Call for papers: Organisational Learning and The Knowledge Society: Models and Challenges

Call for papers: Organisational Learning and The Knowledge Society: Models and Challenges

A special issue of International Journal of Learning and Intellectual Capital

Organisational learning theory has made great progress from its early concepts by Cangolosi and Dill (1965), and Argyris and Schon (1978). While early scholars established strong links between thinking and action (Argyris, 1993), and the relationships between individual and organisational learning (Fiol and Lyles, 1985; Kim, 1993), more contemporary inquiry has advanced the field from strategic renewal (Crossan, Lane, and White, 1999), to dynamic capabilities (Prieto and Easterby-Smith, 2006; Eisenhardt and Martin, 2000), to leadership (Vera and Crossan, 2004), and improvisation (Vera and Crossan, 2004:2005).

Indeed, organisational learning has now become a contemporary linking pin (so it appears) between cognitive thinking, behavioural action, and organisational strategy and change, and a foundation for understanding organisational processes. Contextual influences thus appear to be many but remain somewhat elusive and fuzzy as a unifying whole and in terms of their influence on the organisational learning process.

This special issue seeks to address the various learning contexts that influence organisational learning processes. Of particular interest is how contexts influence the quality of learning, learning routines and capabilities, and the capacity of the firm to embed them (if at all) within the 4I framework and learning outcomes. At the expense of a more discursive and interpretive perspective, to what extent are scholars using structure and prescription as a reductionist fallacy that glosses over contextual effects? To what extent is the field grounded in contextual fact and how does this influence learning processes and outcomes?

Papers from a variety of perspectives are welcomed, consistent with the theme. We welcome theoretical pieces that link context to theory, empirical works, and case studies. While many contextual influences are a matter of interpretation, scholars might particularly examine those that influence cognition, behavioural routines, and organisational processes. These might be drawn from a variety of fields such as strategic capability, organisation change, leadership, and strategy. We welcome inquiries from broader but related fields including organisational psychology and organisational studies, as a basis for extending organisational learning frameworks and typologies.

Suitable topics include but are not limited to:

• The knowledge society
• Individual and organisational capabilities
• Time and improvisation
• Strategic capabilities
• Power and control
• Technical and operating core
• Psychology of learning
• Change
• Learning routines
• Cognition
• Fiction and Story telling
• Culture
• Leadership

Important Dates
Contact with Editors: ASAP
Submission of manuscripts: 15 June 2008
Notification to authors: 1 July 2008
Final versions due: 15 July 2008