Goal orientation, critical reflection, and unlearning: An individual‐level study

Although individual unlearning is significant for personal growth and development, few studies have investigated this process quantitatively. The main goal of this study was to examine the antecedents of individual unlearning in terms of goal orientations and reflective activities using survey data from 271 employees of Japanese organizations (including municipal government employees, human resource development [HRD] trainers from a consulting firm, and hospital nurses). The results indicated that learning goal orientation had an indirect effect on unlearning through reflection and critical reflection as well as through critical reflection only. Performance goal orientation also had an indirect effect on unlearning through reflection and, subsequently, through critical reflection. The findings suggest that critical reflection plays a key role in linking goal orientations with individual unlearning. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.