The Introduction of Geographic Information Systems Through ArcView GIS in a Business School Curriculum

Author: Wesley W. Thomas
Organization: West Chester University

The Center for Geographic Information Systems and Spatial Analysis
West Chester, PA 19383
USA

Phone: 909-793-2853
wthomas@wcupa.edu

Business schools have been teaching different variations of geographic information systems for decades. Courses in marketing, management, real estate, operations research, and others have introduced various spatial concepts not formally recognized as geography in the curriculum. We are all familiar with the premise that 80 percent or more of corporate data collected is geographic or spatial in form. The problem arises when students are asked to think spatially. The role of distance, both network and Euclidean, is often foreign to students and yet of critical importance in the areas of marketing and operations. This paper discusses the process whereby a business geographics course was introduced into an undergraduate curriculum as a required course for marketing majors. It also discusses the important role that ArcView GIS has played in the teaching of critical spatial concepts to business majors.