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Schools of thought in organizational learning

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Abstract

This article attempts to bring coherence to the diversity that characterizes organizational learning research. It argues that organizational learning is embedded in four schools of thought: an economic school, a managerial school, a developmental school, and a process school. The article provides a comprehensive analysis of the schools, describes how they differ from each other, and outlines how each of them can be employed effectively. To demonstrate the benefits of theoretical plurality, the four schools are applied to the key marketing topics of market orientation and new product development. Implications for future research in marketing are provided.

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Simon J. Bell is a lecturer in marketing in the Faculty of Economics and Commerce at the University of Melbourne.

Gregory J. Whitwell is an associate professor of marketing in the Faculty of Economics and Commerce at the University of Melbourne.

Bryan A. Lukas is an associate professor of marketing and director of the Master of Applied Commerce Program in the Faculty of Economics and Commerce at the University of Melbourne.

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Bell, S.J., Whitwell, G.J. & Lukas, B.A. Schools of thought in organizational learning. J. of the Acad. Mark. Sci. 30, 70–86 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1177/03079459994335

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