Graduate Program Exit Seminar - Ken Poland
Ken Poland will present a Graduate Program Exit Seminar, Learning in the Ecology of Games on March 2, 2020 at 3:00 p.m. in 370 Kottman Hall
This work utilizes the Ecology of Games Theory (EGT) to explore three structural aspects of collaborative
institutions as they relate to learning: 1) level of activity in policy games; 2) actor heterophily; and
3) institutional bridging capital. To study this effect, I create a bipartite network of policy actors participating
in the formulation of 14 Nonpoint Source Implementation Strategic Plans (NPS-IS Plans) in the Maumee River
Basin in northwestern Ohio. I use structured interviews with NPS-IS Plan participants to measure individual
and collective single-loop and double-loop learning that occurred as a result of participation. Using Qualitative
Comparative Analysis (QCA), I find mixed support for my hypotheses. High game activity is associated with
higher perceived collective learning, and high institutional bridging capital is associated with higher individual
learning; high actor heterophily enhances these effects. These results illustrate the need for a dialogue
about the differential effects of institutional structure on various learning types – and their implications for
collaborative outcomes.