Developing a high-performance work system: the role of conflict in expansive learning

The purpose of this research is to investigate how new forms of working develop over meso and microgenetic timescales. In this paper, we focus on the role of conflict and conflict resolution on the development of a high-performance work system (HPWS) over a period of one year. We hypothesise that this development involves a process of expansive learning. Our analysis is therefore guided by Cultural- Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) and our research question is the ways in which and the extent to which different types of conflict promote or inhibit the process of expansive learning. We use ethnographically informed case study methodology to investigate the extent to which these dynamics develop amongst a project team of IT researchers and developers designing a computerized mammography system. The contribution of the paper lies in unraveling the nature of the conflictual processes that underpin the formation of high-performance work systems overtime.