ERIC Number: EJ1015142
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013-Aug
Pages: 13
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0273-4753
EISSN: N/A
Using an Experiential Business Game to Stimulate Sustainable Thinking in Marketing Education
Bascoul, Ganael; Schmitt, Julien; Rasolofoarison, Dina; Chamberlain, Laura; Lee, Nick
Journal of Marketing Education, v35 n2 p168-180 Aug 2013
Recent years have seen a significant increase in the importance of environmental protection and sustainability to consumers, policy makers, and society in general. Reflecting this, most organizations are at least aware of this new agenda and wish to be seen as taking steps to improve behaviors in this regard. However, there appears to be a gap between this evolving agenda and the comparatively low level of knowledge that marketing managers actually have of the environmental impact of their own functional decisions. We suggest that this low knowledge level may be due, in part, to the marketplace focus of foundational marketing educational programs, and we attempt to show how broadening the horizons of marketing courses can help students (i.e., future managers) more deeply understand the environmental consequences of their actions. We demonstrate the use of a novel business game, based on the Life Cycle Assessment method, as the foundational cornerstone for the development of a broad understanding of the environmental impact of marketing decisions and actions for the entire life cycle of a product--from raw material extraction to ultimate disposal. The results of an empirical study show that this approach increases students' appreciation for, and understanding of, these fundamental environmental sustainability concepts. (Contains 5 notes, 5 tables, and 3 figures.)
Descriptors: Business Administration Education, Experiential Learning, Educational Games, Sustainability, Conservation (Environment), Marketing, Undergraduate Students, Teaching Methods, Instructional Effectiveness, Student Surveys, Instructional Innovation
SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: http://sagepub.com
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Journal Articles
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A