Mullins L.J. Management and organisational behaviour, Seventh edition

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Thorndike’s work drew attention to the outcomes of learning.

He watched animals in

new situations and noted how they learnt to successfully adapt to the environment.

Typically, he would place a hungry cat in a box with a plate of food outside the box,

but within the cat’s view. The cat could get out of the box by moving a latch. He noted

that in this situation there were no flashes of insight but by trial and error the cat

would learn how to escape from the box and have the reward of the plate of food. On

each successive trial, the cat learned which actions led to escape and, eventually, the

incorrect actions (responses) were eliminated and the correct responses were ‘stamped

in’. These experiments led Thorndike to propose a Law of Effect. If an action was suc-

cessful and led to a reward, the behaviour was more likely to be repeated.

Skinner advanced the ideas of Thorndike and produced a thesis of operant conditioning.

Skinner’s experiments on animals showed the effects of reward and punishment on

animal learning. Unlike classical conditioning learning was rewarded after the response

had occurred. He proved that a response would be learned when the animal associated

the behavioural response to a reward (or reinforcement) and could be broken with

punishment. (See Figure 10.3.)

Once the rat had learned that pressing the lever equalled the onset of food, the rat

responded to the lever consistently. The rat had been ‘conditioned’ to act in a particu-

lar kind of way. Sometimes the rat learned superfluous actions, such as turning round

before pressing the lever, and these actions too would be repeated. Skinner called these

responses ‘superstitious’ as the animal had acted as though such behaviour had pro-

duced the reward.

Skinner experimented with the reinforcement process:

■ What would happen if the animal was not rewarded on each trial?

■ What effect would partial reinforcement have on the rate of learning?

He found that partial reinforcement strengthened the Stimulus–Response bond and the

behaviour was more resistant to extinction. The reward seemed to hold even greater

importance when it was given intermittently.

Negative reinforcement was also shown to be powerful. These experiments demon-

strated the importance of the Stimulus–Response bond, but the reward was the

prevention of something painful or nasty occurring. The rat learns to associate the

stimulus (perhaps a light) with something nasty happening (perhaps an electric shock)

and runs (response) to prevent the painful situation. Not being shocked is the reward

in such experiments. Thus the rat was conditioned to respond to a stimulus and the

S–R bond was formed. Negative reinforcement is not punishment. Punishment is

trying to break the S–R bond. For instance, if the animal pressed the lever and received

an electric shock it would quickly learn not to press the lever and the S–R bond would

be broken.

Skinner and his researchers extensively applied operant conditioning theory to many

experimental situations. From rats learning mazes, to pigeons learning to play ping

pong, Skinner demonstrated the power and control of his simple learning principles:

the identification of a stimulus and a reward following a successful response.

CHAPTER 10 THE NATURE OF LEARNING

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THE OUTCOMES OF LEARNING

OPERANT CONDITIONING

Applications

of operant

conditioning

He was able to train animals to perform complex acts by a process known as ‘shap-

ing’. Behaviour is shaped through a series of small, but successive steps with rewards

given for those responses which approximate the desired end result. The behaviour is

gradually brought closer to this final objective. Skinner showed much interest in apply-

ing his learning principles to complex, practical situations. There is no doubt that the

technique of shaping (modifying and controlling behaviour), and the identification of

the stimulus response bond can be applied to work situations. Illustrations of the

power of rewards can be seen in almost any work organisation: bonuses, prizes for

reaching sales targets; ‘employee of the month’ awards, etc.

Intermittent reinforcement is another useful outcome of Skinner’s research. If an

employee always receives a reward does its value diminish? Skinner’s research would

say ‘yes’. There is an interesting parallel with this concept in Transactional Analysis

whereby too many positive verbal comments (called strokes) are described as ‘marsh-

mallow throwing’.

Applying operant conditioning to work situations

The most difficult problem with the application of operant conditioning is in its defi-

nitions. Skinner was dealing with ‘hungry’ animals; they had a clear drive to eat, and

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Stimulus (S)

Not

recognised

Stage 1: Pre-learning

Stimulus (S)

Lever

Stage 2: State of learning

Stage 3: S–R bond has been formed and learning has taken place

No learning – a hungry animal, often a rat, would be placed in a box (called the Skinner Box).

The box would be empty except for a lever and food container.

Over many trials the rat begins to associate the food with ‘pressing the lever’.

The rat has learned to respond to the lever for the reward of food.

Response (R)

response

Reinforcement

Presentation of food

Response (R)

By trial and error the

rat presses the lever

and the lever releases

a pellet of food

Stimulus (S)

Lever

Reinforcement

Reward of food

Response (R)

Pressing the lever

Figure 10.3 Operant conditioning

Reward

therefore a plate of food was, no doubt, a reward. It is far more complex when we con-

sider rewards for people. We may all have our own definitions of a ‘reward’. Although

money might be a suitable reward for some employees, others may prefer to have ‘time

out’ or a symbolic gesture of the work they have achieved. So having a photograph on

public display may be a proud and rewarding moment for some, but other employees

may be acutely embarrassed. How organisations reward their employees makes a state-

ment about what they value. How different pay practices affect organisational and

individual performance is a critical aspect of reward management.

The same principle applies to people’s perception of punishment. Inappropriate behav-

iour at work can be punished directly by withholding rewards or by initiating the

company’s disciplinary procedure. Some managerial actions may be perceived as pun-

ishment, e.g. being sent on a training course; not being sent on an international

assignment, etc. Whether the punishment is real or perceived, it is likely to cause feel-

ings of resentment in the mind of the employee. Hence, punishment results in

negative psychological outcomes. Although the employee may comply with require-

ments it is likely that resentment will lead to anger and/or apathy and psychological

revenge. It is not surprising therefore that organisations should prefer to use reward

management as a means of positively controlling behaviour. Comparing the animal

experiments of Skinner to situations at work illustrates the limitations of the early

operant conditioning studies. Skinner identified the basic concepts but the reality of

organisational life adds layers of psychological complexity.

Some organisations endeavour to exercise tight control over their employees’ language

and behaviour. Training new employees is a form of ‘shaping’ behaviour in line with

the written training objectives. As employees demonstrate their responses, they may be

rewarded with a tick in the training box, or a ‘badge’ that they wear on their clothing.

Learning occurs incrementally with the task divided into sub-goals, each with its own

reward. Sometimes shaping can occur in training centres where peer assessment can

add further power to the modification process. As the trainee’s behaviour becomes

shaped, expectations will alter and grow. Praise and reinforcement will become less as

the behaviour becomes ‘conditioned’.

Many schools use a form of behaviour modification, particularly in the earliest

years. Some secondary schools have also used creative ways to bring truanting pupils

back into the classroom. Rather than punish pupils, their methods are to tempt them

back into school with rewards for attendance. Psychiatric hospitals also use shaping

techniques to encourage patients to behave in appropriate ways. They use ‘tokens’ to

reward patients and these tokens can then be exchanged for privileges.

No doubt we can all think of our own examples of operant conditioning. By being

rewarded for certain behaviours it has led us to repeat them so they become ingrained

in our repertoire. Habits and routines become set and difficult to change and we act

automatically; ‘we are conditioned’. We may also have picked up superfluous or super-

stitious acts along the way – a relative of mine will only wear one particular ‘lucky’

scarf to football matches! Organisations may effectively control our behaviour because

we desire the reward (or reinforcement in Skinner’s terms). We may of course view the

‘reward’ as compenstion for our time and efforts.

A critical time for learning new behaviours and actions is at the early stages of

employment. It is important that a new employee is able to learn appropriate S–R

bonds – what do they need to be aware of (stimulus), what do they need to do to

respond to the stimulus and what reward will they receive if they perform correctly? If

a new employee acts inappropriately it may be because they are not ‘clued’ in to

notice the stimulus, have never been shown a correct response nor been rewarded for

‘correct’ behaviour.

CHAPTER 10 THE NATURE OF LEARNING

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Punishment

Shaping

People learn by watching others. The term ‘modelling’ was coined by Miller and

Dollard

to explain learning by imitating others and ‘role models’ as a label for those

individuals who are held up as examples of good practice. So, the trainee watching

how a car is repaired or the trainee chef learning how to prepare a soufflé will imitate

the actions of their role model. Interpersonal skills can also be learned by observation

and the new recruit by watching others will ‘pick up’ the habits and techniques of

those around him/her. It is interesting to consider the extent to which behaviourist

theory can be used to explain such ‘social learning’ by observation.

Behaviourist theory as described by Skinner has focused on a stimulus, a response

and a reward. However, in the more complex human interaction other principles need

to be included to make sense of what is happening. While Skinner showed how behav-

iour could be predicted by following a response with a reward, Miller and Dollard

added the notion of ‘drive’ to the set of behavioural principles.

To explain the process Miller and Dollard identified four significant linked learning

principles:

Drive Cue Response Reward

This research brought attention to cognitive functions of thinking, perception, atten-

tion and memory. Their research focused attention on the need to attend and retain

cues as well as being able to reproduce the behaviours.

So for instance a trainee watching a supervisor deal with a customer complaint

would need to attend to the emotions of the customer, note the reaction of the super-

visor and learn how the ‘lessons’ of this interaction could be applied to another

situation. This process relies on complex cognitive processes including attention, recall

and understanding. The trainee may indeed understand the transaction but be unable

to put the skills into practice without help and support from his/her supervisor.

Miller and Dollard also noted that people will assess a situation and may decide

whether or not to include the behaviour in their repertoire. They may decide that the

way in which the supervisor dealt with a customer complaint is an illustration of how

they would not behave. Such decisions rely on an individual’s intellect and thinking

skills and the extent to which the consequence are ‘fair’. Although rewards are undeni-

ably an important part of learning, it is not an automatic response and subjective

judgements intervene.

Since the 1930s, cognitive psychologists have advanced a number of arguments with

respect to the limitations of the behaviourist school.

■ Methods. Although the behaviourists developed psychology as a science, the posi-

tivist tradition, as it is known, has limitations in its application to human complex

situations. For instance, experimental laboratories are better able to cope with con-

trollable and simple learning situations. It is difficult to study the acquisition of

skills, learned over a period of time, or the social learning that takes place in the

workplace on the basis of laboratory experiments.

■ Learning principles. We have seen the application of such concepts as stimulus,

response, rewards, drives in the workplace, but there are serious limitations. Drives

and reinforcements may be simple to define when dealing with hungry animals, but

become increasingly difficult to identify when dealing with groups of individuals.

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PART 4 THE INDIVIDUAL

SOCIAL LEARNING

LIMITATIONS OF THE BEHAVIOURIST SCHOOL

Individuals make choices, have preferences and perceive the world through their

own ‘spectacles’. A reward to one person may be seen as insulting to another.

■ ‘Heart of the matter’. By concentrating only on observable behaviour the theories

are seriously restricted. There is no denying that the demonstration of learning in

behaviour is significant, but it is a partial view of learning. Areas of learning which

are particular and special to humans (e.g. complex thought, creativity) are com-

pletely evaded. Individuals have goals and plans not readily observable which affect

learning. Personality, perceptions, motivations and attitudes will all play their part

in helping or hindering the learning process. Past learning and experiences whether

positive or negative, might also impinge upon the rate of learning. Gallwey, in his

‘inner game’ books, discusses the impact that the inner world of ego personalities

has on performance:

Once I became aware of Self 1, it grew increasingly obvious that this judgemental little voice

barking away like a drill sergeant inside my head was not the best thing for my tennis game.

Self 1 was more of a hindrance than the great help he wanted me to think he was. Thereafter I

began looking for ways to decrease the interference of Self 1 and to see what happened if I

trusted the potential of Self 2.

■ Account of cognitive factors. Behaviourism cannot easily explain the natural

curiosity that humans have, the great desire to learn, to make sense of their environ-

ment and to feel competent in activities. Neither can it explain the extent of

incidental learning which takes place. My youngest son, a keen footballer, learned

the geography of the UK and town locations quite incidentally through his passion-

ate interest in the sport.

Thus, cognitive factors have to be taken into account to understand how people learn.

Observing changes in behaviour is only part of the learning process. To understand

how and why people learn, attention must be given to a myriad of individual factors.

People learn not only by association and rewards, but by having knowledge of their

results and by receiving feedback. The achievement of their desired aims and goals

motivates and drives people to learn. This has led theorists and educationalists to con-

sider the ways in which people learn through experience.

Two of the earliest cognitive theories investigated animal learning in the 1920s and

1930s. Kohler and his team were interested in how animals solve problems.

Chimpanzees were in a cage with some fruit placed tantalisingly out of reach. A stick

was placed in view. Would they use the stick as a tool to reach the fruit and bring the

fruit into the cage? The chimpnzees successfully retrieved the fruit and Kohler argued

that the chimpanzees solved the problem through the use of insight. He believed that

the chimpanzees had actually worked out what they needed to do and that the process

of learning was more complex than a simple stimulus–response association.

Tolman showed that rats were capable of cognitive behaviour in a series of experi-

ments in which he investigated animal learning. He disagreed with the behaviourists

and their simple notions of S–R learning because his findings indicated that the rats had

learned an image of the maze (a cognitive map) which they would use at a later time.

It was a Swiss psychologist, Piaget,

who demonstrtated that the simple behaviourist

school could not explain the learning observed in children’s development. Piaget iden-

tified four major stages of intellectual growth, which he regarded as universal. His

studies demonstrated that all children passed through these phases, but with variation

in the length of time spent at each stage.

CHAPTER 10 THE NATURE OF LEARNING

409

COGNITIVE THEORIES

■ sensori-motor period: birth to 2 years;

■ pre-operational thought: 2 years to 7 years;

■ concrete operations: 7 years to 11 years;

■ formal operations: 11 years to 15 years.

Piaget’s theory offers a tight coherent perspective of the maturation of intellectual

thought and development. His studies introduced the notion of the cyclical nature of

learning and the ways in which children and adults adjust to and accommodate to

their environment.

For many cognitive theorists learning is viewed as a sequence, a sequence which

processes information in three distinct stages:

■ an active perception stage which gives attention to stimuli from the environment;

■ a second mentally active stage which makes sense of the information;

■ finally, a restructuring and storage phase.

Although it is beyond the scope of this book to consider the relationship between

thinking and learning some researchers have shed insight on the mental constructs that

may form. Glaser

for instance has described these as ‘scaffolds’. This metaphor suggests

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PART 4 THE INDIVIDUAL

Yoga is one of the six systems of Indian philosophy. There

are a number of different interpretations of yoga and one of

these is taught by Yogacharya B.K.S Iyengar.

Learning a physical skill such as Iyengar yoga privides a

good illustration of

■ the continual cycle of learning;

■ the importance of stages in learning;

■ the significance of information and feedback;

■ the importance of support structures – both physical,

social and mental.

The yoga poses are challenging and require the complete

involvement of the senses and total concentration of the

mind. Otherwise a fall to the floor is likely! The teacher pro-

vides clear information about the positioning of the body

and the class tries to assimilate this information and imitate

the teacher. Initially it is hard to connect to muscles that

have been lying dormant for some considerable time!

The final pose is reached after a series of ‘sub poses’

have been practised. Each sub pose is gradually devel-

oped and becomes more complex. At each stage students

have to remember ‘what it felt like’ in the previous sub

pose to be sure that they are building on and pushing

themselves into a more challenging posture. Learning the

poses therefore requires active perception and attention to

the teacher as well as attention to internal feedback about

the positioning of the body.

Striving for excellence and gaining the benefits from

each posture is the goal of Iyengar yoga for all students.

Therefore no matter the physical limitations of the body or

the inflexibility of the limbs all students are able to achieve

maximum gain from each posture with the help of physical

supports. Perhaps a belt to support the legs, perhaps a

chair to support the back, Each student develops at their

own pace, and with their own props. A teacher will also

provide information about whether a student’s posture

needs modifying; perhaps a brick under the hand will get

the posture closer to perfection. Creativity will be used in

identifying the particular needs of certain students. A learn-

ing environment is created in which the group supports

individuals, information at critical times is provided, individ-

uals are totally engaged in their pursuit of perfection and

the teacher encourages, supports and leads by example.

Reprinted with permission from Judith Jones and Carol Batterson, Iyengar

Yoga Teacher, Hampshire

Learning new skills: the importance of feedback

EXHIBIT 10.1

Photo: Jose Luis Pelaez, Inc./Corbis

that the framework is capable of development and would be built in an individual way.

It also suggests strength and support. The different ways in which individuals learn may

in part be due to their ‘scaffold’ as well as other personal qualities.

Some cognitive theorists have emphasised the cyclical nature of learning and its active

nature. Davis,

for example, claims that ‘experiential learning is an integration and

alteration of thinking and doing’. Kolb’s learning cycle (see Figure 10.4) is typical of this

approach and is the one that is most frequently used in the management literature.

It provides useful insights into the nature of learning:

■ It demonstrates that there is no end to learning but only another turn of the cycle.

■ Learners are not passive recipients but need to actively explore and test the

environment.

■ It identifies the importance of reflection and internalisation.

■ It is a useful way of identifying problems in the learning process.

The approach emphasises the importance of the synthesis between an individual’s

behaviour and the evaluation of their actions. Reflection of what has been learned in

order to experiment with new situations and to become aware of new possibilities is a

vital part of the learning process. It is the very essence of action learning; by going

though the cycle that learners are exposed to applying, reflecting and testing out their

learning. This encourages individuals in habits compatible with the notion of lifelong

learning. It is therefore no surprise that Kolb addresses his ideas to managers and sug-

gests that experiential learning will enable managers to cope with change and

complexity. He has suggested that:

A key function of strategic management development ... is to provide managers with access to

knowledge and relationship networks that can help them become life-long learners and cope

with the issues on their continually changing agendas.

Kolb and his colleagues suggest that partnerships between education and industry

should create feedback loops which enable interactions between ideas and action – cer-

tainly ideas which fit well into a learning organisation framework and into the new

concept of knowledge management considered earlier in this chapter.

CHAPTER 10 THE NATURE OF LEARNING

411

The learning

cycle

Figure 10.4 Kolb’s learning cycle

There are other important links that can be made from this model of learning to

organisational behaviour. Of late there have been exhortations for organisations to

develop employees as ‘thinking performers’, thus emphasising the important relation-

ship between thinking and action. Focus on thinking has been at the core of work

completed by Nancy Kline. By mastering what Kline calls a Thinking Environment

people are able to enrich their lives and their relationships. She argues that organisa-

tions are able to produce better ideas in less time with better business outcomes. She

describes a Thinking Environment as having the following ten components:

■ Attention – listening with respect, interest and fascination.

■ Incisive questions – removing assumptions that limit ideas.

■ Equality – treating each other as thinking peers and giving equal turns and atten-

tion. Keeping agreements and boundaries

■ Appreciation – practising a five-to-one ratio of appreciation to criticism.

■ Ease – offering freedom from rush or urgency.

■ Encouragement – moving beyond competition.

■ Feelings – allowing sufficient emotional release to restore thinking.

■ Information – providing a full and accurate picture of reality.

■ Place – creating a physical environment that says back to people, ‘You matter’.

■ Diversity – adding quality because of the differences between us.

Kline believes that employees need to relearn how to think for themselves in an

environment which genuinely listens and gives people time to say what they think.

As a consequence she argues that more productive meetings and stronger relation-

ships result.

The importance of reflection in aiding the learning process is also demanding atten-

tion. Portfolio assessments are becoming more commonplace, both in terms of

qualifications and for showing evidence of Continuing Professional Development. At

such time individuals are asked to ‘reflect’ upon their learning experiences. What have

they learned? What are they going to learn next? The reflective process demands they

place themselves centre stage and it reinforces the circular process of learning. It does

not see learning as an end result, as some kind of ‘product’, but as an ongoing process

which never finishes. Becoming a reflective practitioner is seen as essential for man-

aging change and ‘of paramount importance for learning and growth’.

But reflection

is not easy as it insists that individuals challenge their mind-sets and see situations in

new ways. It leads to individuals redefining their current perspective to develop new

ways of thinking and behaving. One of the ways in which this process can be

enhanced is through Action Learning Sets.

What are action learning sets?

Action learning is explicitly focused on action and promoting change. Coghlan and

Brannick

note that ‘the purpose of (action) research and discourse is not just to

describe, understand and explain the world but also to change it’ by the effort of data

gathering, discussion, action planning, action, reflection and review.

Action learning sets comprise a small group of five to six people, all of whom wish

to develop themselves through tackling a live issue. The set will provide an opportu-

nity for each individual to report in turn on their actions and reflect on the progress

they have made. Set members will help the presenter to clarify and decide on next

actions by asking challenging questions and creating a supportive climate.

The action research can be protrayed as a spiral of learning and action.

(See

Figure 10.5.)

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PART 4 THE INDIVIDUAL

When applying the learning cycle to the study of individual differences, Kolb demon-

strated that individuals may have a preference for one of the key stages and therein lies

their learning style. His work, developed by Honey and Mumford,

has been applied to

managerial behaviour. Kolb identified four different styles of learning:

CHAPTER 10 THE NATURE OF LEARNING

413

Figure 10.5 Action research spiral

Reproduced with permission from A. Thornhill, P. Lewis, M. Millmore and M. Saunders, Managing Change: A Human Resource Strategy Approach, Financial Times

Prentice Hall (2000), p. 289, with permission from Pearson Education Ltd.

LEARNING STYLES

■ Accommodative – strong preference for concrete experiences and active experimen-

tation (hands on);

■ Divergent – preference for concrete experiences, but to reflect on these from differ-

ent perspectives;

■ Assimilative – prefers to swing between reflection and conceptualisation and will

use inductive reasoning to develop new theory;

■ Convergent – prefers to apply ideas, will take an idea and test it out in practice.

Honey and Mumford simplified Kolb’s learning cycle and refined his learning style

questionnaire. The result is that managers can identify whether they are predominantly:

Activist What’s new? I’m game for anything.

Reflector I’d like time to think about this.

Theorist How does this relate to that?

Pragmatist How can I apply this in practice?

The researchers claim that an understanding of one’s learning styles will enhance

learning effectiveness, whether as a trainee or as a tutor. An integrated and effective

learner will be equipped to manage all four styles even though they may have a pref-

erence for one.

Other studies have also shown links between personality and learning and have

found, for example, that introverts and extroverts differ with respect to punishment

and reward. Whereas introverts are more likely to be affected by punishment than

extroverts, extroverts’ performance is enhanced by reward.

They also differ with

respect to their retention of short- and long-term material; extroverts tend to have a

better performance at short-term intervals whereas the reverse is true for introverts.

Studies using the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator also reveal differences in learning

preferences for the 16 personality types. Such differences indicate that introverts work

best if they can think before participating, or ask questions before completing tasks or

exercises, whereas extroverts work best if they can interact in a small group and/or talk

the lesson over with other individuals. However, some of the interesting research has

been completed on the interaction between trainer and trainee. Thus, an extroverted

trainer who is also high on ‘sensing’ (see Chapter 9 for description of the different

MBTI categories) may positively evaluate students who are active, energetic and practi-

cal, but may overlook the thoughtful introspective and conceptual students.

Such

studies highlight the necessity for trainers to be sensitive not only to the personality

needs of the group of trainees, but also to be aware of the impact their own personality

has on the learning experience.

Mayo suggests that organisations need to recognise the simple fact that different

people learn in different ways and should take the following actions:

■ give people the opportunity to discover their most natural learning style;

■ offer learning opportunities that suit people with different learning styles;

■ recognise the need to complete the full learning cycle;

■ help people to translate the learning cycle into an upwards continuous spiral of

learning.

So, given the complexity of learning how can managers make sense of the theories,

concepts and frameworks? Models of learning such as that shown in Figure 10.6 are

inevitably complex! However, the model might stimulate questions and could help in

the preparation and design of learning programmes. Has there been sufficient consider-

ation of past experiences, of abilities of the employees, of the learning styles, the

context, the methods and style to be used?

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PART 4 THE INDIVIDUAL

COMPLEX MODELS OF LEARNING