A Survey of Behavioral Labs used by American Business Schools

Abstract

As the American workplace becomes more automated and less humanized, a new breed of employee is reacting adversely to the lack of a high-touch, people-approach to management. Critics of the situation contend that the emphasis on production technology and scientific methodology is reinforced by the “rational model” of management that is being taught in today’s business schools. The American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business and the European Foundation of Management Development have recently called on business schools to incorporate affective, cognitive skills into the curriculum to help managers deal with the high-touch need. Behavioral labs are being encouraged as a learning tool which can be used by educators to meet this challenge. This study finds that U.S. business schools have shown very little progress in incorporating behavioral lab experiences into their curricula.