The Processing of Information by Students and Business Planners

Abstract

Evidence that students and practitioners in business organizations approach problems differently has raised questions concerning the validity of using students as subjects in research. This issue was addressed by presenting both students and practitioners with planning problems differing in environmental volatility, system adaptation, and planning requirements. Different combinations of these factors produced 12 distinct planning situations. Eight information-processing strategies were identified that have been described in the literature as planning tools. Each aid has been prescribed as being more appropriate for use in some planning situations than in others. The present study tested hypotheses that planners would use the information-processing aids prescribed for specific situations and that students and practitioners would approach the problems differently. Results indicated that the use of information-processing aids did not correspond closely to the theoretical prescriptions. Other implicit theories may have been operating, and the implicit theories used by students may have been different from those used by practitioners.

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