Categorization of teamwork skills in cost accounting: application of the problem-based learning methodology

Purpose This research explains the application of the problem-based learning (PBL) teaching technique to develop teamwork skills in students studying cost accounting, as well as to categorize the teamwork skills in the context of PBL. PBL was applied to students in the third year of their studies for a bachelor's degree in business administration and management (BAM) at the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration (FCBA) of the Autonomous University of Madrid (AUM). This educational initiative involved 154 students enrolled in two academic years (2021–2022 and 2022–2023). Design/methodology/approach The problem-based learning (PBL) methodology was applied in the cost accounting course in the context of two teaching innovation projects. This initiative is a continuation of the work previously presented by Pérez Espés et al. (2022). It was conducted in the first semesters of two consecutive academic years: 2021–2022 and 2022–2023. The application of this teaching practice was developed with students in the third year of the BAM course at the FCBA of the AUM. In this paper, the exploratory factor analysis (EFA) technique is used to identify the dimensions that define teamwork skills in the PBL context. EFA is an appropriate technique for exploring the underlying structure of the data without imposing a preconceived structure. Specifically, seven factors/dimensions were identified that are conceptually aligned with the models analysed in the work of Torrelles et al. (2011). Findings The results of this research contribute to the task of identifying PBL as a potential technique in the field of accounting. We also identify the dimensions or categories of teamwork skills that are learned and developed collaboratively through the application of PBL to the subject of cost accounting. Originality/value PBL has been applied since 1960 in several medical schools and in other disciplines, such as nursing, engineering, law and economics. It has also been implemented in the field of accounting, and empirical evidence of its benefits for students has been reported (Breton, 1999; Stanley and Marsden, 2012), but research in this field remains lacking in comparison to research in other areas. Therefore, the results of this work contribute, on the one hand, to the task of identifying PBL as a technique that can be used in the field of accounting and to that of continuing to offer ideas that can be helpful to accounting educators (Milne and McConnell, 2001). On the other hand, we identify the dimensions that categorize teamwork skills after the application of PBL to the subject of cost accounting.