i) Business Studies and Politics / Political Science
These two disciplines of study are closely related. Businesses are activities carried out
by people in the production, distribution and exchange of goods and services to satisfy
human wants and with the main intention of making profit. On the other hand, Politics
are activities and actions that are carried out by political actors in expressing ways of
governing a country. Political Science is an academic field of study that deals with
systems of governance of the state, the political thoughts and political behaviors of the
people and political activities carried out in governing the state. American Political
Science Association has defined Political Science as “the study of the governments,
public policies and political processes, systems and political behavior”. A significant
proportion of political policies, political processes and political behaviors are oriented
towards the operations of businesses. Businesses and politics are two major forces
which influence the development of any nation.
The main goal of the business is to make profit and the objectives of politics are to
facilitate economic development and the stability of the economy. Businesses are the
lifeline of any economy. The significant proportion of the government revenue is raised
through taxation of business profits and issuance of government licenses. Therefore,
governments control and influence the business operations within the economy through
legislations (e.g. the companies Act, the Partnership Act, the State Corporations Act, etc)
for the public good of the citizens.
Furthermore, business operations influence both the national and international politics
and at the same time, national and international politics influence business operations
(cause and effects). It has been argued that in the area of applied economics, political
considerations are very vital (e.g. a country’s population growth policy touches on
political issues of a nation). Those countries with declining population have enacted
policies to reverse the trend whereas those countries with rapidly growing population
have enacted policies to curtail the high population growth rate (e.g. the Chinese one
child per married couple policy).
Also, political ideologies have influenced the business operations in the nations of the
world. For instance, Kenya embraced capitalism soon after political independence from
Britain whereas Tanzanian politicians opted for the socialist-based ideology of
Ujamaism to develop their economy. During the global politics of the Cold War (the
superpower rivalry between the United States of America (USA) and Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1960s and 1970s), nations in the Third World were at the
crossroad politically and a number of third world nations became politically unstable
(there were coup d’e tats and counter coup d’e tats in most Latin American and African
nations. Business operations in the Third World economies were affected by the cold
war politics of 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.
Also during electioneering campaigns, politicians use politics of economic
development to launch their campaign strategies. Finally, there is a field of
specialization in Economics which is referred to as political economics which trains
political economists.
The subject matter of Business Studies in the Secondary School curriculum has
embraced government roles in business operations (e.g. in Kenyan Secondary School
Business Studies Syllabus, topics such as Government involvement in Business, forms
of business ownerships, employment and unemployment, Agricultural and Industrial
Development, Public Finance etc have embraced political issues).
ii) Business Studies and Ethics / Religion
Religion is the study of the sacred values, theories, practices and also principles and
laws which are related to sacred beliefs. Ethical (moral)/ religious issues and business
issues have some close relationships. Scholars, such as Max Weber (Max Weber’s
Publication on Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Capitalism) and Crane and Matten
(2004) have attempted to show clearly the relationships between business practices
and religious/moral ethics. As defined by Crane and Matten (2004:8), Business Ethics
is “the study of situations, activities and decisions where issues of right and wrong are
addressed”. Business Ethics is now a new academic field of specialization for scholars
in the study of business
The new field of specialization in the study of business arose out of the perception that
business people use “dirty tricks” such as blackmail and greed, to exploit consumers so
as to gain more profit. A number of people have perceived the activities of the business
people as unethical and morally wrong. At times, the members of the public have also
believed that businesses have continuously exploited workers to gain more profit. A
number of businesses have also used corruptible tactics to win tenders (or to gain more
advantages in preferential treatment).
Some people belief that the activities of the business people are attempts to address
calling from God. Religions all over the world (e.g. Abrahamic – Christians and
Muslims), Hindu, Buddhism, Jingoism etc have, throughout human history, had their
own influences on activities of businesses. Ethical values and practices come from
various religions (e.g. Muslims do not eat pork, Seventh day Adventists abhor the
consumption of tea leaves, etc).
Adam Smith, the eighteenth century distinguished scholar who founded modern
economics recognized ethical behavior in business when he wrote “Everyman as long
as he does not violate the laws of justice, is left perfectly free to pursue his own
interest his own way…(Adam Smith, 1937:651).
Recently, the world financial crises of 2007/2008 have been attributed to unethical
behavior of the market participants (that is the market participants were not adhering to
ethical standards).
Corporate social responsibility, which is currently embraced by corporations all over the
world, is a direct calling for moral consideration.
There are also other moral considerations which emanate from moral issues (e.g. is it
true that the taxation on drugs, cigarettes and alcoholic drinks is meant to discourage
the consumption or purely for economic reasons of raising government revenue? Other
economic issues have moral considerations (e.g. the family planning methods to curb
high rates of population growth, the income distribution policies of advocating
progressive taxation rate on people’s income,etc).
Therefore, ethical / moral / religious issues are closely linked to business practices.
iii) Economics and History
These two disciplines are closely related. Without the knowledge history, it is
impossible for a scholar of Business Studies to comprehend how the world has
economically developed to its present status. History is the study of mankind’s past
events in order to understand the present events and predict precisely the future events.
Some of the man’s past events are business events.
The struggle by human beings for the control (rivalry) of the major economic resources
has been cited as the main cause of world major wars and internecine conflicts (e.g. the
first and the Second World War wars, the Germans wanted more territorial land to
expand the then German economy. The American War of Independence was caused by
the rivalry between the American State soldiers and the British over the control of
economic resources. The American Civil War was caused by the conflict between the
civil rights movements and the Northern American citizens over the benefits from
slavery labour. The Mau Mau rebellion in Kenya was mainly caused by the rivalry over
the control of Kenya’s economic resources (land).
Historians employ economic terminologies to communicate economic events (e.g. the
Industrial Revolution period, the Green Revolution Period, the Great Depression Period of
1920s and 1930s, the World Financial Crisis of 2007 and 2008, etc).
Business history (and specifically economic history) has developed as a course of study
which deals with past business (economic) events. For instance, business historians
provide past knowledge on the origin as well as the developments of modern day
business corporations such as Unilever, Microsoft, Toyota, Honda, Uchumi, etc.
Business (economic) historians provide answers as to why the Japanese Economy in
the 20th century overtook most Asian economies or the reasons behind the rapid
success of Japanese companies in the twentieth century world economy.
iv) Business Studies and Geography
The two disciplines are closely related. Geography is the study of the earth’s
environment as the home of man and man’s activities on the environment. Among the
man’s activities learnt or studied on earth’s environment are business (economic)
activities.
At times, the subject matter of Geography overlaps with that of Business Studies and
especially in the area of economic development. Geographers use a wide range of
economic terminologies to communicate geographical events or activities. There is an
area of specialization in Geography referred to as Economic Geography.
v) Business Studies and Mathematics
These two disciplines are closely related and more so intertwined and inseparable.
Mathematics is widely used and applied in Economics, Accounting, Marketing,
Management, Commerce and Office Practice. Business Studies and Mathematics
share the same subject matter (e.g. in Business Statistics, Mathematical Economics,
Economic statistics and Econometrics). Statistics is a branch of mathematics which is
widely used and applied in Business (e.g. in carrying out research, work) collecting data,
measuring data, classifying data, analyzing data, interpreting data and communicating
results.
Linear programming is widely used in establishing suitable levels of output which
guarantee maximum returns or levels of output which guarantee lowest cost.
Prerequisite for entry into a wide range of university courses in Business in Kenya’s
universities (such as Accounting Business management, Business Studies and
Economics) is a good grade in Mathematics at KCSE level.
raphael answered the question on August 10, 2021 at 05:45