Philosophies Of Research In Business And Management A Discussion Of Social Science Issues In Terms Of Truthfulness Integrity And Authenticity

Scientific Study from the year 2020 in the subject Philosophy - Theoretical (Realisation, Science, Logic, Language), , language: English, abstract: In the context of Philosophies of Research in Business and Management (MBS), the present paper is a critical assessment about problems related to research in business and management, in order to reflect the topics, which are to develop critical interpretation and analysis of key issues in debates in undertaking research in the Social Sciences and in particular Business and Management. This will enable students to critically comprehend ongoing debates in management theory and research that are at the forefront of academic knowledge so that they can conceptualize how taken-for-granted assumptions and values (both by lay people and scientists) influence the ways in which different versions of reality are socially accomplished both in business and management research and organization and management theory.

Irrespective of whether one thinks of philosophy explicitly, each organizational researcher is a philosopher. A philosophical position is predicated on a variety of approaches relating to ontology, epistemology, methodology, ethics, and political positions. Depending on where one stands with regard to these philosophical building blocks, their orientation may be characterized as positivist, realist, critical-realist, and constructivist, with pragmatist and political considerations weighing in as well. Also, management theories all inhabit the same spectrum of philosophical positions that enrich them and add to their relevance to the world of firms and organizations. This book provides a broad-based commentary on the terrain of philosophy as it pertains to management studies, especially for the relatively unfamiliar organizational theorist. This book serves as a succinct overview of the field of management philosophy as well as a roadmap for those readers who wish to explore the terrain further. The book argues that all knowledge inquiry invokes philosophy and philosophical thinking, and that the artificial separation between philosophy and social science is fallacious. Just as philosophy is everywhere, so is power, and for better or worse they go hand in hand. Hence, philosophical positions are political positions. The authors do not shy from addressing the politics of their own research practice or the subjects of their inquiry. Philosophy and Management Studies targets a new generation of management researchers, whose interest in philosophy vastly exceeds their resources to engage with it, partly because of their unfamiliarity with its often mystifying and outsider-unfriendly conventions. It seeks to bridge the chasm between interest in philosophy in organizational studies and knowledge about it. It is not for the trained philosopher or the expert, but for a relative newcomer.

The field of management research is commonly regarded as or aspires to be a science discipline. As such, management researchers face similar methodological problems as their counterparts in other science disciplines. There are at least two ways that philosophy is connected with management research: ontological and epistemological. Despite an increasing number of scattered philosophy-based discussions of research methodology, there has not been a book that provides a systematic and more comprehensive treatment of the subject. This book addresses this gap in the market and provides new ideas and arguments for guiding management researchers.

This book is designed to introduce doctoral and graduate students to the process of conducting scientific research in the social sciences, business, education, public health, and related disciplines. It is a one-stop, comprehensive, and compact source for foundational concepts in behavioral research, and can serve as a stand-alone text or as a supplement to research readings in any doctoral seminar or research methods class. This book is currently used as a research text at universities on six continents and will shortly be available in nine different languages.

′[T]here is, as with all the chapters, an excellent set of suggested further reading...′ - Management Learning `Postgraduate students should find this a useful book, since it focuses on issues specific to their requirements. The philosophical underpinnings, methodology and practicalities of research are all discussed within the context of postgraduate research′ - International Small Business Journal This wide-ranging text comprehensively overviews management research and research methodology. The authors take the reader through all the major stages of the research process and introduce the key methods. After highlighting the different contexts and purposes, strategies and tactics, programmes and processes of management research, the authors provide detailed coverage of the relevant research approaches and methods. They discuss the interrelationship of theoretical and empirical research, and how these apply to practice. The implications of using quantitative and qualitative methods are examined, and practical advice is given on the available analysis techniques and software packages.

The book considers issues relating to accountability in social research by juxtaposing seven ways of approaching the issues and by moving toward the development of a particular approach to the earning of trust on the part of researchers. A conception of the practice and assessment of discursive accountability is presented as an option for consideration. The book grapples with the issue of accountability in social research by considering the extent to which and ways in which it is addressed in a number of different positions regarding the practice of social science. The focus of the book is on reviewing discourses around the practice of `professional' inquiry, with a view to highlighting differing arguments around the question of what it might mean to assess researchers' accountabilities. The book is structured around considering in detail various views on accountability in relation to one another. A comprehensive comparison of arguments is presented in the first two chapters of the book. The debate that is set up in the first two chapters forms the background to the elaboration and development (in Chapter 3) of constructivist argumentation in relation to the question of how accounts as set forth by researchers should be treated (by colleagues, participants, and other audiences). The continuing debate about the status to be afforded to constructions developed by researchers is tackled in this chapter. Constructivist thinking is then extended toward what is named in the book a `trusting constructivist' position. This position focuses on ways in which trust earning and trust awarding in the context of social inquiry can proceed without researchers having to justify themselves as striving to gain access to knowledge as representation of reality. Through the development of the trusting constructivist position, the book explores ways of creating trust through processes of social discourse. An assessment of actual research projects in view of the debates set up in earlier chapters then takes place. Through these assessments readers can relate the details of the arguments developed in earlier chapters to their implications for judging the practice of (accountable) social inquiry.

This guide is designed for systems researchers – emerging and seasoned – searching for holistic approaches of inquiry into complexity, which the Systems Sciences provide. The authors share insight into the foundations of research that are not only systematic in terms of rigor, but systemic in perspective, analysis, design, development, implementation, reporting, and evaluation. This guide also explores researcher competencies necessary to conduct sound systems research. Researchers using this guide will gain understanding of what distinguishes systems research from other types of research and why it is important in research today.

This book gathers original, empirical and conceptual papers that address the complex challenges of conducting responsible research in the business and management professions. It includes contributions related to, and reflecting on, the vision of the Responsible Research in Business and Management (RRBM) network, which proposes that business can help provide a better world if it is informed by responsible research. The responsible research agenda requires new methods of scholarly assessment that include criteria for measuring impact, systemic solutions and practitioner relevance. Theories greatly influence business and management practices, and as the late Sumantra Ghoshal warned, bad management theories are destroying good management practices. The authors of this book believe that good management theories can help to create new and better business practices.