Management fads, pedagogies, and other soft technologies

Management Fads, Pedagogies, and Other Soft Technologies

We present a model for the diffusion of management fads and other technologies which lack clear objective evidence about their merits. The choices made by non-Bayesian adopters reflect both their own evaluations and the social influence of their peers. We show, both analytically and computationally, that the dynamics lead to outcomes that appear to be deterministic in spite of being governed by...

ar X iv : p hy si cs / 0 50 92 17 v 1 2 6 Se p 20 05 Management Fads , Pedagogies , and other Soft Technologies

We present a model for the diffusion of management fads and other technologies which lack clear objective evidence about their merits. The choices made by non-Bayesian adopters reflect both their own evaluations and the social influence of their peers. We show, both analytically and computationally, that the dynamics lead to outcomes that appear to be deterministic in spite of being governed by...

Searching for Disruptive Pedagogies: Matching Pedagogies to the Technologies

Disruptive Pedagogies and Technologies in Universities

This paper is a reaction to the increasing high cost of higher education and the resulting inaccessibility for the millions of potential learners now seeking opportunities for quality higher education opportunities. The paper examines the cost centers associated with campus-based and online education systems and then suggests that disaggregation may prove to be a cost-effective way to reduce tu...

The Life Cycle of Academic Management Fads

eat tIe Institutions of higher education are always under pressure to become more efficient and effective. In response, many have attempted (either voluntarily or under mandate) to adopt new management systems and processes that were originally designed to meet the needs of (presumably) more efficient business or governmental organizations. One contemporary observer, referring to "the hum of co...