The journey of team learning since “The Fifth Discipline”

Abstract

Purpose This paper is focused on team learning, the fourth discipline proposed by Senge (1990) in his seminal book The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization. This paper aims to provide a reflection upon the journey that this construct has made since this book’s publication, in terms of conceptualization, research and its link to organizational learning and learning organizations. Design/methodology/approach This paper is based on a review of Senge’s (1990) conceptualization of team learning and on a literature review of team learning research that has been produced since then. Findings Since the first edition of Senge’s book in 1990, team learning has been growing as an autonomous research topic with numerous papers centered on learning at this level of analysis. Senge’s proposals concerning team learning remain present in the way team learning is now conceptualized, but this research stream has led to advancements in its conceptualization and on the understanding of its antecedents and consequences. Nevertheless, the authors observed a lack of research centered on the link between team learning and organizational learning, as well as between team learning and the concept of the learning organization. Originality/value This paper offers a review of research on team learning, suggesting some avenues for further research on this topic and its contribution to learning organizations. As teams are nowadays the building blocks of most organizational structures, and learning is a key process for effectiveness, research on learning at this level of analysis will remain valuable.

Maximizing Learning Through Cohesion: Contributions From a Nonlinear Approach

“…Nonetheless, if task cohesion becomes extremely high, criticism might be avoided (Hardy et al, 2005), as well as the identification and test of new paths, and, in consequence, team learning might be at stake. Likewise, as evidenced by Hardy and colleagues (2005) with sport teams, high task cohesion can produce communication inefficiencies and harm effective dialogue, which has been recognized as one of the key fundamental practices to achieving team learning (Rebelo et al, 2020; Senge, 1990). Moreover, when task cohesion gets too high, teams may be overly reliant on their own capabilities, which might prevent them from reflecting on achievements and looking for new ways to address tasks (Marques-Quinteiro et al, 2019; Maynard et al, 2015).…”

Power asymmetry, egalitarianism and team learning – Part 1: conceptualizing the moderating role of environmental hardship

“…As Rebelo et al (2019) noted, Senge’s (1990) proclamation that teams, not individuals, were the fundamental learning units in organizations triggered a surge of interest in the topic of team learning. Senge’s (1990) definition of team learning (characterized as “'dialogue” the capacity of members of a team to suspend assumptions and enter into genuine “thinking together”), remains conceptually relevant.…”

“…Team learning provides “a task and social context which shapes what is learned and how it is learned” (Kozlowski and Bell, 2008, p. 27). A team, high on team learning is likely to share and accept patterns of inquiry, dialogue and sharing of knowledge which focus on detecting failures and incorporating feedback (Edmondson et al , 2001; Rebelo et al , 2019; Watkins and Marsick, 1997). Team learning is critical for teams to adapt and adjust to dynamically changing demands and is predictive of team performance and effectiveness (Day et al , 2004).…”

Power asymmetry, egalitarianism and team learning – part II: empirical examination of the moderating role of environmental hardship

“…Team learning is critical for team performance and is characterized as a team's willingness to share knowledge and failures and incorporate feedback (Edmondson, 1999;Rebelo et al, 2019;Watkins and Marsick, 1997). Egalitarianism among members is proposed as a "theoretical engine" that drives learning (Burke et al, 2004).…”