The Domains of Organizational Learning Practices: An Agency-Structure Perspective

Nancy Beauregard, Louise Lemyre and Jacques Barrette
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Nancy Beauregard: School of Industrial Relations, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC H3C 3J7, Canada
Louise Lemyre: School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada
Jacques Barrette: Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada

Societies, 2015, vol. 5, issue 4, 1-21

Abstract: Background: Organizational learning theory has retained considerable attention in the past decades from a wide array of academic disciplines in social sciences. Yet few integrative efforts have satisfactorily offered a comprehensive and systematic articulation of the concept of organizational learning with regards to: (a) its core constitutive dimensions and associated mechanisms; (b) the analytical levels from such mechanisms operate (e.g., workers, teams, organizations); as well as (c) their interplay. Methods: This article builds on a critical synthesis of predominant approaches in organizational learning theory ( i.e. , structural functionalist, social constructivist and middle range approaches), highlighting the contributions of each approach on the key analytical elements guiding our inquiry ( i.e. , core dimensions and associated mechanisms, analytical levels, interplay). Drawing from the work of sociologists Anthony Giddens and Margaret Archer on agency-structure theory, we develop a series of theoretical propositions supporting the Organizational Learning Practices (OLP) concept as a unifying heuristic tool. Results: OLP are defined as a set of collectively shared practices held by members of a given organization embedded in normative, political, and semantic dynamics. At the heart of such dynamics lies organizational knowledge as a power resource pivotal to the sustainable development of organizations, as well as that of their members. Conclusion: OLP offer promising answers to on-going debates in organizational learning theory, and we conclude by discussing concrete guidelines to advance research and practice on OLP.

Keywords: organizational learning; agency-structure theory; organizational identity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A13 A14 P P0 P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 Z1 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
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