Like Water for Chocolate: Action Theory for the OB Class

Abstract

Believing in the axiom that nothing is more practical than a good theory, the author incorporated Argyris’s action theory in the content of the organizational behavior (OB) course and the management of the class for more than 6 years. The implementation began with qualms pertaining to the actionability of action theory and whether it was Argyris-specific. The article provides a brief description and a model of Argyris’s theory, describes the process of incorporating it in the design and management of the class as an organization, and suggests implications for OB courses and teachers. The article also provides reflections from students on the nature and challenges of the implementation process and discusses similarities between implementing action theory in the class and in other manifestations of real life. Overwhelming evidence from a multiple method–multiple attribute assessment of the longitudinal experience documents that action theory is indeed actionable when it is given the opportunity to create the learning environment it purports to facilitate.