AN EXPLORATION INTO THE NON-USE OF BUSINESS SIMULATIONS Developments In Business Simulation & Experiential Learning, Volume 24, 1997 AN EXPLORATION INTO THE NON-USE OF BUSINESS SIMULATIONS LT Snyder, The University of West Florida ABSTRACT A survey was conducted to assess instructor reasons for the non-use of simulations in the classroom in schools of business. Results gleaned from 224 returned surveys indicated that non-use stemmed from lack of time in their schedules for faculty members to learn and integrate a business simulation into their classrooms, lack of awareness of relevant simulations, and failure in using past simulations. INTRODUCTION The business simulation research community has more than 30 year’s worth of data profiling the usage levels of simulations in schools of business. Most recently, Faria and Nulsen (1996) found that” business simulation game usage in academia and in industry has continued to grow over the past ten years with expectations of further growth” (1996, p.22). These expectations for future growth appeal to be valid, and the veracities of such claims are backed up by rigorous research. However, what is lacking in this data collection and reporting is data providing the reasoning behind faculty non-use of business simulations. The purpose of this paper is to gain insight into why instructors of schools of business in U.S. schools fail to use business simulations. By reporting only on the usage levels of business simulations we tend to form a mutual-appreciation community. Since simulation researchers are proponents of the values of simulations, there has been a tendency in data collection to seek out examples of use to justify continued research on simulations. History and Usage of Instrument Designs Dale & Klasson (1962) provided one of the first studies of simulation usage. Subsequent researchers have, consistently reported usage levels above 90% for AACSB member schools of business. While the size and scope of Faria & Nulsen’s (1996) study was impressive, their study provided re-affirmation for views already held. This affirmation consisted of 1- usage levels are still high and 2- users rate simulations high in learning benefits. While studies need to be periodically conducted to assess usage levels, emphasis should also be placed on areas where data is lacking. STUDY In all, 3820 total surveys were mailed for AACSB member schools in the same population as the Faria study. A sample of 224 was received, which although small in comparison, was still adequate to provide power in extrapolating to the larger sample size. Ninety of the 382 targeted schools of business were represented. The remaining number of surveys completed indicated that multiple surveys were completed per institution. The survey design was open-ended. Respondents were asked to list their reasons for why they were not currently using business simulations. The word “simulation” was defined for respondents to provide a common context. The survey also asked if respondents had ever used simulations, and asked previous users a follow-on question of why they no longer used simulations in the classroom. The summary table above is a compilation of responses. In total, 285 responses were catalogued from the 224 collected surveys and organized into the above categories (therefore some surveys listed 164 Developments In Business Simulation & Experiential Learning, Volume 24, 1997 multiple reasons for non-use). Three expert reviewers were used to categorize responses. Table I indicates that a lack of awareness of appropriate simulations and a perceived lack of time to learn and integrate the simulation were the top reasons for non-use of simulations. The #3 reason, fear over the complexity of simulations, is related to the #2 response - lack of perceived time. However, the response occurred so often by itself that it warranted it’s own categorization. Only 12.3% of responses sited a bad experience with simulations as cause for non-use. Although the number of responses for those who had bad experiences with simulations was small, it is the first known attempt to categorize those disaffected instructors who no longer use simulations. The #1 reason for non-use was a perception that too much time was required in a previous attempt at using a simulation. Student disfavor, measured in terms of lack of interest and negative comments on teacher evaluations was also a significant response amongst this pool of respondents. A follow-on question asked respondents who had bad experiences with simulations whether they planned on using simulations in the future. Only 7 of the 35 respondents in this category (20%) indicated that they would use simulations again in the future. This low expected future use indicates that those who discontinue to use simulations become disaffected and will not use them in the future as a pedagogical tool. IMPLICATIONS AND DIRECTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH One important implication of the results of the survey is the fact that simulation developers may not be creating enough visibility for their simulations. The frequency of responses of those who were unaware of relevant simulations indicates that the “bright future” that Faria alluded to may indeed hold promise. However, potential users may be unaware of the availability of appropriate disciplinary simulations. In addition, respondents may have been unaware of adequate simulations because they do not actively seek out new pedagogical tools. Even though simulations are varied by content, market coverage, and complexity, the simulation community has a small following (measured in terms of attendance at national and international conferences of simulations). Wolfe’s assertion that we have reached a “point of relative saturation in various American business course applications” (1993, p. 446) does not imply that saturation exists across all business disciplines and sub-fields. For example, total enterprise simulations and related strategy simulations abound. However, simulations for other sub-field, such as organizational development, are less visible. Indeed, Faria and Nulsen’s 1996 study found that simulation usage for accounting was only 15.7%, while business policy enjoyed a 65.7% usage level. This visibility is due, in part, to a smaller target market. The small sample size for the sub-population of those that had bad experiences with simulations warrants further study, in addition, since the study took a unique angle on current data gathered about users of simulations, repeat studies are needed to confirm or refute findings. A natural extension of this research would be data collection that would rigorously assess the total percentage of faculty members in AACSB member school’s that actively use simulations. The cost of such a study would be very expensive however. References Available on Request 165 Table of Contents Volume 24, 1997 Incorporating Computer Telephony into the MIS Course A Learner Oriented Infrastructure for videoconferencing Based Distance Education Courses The Identification of Temporally Related Structural Elements of the Experiential Component of Electronic Spreadsheet Tasks Does Involvement Influence Learning from Simulation Participation? Some Relationships with Helpfulness and Performance Outcomes Musings on Business Garne Performance Evaluation Performance on a TE Simulation: What does it represent? The Business Policy Game: An International Simulation - An Assessment Tool Students in Free Enterprise as Experiential Learning The Role of Computer Models in Wargames: A Practitioner's view Using Focus Groups as a Tool to Research Learning: A Demonstration and a Discussion Using Medical Simulations to Teach Multi-Cultural Diversity Using the World Game to Internationalize International Exchange Game Community Services Needs Assessment: An Innovative Approach Introducing Students to Potential Total Quality Management Ethical Dilemmas Privacy in the Workplace: A Situational Analysis Antecedents of Learning in Simulations Demonstrating the Learning Effectiveness of Simulation: Where we are and Where we need to go The Use of Computer Simulations as a Pedagogical Aid in Teaching Management Information Systems Evaluating Simulation Learning in a Distant Learning Instructional Model Financial Engineering of Global Investments The Labor History Game: Playing with the Past Perks Participation Assessing Negotiator's Proficiency with a Negotiation role-play The Art of Negotiating Enhancing Learning and Employee Development through the Assessment of Learning Pedagogy Preferences across selected Dimensions of Culture: A Preliminary Investigation Cooperative Learning: What are we Learning? Effective Use of Mastery Based Experiential learning in a Project Course to improve skills in system analysis and Design Simulations and Learning: Can we prove a relationship? (Seminar) Predicting and Reviewing NYSE Stock Prices by use of Basic Statistical Analysis and Logic Toy Car Depreciation Exercise ABSEL as Home Community: An Interactive Exploration Service Learning: Linking Academic Study to Community Development and Business Enhancement Ability of Efficient Evaluation of Knowledge-Based Management Strategies Corporate Ethics Training Programs Modeling Attributes in Demand Functions of Computerized Business Simulations: An Extension of Teach's Gravity Flow Algorithm Expert Systems Combined with Neutral Networks: Tools to Benefit the Marketing Researcher Computer Game Design: New Directions for Intercultural Simulation Game Designers Consistency in Simulation Performance over Time and Across Simulation Games The Impact of an Artificial Market Leader on Simulation Competitor's Strategies Business Plans, Case Studies, and Total Enterprise Simulations: A Natural Co-existence An Exploration into the Non-Use of Business Simulations The Market Game: Interactive Learning Through Market Simulation Plotting Brand Trajectories with the COMPLETE PPM package: A Market Segmentation Analysis and Positioning Tool Me and Mine Inc: An Exercise in Management Theory Learning to Differentiate Leadership from Managerial Position Business Ethics Survey: A Perspective from the Retail Industry Experiential Learning in Demand Analysis for an Agricultural Commodity Marketing on the Internet: A Pedagogical Exercise College Students Need Simple Computer Simulations, Especially for International Business Courses An Analysis of Student Attitudes, Performance, and Strategies in a Simulation Competition Based on a Controlled Product-Market-Entry Game Structure The Crystal Enterprise: Application of a Non-Computerized Simulation Model in a Process of Organizational Change Threshold: A Windows-Based Behaviorally Oriented Total Enterprise Simulation Coaching Business Game Teams Using a Decision Variable Optimizer Rock and Roll is here to Stay: Enhancing Experiential Pedagogy with Musical Exercises An Example of Business Process Analysis Simulation for Customer Software Support The Use of Business Gaming in Hong Kong Academic Institutions Using the Integrative International Simulation INTOPIA Mark 2000 in a Concentrated MBA Curriculum A Group Experience as an Integrated Part of the Core Management Course Empowered Learning in the Classroom The Inter-Group Interaction: An Innovative Approach to Cooperative Learning Courses that Utilize Student Team: An Approach to enhancing their Effectiveness Thoughts about the Measurement of Learning: The Case for Guided Learning and Associated Measurement Issues Measuring Student Learning Using Business Simulations: A Theory Based Perspective On the Use of PC Fingame in an Undergraduate Finance Course How Managers get Things Done: A Virtual Soundbite Internet Experiential learning in the Principals of Marketing Classroom: A Pedagogical Approach Current Student Perceptions Relative to Business Simulations Beyond Capitalism: Designing Business Policy and Social Justice The Use of Boards of Directors to Evaluate Reports and Presentations in an Undergraduate Business Policy Course Beacon Lumber: An Experiential Introduction to Financial Accounting The Application of Organizational Motivation Principles: The Experiential Business Simulation Motus Manufacturing Avoiding a Bogey: Grading Case Discussions Scientifically Communicating Consumer Behavior II: A Modified Exercise Using Personal Consumption Journals in Condensed Courses Designing Instruments for Assessing the Effectiveness of Simulations, (Seminar) 360º Performance Feedback: Appraisal vs. Assessment The Cafeteria Approach to Managing an Academic Career: Remaining Non-Perishable while Doing Your Own Thing An Experiential Exercise Related to Person-Organization Fit and it's Consequences For Today's Dynamic and Changing World, Business Simulations need to be expanded to encompass Much Greater Complexity: A Demonstration The Incident Process: A Case in Reverse Contextually-Anchored Business Simulations The Energy Factor: Building Motivation in the Simulation Gaming Environment The Design of an Internet Game