Title: Exploring business students' Perry cognitive development position and implications at teaching universities in the USA

Authors: Harm-Jan Steenhuis; Lindsey A. Gibson; Tolga Ulusemre

Addresses: Hawaii Pacific University, 900 Fort St. Mall, Suite 600, Honolulu, HI 96813, USA ' Department of Management, David Eccles School of Business, University of Utah, Office: SFEBB, Room 7228, 1655 East Campus Center Dr., Salt Lake City, Utah 84112-8939, USA ' Craig School of Business, Missouri Western State University, 4525 Downs Drive, St. Joseph, MO 64507, USA

Abstract: In the context of US universities where student evaluations of teaching play an important role in the retention and promotion of faculty, it is important to understand what a student expects in the classroom. This study took the perspective of Perry's cognitive development scheme with the following research question: what is the Perry level of cognitive development of business students? An established survey was used at two different universities. It was found that the median was position 3, and that there was large variation in three dimensions. First is the variation across program levels. Second, there was variation across universities. This becomes an issue when instructors move to a different university and questions the possibility to transfer 'best practices'. Third, variation was found within a specific program level. This means that instructors are faced with students who, from a cognitive perspective, have different demands which are unlikely to be simultaneously met.

Keywords: cognitive development; Perry scheme; business students; learning environment.

DOI: 10.1504/IJIOME.2024.137236

International Journal of Information and Operations Management Education, 2024 Vol.7 No.3, pp.234 - 253

Received: 01 Oct 2022
Accepted: 31 Jan 2023
Published online: 06 Mar 2024 *

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