Efficacy of role‐playing pedagogy in training leaders: some reflections

Abstract

As the need is rife for today's leaders to make swift and perfect decisions, they need to learn critical thinking and interpersonal skills as quickly as they can. The traditional pedagogical techniques of training lack the potentiality to make these happen. Not only are they rigorous, and less dynamic, but also they are less learner‐centered, less experiential, and often predispose learners to evaluation anxiety situations. The method of role‐playing differs in many unique ways. Its ability to induce participants to quick understanding notwithstanding, it also has the potential to transform theoretical concepts into an experiential format. In all the scenarios presented in this paper, role‐playing has presented itself as one of the most promising training techniques today. This paper attempts to reflect on the efficacy of role‐playing as an effective pedagogical technique. Implications for practice and research are also discussed.