Wonder-driven Entrepreneurship Teaching: - When working with the ethical and existential dimension in professional bachelor education

Finn Thorbjørn Hansen, Sine Maria Herholdt-Lomholdt

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Abstract

Contemporary research on creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship have now for a decade or more been focusing on social constructive, pragmatic, socio-cultural and socio-material dimensions of creative and innovative processes and entrepreneurship (Bager et al. 2010, Brinkmann & Tangaard 2010, 2012; Eng, Ledwith&Bessant, 2010;Sarasvathy, 2005). Focus has been on product-, user- and design-driven innovation and processes of ideation. Lately, however, a new more existential and philosophical-hermeneutic approach to creativity and innovation has been suggested. Verganti & Öberg (2013) talks about a change from user- to meaningdriven innovation, Madsbjerg & Rasmussen (2014) about ‘moments of clarity’, which transcends what can be captured by the socio-cultural and constructive approach and Hansen (2014) suggest an existential and wonder-driven approach to design-, innovation- and entrepreneurship processes. In this paper we want to continue in line with this new framework of meaning- and wonder-driven innovation by focusing on the possible educational consequences of such an approach. Our empirical departure is our three-year phenomenological action research project called ‘Wonder-based Entrepreneurship Teaching in Professional bachelor Education’. Ten senior lecturers in nursing and pedagogy participated. The purpose was to investigate whether and how Socratic and philosophical dialogues and different forms of phenomenological and existential reflections upon one´s own professional assumptions in so-called ‘Wonder Labs’ could contribute to existing innovation- and entrepreneurship education in at least two ways: 1. To deeply and existential root students and educators in their profession and values 2. To bring students and educators on the edge of their knowledge into the field of “not knowing but being”. This paper will describe why the phenomenology of wonder and wonder-based approaches can become doorways for understanding the existential and ontological dimension of entrepreneurship teaching, and why this kind of entrepreneurship teaching also can strengthen a key concept in professional bachelor education: the ‘phronetic judgement’.
Translated title of the contributionUndringsdreven entreprenørskabsundervisning
Original languageEnglish
Publication date30 Jan 2015
Number of pages6
Publication statusPublished - 30 Jan 2015
Event1.st European Networking conference on entrepreneurship Education - Horsens, Denmark
Duration: 29 Jan 201530 Jan 2015
Conference number: 9788799365630

Conference

Conference1.st European Networking conference on entrepreneurship Education
Number9788799365630
Country/TerritoryDenmark
CityHorsens
Period29/01/201530/01/2015

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