The Concept of Organizational Routines and Its Potential for Investigating Educational Initiatives in Practice: A Systematic Review of the Literature

Fenna Wolthuis*, Mireille D. Hubers, Klaas van Veen, Siebrich de Vries

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

    16 Citations (Scopus)
    280 Downloads (Pure)

    Abstract

    This review examines the concept of organizational routines and its potential for investigating educational initiatives in practice. The studies in our review revealed three different approaches to routines: (1) examining organizational routines as entities, (2) (also) examining conversational routines, and (3) examining the internal structure of organizational routines. Current definitions, operationalizations, and examinations can lack clarity and validity. At present, the concept of organizational routines not only holds potential but is also ambiguous. To bolster the potential of the concept, two working definitions of organizational routines are formalized that best allow researchers to investigate initiatives in practice. These working definitions are needed to create clarity regarding the concept and for it to be able to deliver on its promise for providing meaningful and relevant information on how new initiatives actually work and unfold in practice.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)249-287
    Number of pages39
    JournalReview of educational research
    Volume92
    Issue number2
    Early online date27 Oct 2021
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - Apr 2022

    Keywords

    • Educational initiatives
    • Organizational routines
    • Practice
    • Systematic review
    • Validity

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