Home / Summaries / Articles, notes and slides / levinthal-less-mindful-mindful

Levinthal: crossing an apparent chasm: bridging mindful and less-mindful perspectives on organizational learning

16 important questions on Levinthal: crossing an apparent chasm: bridging mindful and less-mindful perspectives on organizational learning

What is the purpose of Levinthal's study?

To bring the interrelationship between two perspectives to the foreground of organization theory. Levinthal argues that although the two perspectives have been performatively interrelated in prior work, their ostensive (aanwijzende) interdependence has not been systematically linked.

Why is the distinction between ostensive (abstract pattern) and performative (specific actions) important? (Levinthal)

It is a basis for understanding why a chasm (kloof) exist between the two perspective. On the one hand mindful and less-mindful processes of learning can be characterized as abstractions: specific performances of a routine. On the other hand, mindful/less-mindful processes of learning can be characterized as actual performance by specific people, at a specif time and place.

The mindful and less-mindful perspectives are not just complements, there are also 2 points of tension/conflict. Which one? (Levinthal)

1. The primacy (voorrang) and value of change vs  stability in behavior
2. It is hard to interpret the terms mindful and less-mindful behavior in a value-free manner.

  • Higher grades + faster learning
  • Never study anything twice
  • 100% sure, 100% understanding
Discover Study Smart
Testimonial person
Sophia
Law student
Quotes

For my 1st exam I got a C. Then, I started looking for ways to learn better and I came across Study Smart. Since then I have scored a A+, A, A- and another A. I highly recommend it to everyone who wants to hear it. I am so happy with it!!

Testimonial person
John
Economics Student
Quotes

I was struggling to finish all my first-year subjects for 3 years. Then I discovered Study Smart, which helped me to finish all of them within 3 months.

Testimonial person
Sara
Public Administration Student
Quotes

Because of StudySmart, things are going well in many ways. Before, I always had study stress and no time for anything. Now I feel calm and confident (because of the program). I used to score a B, now I usually score an A or A+.

Testimonial person
Mary
Business Student
Quotes

Hey Chris, I really want to thank you very much for developing the platform, I usually got around C for my exams, now I scored an A+, an A and a A- !!

Testimonial person
Melanie
Psychology Student
Quotes

Since using Study Smart, my average has increased significantly. I even completed a statistics course with a A+ while I'm bad at statistics. I took on extra courses this year, because of Study Smart. Thanks so much!

Testimonial person
Jane
Nursing Studies
Quotes

Ever since I started studying with StudySmart I passed all my exams !!! No more re-sits!! At first, I was happy with a pass and now I only get good grades. Many thanks!

Testimonial person
Rose
Political Science Student
Quotes

I aced all the courses I studied with Study Smart. For law, I first scored a D, and now an A! I’m 100% sure that I’ll pass all the courses I study with Study Smart.

Testimonial person
Tina
Medicine Student
Quotes

I always thought I studied well. My grades were fine. I could never have imagined that applying these study skills would have such a huge and direct impact on my grades, my speed and the pleasure I have in learning.

Testimonial person
Julie
Marketing Student
Quotes

For the first time, I finally feel totally confident about the way I learn. I have the perfect overview and make great progress in terms of speed and the grades I get. Thanks, Chris!

Testimonial person
Matt
Industrial Engineering Student
Quotes

I immediately started to enjoy learning again, and my grades soared. All of a sudden, everything went better. I highly recommend Study Smart to all students..

Testimonial person
Emma
Law Student
Quotes

Being able to create my materials online made the process of studying so much smoother and quicker. I no longer have to spend a huge amount of my time on creating my summaries.

Testimonial person
Michael
Psychology Student
Quotes

At first, my notes were a mess. Now I use Study Smart to take my notes in a perfectly structured way. It helps me to save a lot of time and do other things I enjoy.

Testimonial person
Emily
Teacher
Quotes

Students that study with Study Smart get better grades. The system applies all the learning methods in such a way that both well-performing students and students who struggle perform much better.

Testimonial person
Richard
Literature Student
Quotes

Hi Chris, I would like to thank you very much. Last year I scored C on a course, and this year I got an A+ thanks to your method! Thank you very much!

Testimonial person
Madison
Parent
Quotes

The largest effect is that my child is more enthusiastic about school! Every parent wants their children to be happy at school, Study Smart made it happen.

Testimonial person
Robert
Accountant Student
Quotes

In high school, I failed several exams, and that has really changed now. I actually needed this tool very much back then. Since I started studying with StudySmart, I haven't had any D's. My average score is now an A and those are results I would have never had in the past

Testimonial person
James
Business and Science Student
Quotes

With my old method, I passed only 3 out of 8 courses. Since I started taking my notes digitally in Study Smart, I have passed all my courses on the first try. For me, StudySmart takes away the stress of wondering if I will pass or not.

Testimonial person
Christopher
Veterinarian Student
Quotes

Thanks to StudySmart, I passed all my exams, and with better grades than before! On top of that, I have mastered a very good study method now, which I am confident will help me earn my degree.

What does Levinthal examines and hopes for with this study?

By examining the 4 points of complementary (repertories of action, processes for sustaining mindfulness, enactment of routines, encoding of ambiguous outcomes) and the two tension points (change and value-free), Levinthal hopes to establish a set of meaningful linkages between two important perspectives and encourages others to work further on this integration.

Mindful and less-mindful behavior/processes are not wholly distinct categories but there are important interrelationships between them. Explain the two processes of Levinthal:

Mindful: a state of active awareness characterized by the continual creation and refinement of categories, an openness to new information and a willingness to view context from multiple perspectives.
Less-mindful: automatic processes that free us from tasks that don't require our vigilance (waakzaamheid) and intervention, so our time/energy can be redirected to those tasks that do. Routine are an important storehouse of accumulated organizational experience.

As image 11 suggests, Levinthal highlights four important manifestations of complementarity between the mindful and less-mindful perspectives on organizations. What is highlighted?

Two basic ways in which elements of less-mindful bases of action and organizational intelligence underlie the capacity for mindful organizational behavior.

Describe the first out of four complementarity's of Levinthal?

Mindfulness and repertoires of action: It is local, situated and involves thinking in real time, simultaneous with the execution of action. It is necessary because of expectations that result in organizational messes, and because when new opportunities are revealed.
The rapid emergence of novelty (vernieuwing) results from the recombination of existing routines. Thus: the set of familiar routine is the fodder (voer) for rap innovation action.  Combine existing knowledge for improvisation/innovation: be creative and experienced.

Describe the second out of four complementarity's of Levinthal?

Processes for sustaining mindfulness: organizations develop and sustain culture and practices to sustain mindfulness within certain boundaries (f.e. procedures, routines, training). Variations in organizational mindfulness stems a.o. from differentiated role structures. Sustaining mindfulness seems to call for some notion of routinization.

Describe the third out of four complementarity's of Levinthal?

Mindfulness and the enactment of routines: Ambiguous stimuli require interpretation and therefore are a challenge to less-mindful action. Routines is not simply a fixed response to defined stimuli. They consists out of 2 elements: the ostensive (individuals understanding of the processes) and the performative (actual behavior). 

Describe the fourth out of four complementarity's of Levinthal?

Mindfulness and the encoding of ambiguous outcomes: the work on mindfulness on the interpretation and encoding of stimuli can serve as an important complement to our understanding of how less-mindful stimulus-response learning processes operate.
Failure triggers an increase in search for a new way of doing business.

When do less-mindful processes change? (Levinthal)

When they are interrupted, which leads to a switch from automatic performance of routines to the conscious information processing involved in acquiring a new routine. Interruptions trigger from less-mindful to mindful processes.

The primacy and value of change VS stability in behavior in quite different in the two perspectives. Explain this? (Levinthal)

The less-mindful emphasize the role of continuity as a mechanism to preserve accumulated experiences, while the mindful stresses the importance of novelty to respond to changing/unique circumstances.

Explain the presumption of the attention-based theory (Levinthal)?

Attention is scarce and thus costly, the more things an organization can do routinely and in the absence of mindfulness, the more it can conserve attention for what really matters. But, it is also to recognize the opportunity costs of mindful behavior, by which is meant that experimenting with a novel action implies forgoing the use of existing, established practices.

As suggested by image 12, Levinthal's examination of the interrelationship between mindful and less-mindful processes suggests a strong performative link between the two perspectives. Explain this

At the ostensive level of theory development the link between mindful and less-mindful is relatively underdeveloped (= research challenge). The existing literature provides some useful guidance, prior work has not dedicated systematic attention to their integration. Levinthal tried to bridge the chasm between the two processes.

According to Levinthal there are ways to get around learning traps. Describe:

1. Mindful: ability to effectively carry out novel action in a flexible manner. It has a sustaining high level of attention.
2. Less-mindful: routine-driven behavior and reinforcement learning/
> Elements of less-mindful processes are necessary element underlying mindfulness: established action repertoires that facilitate the response to novel stimuli. And routines enable mindfulness to be sustained across time and the span of the organization.

What are Weicks 4 steps towards mindfulness and can also result in resilience:

1. Preoccupation with failure
2. Reluctance (tegenzin) to simplify interpretation
3. Sensitivity to operations
4. Under-specification of strutures

The question on the page originate from the summary of the following study material:

Articles, notes and slides

View summary
  • A unique study and practice tool
  • Never study anything twice again
  • Get the grades you hope for
  • 100% sure, 100% understanding
Remember faster, study better. Scientifically proven.
Trustpilot Logo

Summaries related to Beer: Cracking the code of change