Democracy Lab

Interactive Civic Simulations for the Modern Citizen

Democracy is not abstract—it is a system of choices, pressures, incentives, and human behavior.

The Democracy Lab translates these complex forces into five experiential games that reveal how governments, media, coalitions, budgets, and misinformation truly function beneath the surface.

Each simulation distills a real societal dilemma into a playable model, inviting users to think critically, ethically, and systemically about democratic life.

Why I Built the Democracy Lab

Modern democracies succeed or fail not only on institutions, but on the public’s understanding of how those institutions work. The Democracy Lab offers a space where anyone can explore:

  • the psychology of political decision-making

  • the economics of media attention

  • the trade-offs behind governance

  • the dynamics of misinformation

  • the structural constraints faced by leaders

These micro-simulations are designed to sharpen civic intuition—revealing what textbooks and debates often hide.

What These Simulations Teach

These games are grounded in principles from:

  • Political Science — institutions, coalitions, governance constraints

  • Behavioral Psychology — cognitive bias, outrage dynamics, choice architecture

  • Media Studies — editorial pressures, attention economy, gatekeeping

  • Economics & Public Policy — scarcity, budgeting, incentives

  • Network Theory — rumor propagation, echo chambers

Each game serves as a compact model of a real institutional challenge—helping players understand not what they want democracy to be, but how it actually works in practice.

Democracy Is a System. Systems Must Be Understood.

The Democracy Lab is a commitment to public education through interaction. By transforming political structures into simple, intuitive experiences, these simulations empower citizens to think with greater nuance, empathy, and systemic awareness.

Play. Learn. Reflect.