http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/6591 2013-05-22T16:10:25Z 2013-05-22T16:10:25Z Thomas, Mary M http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/5771 2012-11-23T16:16:30Z 1999-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Experiential learning: An exploration of the effect of Zen experience on personal transformation Authors: Thomas, Mary M Abstract: This inquiry started by examining my own and others experience of Zen, and comparing it with Self Organised Learning. The aim was to see what effect each system had on the lives of the participants. The thesis plots how I had a tacit reliance on myself as a measuring instrument, and how this became an integrating theme running through my 'finally chosen' methods. The methodological difficulties caused by the paradox of trying to understand Zen and also be scientific converged when I realised that I had treated myself as the central measuring instrument throughout the inquiry. It was this discovery which allowed the thesis to be treated as a koan from a Zen perspective and yet to be a contribution to academic knowledge. The thesis traces how personal authenticity became the defining characteristic informing all my methodology. This inquiry asks and answers the question can research be transpersonal? Initially the research started out looking at a transpersonal issue in the form of asking those who had regular interactions with a Zen master about their experience. This learning curve was contrasted with Learning Conversations with postgraduates at the centre for the Study of Human Learning, using inner directed learning in their research projects. During the research process, several major re-orientations took place which, necessitated changing my method and my interpretation of the data. These shifts of direction were largely driven by a need to find a method of inquiry which was appropriate to uncovering the transpersonal qualities I was investigating. As the inquiry developed I widened my sources of data to include art, fiction, accounts of death and grieving, and satsang (questions and answers with a master) in order to give an in depth picture of the impact of the transpersonal on participants' lives. In treating the thesis as a koan there can be no emphasis placed on which purposes related to which outcomes. It was in the gradual abandonment of such a stance that the deeper insights and resolutions occurred. During the inquiry I eventually identified the qualities of wholeness, authenticity and openness as the defining characteristics which appeared to trigger changes in direction. Such an approach made it necessary to examine the implications for validity that approaching transpersonal issues in this way had uncovered. Description: This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.

1999-01-01T00:00:00Z McLeod, Donald http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/5761 2012-11-16T16:37:34Z 1988-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Construction of personal work-theory in the young administrator Authors: McLeod, Donald Abstract: Statistical predictive validity has regularly been demonstrated for the complex selection procedure by which young high-potential administrative entrants are recruited to the Civil Service. There is, however, a largely unexplored qualitative aspect to recruitment as well. For most successful candidates, taking up appointment as trainee administrators represents a major life-transition - from full-time education to full-time employment. What is that experience like? How do they go about making sense of their new circumstances? Six trainees took part in the enquiry, which centred on a series of interviews carried out over the course of their first year at work. The focus in this ideographic study is on the individual as learner In a natural setting. Analysis of the accounts produced is set in a social cognition framework, and something of the approach of the ethnographer is also brought to bear. Particular attention is paid to the status of narrative as knowledge. A simple model is outlined for narrative-based reflection as a means to development, with the prospect of the individual acting as his or her own mentor in the process. Description: This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.

1988-01-01T00:00:00Z Solkin, Laurence http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/5592 2012-11-12T16:10:18Z 1998-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Assessment and Learning: A conversational exploration of the relationship between the assessment of managers and their learning Authors: Solkin, Laurence Abstract: This research seeks to explore the relationship between formal assessment methods used within organisations and the subsequent learning of managers. The managers who participated in this study are all employees of the London Fire Brigade and the assessment that they undertook were administered as part of the selection and development activities provided by that organisation. The purpose of the research was to examine how being assessed affected their learning and the methodology used was that of action research. Two forms of assessment were administered those of the management assessment or development centre and those of the national vocational qualification system (NVQs). The research is based on two parallel sets of case studies with managers who participated in the different assessment activities. The initial absence of any clear positive learning, as a product of being assessed gave rise to a broader consideration of the relationship between assessment and personal learning. This examination culminated in the development of personally oriented tools that were used to interpret assessment data and to assist in the management of individuals' learning. The results are considered in the context of current literature and practice regarding assessment, and conclusions are made in relation to improving the learning outcomes of assessment processes. The issues of learner involvement and learner's control over the learning process are discussed and integrated within the conclusions and the adoption of a more humanistic approach based on self organisation recommended. Finally, the research considers the methodology required for studies of the quality of human learning and the need for learner participation on the research process itself. Description: This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.

1998-01-01T00:00:00Z Taylor, Andrew http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/5531 2012-11-23T16:27:50Z 1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Experimenting with self-organised learning for organisational growth: A person-centred approach Authors: Taylor, Andrew Abstract: This thesis records my professional search for a management model which will harness the fill capabilities of people in organisations to the achievement of the organisations, goals. This search has taken place in the context of the lost Office in which I have spent my working life. The key event in this search was my introduction to Self-Organised Learning (S-O-L) in 1984, during the Centre for the Study of Human Learning's S-O-L action research project on supervisory and managerial effectiveness. My survey of the literature in the fields of management, learning and psychology has prompted me to identify the need for a more person-centred approach to management. The survey focuses on 5 key issues, the motivation of people to contribute to the achievement of organisational goals, responsibility and control, assumptions or myths about people, attitudes towards people, and learning for continuous improvements. I have followed the action research paradigm in four main research projects: (i) a trial of S-O-L in leading Read Post Office in 1995/86; (ii) the use of S-0-L in the Parcel Sort Centre near leading between 1906 and 1990; (iii) a major Management Development and Productivity Improvement Programme in the Parcel Sort Centre in 1990. (iv) further use of S-O-L in the Parcel Sort Centre near Reading in 1991 and 1992. In the research I have used the key S-O-L tools, the Learning Conversation and the Personal Learning Contract, and I have deployed my on approach to people management which is based on trust, openness, support and encouragement. The action research results have been evaluated on a multi-perspective basis taking account of the benefits to: participating managers both as individuals and as teams; the organisation; myself, as a manager, action researcher and person. Included in the evaluation are the results of evaluation conversation held with members of my management team at the Parcel Sort Centre. These are presented in the form of Personal Learning Biographies which address the learner's own as well as others' evaluation. A major outcome of my research is the development of a Person-Centred Model of Organisational Growth. Together the action research results and the model highlight my conclusion that, as managers and trainers, we are failing to release the potential of people in organisations to learn and grow and thereby fully participate in the achievement of organisational goals. We are not developing effective personal and group relationships based upon the motivation theories of Maslow and Berzberg, McGregor’s Theory Y and Rogerian concepts. The thesis demonstrates that the systematic practice of Learning Conversations on-the-job in a variety of work based contexts transforms the attitudes of people towards work and empowers them with learning focused skills and competencies, which enable them to work more productively and effectively in individuals and as a team to meet organisational goals. This is a mutually beneficial process, enhancing the powers of the individual and the objective demands (productivity, quality of service and cost effectiveness) of the organisation. More than this, the S-O-L approach creates a structured, systematic Learning Environment which proactively encourages change and development in ways which can sustain individual development and organisational growth. This thesis identifies move of the hidden mythologies and constraints which need to be deconstructed and reconstructed in the support environment during the change process of individual and organisational growth. Description: This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.

1997-01-01T00:00:00Z