Making management useful: The foundations of meaningful action research

Abstract

This paper attempts to facilitate the transfer of management theory to practice by surveying the contemporary philosophical foundations of administrative science. Attention is directed toward three key dimensions of the problem. First, the assumptions and value matrix of management research and practice is examined. The importance of basic assumptions about the moral nature of human beings in organizations and the rationality premise are reviewed. Next, the feasibility of applying scientific methods to management and the possibility of operationalizing currently ambiguous concepts and terms are analyzed. Finally, some basic issues in research design strategies are presented. It is concluded that the present state of management theory and research is sufficiently flexible to encourage more applied endeavors and the cooperative spirit necessary for meaningful action oriented research.