Memory and learning: Selecting users in the port of Rotterdam, 1883-1900

Hugo van Driel and Irma Bogenrieder

Business History, 2009, vol. 51, issue 5, 649-667

Abstract: During the closing decades of the nineteenth century, the port of Rotterdam experienced very strong growth. Changing views and concrete experiences induced the port to widen the initially limited circle of regular users of berths. We study this case in order to increase our understanding of the dynamic interrelationship between organisational memory and learning. While organisational memory guides the application of routines, this practical experience may also question underlying beliefs. Our study of deliberations by the Rotterdam government - to a significant degree representing the preferences of the local business elite - demonstrates how so-called lower order learning on the level of routines induces a so-called higher order learning on the level of beliefs. Finally, our case-study suggests that the traumatic nature of initial experiences that are part of organisational memory may hinder the deliberation of beliefs and thus retard higher order learning.

Keywords: organisational memory; learning; local government; ports (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00076790903125651 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:bushst:v:51:y:2009:i:5:p:649-667

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.tandfonline.com/pricing/journal/FBSH20

DOI: 10.1080/00076790903125651

Access Statistics for this article

Business History is currently edited by Professor John Wilson and Professor Steven Toms

More articles in Business History from Taylor & Francis Journals
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Chris Longhurst ().