Analyzing the intellectual structure of research on simulation-based learning in management education, 1960–2019: A bibliometric review

Highlights

• Reviewed 1200 Scopus documents on use of simulations in management education.

• Used bibliometric analysis to identify trends in the development of this literature.

• Found a rapidly growing literature largely published in Western, developed societies.

• Revealed the intellectual structure of the literature comprised of four schools of thought.

• Concluded that the conceptual anchor of this field lies in education and psychology.

Abstract

Purpose

This review used science mapping to document and analyze the use of simulation-based learning in management education.

Design

The authors used bibliometric tools to analyze 1200 relevant Scopus-indexed documents published between 1960 and 2019. Descriptive statistics, co-citation analysis and co-word analysis were employed in this quantitative review.

Findings

The review found a rapidly growing publication trajectory with 81% of documents published since 2000 and 57% since 2010. While this literature is worldwide in scope, publications authored in Anglo-American-European societies accounted for 85% of this corpus. Topical analysis verified that simulation-based learning is being used to teach a wide range of functional management subjects. Co-citation analysis identified four ‘schools of thought’ that define the intellectual structure of this literature: Theoretical Foundations of Simulation-Based Learning, Simulation-Based Learning in Business Education, Organizational Theory and Complex Systems, Simulation-Based Learning in the Professions.

Implications

The review highlights the need for programmatic research which examines the design and instructional use of management simulations across different cultural contexts. In a global management education context, greater attention needs to be given the ‘portability’ of the underlying theories and decision rules that underlie simulations. More attention should also be given to the use of simulations in management fields outside of business education.

Originality/value

The review empirically affirms the impact that theories of human learning have had on the design and use of simulation-based learning and highlights the importance of framing the lessons drawn from simulations when used across different cultural contexts.

Introduction

Over the past six decades, management educators have experimented with various approaches to active learning in an effort to find ways of making academic content more meaningful and applicable for students in universities and professional settings (Cohen & Rhenman, 1961; Faria, 1987; Faria & Wellington, 2004; Walker, Bridges, & Chan, 1996). Concurrently, the need to identify and refine active learning methods that engage students and foster the retention and transfer of learning has led to an explosion of empirical research (Ampountolas, Shaw, & James, 2019; Felder & Brent, 2009; Martin, Kolomitro, & Lam, 2014; Steadman et al., 2006). This same trend is evident among scholars who have studied the use of simulations and serious games in management education (Asiri, Greasley, & Bocij, 2017; Salas, Wildman, & Piccolo, 2009). Reviews of this research find that simulations and serious games have become a signature feature of management education and training programs (Faria, Hutchinson, Wellington, & Gold, 2009; Keys & Wolfe, 1990; Salas & Kozlowski, 2010).

This systematic review of research used science mapping to extend findings from prior reviews of research in this domain (e.g., (Anderson & Lawton, 2009; Bell, Kanar, & Kozlowski, 2008; Crookall, 2010, 2012; Faria & Wellington, 2004, 2001; Keys & Wolfe, 1990). More specifically, this review sought to document and analyze trends in knowledge production on simulation-based learning in management education. Three research questions guided the review.

• What general trends describe the evolution of scholarship published on simulation-based learning in management education between 1960 and 2019?

• What is the intellectual structure of the knowledge base on simulation-based learning in management education?

• What research topics have gained the attention of scholars studying simulation-based learning in management education?

The authors analyzed 1200 Scopus-indexed documents on the use of simulations and games in management education using descriptive statistics, co-citation analysis, and keyword analysis (Bragge, Thavikulwat, & Töyli, 2010; Zupic & Čater, 2015). The authors draw on these findings to chart future directions in research in this field. Subsequent sections provide a conceptual overview of this domain, describe the review procedures, present results, and discuss the findings of the review.