Provides an introduction to the concept of communities of practice and its application. This work also represents a rigorous analysis and critique of the theoretical foundations underpinning this important subject. This benchmark text provides an accessible yet critical introduction to the theory and application of communities of practice and their use in a diverse range of managerial and professional contexts, from education to human resource development. Notes on contributors vii Introduction. Communities of practice: a contested concept in flux 1(16) Jason Hughes Nick Jewson Lorna Unwin Critiquing theories of learning and communities of practice 17(13) Alison Fuller Lost in translation: communities of practice - the journey from academic model to practitioner tool 30(11) Jason Hughes From communities of practice to mycorrhizae 41(14) Yrjo Engestrom Including the missing subject: placing the personal within the community 55(13) Stephen Billett Cultivating network analysis: rethinking the concept of `community' within `communities of practice' 68(15) Nick Jewson Theorizing sport as a community of practice: the coach-athlete relationship in British professional basketball 83(13) Valerie Owen-Pugh The transition to work and adulthood: becoming adults via communities of practice 96(13) John Goodwin English apprenticeship from past to present: the challenges and consequences of rampant `community' diversity 109(11) Lorna Unwin Sexuality, gender and legitimate peripheral participation: an ethnographic study of a call centre 120(11) Matthew J. Brannan The learning trajectories of `old-timers': academic identities and communities of practice in higher education 131(13) Nalita James Unemployment as a community of practice: tales of survival in the new Germany 144(12) Vanessa Beck Communities of practice in their place: some implications of changes in the spatial location of work 156(15) Nick Jewson Conclusion: further developments and unresolved issues 171(8) Jason Hughes Nick Jewson Lorna Unwin Index 179