Physical Co-location: an intersection of problem-solving and vicarious learning

Title

Physical Co-location: an intersection of problem-solving and vicarious learning

Creator

Venkat R.; Gupta A.; Banerjee J.; Chellappan R.B.

Description

Scholars have examined Revans' problem-solving praxeology in many contexts but have not fully explored the concept in the case of physical co-location. Hence, we focussed on investigating Revans' conceptualisation in a co-located context by paying particular attention to the different forms of learning' that emerged from it. The research setting for this study involved two coworking spaces in Bangalore, India, whose constituents were co-located start-ups and established enterprises. Held from January to March 2020, the study involved conducting exploratory, semi-structured interviews with twelve firms. The findings suggested that in a co-located environment, a) firms learnt vicariously' from a rich, external knowledge base during the enquiry-led Alpha phase b) firms learnt experientially', through learning by doing and reflecting in the implementation-focussed Beta phase c) firms learnt through the process of emergence that resulted from personal reflection and team interaction, in the revelatory Gamma phase. This study lends a novel direction in acknowledging that vicarious learning, that is, learning through the experience of others, serves as a starting point for problem-solving in a co-located context. We demonstrate that firms gain familiarity with the problem through vicarious sources, that is, from those experienced co-located firms who had journeyed on a similar path. 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Source

Action Learning: Research and Practice, Vol-18, No. 3, pp. 211-226.

Date

2021-01-01

Publisher

Routledge

Subject

Co-location; Emergent learning; problem-solving; vicarious learning; Revans' praxeology

Coverage

Venkat R., Department of Management, Jain University, Bangalore, India; Gupta A., Department of Management, Jain University, Bangalore, India; Banerjee J., School of Business and Management, Christ University, Bangalore, India; Chellappan R.B., Department of Management, Jain University, Bangalore, India

Rights

Restricted Access

Relation

ISSN: 14767333

Format

Online

Language

English

Type

Article

Identifier

https://doi.org/10.1080/14767333.2021.1954879

https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85112718436&doi=10.1080%2f14767333.2021.1954879&partnerID=40&md5=32413e82b01d1cf42733bba3dac5117e