Date of Award

Spring 2024

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Organizational Leadership

First Advisor

Dr. Joshua Henson

Second Advisor

Dr. Bethany Peters

Third Advisor

Dr. Jolene Erlacher

Abstract

Little if any research has been conducted to determine the dynamics of and meaning derived by a group of professionals using collaborative inquiry (CI) to create a values and behaviors (VB) statement in the early stages of forming a community of practice (CoP). This case study involved individual interviews and other observational techniques to determine meanings derived from the inquiry and identify the value individuals and the group as a community may have gained from the CI. The research questions for this study addressed how using CI to establish the VB statement affected the development of the CoP, the meaning individual participants derived from the experience, the effect the experience had on individual participants, and the contribution the shared experience made to the formation of the group’s corporate culture. The literature review addressed CI as an arm of action research and the primary vehicle for the phenomenon investigated in the project, individual and corporate values and their relationship with associated behaviors as information being generated by the CI, and the history, structure, and functions of the CoP that served as the laboratory for this research. The research strategy for this project was a pragmatic hermeneutic approach. Because the CI and hermeneutical inquiry cycles are similar, the outcome of the CI informed the outcome of this research project. The findings indicated the use of CI to create a VB statement resulted in clarity of expectations within the community, common terminology for expected behaviors, greater self-awareness, and cultural curiosity that resulted in a spirit of cultural comity and communal intimacy.

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