Using role play to develop an empathetic mindset in executive education

• Main Authors: HOE, Siu Loon, GREULICH-SMITH, Tamsin
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2021
• Subjects: Role play; empathy; change management; competency development; adult learning; Databases and Information Systems; Management Information Systems
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/sis_research/6247; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/context/sis_research/article/7250/viewcontent/ICT_Using_Role_Play_Empathetic_Mindset_ExecEdu_acceptedver.pdf
• Institution: Singapore Management University

The purpose of this article is to discuss the importance of a role play activity as part of an experiential instructional strategy to develop an empathetic mindset among professionals, managers, and executives (PMEs) attending an executive education program in change management. This article provides an approach and process for management educators and facilitators of executive education programs to introduce and teach role play for the busy executives to learn about empathy. Role play is a useful teaching method that helps adult learners understand the importance of seeing things from another person’s point of view especially within a short period of time. Management educators and facilitators could introduce and teach role play for the busy executives to learn about empathy based on the proposed approach and process in this article.