To read this content please select one of the options below:

Using wikis for organizational learning: functional and psycho‐social principles

Johannes Moskaliuk (Researcher, based in the Department of Applied Cognitive Psychology and Media Psychology, University of Tübingen, Germany)
and
Joachim Kimmerle (Assistant Professor, based in the Department of Applied Cognitive Psychology and Media Psychology, University of Tübingen, Germany)

Development and Learning in Organizations

ISSN: 1477-7282

Article publication date: 26 June 2009

1141

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to aim to identify principles that make wikis an effective application when they are used within an organization. Those principles are supposed to make wikis a successful instrument for organizational learning.

Design/methodology/approach

The article makes a distinction between functional and psycho‐social principles and emphasizes their impact on organizational learning.

Findings

The functional principles (quick and easy editing; wikilinks; no hierarchical hypertext structure; revision and topicality; collaborative product; scalability and flexibility) may be regarded as the constitutive attributes of wikis. The psycho‐social principles (openness; self‐organization; autonomy; interest and personal relevance; diversity; serendipity effect) are not directly associated with wikis as a tool, but refer to the application context.

Originality/value

The article explains the functional and psycho‐social principles in detail. This will help organizations and knowledge‐management executives to employ wikis in an efficient way and avoid their disadvantages. Thus, the functional and psycho‐social principles can be a valuable starting point for applying wikis successfully in various organizational scenarios.

Keywords

Citation

Moskaliuk, J. and Kimmerle, J. (2009), "Using wikis for organizational learning: functional and psycho‐social principles", Development and Learning in Organizations, Vol. 23 No. 4, pp. 21-24. https://doi.org/10.1108/14777280910970756

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2009, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Related articles