Research methods and methodologies for studying organisational learning

The purpose of this paper is to compare and evaluate the main research methods and methodologiesfor studying organisational learning (OL), and propose a framework for their selection. It presents acomprehensive review of literature on OL, learning organisation (LO) and research methods andreports evidence on recent developments in research methods for studying OL. The paper highlightedon the purists and pragmatists’ views of research methodologies as basis of the study. The resultsrevealed that the research methods and methodologies for studying OL do not reflect on the differingviews of the purists and pragmatists’ debate but rather conform to the convergence ideologies of thetwo camps. Particularly, the outcomes augment the use of triangulation and suggest that the choice ofmethod(s) should be consistent with research aims and epistemological philosophy of OL.Consequently, the study recommends OL Research Methods Framework as a useful guide for selectinga suitable approach in the area. The paper recommends ethnography for future researchconsideration.