“Espoused theories” and “theories-in-use”

“Espoused theories” represent what someone says they would do in a certain situation. “Theories-in-use” represent what they actually do.¹

When someone is asked how he would behave under certain circumstances, the answer he usually gives is his espoused theory of action for that situation. This is the theory of action to which he gives allegiance, and which, upon request, he communicates to others. However the theory that actually governs his actions is his theory-in-use, which may or may not be compatible with his espoused theory; furthermore, the individual may or may not be aware of incompatibility of the two theories.

Argyris and Schön, 1974, pages 6–7

If educators are to increase their knowledge of teaching and of themselves as learners, they first need to make explicit their espoused theories and theories-in-use and discover any inconsistencies between the two. In other words, professional learning must include opportunities for people to surface what they “say they do and their explanations for their actions” and “what they actually do and the real reasons for their actions” (Robinson and Lai, 2006, page 99).

Sometimes, people in a community of practice may be aware of a mutual concern but prefer not to acknowledge it. Heifetz and Linsky (2004) warn that the process of confronting the gap between people’s espoused values and their actual behaviour can be painful and involve loss. However, confronting such incongruence can create the dissonance that causes people to act to close the gap. (See pages 156–158 for a fuller discussion of the concept of dissonance.)

Leadership often involves challenging people to live up to their words, to close the gap between their espoused values and their actual behavior. It may mean pointing out the elephant sitting on the table at a meeting — the unspoken issue that everyone sees but no one wants to mention.

Heifetz and Linsky, 2004, page 33

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