A core ethical value of many professions, especially those where power dynamics and potential for... more A core ethical value of many professions, especially those where power dynamics and potential for injury in practice exist, is minimising harm to those served. The same expectations, however, cannot be linked to the use of classroom-based experiential practices in management education settings. In this article, we explore ethical issues associated with experiential learning practices and the potential for student harm. In particular, we confront the issues of power dynamics, deception and informed consent in classroom exercises, the ability to opt-out of simulated experiences, and the facilitation skills required to responsibly manage and debrief the experience. We review the state of ethics attention in management education, and challenge the assumptions that experiential educators both know, and take steps to resolve, ethical issues associated with classroom exercises. We consider experiential practices of other professions, and discuss findings from a study of institutional declarations of ethical principles or policy statements related to experiential learning practices among Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business accredited business schools. Finding none of the latter, we argue that responsibility for student welfare in a learning environment requires values-based standards for the utilisation of classroom-based experiential learning practices and offer suggestions for establishing expectations with respect to various experiential approaches.
Engaged learning opportunities have become powerful foundations upon which students build lifelon... more Engaged learning opportunities have become powerful foundations upon which students build lifelong skills and organisational capacities. Research has empirically validated the long term positive learning impacts of active and experiential learning opportunities for students. As such, institutional administrators and external stakeholders have encouraged, and in some cases, required, that faculty use engaged teaching methods. At the same time, difficult economic circumstances continue to batter higher education, with class sizes increasing to improve efficiencies and reduce instructional costs. The confluence of those two trends has resulted in calls to integrate engaged learning opportunities in large higher education classes, engendering special challenges for educators. It is within this particular gap—practical guidance for transforming passive course designs to active ones—that our article contributes to the international higher education literature. We share our experiences implementing engaged learning practices into large university classes over a four year period, guided by an experiential learning theoretical framework. By analyzing text from our individual teaching journals and collaborative post-mortems, we are able to introduce an integrative model highlighting important contextual and logistical issues that must be considered: pre-class planning, in-class facilitation, assessments and feedback, training and re-norming student expectations, and institutional context. We end the article with caveats and ethical considerations when introducing engaged learning into large classes.
Executive coaching is a rapidly growing form of organisation development intervention, and one wh... more Executive coaching is a rapidly growing form of organisation development intervention, and one which is receiving increasing attention in the management and psychology literature. This study reports on the state of the practice of executive coaching in New Zealand, about which little is currently known. Fifty-nine executive coaches responded to a survey that gathered data on the demographics of coaches; their backgrounds, qualifications and training; their coaching method; and aspects of their practice, including typical fees charged, number of client sessions, method of marketing, ethical standards and professional insurance. Conclusions are drawn from the data and suggestions for future research are made.
Australian Journal of Rehabilitation Counselling, 2007
The present study sought to investigate the current levels of psychological wellbeing in three im... more The present study sought to investigate the current levels of psychological wellbeing in three immigrant groups to New Zealand. In addition, we sought to determine whether aspects of the acculturation process were related to mental health outcomes. This is a cross–sectional study from the fifth wave of annual in-depth interviews with three groups of recently arrived skilled immigrants from India, the People's Republic of China and South Africa. Interviews focused on international contacts and the migration of relatives and friends, housing, language, qualifications and employment, and social participation. Participants were also asked about health difficulties, homesickness, and whether they felt settled in New Zealand. The SF-36 Health Status Questionnaire (Ware, 1997), assessed the respondent's functional status and wellbeing in relation to four health concepts: vitality, social functioning, role limitations due to emotional health, and general mental wellbeing. The immigr...
... Performance questionnaires, along with the signed consent forms, were returned directly and c... more ... Performance questionnaires, along with the signed consent forms, were returned directly and confidentially to Dr Sarah Wright. ... Applied HRM Research, 9 (1), 39-40. Meugge, M., Zollinger, T., Saywell, R., Moffatt, M., Hanify, T. & Dezelan, L. (2002). ...
Loneliness is often assumed to be an occupational hazard for senior-ranked members of an organiza... more Loneliness is often assumed to be an occupational hazard for senior-ranked members of an organization. However, most of what researchers hear about being "lonely at the top" is anecdote. This article provides empirical evidence from three separate studies assessing loneliness in managers and nonmanagers. Across all three studies, loneliness did not differ by managerial status. Managers were no more or less lonely than their nonmanager counterparts. This suggests that factors beyond seniority may be contributing to loneliness in organizational settings. Ideas for future research are discussed.
ABSTRACT Purpose ‐ In recent years, the literature on person-environment fit as a sought-after ou... more ABSTRACT Purpose ‐ In recent years, the literature on person-environment fit as a sought-after outcome has burgeoned whereas misfit has been relatively neglected. Specifically, little research has investigated how people develop and maintain perceptions of not fitting in. The aim of this paper is to review past research on misfit, and present new data examining the role of coworker social relations in surfacing or diminishing perceptions of misfit. Design/methodology/approach ‐ Written data were collected from 167 participants and analyzed using thematic coding. Themes emerging from the data were compared against the model of person-environment misfit. Findings ‐ From the authors' analysis of previous misfit research they identify four dimensions of misfit: sociodemographic, individual differences, structural, and social. The authors' data support and extend these dimensions. Further, the findings suggest that the social context is related to perceptions of misfit. Practical implications ‐ Managers can play a key role in misfit perceptions, both through action and inaction. Managers should note the importance of social relations in perceptions of misfit, and aim to provide supportive and well-structured work contexts. Originality/value ‐ This paper makes four key contributions to the person-environment fit literature. One is the categorization of dimensions of misfit, developed from past research. The second is the provision of three conceptual models summarizing different approaches to misfit in relation to fit. Third, the paper provides a novel perspective on misfit by focusing on social norms as the background against which misfit is experienced. Fourth, this research supports and extends on the four component model of misfit developed in the authors' initial review.
A core ethical value of many professions, especially those where power dynamics and potential for... more A core ethical value of many professions, especially those where power dynamics and potential for injury in practice exist, is minimising harm to those served. The same expectations, however, cannot be linked to the use of classroom-based experiential practices in management education settings. In this article, we explore ethical issues associated with experiential learning practices and the potential for student harm. In particular, we confront the issues of power dynamics, deception and informed consent in classroom exercises, the ability to opt-out of simulated experiences, and the facilitation skills required to responsibly manage and debrief the experience. We review the state of ethics attention in management education, and challenge the assumptions that experiential educators both know, and take steps to resolve, ethical issues associated with classroom exercises. We consider experiential practices of other professions, and discuss findings from a study of institutional declarations of ethical principles or policy statements related to experiential learning practices among Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business accredited business schools. Finding none of the latter, we argue that responsibility for student welfare in a learning environment requires values-based standards for the utilisation of classroom-based experiential learning practices and offer suggestions for establishing expectations with respect to various experiential approaches.
Engaged learning opportunities have become powerful foundations upon which students build lifelon... more Engaged learning opportunities have become powerful foundations upon which students build lifelong skills and organisational capacities. Research has empirically validated the long term positive learning impacts of active and experiential learning opportunities for students. As such, institutional administrators and external stakeholders have encouraged, and in some cases, required, that faculty use engaged teaching methods. At the same time, difficult economic circumstances continue to batter higher education, with class sizes increasing to improve efficiencies and reduce instructional costs. The confluence of those two trends has resulted in calls to integrate engaged learning opportunities in large higher education classes, engendering special challenges for educators. It is within this particular gap—practical guidance for transforming passive course designs to active ones—that our article contributes to the international higher education literature. We share our experiences implementing engaged learning practices into large university classes over a four year period, guided by an experiential learning theoretical framework. By analyzing text from our individual teaching journals and collaborative post-mortems, we are able to introduce an integrative model highlighting important contextual and logistical issues that must be considered: pre-class planning, in-class facilitation, assessments and feedback, training and re-norming student expectations, and institutional context. We end the article with caveats and ethical considerations when introducing engaged learning into large classes.
Executive coaching is a rapidly growing form of organisation development intervention, and one wh... more Executive coaching is a rapidly growing form of organisation development intervention, and one which is receiving increasing attention in the management and psychology literature. This study reports on the state of the practice of executive coaching in New Zealand, about which little is currently known. Fifty-nine executive coaches responded to a survey that gathered data on the demographics of coaches; their backgrounds, qualifications and training; their coaching method; and aspects of their practice, including typical fees charged, number of client sessions, method of marketing, ethical standards and professional insurance. Conclusions are drawn from the data and suggestions for future research are made.
Australian Journal of Rehabilitation Counselling, 2007
The present study sought to investigate the current levels of psychological wellbeing in three im... more The present study sought to investigate the current levels of psychological wellbeing in three immigrant groups to New Zealand. In addition, we sought to determine whether aspects of the acculturation process were related to mental health outcomes. This is a cross–sectional study from the fifth wave of annual in-depth interviews with three groups of recently arrived skilled immigrants from India, the People's Republic of China and South Africa. Interviews focused on international contacts and the migration of relatives and friends, housing, language, qualifications and employment, and social participation. Participants were also asked about health difficulties, homesickness, and whether they felt settled in New Zealand. The SF-36 Health Status Questionnaire (Ware, 1997), assessed the respondent's functional status and wellbeing in relation to four health concepts: vitality, social functioning, role limitations due to emotional health, and general mental wellbeing. The immigr...
... Performance questionnaires, along with the signed consent forms, were returned directly and c... more ... Performance questionnaires, along with the signed consent forms, were returned directly and confidentially to Dr Sarah Wright. ... Applied HRM Research, 9 (1), 39-40. Meugge, M., Zollinger, T., Saywell, R., Moffatt, M., Hanify, T. & Dezelan, L. (2002). ...
Loneliness is often assumed to be an occupational hazard for senior-ranked members of an organiza... more Loneliness is often assumed to be an occupational hazard for senior-ranked members of an organization. However, most of what researchers hear about being "lonely at the top" is anecdote. This article provides empirical evidence from three separate studies assessing loneliness in managers and nonmanagers. Across all three studies, loneliness did not differ by managerial status. Managers were no more or less lonely than their nonmanager counterparts. This suggests that factors beyond seniority may be contributing to loneliness in organizational settings. Ideas for future research are discussed.
ABSTRACT Purpose ‐ In recent years, the literature on person-environment fit as a sought-after ou... more ABSTRACT Purpose ‐ In recent years, the literature on person-environment fit as a sought-after outcome has burgeoned whereas misfit has been relatively neglected. Specifically, little research has investigated how people develop and maintain perceptions of not fitting in. The aim of this paper is to review past research on misfit, and present new data examining the role of coworker social relations in surfacing or diminishing perceptions of misfit. Design/methodology/approach ‐ Written data were collected from 167 participants and analyzed using thematic coding. Themes emerging from the data were compared against the model of person-environment misfit. Findings ‐ From the authors' analysis of previous misfit research they identify four dimensions of misfit: sociodemographic, individual differences, structural, and social. The authors' data support and extend these dimensions. Further, the findings suggest that the social context is related to perceptions of misfit. Practical implications ‐ Managers can play a key role in misfit perceptions, both through action and inaction. Managers should note the importance of social relations in perceptions of misfit, and aim to provide supportive and well-structured work contexts. Originality/value ‐ This paper makes four key contributions to the person-environment fit literature. One is the categorization of dimensions of misfit, developed from past research. The second is the provision of three conceptual models summarizing different approaches to misfit in relation to fit. Third, the paper provides a novel perspective on misfit by focusing on social norms as the background against which misfit is experienced. Fourth, this research supports and extends on the four component model of misfit developed in the authors' initial review.
Higher Education: The International Journal of Higher Education Research, 2017
Engaged learning opportunities have become powerful foundations upon which students build lifelon... more Engaged learning opportunities have become powerful foundations upon which students build lifelong skills and organizational capacities. Research has empirically validated the long-term positive learning impacts of active and experiential learning opportunities for students. As such, institutional administrators and external stakeholders have encouraged and, in some cases, required that faculty use engaged teaching methods. At the same time, difficult economic circumstances continue to batter higher education, with class sizes increasing to improve efficiencies and reduce instructional costs. The confluence of those two trends has resulted in calls to integrate engaged learning opportunities in large higher education classes, engendering special challenges for educators. It is within this particular gap—practical guidance for transforming passive course designs to active ones—that our article contributes to the international higher education literature. We share our experiences implementing engaged learning practices into large university classes over a 4-year period, guided by an experiential learning theoretical framework. By analyzing text from our individual teaching journals and collaborative post-mortems, we are able to introduce an integrative model highlighting important contextual and logistical issues that must be considered: pre-class planning, in-class facilitation, assessments and feedback, training and renorming student expectations, and institutional context. We end the article with caveats and ethical considerations when introducing engaged learning into large classes.
Higher Education: The International Journal of Higher Education Research, 2021
Experiential teaching practices can provide transformative learning opportunities for students. H... more Experiential teaching practices can provide transformative learning opportunities for students. However, thus far the experiential education literature considers "experiential activities" monolithically, without acknowledging differences in emotions, particularly negative emotions, students may experience or educator skill in facilitating them. We hypothesized and assessed a "step up" taxonomy that differentiates activities by the negative emotions that students may experience and the educator skill required to run the activity effectively. We mapped 18 representative experiential activities onto four different levels, each requiring increased educator facilitation skill in managing potential student emotional distress. We proposed that as levels of student emotional risk and engagement increase, so do required educator disciplinary knowledge and facilitation skill in using different activities. Using survey data, a principal component analysis indicated a four-level taxonomy populated by different teaching activities. After sharing our hypothesized taxonomy and discussing how we modified it after empirical examination, we end the article with avenues for future research and practical considerations for experiential educators in any discipline that integrates experiential activities.
To support the types of learning outcomes that management students need in today's organizations,... more To support the types of learning outcomes that management students need in today's organizations, business schools increasingly call for faculty to engage in experiential pedagogy. However, teaching practices that are consistent with experiential pedagogy deliberately engage students' emotions and may breach expected teaching norms. In this essay, we discuss what we believe are the unaddressed moral responsibilities of business schools that advocate for and embed experiential pedagogy in their programs. We frame business schools' experiential pedagogy advocacy as an explicit moral duty (Hosmer, 1995), arguing that a dilemma exists in encouraging experiential teaching approaches without knowing how faculty use them and what student safeguards are in place. Drawing on Nicolini's (2012) practice theory, we describe experiential pedagogy as teaching practices, structures, and rules that would benefit from community-based standards. We conclude with recommendations for crafting an experiential teaching community of practice, delineating important research questions by which to develop this community.
A core ethical value of many professions, especially those where power dynamics and potential for... more A core ethical value of many professions, especially those where power dynamics and potential for injury in practice exist, is minimising harm to those served. The same expectations, however, cannot be linked to the use of classroom-based experiential practices in management education settings. In this article, we explore ethical issues associated with experiential learning practices and the potential for student harm. In particular, we confront the issues of power dynamics, deception and informed consent in classroom exercises, the ability to opt-out of simulated experiences, and the facilitation skills required to responsibly manage and debrief the experience. We review the state of ethics attention in management education, and challenge the assumptions that experiential educators both know, and take steps to resolve, ethical issues associated with classroom exercises. We consider experiential practices of other professions, and discuss findings from a study of institutional declarations of ethical principles or policy statements related to experiential learning practices among Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business accredited business schools. Finding none of the latter, we argue that responsibility for student welfare in a learning environment requires values-based standards for the utilisation of classroom-based experiential learning practices and offer suggestions for establishing expectations with respect to various experiential approaches.
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Papers by Sarah Wright