A simple shift in business education, training MBA students to listen effectively, can significantly boost their humility and ability to lead with integrity, according to a new study from the University of Surrey.

The study, published in the Journal of Business Ethics, challenges the long-held assumption that character cannot be taught. Business schools have been accused of inflating hubris in managers, but Surrey researchers in collaboration with colleagues in the US and in Israel found that humility – a quality linked with effective leadership, stronger teams and more ethical behaviour – can be cultivated through focused listening training.

Over four years, 260 MBA students took part in a quasi-experiment. Some attended a “listening-focused” course built around exercises such as storytelling, feedback interviews, and reflection circles, while a control group took traditional lecture-based modules. Students in the listening course not only reported greater improvements in listening skills but also scored higher in multiple measures of humility, compared to their peers.

Dr Irina Cojuharenco, co-author of the study and Associate Professor in Management at Surrey Business School, said:

“Many assume humility is an innate trait – you either have it, or you don’t. What our research shows is that humility can be taught, and listening is the key. When future leaders learn to listen deeply, they also learn to acknowledge their limitations, value others’ contributions, and make more ethical choices. That’s not just a personal skill; it’s the foundation for creating value in business.”

However, the researchers uncovered a striking pattern during the pandemic. When the listening course had to be taught online, students still improved their listening skills – but their humility did not increase. This suggests that humility is more effectively cultivated through face-to-face experiences of listening, where nuance, trust, and connection can develop in ways that video conferencing struggles to replicate.

Dr Cojuharenco continued:

“The contrast highlights a wider concern for organisations that rely heavily on remote working. Online communication may make it more challenging to create the kinds of interpersonal connections that foster humility, which in turn could complicate efforts to nurture ethical and empathetic leadership cultures in digital-first environments.

“Embedding structured, in-person listening practice into MBA curricula could help produce leaders whose commercial achievements stem from integrity and care.”

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