Sammendrag
In this study, using social identity as a point of departure, we explore barriers to knowledge integration and organizational learning in (through) top-down-initiated managed networks of practice (MNoP). This article examines knowledge sharing and integration in two different settings ? online and face-to-face (f2f) discussions ? and in particular how these settings structure the knowledge processes, with consequences for the cultivation of networks of practice (NoP). Our empirical context is a distributed public organization in Norway. We find a complex context where barriers are related to lack of engagement, conflicting learning modes and identities related to different knowledge types. First, the identity of being a ?productive worker? creates barriers to organizational learning in the online setting, since the online meetings interrupt task handling, which is measured and rewarded by management. Second, three ideal types of work-role identities (professional, regulator and inspector) are observed among the employees, which originate from and structure different learning modes. Inspectors are experience-based learners who prefer to work (f2f) in pairs and learn from each other in work contexts. Professionals look for opportunities to reflect on and discuss their practice either face to face or online. Regulators are rule-based learners who prefer to wait for ?somebody at the top? or ?the court? to tell them what the proper interpretation of the law is. Three, the study reveals the dominance of two main types of knowledge, i.e. more natural science and positivistic based versus more social science and interpretive based. These knowledge cultures structure different learning opportunities and barriers; the former fits better with online tools. The potential of MNoP and online contexts seems greater than has been obtained so far; however, it also seems clear that the potential and barriers vary and depend upon both identity and knowledge cultures.
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