Exploring linkages between unlearning and human resource development: Revisiting unlearning cases

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to review unlearning cases and to identify and suggest what roles human resource development (HRD) can play in the unlearning process. By adopting the unlearning process model (Cegarra-Navarro, Eldridge, & Wensley, 2014), four unlearning cases were revisited and analyzed. All of the cases showed that the organizations engaged in the overall unlearning process, initiated unlearning to promote the necessary changes, and reinforced new knowledge, skills, and routines employees needed to acquire after unlearning. The findings illustrate that HRD can play a role in supporting employees' awareness of the need for change in the unlearning process, facilitate the processes of discarding obsolete routines, and promote relearning new knowledge. K E Y W O R D S change, human resource development (HRD), unlearning

Unlearning in the workplace: Antecedents and outcomes

“…By adding more contextual information to the basic process, practitioners can tailor the unlearning process to their contexts with appropriate details and feasibility. To promote the unlearning process, HRD practitioners can also play various roles such as the advocator, facilitator, and/or change agent (Park & Kim, 2020).…”

“…To promote the unlearning process, HRD practitioners can also play various roles such as the advocator, facilitator, and/or change agent (Park & Kim, 2020).…”

“…Although most of the learning process in organizations involves unlearning (Nystrom & Starbuck, 1984), little research has conceptually and empirically examined unlearning in the field of HRD (Matsuo, 2018a; Morais‐Storz & Nguyen, 2017; Park & Kim, 2020). Most learning activities in the workplace virtually revolve around HRD and that HRD professionals have played the facilitating roles in various learning efforts including formal and informal learning (Dixon, 1992; Lau et al, 2017; Watkins & Marsick, 2003, 2021).…”

Workplace bullying, socially aversive attitudes, reduced work group effectiveness, and organizational frustration

“…Specifically, management should encourage awareness training, multiple communication strategies, and proper reporting procedures as possible interventions that could be developed and implemented throughout organizations to mitigate concerns about bullying. But in addition to learning and utilizing new approaches, HRD research would suggest unlearning dysfunctional patterns and outdated knowledge and routines that are no longer useful would be equally important (Park & Kim, 2020). Collectively, these efforts should encourage employees to believe that they are being treated ‘fairly, considerately and appreciatively…one of several elements that characterises an ethical company’ (Schroeder, 2002, p. 263).…”

Applying a Meta-Synthesis Qualitative Approach to Provide a Model of Unlearning Outcomes in the Organization

“…‫راديکال‬ ‫نوآوری‬ [18], [5], [23] ‫سازمانی‬ ‫چابکی‬ [11] ‫سازمانی‬ ‫موفقيت‬ [6] ‫رقابتی‬ ‫مزيت‬ [30] ‫کارآفرينانه‬ ‫قابليت‬ [47] ‫توسعه‬ ‫انسانی‬ ‫منابع‬ [21], [12] ‫پايدار‬ ‫تغيير‬ [15] ‫انعطاف‬ ‫سازما‬ ‫پذيری‬ ‫نی‬ [20], [23], [24], [34] ‫جذب‬ ‫ظرفيت‬ [7] ‫مشارکتی‬ ‫دانش‬ ‫خلق‬ [35], [36] ‫دانش‬ ‫جستجوی‬ [19] ‫تدريجی‬ ‫نوآوری‬ [23], [37] ‫جديد‬ ‫محصول‬ ‫موفق‬ ‫توسعه‬ [24], [14] ‫مشتريان‬ ‫برای‬ ‫عالی‬ ‫ارزش‬ ‫خلق‬ [48] ‫و‬ ‫باورها‬ ‫(در‬ ‫تغييرات‬ ‫ايجاد‬ ‫روال‬ ‫ها‬ ) [14], […”