Unlearning as a driver of sustainable change and innovation: three Australian case studies

Becker, Karen L.

doi:10.1504/ijtm.2008.018062

Cited by 83 publications

(116 citation statements)

References 22 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

111

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The results of the case study are in line with previous studies, which emphasize the impact of an individual's frame of reference upon the propensity to change (e.g. Oreg, 2003;Becker, 2008). However, the case study extends these findings that mainly relate to the individual level.…”

Section: Partnering Development and Unlearningsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…Although the concept of unlearning is given limited attention in scholarly literature compared to the opposed concept of learning (Tsang and Zahra, 2008), since the seminal work of Hedberg (1981) it has been acknowledged that previous knowledge potentially impacts upon learning processes and therefore unlearning is a necessary precondition for the inclusion of new information and behaviour (Becker, 2008). The results of the case study are in line with previous studies, which emphasize the impact of an individual's frame of reference upon the propensity to change (e.g.…”

Section: Partnering Development and Unlearningmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The emergence of partnering in construction practice: an activity theory perspective

Hartmann¹,

Bresnen²

2011

Engineering Project Organization Journal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Over the last decades, interest has increased enormously in collaborative arrangements subsumed under the term partnering. Recent critics have stated that prescriptive approaches dominate the discussion on partnering in construction. There is a lack of multiple perspectives on the partnering phenomenon including its economic, social, organizational and institutional contexts. Taking this criticism as a starting point, the collaborative practice in a road maintenance contract is investigated from an activity theory perspective. The research findings show that partnering is transient and transformative in nature and that its emergence depends on the individual, organizational and activity-related circumstances of social interaction. The need for a collaborative relationship particularly contradicts and challenges the behaviour and working style that individuals had internalized and been used to. Hence, partnering development is not only a matter of learning new knowledge and adjusting existing working processes. It also requires discarding old routines and behaviour and overcoming vicious circles of reinforcing perceptions.

show abstract

Section: Partnering Development and Unlearningsupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Partnering Development and Unlearningmentioning

confidence: 99%

The emergence of partnering in construction practice: an activity theory perspective

Hartmann¹,

Bresnen²

2011

Engineering Project Organization Journal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…As a result, researchers and practitioners face pressure to answer how ICT has to be implemented in SMEs to outperform traditional work practices. In this sense, learning and unlearning are important for change and innovation in organizations (Becker, 2008) because, as suggested by Rebernik and Sirec (2007), the better a firm understands the process of creating new knowledge and discarding obsolete knowledge, the more likely the firm will be to develop innovation behaviour. OL in the form of accumulated knowledge from past experiences and from stakeholders (customers, suppliers, business partners, etc.)…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analyzing ICT adoption and use effects on knowledge creation: An empirical investigation in SMEs

López‐Nicolás

Soto‐Acosta

2010

International Journal of Information Management

197

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…It would therefore appear reasonable to propose that the acquisition of new knowledge that requires the individual to eliminate (forget, unlearn) existing knowledge is influenced by the knowledge previously acquired by the individual. In this vein, Becker (2008) argues that "the level of experience and tacit knowledge amassed by the individual had the potential to impact unlearning." Becker (2008) further proposes that those with a breadth of knowledge and experience are more likely to be open to unlearn; however, those with a depth of expertise (e.g., older practitioners), particularly in the area requiring change, are more likely to resist unlearning.…”

Section: Conceptual Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this vein, Becker (2008) argues that "the level of experience and tacit knowledge amassed by the individual had the potential to impact unlearning." Becker (2008) further proposes that those with a breadth of knowledge and experience are more likely to be open to unlearn; however, those with a depth of expertise (e.g., older practitioners), particularly in the area requiring change, are more likely to resist unlearning. If we accept this argument then it is reasonable to infer that an HHU will be unable to (or find it very challenging to) change its procedures and routines if it has not previously supported the revision and updating the existing knowledge and knowledge structures of individual practitioners involved with the HHU.…”

Section: Conceptual Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Application of the Hospital-in-the-Home Unlearning Context

Cegarra‐Navarro

Wensley

Sanchez-Polo

2010

Social Work in Health Care

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Many researchers who have investigated health care organizations have indicated that health care professionals are replete with outdated knowledge, and some researchers go even further to argue that without the presence of a context that facilitates unlearning (forgetting) practitioners may lose the ability to recognize relevant changes with respect to knowledge pertaining to all aspects of the health care sector and they may decide to rely on potentially out-of-date knowledge and inappropriate ways of interpreting data with attendant loss of decision quality and attendant risks. This article presents an analysis and develops a model of the factors that influence unlearning which is focused on the health care industry and is comprised of three constituent components: (1) a framework characterizing the lens through which individuals view situations; (2) a framework for characterizing how individual habits change; and (3) a framework for characterizing the manner in which emergent understandings are consolidated into existing knowledge and knowledge structures. The model was developed and analyzed using qualitative data from the Hospital-in-the-Home Unit of a Spanish Regional Hospital. From a practical perspective the article provides for the identification of factors that influence the nature and effectiveness of the unlearning context in Hospital-in-the-Home-Units in regional hospitals. This not only valuably adds to the knowledge of the way these units function but also may enable actions to be taken to improve the learning processes associated with such units, resulting in an improvement in the quality of knowledge used in day-to-day decision making. It is to be assumed that, as a result of improving the quality of knowledge used in decision making, the quality of decisions will be improved.

show abstract

Unlearning as a driver of sustainable change and innovation: three Australian case studies

Cited by 83 publications

References 22 publications

The emergence of partnering in construction practice: an activity theory perspective

The emergence of partnering in construction practice: an activity theory perspective

Analyzing ICT adoption and use effects on knowledge creation: An empirical investigation in SMEs

An Application of the Hospital-in-the-Home Unlearning Context

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About