Promoting Critical-Thinking Skills By Using Negotiation Exercises

Many writers argue that it is necessary to develop critical thinking skills in business students because these skills are needed to deal with the increasing complexities of real-life problems. Although the goal appears to be laudable, it is not always clear how to go about achieving it. In this article, the authors describe active learning experiences in a course on business negotiations that serve the dual purpose of teaching students to negotiate and sharpen their critical-thinking skills. In the current atmosphere of resource constraints, it is unlikely that separate courses can be set up for improving critical-thinking skills. A course on business negotiations, suitably designed to incorporate appropriate active-learning experiences, is one way to promote higher order thinking skills.