Case-Based Teaching in Business Education in the Arab Middle East and North Africa

Conclusion

Instructors seeking to utilize cases in M.E.N.A. educational institutions should be aware of how differences in M.E.N.A. culture and classroom norms might impact case-based learning in this region. In particular, high collectivism, uncertainty avoidance, and power distance associated with the M.E.N.A. cultural milieu give rise to a learning environment that is divergent from the Western classroom context, where the case method was born and developed. Case method socialization and classroom-composition or process adaptations may be necessary to better fit the case method to local cultural values and norms.

There is tremendous opportunity to contribute to a greater understanding of M.E.N.A. management challenges by adding to the small, existing corpus of available M.E.N.A. business cases. Casewriters face several challenges when conducting research in M.E.N.A. countries, including government intervention, respondent reticence to participate in research, and cultural adaptations in the data-collection process. But these obstacles can be mitigated by sufficient and careful casewriter preparation.

There is a need for case-based business education in the M.E.N.A. region. The case method simulates the real-world business environment, placing students in the position of the managerial decision-maker. Case-based learning experiences can help prepare M.E.N.A. students for the challenges that await them in a global economy, enabling them to better navigate uncertainty by employing analytic and problem-solving skills to seek solutions to complicated business problems.