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Complexity theory is essentially a formal attempt to question how coherent and purposive wholes emerge from the interactions of simple and sometimes non-purposive components. Explicit recognition of complexity can provide a fresh and enlightening perspective on action research. Through an expository discussion of the foundational postulates of complexity theory this article demonstrates the theoretical and methodological connections between complexity and action research, with particular emphasis on the relevance of complexity in educational and workplace contexts. Complexity is an emerging theoretical perspective, which presents possibilities for revolutionising approaches to action research, as well as strengthening arguments promoting the value of action research in a wide range of contexts. Complexity, it is argued, can provide a valuable theoretical underpinning for action research.Furthermore, action research provides a valid methodological approach to the study of complexity. This article is primarily theoretical and attempts to demonstrate the application of complexity to a specific action research project will be left to future publication(s). Rather, this article explores the general applicability of complexity as both theory and metaphor in action research. The article begins with a brief exploration of the theory, particularly focusing on its application in the social sciences. The theoretical and methodological connections between complexity and action research are discussed through several of the foundational postulates of complexity, how these manifest in action research and how they add to our understanding of action research itself.

Aims and ObjectivesThis research aimed to further understand the level and scope of practice of the nurse practitioner in Australia and New Zealand using a capability framework.

Renata Phelps is a Lecturer in the School of Education at (CBT) in information technology at all levels of education and training. The emergence of counter-narratives underpinned by the capability movement, have as yet had minimal impact on practice in computer education. New discourses in educational theory and practice which are founded on non-linear approaches to learning and teaching provide added impetus to engage in the competency/capability debate, and re-examine our approaches to computer education. This paper explores complexity theories and demonstrates how complexity's pedagogical implications can lead to new models for understanding computer learning and teaching. A new model for conceptualising end-user computer education is presented that was derived from a three-year action research initiative with pre-service teachers.

The combined trends of learner-centred teaching and ubiquitous technology use in the classroom have given instructors a unique opportunity to support students in developing lifelong learning skills. Heutagogy (or self-determined learning) provides a promising framework for capitalizing on these developing trends, drawing on established learner-centred education theories that strongly emphasize learner autonomy. The key principles of heutagogy – learner agency, self-efficacy and capability, reflection and metacognition, and non-linear learning – provide a foundation for designing and developing learning ecologies, the potential of which can be further maximized through the use of digital media. This article describes the theory of heutagogy and the learner-centred pedagogies on which the theory is founded, as well as providing an explanation of the pedagogy-andragogy-heutagogy (PAH) continuum and its use in developing student skills. It also explores the role of social media in supporting the development of those skills.

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Background to the studyRapid technological changes and the emergence of the global knowledge-based economy have encouraged national governments to develop policies encouraging investment in Internet technologies and infrastructure, for example, Scotland (The Scottish Office, 1999), Canada (Advisory Council on Science and Technology, 1999) and Australia (Beazley, 2001). Upgrading the skill shortages in the workforce, particularly information technology skills, are promoted as the basis of this new economy. Owing to the need for a rapid uptake of these new skills, providing effective workplace learning has become essential for many companies to gain competitive advantage (Bassi et al., 1998).In the face of the Internet and its related technologies, retaining staff, remaining competitive and ensuring long-term profitability are seen as potential organizational benefits of the emerging knowledge-based economy. Implementation of flexibility in training and user control of learning, particularly through online delivery, have in turn created pressures for changes in the way people and organizations work (Eccles, 1998; Stephenson and Yorke, 1998;Bates, 2000). Accompanying these expectations,``training'' is also being redefined, for example:As we enter the next millennium . . . training as something provided for employees will be replaced by learning that employees initiate themselves. Training for the masses will be replaced by highly customized, just-for-me learning (Garger, 1999).