The Effect of Implicit Environmental Determinism in the Teaching of Introductory Economics on the Motivation of First-year Business Studies Undergraduates

A study encompassing a number of UK Universities reveals a widespread implicit environmental determinism employed in the teaching of Economics to business studies undergraduates. Further detailed research at one suggests that this is both de-motivating, particularly when the determinism is left implicit, and de-entrepeneuring regardless of whether it is implicit or explicit. In an experiment students encouraged to reject environmental determinism were found to be no more motivated than those exposed to explicit determinism but were found to score significantly higher on an entrepeneuriation test based on the ability to come up with a number of strategies in the face of a change in a firm’s environment and to see opportunities where others see only threats. The author concludes that insofar as the determinism is a product of methodological individualism of the neo-classical approach then neo-classical economics is an inadequate vehicle for the teaching of business studies undergraduates.