Over the past 20 years, human resource (HR) management has emerged as a major field of social science inquiry dealing with the employment relationship. In this review article, the author considers the nature of this significant field, arguing that it is marked by contention rather than a coherent program of work informed by shared theory and assumptions. Contention in HR management can be seen in divisions over the subject matter of the HR field, forms of explanation, normative positions, and understandings of the public role of HR scholars.
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