Learning from action research

Organisational learning is widely recognised as central to development practice, often framed exclusively in terms of formally designated internal learning spaces. Yet action research can also involve mutual learning processes between organisations. Focused on action research partnerships with citizen action initiatives for accountable governance in Asia, Latin America, and Africa, this interpretive study identifies three sets of insights relevant to development practice, through an organisational autoethnography that retrospectively analysed everyday learning processes within action research partnerships. First, explicit recognition of varied patterns of collaborative agenda-setting can distinguish between fully “partner-led” versus “partner-inspired” action research initiatives. Second, mutual learning enables conceptual translation, while conceptual translation enables mutual learning. Explicit conceptual translation of potentially ambiguous keywords can bolster cross-cultural communication. Third, collaborative interpretation of research findings can inform the identification of their broader relevance for action (takeaways). Insights that emerge inductively within action research partnerships can broaden our understanding of organisational learning.