In this session, attendees will learn about what led to the U.S. opioid crisis through a hands-on card sort exercise and facilitated discussion. The emergence and growth of the crisis will be framed using complexity theory, specifically the components of complex adaptive systems analysis. In ethics courses and in the popular press, crises such as the opioid epidemic are depicted by failures of individual decision making, organizational culture, and/or weak institutions. In the case of the opioid epidemic, complexity theory and the components of complex adaptive systems analysis offer a more robust understanding of the evolution of this crisis and is a novel perspective for business ethics courses. Complex adaptive systems analysis highlights the importance of initiating conditions, movement to a “far from equilibrium” state, factors that amplify deviance, and use of repeating patterns (fractals) across time. The relevant components of complex adaptive systems analysis will be used to describe the development of the U.S. opioid crisis from 1995 to present day. The objectives of this exercise are threefold: 1) to expose business students to the role of businesses in the creation of the U.S. opioid crisis; 2) to introduce a framework – complex adaptive systems analysis – that provides a robust and comprehensive explanation of this crisis; and 3) to consider how this crisis could have been resisted or moderated.
This session is part of the Teaching and Learning Conference (TLC@AOM). A separate TLC@AOM registration fee of $120 (USD) is required. Space is limited and registration is on a first-come, first-served basis. The deadline to register is 11 August, unless sold out. Register for TLC@AOM.
