Title

Middle-Level Thinking: The Cultural Mission of Business Schools

Department/School

Catholic Studies; Veritas Institute

Date of this version

2010

Document Type

Article

Keywords

business studies, culture, financial economics, thinking

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1108/02621711011059103

Abstract

Purpose – Business education should be seen as a form of professional education which assists the student to acquire the virtue of practical wisdom. This article seeks to discuss the issues.

Design/methodology/approach – A middle level thinking (MLT) approach is taken to engage business education and practice that seeks to fashion explicit and vibrant ties between broad ethical principles and the concrete decisions, policies, and processes which shape how an organization operates.

Findings – The financial crisis of 2008 and past business scandals are symptoms of a broader cultural crisis. Universities and their business schools have contributed to this cultural crisis by providing students with an overly compartmentalized and specialized form of education. Business education must be re-envisioned as professional education which prepares students to engage in a form of middle level thinking (MLT). For this kind of thinking to become sustainable within a university context, it must draw upon the university's own cultural mission; otherwise, it will be susceptible to the economic and specialized pressures which bear upon these institutions.

Volume

29

Issue

7/8

Published in

Journal of Management Development

Citation/Other Information

Maines, T. D., & Naughton, M. (2010). Middle level thinking: The cultural mission of business schools. Journal of Management Development, 29(7/8), 669-677. https://doi.org/10.1108/02621711011059103

COinS