Lecturer: Dr.

Kamarul Zaman Ahmad

TRAINING MANAGEMENT

Prepared By: M. Zia Aslam (CGA070040)

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RESEARCHING HUMAN RESOURCE
DEVELOPMENT: EMERGENCE OF A
CRITICAL APPROACH TO HRD
ENQUIRY

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TRAINING AND

DEVELOPMENT, 2006

BY:
Claire Valentin

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 INTRODUCTION:
• Purpose of the Paper:
• This paper discusses the dominance of positivist approach in the research of Human
Resource Development and Management

• It examines how critical perspectives in research have contributed to the emergence

of a critical HRD. In a theoretical discussion and literature review, the features of post
modernism and critical theory will explored

• They say, in the fast changing competitive business environment HRD has a central
role to play in promoting and supporting the development of a learning environment
to create and nurture knowledge

• A positivist management research approach the starting point of research as the

identification of an unsolved problem. This will be studied and the researcher will
attempt to produce a suitable answer for the problem (American way)

• Whereas, a critical approach is not simply to jump to a solution for a particular

problem just like a matter of getting a simple story (European way)

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 INTRODUCTION:
• In positivist approach, the choice of what is to be studied and how
to study it is determined by objective criteria rather than by human
beliefs and interests (taken by natural science research)

• Non-positivism emerged as a response to the domination of

scientific method in the social sciences

• the world is socially constructed and subjective, and thus the

researcher is part of what is studied or observed. This tends towards
qualitative research using small samples investigated in depth or
over time

• A critical perspective suggests that not only are there many

different possible answers to management problems , but what is of
more interest is how, why and by whom the question is being
framed, what the historical , social and political context of the
inquiry is
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FEATURES OF CRITICAL RESEARCH:

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 CONCLUSION:
• This research provides insight and critique to explore
the social reality of management and HRD practice, and
provides directions for theoretically informed action,
which challenges existing organizational practices

• A critical approach to HRD research can provide new

frameworks with which to analyze organizations and
stimulate creativity i.e. not only new ways of doing
things but also new ways of thinking about things

• Critical insights can enable us not only to consider the

instrumental aspects of work but also the moral,
political and cultural aspects of HRD
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