An Experimental Investigation Comparing the Effects of Case Study, Management Flight Simulator and Facilitation of these Methods on Mental Model Development in a Group Setting

摘要

The practice of building and exploring Systems dynamics models with groups of non-experts is still relatively new to most organizations. One primary concern in this practice is how to structure group modeling sessions so that participants' mental models of system functioning may be most effectively elicited and made more robust given a limited time frame in which to conduct group-based activities. This paper is drawn from dissertation research conducted at a southwestern U.S. airline. The study was designed to look at the impact of model Conceptualization (via Case Study), simulation (via Management Flight Simulator) and facilitation of the these processes on the elaboration and revision of individually held mental models and group dynamics. Included in the discussion is a summary of the background literature on which the study is based, the underlying theoretical model used for establishing the experimental framework, an overview of the research methodology and results.