Developing learner capability through action research: from pedagogy to heutagogy in the workplace

There is a considerable body of evidence demonstrating that action research is an effective approach to creating change in organisations. What is less well described in a systematic way is the effect of the action research journey on the researcher. This paper is based on the experience of a number of doctoral students who were undertaking action research projects in their organisation which involved major change initiatives. We found that action researchers moved from being pedagogical learners through a stage of andragogical learning to finally become self-determined learners (heutagogical). In effect using action research helped these quite senior managers and consultants become more capable learners. We hypothesise from these findings and the available evidence from these experiences that this may have very positive effects on their overall management capability. This three stage model of development also provides a structure that educators can use to develop the capability of the action researcher.