Teaching the future marketers through experiential client-based projects : marketing knowledge and skills in the context of early phases of service and product development

fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

A Mixed-Methods Study of Marketing Students’ Game-Playing Motivations and Gamification Elements

In this article, we examine the linkage between students’ game-playing motivations and a wide variety of gamification elements within higher marketing education. Using an interpretive and convergent mixed-methods design, we discover four clusters of students that vary in terms of their game-motivational bases and views on gamification elements. Social completionists want to study together with others and enjoy the social aspects of gamification. Highly motivated completionists could be described as ambitious students who enjoy social learning but are also internally motivated and willing to accept most gamification elements. Independent completionists want to immerse themselves in learning but prefer the individual and noncompetitive elements of gamification. Pure completionists are the “let’s get it done” group, who want to focus on completing their studies and are likely to be critical toward any gamification. We propose that higher education should take into account the differences in students’ game-playing motivations and fine-tune their gamification efforts to engage and motivate different kinds of students. Finally, we provide suggestions to marketing educators on how to consider the various motivational bases of the participants in gamified experiences.© The Author(s) 2022. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

Co-Teaching is Great! - But Only if There is Time : Teacher Perspectives on Online Co-Teaching

In response to recent societal trends and growing demand for online education, several higher education institutions are building online curriculums and collaborating in teaching. There is an extensive body of literature of student experiences in online teaching, but more research is needed on teacher experiences, especially when courses are co-taught across universities. To examine the advantages and challenges of co-teaching in large-scale online courses, we collected survey and interview data during 2017-2019 from 16 teachers who have been teaching in the national “LITO - basic business studies” online module. Based on a qualitative analysis, the advantages and challenges were classified into three distinct categories: teacher, student, and university levels. All in all, numerous important benefits were identified, with peer-support, sharing, and networking being among the more significant ones. Organizational support for co-teaching was identified as being a critical factor enabling the benefits.© 2020 Association of Business Schools Finlandfi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

Co-Teaching is Great! - But Only if There is Time : Teacher Perspectives on Online Co-Teaching

In response to recent societal trends and growing demand for online education, several higher education institutions are building online curriculums and collaborating in teaching. There is an extensive body of literature of student experiences in online teaching, but more research is needed on teacher experiences, especially when courses are co-taught across universities. To examine the advantages and challenges of co-teaching in large-scale online courses, we collected survey and interview data during 2017-2019 from 16 teachers who have been teaching in the national “LITO - basic business studies” online module. Based on a qualitative analysis, the advantages and challenges were classified into three distinct categories: teacher, student, and university levels. All in all, numerous important benefits were identified, with peer-support, sharing, and networking being among the more significant ones. Organizational support for co-teaching was identified as being a critical factor enabling the benefits.Peer reviewe

Revealing the paradoxes of horsemeat – The challenges of marketing horsemeat in Finland

This study aims to analyse the different cultural meanings attached to horsemeat consumption in the context of the Finnish market. We take the “meat paradox” as a theoretical starting point and investigate the underlying cultural structures that guide consumers’ meaning-making and consumption decisions in regard to horsemeat. The data were generated after the horsemeat scandal, drawing on a wide variety of media texts about horsemeat consumption. The data were analysed through qualitative content analysis and the findings reveal five horsemeat paradoxes. Each paradox contains meanings that reflect both the justifications for and avoidance of eating horsemeat. The findings show how horsemeat consumption holds various and even contradictory meanings, elucidating how it may be difficult for consumers to take a stand towards eating horsemeat. Thereby, the study provides novel ideas for marketing that are grounded in our deep-rooted and ingrained cultural understandings.©2015 Association of Business Schools Finland.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

A semiotic analysis on cultural meanings of eating horsemeat

Purpose: Drawing on food consumption research and human-animal studies, this study explores how the meanings related to a living horse may be transferred to those of horsemeat. This is accomplished by constructing a nuanced understanding of how different semantic meaning categories of accepting/avoiding consuming horsemeat relate to each other. Design/methodology/approach: The current data are collected from various sources of media discussions, including online news, online discussion forums, blog postings and printed articles, generated in Finland after the year 2013. The data are analysed applying Greimas’ (1982) semiotic square to open up the semantic meaning categories appearing in the media discussions. Findings: The semiotic square shows that the meanings of horsemeat arise between the binary oppositions of human-like and animal-like. In this structure, the category of human-like makes eating horsemeat impossible while the category of animal-like makes horsemeat good to eat. The main categories are completed and contrasted by the categories of not human-like and not animal-like. They represent horsemeat as an acceptable food, but only after certain justifications. Research limitations/implications: The data are based on Finnish media texts, and therefore the identified categories are interpreted in this specific cultural context. Originality/value: The current semiotic analysis adds to the existing food consumption research by shedding light on the cultural barriers that make something edible or inedible. By so doing, the findings present a more nuanced and dynamic understanding of the horse as a special kind of meat animal and the justifications for eating horsemeat. Consequently, the findings offer new insights concerning changing food consumption behaviours into a more sustainable direction, pointing out the hidden meanings that influence this process.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

Students’ Perception of the Development of Generic Competencies in a User Innovation Course Context – A Longitudinal Study Comparing Different Teaching Modes in Higher Education

The development of generic competencies relevant to graduates lies at the heart of higher education. Generic competencies development is challenging in today’s VUCA – volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous – world, and the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated this challenge as educators were forced to change from classroom to online teaching with very short notice. In this paper, we analyse how the change in teaching mode influences students’ perception of the development of their generic competencies. Our longitudinal data consists of five years of student feedback from a multidisciplinary and practice-oriented user innovation course in a higher education context. We analysed how students perceive their development of specific generic competencies and surprisingly found no statistical differences over the five years studied, not even when moving from blended teaching to a fully online seting. We discuss how the three underlying factors – 1) roots and premises, 2) freedom and independence, and 3) social connectedness and support – enhance the perceived development of generic competencies despite the change in teaching mode, and we conclude with suggestions to business educators.©2023 Association of Business Schools Finland.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

Pelillisyys opetuksessa kiinnostaa : kokemuksia Vaasan yliopistosta

Tässä artikkelissa käsittelemme pelillisyyden käyttöä Vaasan yliopiston opetuksessa tekemämme kyselyn pohjalta. Tulokset osoittavat, että pelillisyyteen suhtaudutaan positiivisesti ja sitä hyödynnetään monipuolisesti opetuksessa, vaikka haasteitakin ilmenee. Tulokset viittaavat siihen, että pelillisyyden käyttöä opetuksessa voitaisiin entisestään lisätä yliopistopedagogisen koulutuksen avulla. Kyselyn metodologiasta ja tuloksista löytyy yksityiskohtaisemmin tietoja Pelillisyys innostamassa oppimaan: tuloksia kyselystä Vaasan yliopiston opetushenkilökunnalle -julkaisusta (Kalmi, Jaskari & Eronen, 2020).©2020 Yliopistopedagogiikka ja kirjoittajat. Tämä teos on lisensoitu Creative Commons Nimeä 4.0 Kansainvälinen -lisenssillä.fi=vertaisarvioimaton|en=nonPeerReviewed

Pelillisyys innostamassa oppimaan : tuloksia kyselystä Vaasan yliopiston opetushenkilökunnalle

Pelit ja pelillistäminen ovat merkittäviä aktiivisen oppimisen muotoja, joilla on runsaasti sovelluksia myös yliopistopedagogiikassa. Tässä tutkimuksessa tarkastelemme pelillisyyden käyttöä Vaasan yliopistossa. Tutkimme, mitä opettajat pelillisyydellä tavoittelevat, miten he kokevat näissä tavoitteissaan onnistuneensa ja mitä haasteita ja ongelmia he ovat kokeneet. Tarkastelemme myös sitä, millaisia mahdollisuuksia yliopistopedagoginen koulutus voi tarjota pelillisyyden laajemmalle käytölle yliopisto-opetuksessa. Tutkimusaineisto kerättiin yliopiston opettajille suunnatulla verkossa olevalla tutkimuslomakkeella, johon saimme 65 vastausta. Aineisto analysoitiin luokittelemalla ja kuvailemalla. Tulokset osoittivat, että pelillisyyteen suhtaudutaan positiivisesti ja sitä hyödynnetään monipuolisesti opetuksessa. Opettajien pelillisyyden kautta tavoittelemat asiat liittyvät opiskelijoiden aktivointiin, kiinnostuksen herättämiseen, oppimisen mielekkyyteen, syväoppimisen vahvistamiseen, työelämätaitojen kohentamiseen ja opitun siirtämiseen uusiin konteksteihin. Haasteina opettajat nimesivät mm. resurssien puutteen, tekniset ongelmat ja osaamisen haasteet. Tutkimuksen perusteella yliopistopedagogisessa koulutuksessa tulisi huomioida pelillisyys yhtenä oppijakeskeisyyttä tukevana ja aktivoivana menetelmänä.fi=vertaisarvioimaton|en=nonPeerReviewed

Co-Teaching is Great! – But Only if There is Time: Teacher Perspectives on Online Co-Teaching

In response to recent societal trends and growing demand for online education, several higher education institutions are building online curriculums and collaborating in teaching. There is an extensive body of literature of student experiences in online teaching, but more research is needed on teacher experiences, especially when courses are co-taught across universities. To examine the advantages and challenges of co-teaching in large-scale online courses, we collected survey and interview data during 2017-2019 from 16 teachers who have been teaching in the national “LITO - basic business studies” online module. Based on a qualitative analysis, the advantages and challenges were classified into three distinct categories: teacher, student, and university levels. All in all, numerous important benefits were identified, with peer-support, sharing, and networking being among the more significant ones. Organizational support for co-teaching was identified as being a critical factor enabling the benefits. </p