Knowledge Transfer and Learning: Problems of Knowledge Transfer Associated with Trying to Short-circuit the Learning Cycle

conceptualization COGNITIVE WORK BEHAVIOURAL WORK Figure 1: The Learning Cycle and The Cognitive and Behavioural Work involved in Learning The learning cycle emphasizes that there is both behavioural and cognitive work involved in learning (Huber, 1991). So we can learn from our actual experiences (concrete experience) and experiment and practice to find out what works best (active experimentation). This kind of trial-and-error learning was emphasized traditionally by the behavioural school of learning, for example with Skinner’s (1953) operant conditioning theory, and more recently in the situated learning theory of Lave and Wenger (1991), which also emphasizes situated practice and feedback from that practice. At the same time, we can learn in a more reflective way than simply trial-anderror so that we make sense of our experiences without having to try out each variant until we find the solution that works best. The cognitive school has emphasized this aspect of learning (Piaget, 1969). The learning cycle suggests that learning requires both situated practice and mental processing to be effective. In a managerial sense, literature on the ‘reflective practitioner’, for example by Watson (1994) or on reflective team practices, by Ayas and Zeniuk (2001), attests to the importance of both situated practice and mental processing. However, from the knowledge transfer perspective that we are questioning, abstract conceptualizations can be codified and transferred to others so that these others need neither to engage in situated practice or mental processing, but can simply follow instructions – the manual, advice on lessons learned, or the best practice template.