Building on a previous conceptual article, we present an empirically derived model of network learning - learning by a group of organizations as a group. Based on a qualitative, longitudinal, multiple-method empirical investigation, five episodes of network learning were identified. Treating each episode as a discrete analytic case, through cross-case comparison, a model of network learning is developed which reflects the common, critical features of the episodes. The model comprises three conceptual themes relating to learning outcomes, and three conceptual themes of learning process. Although closely related to conceptualizations that emphasize the social and political character of organizational learning, the model of network learning is derived from, and specifically for, more extensive networks in which relations among numerous actors may be arms-length or collaborative, and may be expected to change over time.
Anderson, P.Collective interpretation and collective action in population-level learning: Technology choice in the American cement industry . Advances in Strategic Management, 1999, 16, 277-307 .
2.
Araujo, L.Knowing and learning as networking . Management Learning, 1998, 29, 317-336 .
3.
Argyris, C. & Schön, D.Organizational learning: A theory of action perspective. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley , 1978.
4.
Busenberg, G.J.Innovation, learning, and policy evolution in hazardous systems . American Behavioral Scientist, 2000, 44, 679-691 .
5.
Cook, S. & Yanow, D.Culture and organizational learning . Journal of Management Inquiry, 1993, 2, 373-390 .
6.
Coopey, J. & Burgoyne, J.Politics and organizational learning . Journal of Management Studies, 2000, 37, 869-885 .
7.
Crossan, M. , Lane, H. , White, R. & Djurfeldt, L.Organizational learning: Dimensions for a theory . The International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 1995, 3, 337-360 .
8.
Dacin, T. , Ventresca, M. & Beal, B.The embeddedness of organizations: Dialogue and directions . Journal of Management, 1999, 25, 317-356 .
9.
Easterby-Smith, M.Disciplines of organizational learning: Contributions and critiques . Human Relations, 1997, 50, 1085-1113 .
10.
Easterby-Smith, M. & Araujo, L.Organizational learning: Current debates and opportunities. In M. Easterby-Smith , J. Burgoyne & L. Araujo (Eds), Organizational learning and the learning organization. London: Sage , 1999, pp. 1-21.
11.
Easterby-Smith, M. , Crossan, M. & Nicolini, D.Organizational learning: Debates past, present and future . Journal of Management Studies, 2000, 37, 783-796 .
12.
Easterby-Smith, M. , Snell, R. & Gherardi, S.Organizational learning: Diverging communities of practice?Management Learning, 1998, 29, 259-272 .
13.
Gherardi, S.Practice-based theorizing on learning and knowing in organizations . Organization, 2000, 7, 211-223 .
14.
Granovetter, M.Problems of explanation in economic sociology. In N. Nohria & R. Eccles (Eds), Networks and organizations: Structure, form and action. Boston: Harvard Business School Press , 1992, pp. 25-56.
15.
Huber, G.Organizational learning: The contributing processes and the literatures . Organization Science, 1991, 2(1), 88-115 .
16.
Huysman, M.Balancing biases: A critical review of the literature on organizational learning. In M. Easterby-Smith , J. Burgoyne & L. Araujo (Eds), Organizational learning and the learning organization. London: Sage , 1999, pp. 59-74.
17.
Knight, L.Network learning: Exploring learning by interorganizational networks . Human Relations, 2002, 55, 427-454 .
18.
Knight, L. & Pye, A.Exploring the relationships between network change and network learning . Management Learning, 2004, 35, 473-490 .
19.
Kouzmin, A. , Jarman, A. & Rosenthal, U.Inter-organizational policy processes in disaster management . Disaster Prevention and Management, 1995, 4(2), 20-37 .
20.
Lane, C.Organizational learning in supplier networks. In M. Dierkes , A.B. Antal , J. Child & I. Nonaka (Eds), Handbook of organizational learning and knowledge. Oxford: Oxford University Press , 2001, pp. 699-715.
21.
Larsson, R. , Bengtsson, L. , Henriksson, K. & Sparks, J.The interorganizational learning dilemma: Collective knowledge development in strategic alliances . Organization Science, 1998, 9, 285-305 .
22.
Levinson, N. & Asahi, M.Cross-national alliances and interorganizational learning . Organizational Dynamics, 1995, 24(2), 50 .
23.
McHugh, C.Preparing public safety organizations for disaster response: A study of Tucson, Arizona’s response to flooding . Disaster Prevention and Management, 1995, 4(5), 25-36 .
24.
Nathan, M. & Mitroff, I.The use of negotiated order theory as a tool for the analysis and development of an interorganizational field . Journal of Applied Behavioral Science,1991, 27, 163-180 .
25.
Newell, S. , Robertson, M. & Swan, J.Editorial for special issue on management fads and fashions . Organization, 2001, 8(1), 5-15 .
26.
Paton, D. , Johnston, D. & Houghton, B.Organizational response to a volcanic eruption . Disaster Prevention and Management, 1998, 7(1), 5-13 .
27.
Pettigrew, A.Contextualist research: A natural way to link theory and practice. In E. Lawler (Ed.), Doing research that is useful for theory and practice. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass , 1985, pp. 222-274.
28.
Pettigrew, A.Context and action in the transformation of the firm . Journal of Management Studies, 1987, 24, 649-670 .
29.
Pettigrew, A.Longitudinal field research on change: Theory and practice . Organization Science, 1990, 1, 267-292 .
30.
Prange, C.Organizational learning - desperately seeking theory? In M. Easterby-Smith , J. Burgoyne & L. Araujo (Eds), Organizational learning and the learning organization: Developments in theory and practice. London: Sage , 1999, pp. 23-43.
31.
Ragin, C.Introduction: Cases of ‘what is a case?’ In C. Ragin & H. Becker (Eds), What is a case? Exploring the foundations of social inquiry. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press , 1992, pp. 1-18.
32.
Spender, J.-C.Industry recipes: An enquiry into the nature and sources of managerial judgement. Oxford: Blackwell , 1989.
33.
Szulanski, G.The process of knowledge transfer: A diachronic analysis of stickiness . Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 2000, 82(1), 9-27 .
34.
Tsang, E.Organizational learning and the learning organization: A dichotomy between descriptive and prescriptive research . Human Relations, 1997, 50, 73-89 .
35.
Weick, K.Sensemaking in organizations. London: Sage , 1995.
