Strategic human resource management is an emerging field of study in the transitional economy of China. The purpose of this study is to identify the current status of strategic human resource management research in the context of mainland China, and offer recommendations for future research. This study reviewed recently published articles (between 1992 and 2008) in major academic journals in both English and Chinese, focusing on the most important topic of strategic human resource management: the relations between human resource management and firm performance. This study finds that China-based strategic human resource management research has actively participated in major theoretical debates in the literature, and that China-based studies have extended previous models by identifying additional moderating and mediating variables. We recommend future research in this area be more responsive to emerging methodological concerns of the field, and pay more attention to China-specific issues that may have significant organizational consequences.
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