Immigration Journey

Description

In our concept map of the immigration system, we’ve illustrated the different classes of individuals based on their legal status and rights, ranging from “1st Class ‘Citizens'” to “4th Class ‘Deportable Others.'” This map is our effort to convey the societal stratification influenced by immigration status, along with the motivations and capabilities that dictate an individual’s place within this structure. We’ve incorporated Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to highlight the fundamental human motivations behind immigration-related behaviors.

Contrastingly, our board game concept map simplifies these real-world complexities into digestible game mechanics. We’ve represented societal roles through game roles such as “Politician,” “Business Owner,” “High-Skilled Worker,” and “Low-Skilled Immigrant.” The game actions we’ve outlined—like “Form Alliance,” “Negotiate,” and “Create Conflict”—reflect the potential strategies that players might employ to navigate the immigration system within the context of the game.

Both maps showcase our use of systems thinking to illustrate how various components interact within a larger ecosystem. Yet, while our immigration system map takes a more analytical approach, focusing on the realities and societal loops like “Power retention loop” and “Marginalization,” our board game map emphasizes the dynamics of gameplay, highlighting player engagement through phases such as “Action,” “Resolution,” and “Event.”

The most notable difference between the two maps lies in their underlying intent; our immigration system map is descriptive, intended to explore and explain the existing conditions, whereas our board game map is prescriptive, offering a structured pathway for gameplay interactions. Through this board game, we seek to distill and render the complexities of the immigration system into a format that allows players to understand and interact with these issues in a simulated, yet educational, environment.