When sound carrier doctrine was ignored

Were early Royal Navy carrier losses caused by bad application or by not understanding how to use carriers?

Bad application: the Navy had written the doctrine, but commanders ignored it and made poor risk decisions.

The Royal Navy had already developed written guidance for escorting carriers, so lack of understanding is a poor explanation for the early losses. Officers made risk calculations and operational choices that departed from their own doctrine. The Navy possessed the relevant knowledge but failed to apply it under wartime pressure.