Behavioral Challenges in Strategic Decision-Making: An Analysis Based on the Melbourne Decision Making Questionnaire

Abstract

This article analyzes the behavioral challenges that affect strategic decision-making among university students, using the Melbourne Decision Making Questionnaire (MDMQ). The sample included 183 final-year and pre-final-year students from the courses of Accounting and Finance, Logistics, and Business Information Systems. Four decision-making styles were evaluated: vigilant, hypervigilant, procrastinator, and avoidant. The results reveal a low prevalence of the vigilant style, which is considered the most suitable for strategic decisions, and a predominance of dysfunctional styles, especially the hypervigilant and avoidant ones. The analysis showed that anxiety, fear of error, and avoidance of responsibility are factors that undermine students' ability to make rational and well-founded decisions. Differences by gender, course, and professional experience highlight the need for differentiated pedagogical strategies to foster more conscious and effective decision-making skills in the academic environment.

Keywords: Strategic decision-making; Decision styles; Behavior; University students; Melbourne Decision Making Questionnaire (MDMQ).