HRM: A Management Science in Need of Discipline

Abstract

Human resource management (HRM), as a subdiscipline of management science, is in its infancy. HRMpractices are often utopian in expectation and fail to incorporate a realistic view of existing knowledge bases in the psycho logical, social, and biological sciences. The HRM discipline relies upon theor etical approaches (e.g., theories of motivation, satisfaction, and performance) which are: 1) almost invariably linear in conceptualization and depend largely upon correlational evidence, 2) frequently validated within non- representative contexts that are overly constrained by researchers, and 3) overly simplistic in that the constraints and patterns imposed by our bio logical, psychological, and social systems are frequently ignored or assumed to constitute random error within the models. This frequently translates into HRM practices which map reasonably well onto theory yet fall short of yielding expected outcomes. The theories do not match the realties observed. We point to non-linear dynamics and chaos theory as a way of conceptualizing how common HRM practices may translate into observable outcomes. Such an approach will force managers to pull back from simple reliance on linear predictions and realize that truly effective HRM practices should be sensitive to the unique, complex, and less systematically predictable patterns of human behaviour.