Learning Relationships and Pyramid of Authority

This chapter provides an insight into the interpersonal constraint/enabler elements for project situated learning. The first major section of this chapter explores the learning relationships element. Therein, it initially defines what a learning relationship is, and elaborates on the importance of understanding and building them in a project context. It then discusses two conditioners of project participants’ learning relationships, which ultimately influence their situated learning behaviours. These conditioners include: attitudes to public exposure and public scrutiny of perceived personal matters; and, preparedness to explore one’s learning relationships with others outside of the existing relationship frameworks, while viewing relationship problems as major learning opportunities. These discussions cover aspects of defensive routines impacting learning exchanges as well as issues of challenging traditional socio-cultural factors or assumptions within the presenting project relationship frameworks.