undergraduate engineering students in a practical and

nontraditional way of training. The research will tie the

psychological aspect to evaluate and study the behavior

and mental processes which will lead to colors as they

relate to the individual students and the research, the

systems engineering tools will be applied, specifications

required for virtual world simulation and we will build the

environment based on the specifications. Our main

research objective is to design the framework to

understand, analyze, manage, and develop ways to build

technological leadership in engineering students by

utilizing systems engineering in order to capture

guidelines from psychologist and concepts of

technological leadership to test and change behavior and

mental models of the subjects.

PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS LEADERSHIP TEST

4-D system leadership foundation test was used to identify the

leadership style color of undergraduate engineering students at

the University of Central Florida. Two (2) Engineering courses

were selected (Senior Design and Project Management) to

randomly survey 68 students. Pretest were administered at the

beginning of the semester and posttest at the end. Below are

the graphs illustrating the results of the 4-D leadership test.

It can be noticed the (blue) visionary leadership is mainly

lacking in both engineering courses (figure 6). Other

interesting characteristics are displayed in Figure 7 and 8. In

general the undergraduate engineering students have the

tendency to be more systematic (directive) in their approach to

problem solving. This is evidence for the need to develop and

create effective leaders.

ONGOING RESEARCH AND FUTURE

• Based on the survey results, the next step is to

utilize systems engineering to design a virtual

environment to build leadership skills. Systems

engineering based on cognitive input and

situational leadership models will develop the

requirements and technical specifications to create

virtual worlds to teach the students the leadership

skills. The emphasis in on changing mental models.

• We will use a different group, test for orange, train

them to be all of the 4 quadrants… and test with

• OpenSim

• http://www.dreamlandmetaverse.com/en/main

• And compare the score with the first group and see

if the improvements are significant.

• Based on that, we will develop curricula to teach

students to use all of the four dimensions of

Pellerin’s framework.

HEADSET

Virtual Reality is another component of our

research. The goal is to create an environment

similar to that of the simulation model, while

being able to navigate the environment using

an avatar. Each user will be given a script. With

each script comes its own set of challenges. For

example, you are caught between two oxygen

refuel stations. One is 50 feet away, but it's on an

incline which means you have to walk uphill to

reach it. The other is 100 feet away, but the path

is a straight line. Which path do you take.

Through the collection of data we can analyze

the decisions that were made into seeing which

color (leadership quality) the participant will

receive.

VIRTUAL LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT SCENARIO

MARS SIMULATION ENVIRONMENT

PROPOSED RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

• EXPERIMENT OVERVIEW

• DATA TO BE RETRIEVED

• QUANTITATIVE STUDY

• PROPOSED SUBJECTS

• MODEL VALIDATION

EXPERIMENT OVERVIEW

• Conduct Literature Review

• Evaluate Research Question/Idea/Gaps

• Investigate Optimum Technological Leadership Development for

Engineering

• Initiate 4-D Leadership Surveys

• Chose the Case Study as Evidence for the Research Question/Idea

• Select the type of Simulation

• Apply tools using Systems Engineering to assist with the Design Virtual

World Simulation

• Build the Virtual World Simulation Environment

• Design of Experiments

• Analysis

• Conclusion

• Future Research

EXPERIMENT OVERVIEW

DATA TO BE COLLECTED, PROPOSED SUBJECTS, QUANTITATIVE STUDY AND

MODEL VALIDATION

• The data will be collected from previous

survey(s)

• Quantitative data will be collected through

student surveys from Senior Design and

Project Management courses.

• A paired t-test will be performed to

compare the mean values of the survey

generated by the subjects.

• The data will also be verified by the UCF

Statistical Department as a rationality

check for the research analysis.

CONCLUSIONNEXT STEPS – PROJECTED TIMELINE

• CONDUCT EXPERIMENT/DATA COLLECTION: TARGET PERIOD IS AUGUST 2018 (PRE-TEST), NOVEMBER 2018 (POST-TEST)

• DATA ANALYSIS

• WRITING DISSERTATION

• SUBMIT INTENT TO GRADUATE

• DISSERTATION FORMAT REVIEW

• PROGRESS REVIEW

• PREPARE FOR DISSERTATION DEFENSE

• DISSERTATION DEFENSE

• SUBMIT REQUIRED PAPERWORK TO GRADUATE STUDIES

• GRADUATION

ITEMS COMPLETED

• UCF IRB SUBMISSION APPROVED: July 28, 2017

PUBLICATIONS/JOURNALS

• Co-authored an article published in the Military Metaverse MOSES (Military Open Simulator Enterprise Strategy) June 2015

• Co-authored an article published in the Journal on Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics: JSCI, Volume 14-Number 6, 2016,

pp 35-39

• Authored Conference Paper and Presentation

- Title: Using Systems Engineering and Virtual Simulation to Develop Engineering Leadership Skills

- Submission Date: May 2018

- Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineering

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THANK YOU