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This paper investigates how individuals' decision-making approach and perceptions of a game's cognitive realism affect the performance of virtual businesses in a web-based simulation game.

Survey data are collected from 274 business simulation game users and is analysed using the fsQCA technique.

The study identifies three alternative pathways to high and low performance in a business simulation game. Results indicate that a flexible decision-making approach exists in all high performance pathway solutions. Where a game is perceived to be realistic, a more focused decision-making approach is associated with high performance. However, where perceived cognitive realism is absent, a less focused experimental decision-making approach is employed, which increases the chances to achieve low performance. Finally, perceived cognitive realism and an experimental decision-making approach are found to be mutually exclusive for achieving high performance.

Whilst the learning benefits of web-based simulation games are widely acknowledged, the complex interplay amongst factors affecting performance in games is under-researched. Limited research exists on how perceptions of a game's cognitive realism interact with user decision-making approaches to affect performance.

Serious games are playing an increasingly significant role across a range of educational contexts. Business focused serious games can provide students with an authentic learning experience and their use has been increasingly taken up by business school faculty, including those delivering entrepreneurship education (EE). The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the impact of participation in a serious business game on the entrepreneurial intent (EI) of undergraduate students.

The study adopts a pre-test/post-test quasi-experimental design. It employs a modified version of Linan et al.’s (2011) EI model in the form of a questionnaire survey completed by 263 undergraduate business and management students.

A logic regression model was used to analyse the survey responses. The research findings indicate that the serious game used in this study has a significant negative impact on EI. Gender and role model effects are also identified from the analysis.

The paper contributes to the literature in two ways. First, it demonstrates the impact of serious business games on EI during the enterprise awareness stage of a student’s EE. Second, it provides a foundation for exploring the role that serious games can play in educating the potential entrepreneurs of the future.

Drawing on entrepreneurship as a social process, the purpose of this paper is to proposes a model of entrepreneurial learning where contextual social and economic structures gain relevance through experiential learning. Concrete experience underpins the emotions, values and interests that support the cognitive and conative processes required to develop an entrepreneurial mind-set. Empirical study undertaken in Kenya and Tanzania explores perceptions of entrepreneurship education (EE) and identify approaches to a social perspective of entrepreneurial learning that is applicable.

The study uses a multi-phase approach consisting of desk research, semi-structured interview and a participatory workshop. Entrepreneurship programmes in 18 universities are benchmarked against accepted standards and 68 participants are purposively selected within key stakeholders for the semi-structured interviews and participatory workshop.

The findings indicate that entrepreneurship as a value creation process is a shared assertion but the social context informs a construct of learning outcomes, and specifically what characterises an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurial learning is multi-layered and its provision necessitates an engagement with the social context in order to gain relevance for the learners. The learning content should enable learners to develop an understanding of the world alongside knowledge of entrepreneurship. Learning tools should be flexible and action-based, to achieve learning for entrepreneurship as opposed to learning about the phenomenon of entrepreneurship. Ultimately, the value creation process can only happen when learning supports the individual and collective capabilities to transform the social context. Particularly in Kenya and Tanzania, meeting job creation and growth aspirations will require the providers such as universities to work closely with businesses of all sizes, including the informal sector, and the use of innovative learning techniques such as local languages where applicable. These findings have policy and practice implications for HEIs and policy-makers in curriculum design and inclusive learning methods.

The study comes short on entrepreneurial orientation and its impact on learning outcomes. Further investigation could establish if necessity entrepreneurs differ from opportunity entrepreneurs in the way they learn, so that national policy and curriculum can respond accordingly. With high levels of unemployment in countries such as Kenya and Tanzania, entrepreneurship often presents the only choice for employment or a paid job.

The study findings indicate the need for educators to develop learning approaches that are informed by the contextual realities of the learners. Policy-makers should also foster the development of curriculum informed by contextual realities, so that learners can make sense of their entrepreneurial world.

Through the adoption of action learning as essential for the process of creation and transformation, the study makes the case for individual motivations in exploring the realities of the local context.

The study contributes to a deeper understanding of EE from a social context, and proposes a model of entrepreneurial learning which could benefit learners and the community. The informal sector is brought to light as a significant actor in entrepreneurial learning and a considerable source of new knowledge.

The purpose of this paper is to describe an approach for utilising a critical incident method within the context of an online business simulation game in order to provide an effective framework for reflective learning.

The paper presents a review of pertinent literature to place the critical incident technique within the novel context of simulation gaming. Through presenting a case study of practice, it goes on to describe a blended learning approach that combines online simulation with post-simulation reflection based on the critical incident method. An action research approach is adopted as a framework for reflection on practice.

From a conceptual perspective, there are a number of potential benefits to employing a critical incident approach combined with simulation gaming. The ability of educators to compress time frames and manage the introduction of critical incidents allows students to learn in a way that would not be possible in the real world. Furthermore, carefully designed post-simulation debriefing, structured around a critical incident framework, has the potential to enhance the learning impact of online simulation.

The research is limited in that a single case study context is described. Further evaluation research is required to fully assess the benefits of the approach adopted.

The study explores the use of the critical incident approach within the novel context of online simulation gaming. It provides educators with a blended learning method that can be employed to enhance the impact of e-learning through structured reflection.

The paper reports upon the findings of a national survey of Personal Business Advisors (PBAs). It examines the nature of the client‐PBA relationship in terms of how relationships are established with growth firms and how they are maintained over the long term. Results show that a range of different approaches are currently used to identify growth businesses. Other findings indicate that the current role of the PBA is a broad one, extending beyond the client focus originally envisaged by the DTI. It is argued that financial targets are an important influence upon the nature of the client‐PBA relationship.

This study aims to explore the implications of a recent case in spring 2022 where the novel Dracula went “viral” as tens of thousands of Tumblr users participated in a serialized re-reading and discussion of the text through the hashtags #dracula and #dracula daily.

The authors use a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design approach (quant: topic modeling; qual: multimodal content analysis) to examine how users describe their own practices as well as top posts (more than 25,000 likes, comments and reblogs) in the first month of the collective reading of the novel.

The authors found that the serialization of Dracula made space for “wandering reading practices” (Chavez, 2010) relevant to this interpretive community on Tumblr. The quantitative methods determined specific affective, intertextual and serialized aspects of textual play that were salient to readers. In top posts themselves, the authors saw readers creating metaleptic content imagining characters like the protagonist Jonathan in other novels or contexts, as well as processing and playing with their collective emotional responses toward characters. Additionally, readers used irony or satire through multimodal compositions to create literary arguments.

Playfully analyzing literature together through intertextual connections and multimodal memes has the potential to be both emotionally resonant, culturally relevant and supportive of literary interpretive practices. Based on these findings, the authors provide suggestions for teachers working to embrace interpretive play in formal learning spaces.

Examines how a finance gap for small firms might be addressed by means of government policy to support informal financing initiatives. A review of both the finance and the government policy literature provides the basis for discussing and conceptualising the financing difficulties faced by small firms, the role of informal financing in alleviating certain of these difficulties and the areas where public policy is currently usefully employed in addressing such financing problems. Undertakes a questionnaire survey to collect data concerning small business awareness and use of informal finance and to identify issues concerning difficulties encountered in gaining access to finance. The results suggest that a debt finance gap may exist for a minority of firms, though an equity finance gap may represent a more significant issue for small firms. Four categories of policy action emerge from the study towards the achievement of economic and social policy objectives.

This paper examines the findings of a project to evaluate training and development support for micro businesses in a peripheral area. Results are based on questionnaire surveys of young micro businesses in Devon and Cornwall plus interviews with both business owner‐managers and training/support providers. They suggest that existing support, both at start‐up and during the post start‐up period, does not adequately address the development needs of micro firms and, more particularly, the needs of the small proportion of micro firms with ambitions to grow. It is concluded that this in part reflects the customer focus of Business Link. Given the important role of micro firms in local economic development in peripheral areas, greater flexibility is required in the way that such businesses are dealt with within the Business Link framework.

The purpose of this paper is to explore how enterprise education was adapted from a UK higher education institution (HEI) setting into an international context through collaboration with two Sri Lankan universities. It demonstrates the value of enterprise education in different cultures, and presents learning from the challenges faced by both staff and students in moving away from a traditional delivery method.

Adopting a case study approach, the paper describes a blended, incremental implementation strategy aimed at developing staff and students’ understanding of enterprise education in a gradual, supportive and culturally‐sensitive manner. Evaluation is conducted through an analysis of formal assessment performance and qualitative module review.

The paper demonstrates the impact of enterprise education in an international context and a capability amongst most students to engage with it successfully, whilst also highlighting the challenges of delivery in a different culture.

The adaptation of enterprise education to an international setting can be shown to add value in various ways, including the development of soft skills and building confidence in team working and communication. It can also be shown to empower staff in delivering teaching using non‐traditional techniques. However, consideration of context is essential to effective delivery.

This study makes a contribution to the fields of transnational education and enterprise education in international contexts. It shows the value of enterprise education in challenging traditional delivery methods and the acceptance of such by both staff and students.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate PhD student perceptions of the importance of enterprise skills and the extent to which they are currently being developed within a case university.

The study employed an electronic survey of 500 PhD students across six faculties, and 128 useable responses were returned. Students were asked to rate the importance of a range of enterprise skills and attributes derived from the literature, plus the extent to which these skills and attributes had been developed through their programme of study.

The majority of PhD students recognise the importance of enterprise skills and attributes, particularly those associated with communication, confidence, achieving outcomes, determination and problem solving. Whilst some enterprise skills and attributes are developed well through PhD study, others – such as managing finance and people – are not. A number of these are skills that might be particularly relevant to early‐career PhD graduates.

The research is limited to one case institution, and further research is required to investigate how the training and development gaps identified might be best addressed.

The study examines enterprise education within the novel context of postgraduate research studies. It identifies a need to re‐examine our approach to the training and development of PhD students in order to address their evolving career needs.