Exploring the role of structural holes in learning: an empirical study of Swedish pharmacies

Abstract

PurposeThere is a lack of studies investigating the role of the structural configuration of social capital – more specifically, structural holes – for employees' individual learning. The objective of this paper is to address this gap in the literature, ultimately enhancing understanding of the link between the structural configuration of social capital and individual learning.Design/methodology/approachAn online questionnaire survey was administered to employees affiliated to 22 pharmacies in Sweden to gather attributional and relational data on the individual level. Social network analysis techniques were used to describe salient structural characteristics of individuals' social capital. The impact of social capital on individual learning was explored through ordinal logistic regression models based on maximum likelihood estimations.FindingsThe presence of structural holes initially increases the degree of individual learning, then reaches a maximum and begins to gradually decrease.Practical implicationsThe results of the study provide valuable input for the development and management of networks within firms, in order to improve learning and innovation. In addition, given the close proximity between learning, as conceptualized in this study, and other job attitudes, human resource management practices in general could benefit greatly from the results.Originality/valueIn this paper, the authors focus on the structural configuration of social capital, more specifically structural holes, and its inter‐relationship with learning. Although prior literature has analyzed various beneficial effects of social capital, this study is the first of its kind to investigate the role of the structural configuration of the social capital for employees' individual learning.

Contributory role of dynamic capabilities in the relationship between organizational learning and innovation performance

“…This view also incentivizes firms to adopt a learning perspective, which impacts organizational performance. According to this view, organizational learning leads to the effectiveness of the acquisition and creation of organizational knowledge, which in turn facilitates innovation regarding the development of new services/products, thus guaranteeing the firm’s survival (Vincenzo et al , 2012).…”

Holistic information behavior and the perceived success of work in organizations

“…Whereas, in general, higher levels of social capital have been linked to increased information sharing, knowledge acquisition and innovation (Martinez-Canas, Saez-Martinez, & Ruiz-Palomino, 2012; Mura, Lettieri, Radaelli, & Spiller, 2013; Widén-Wulff & Ginman, 2004), there is contradictory evidence on how social engagement in a particular group corresponds with engagement in other groups and in society at large (e.g., Huvila, Holmberg, Ek, & Widén-Wulff, 2010;Molyneux, Vasudevan, & Gil de Zúñiga, 2015). It seems that moderate levels of centrifugality and centripedality lead to the best results, or as Di Vincenzo, Hemphälä, Magnusson, & Mascia (2012) note, intermediate levels of structural holes in social networks (i.e., non-redundancy and heterogeneity of contacts) maximize learning. As Choo (2016) suggests in his congruence hypothesis, it is also probable that the alignment of the mission, strategy, and criteria for success for an organization and its information culture has an impact on its effectiveness.…”

Does family capital outweigh the negative effects of conflict on firm performance?

“…This dimension becomes particularly important when viewed through the lens of structural holes. Structural holes are those areas of a network not well connected (Burt, 1992;Di Vincenzo et al, 2012). A well-developed set of information channels serve to limit the existence and size of structural holes, especially within the family business.…”