Students' Attitudes during their First Year at a Business School - Implications for Sustainable Development
Type
conference paper
Date Issued
2013-05-23
Author(s)
Abstract
In the face of the economic and financial crisis, business education has become confronted with the question whether it is (partly) responsible for the misconduct of managers and whether business schools only attract students with certain predispositions. While such statements feed media headlines, they lack solid investigations and empirical evidence. To our knowledge, there is hardly any empirical research on the characteristics of business school students. In our view, it is critical for the future development of business school to understand students' current perceptions of, and attitudes towards, studying at a business school.
In a longitudinal study, we assessed business school students' attitude and motivation and their development over the first year of their studies. Among others, we addressed student attitudes towards the issue of Sustainable Development.
As a result of our study, the often encountered negative image of business school students cannot be confirmed. Instead it seems advisable to take a closer look at our students at business schools. Indeed, the decline of certain perceptions and attitudes over the course of the students' first year is worth of consideration. Especially, the decline of students' attitude towards sustainable development is rather remarkable. As a practical implication of our study, a stronger focus on the sustainable development (SD) of business can be identified as one possible area for improvement.
In a longitudinal study, we assessed business school students' attitude and motivation and their development over the first year of their studies. Among others, we addressed student attitudes towards the issue of Sustainable Development.
As a result of our study, the often encountered negative image of business school students cannot be confirmed. Instead it seems advisable to take a closer look at our students at business schools. Indeed, the decline of certain perceptions and attitudes over the course of the students' first year is worth of consideration. Especially, the decline of students' attitude towards sustainable development is rather remarkable. As a practical implication of our study, a stronger focus on the sustainable development (SD) of business can be identified as one possible area for improvement.
Language
English
Keywords
attitude
motivation
students
higher education
business schools
sustainable development
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
Refereed
Yes
Book title
Purpose, Performance and Impact of Higher Education Institutions and Business Schools
Publisher
EFMD - The Management Development Networkd
Publisher place
Brüssel
Start page
17
Event Title
2013 EFMD Higher Education Research Conference
Event Location
Paris
Subject(s)
Eprints ID
223370
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1305_brahm_euler_efmd-he-research.pdf
Size
688.95 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
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