Do we know what they know? Comparing US and French undergraduate students’ knowledge of core business concepts
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to compare knowledge of business concepts acquired at the end of undergraduate studies of management in France and the USA.
Design/methodology/approach
Mind maps were used to examine what knowledge students retained toward the end of their undergraduate studies in business and management. Data were collected from two groups of students, one in France and one in the USA and they analyzed on computer software.
Findings
The results indicate that the learning process may be influenced not only by the structure and content of the program but also by the environment in which such content is assimilated. This study provides examples of how culture can influence the way we learn and represent core business knowledge.
Research limitations/implications
The research was based on a number of undergraduate students and cannot therefore be generalized to other subjects or other levels of studies at the present time.
Originality/value
The paper moves away from traditional manners of collecting data through questionnaires and surveys in order to study the impact of management education and what students learn at undergraduate level.
Keywords
Citation
Naatus, M.K., Passerini, K., Pon, K. and Somers, M. (2015), "Do we know what they know? Comparing US and French undergraduate students’ knowledge of core business concepts", Journal of Management Development, Vol. 34 No. 8, pp. 922-940. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMD-05-2014-0040
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2015, Emerald Group Publishing Limited