Phenomenology and Human Resource Development: Philosophical Foundations and Implication for Research

This article discusses the philosophical foundations of phenomenology and their relevance for research. A return to the foundations is warranted because of the popularity of phenomenology as a methodological choice in Human Resource Development (HRD). At the same time, there is concern that the groundbreaking philosophical premises of phenomenology are being lost in favor of functionalist misapplications of the method. Phenomenology offers a powerful critique of positivism and provides a way of inquiring into central qualities of human beings and of being human in this world. It focuses on core dimensions of lived experience beneath the surface of everyday life and proposes an approach to deeper understanding and insight. As a research method, phenomenology is grounded in profound and complex philosophical thought. Researchers adopting phenomenology are well advised to move beyond method-focused textbooks and engage with the movement’s primary literature, especially the writing of its founders, Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger.

Workarounds and social support: the saviors for visually impaired bankers in India

Purpose

This research aims to study the coping experience of visually impaired (VI) bankers in India after they have received reasonable accommodation from their employers, that is, the work process or environment has been suitably modified to ensure a barrier-free environment for them.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 12 VI bankers working with public sector banks in India. A phenomenological approach was adopted during data analysis.

Findings

Despite the provision of reasonable accommodations, VI employees often find it difficult to fulfill their job responsibilities. This is on account of extensive paperwork required for completion of their jobs and the partially accessible information systems available to them. As a result, these VI employees are found resorting to workarounds to carry out their jobs, with the nature of workarounds adopted varying with the type and extent of visual impairment. Furthermore, it is observed that VI employees require social support not only from their superiors and peers but also from their subordinates and customers to carry out their tasks.

Research limitations/implications

Data collection was done through snowball sampling which could have resulted in sampling bias. Due to confidentiality issues, observation of workarounds in practice by VI employees could not be carried out as part of the study.

Originality/value

The study contributes to the literature on integration of persons with disabilities (PwDs) by examining their coping experience after provision of reasonable accommodations. It emphasizes the role of workarounds, an under-studied area in PwD integration, as well as support of other stakeholders in the experience.

Method or Madness

This article reviews the research method of phenomenology and its use in understanding human experience. This is conceptualized in the context of a research study performed with nine participants and their experience of finding their “calling.” Their experiences are used as the medium through which Husserl's method is explored. Questions and concerns about this alternative and nontraditional approach to creating and understanding new social knowledge are considered. Reflexivity and the researcher's psychological integrity in application of the method are explored.

Embodied leadership: Moving from leader competencies to leaderful practices

The aim of this study is to illustrate the rich potential of using a phenomenological lens to forefront leader–follower interactions in an intercultural and dangerous context, thus providing a more situational, relational, and integral understanding of leadership practices. An interdisciplinary approach that used a phenomenological ontology and a leadership practice epistemology was applied to re-analyze a competency framework previously identified in a larger case study of Australian military advisers during the Vietnam War. We demonstrate the rich promise of an embodied perspective through the words of the practitioner and their own (bodily) interpretations of leading. In so doing, we challenge the Cartesian mind–body dichotomy and acontextual approach that underpins most mainstream leadership studies. The (re)analysis locates two “leaderful practices” and identifies the influence of in situ context in which leader–follower relations are situated. Our results signal the explanatory potential of embodiment and the related influence of context on the processual nature of leadership.

The Possibilities of Phenomenology for Organizational Research

Qualitative researchers have developed and employed a variety of phenomenological methodologies to examine individuals’ experiences. However, there is little guidance to help researchers choose between these variations to meet the specific needs of their studies. The purpose of this article is to illuminate the scope and value of phenomenology by developing a typology that classifies and contrasts five popular phenomenological methodologies. By explicating each methodology’s differing assumptions, aims, and analytical steps, the article generates a series of guidelines to inform researchers’ selections. Subsequent sections distinguish the family of phenomenological methodologies from other qualitative methodologies, such as narrative analysis and autoethnography. The article then identifies institutional work and organizational identity as topical bodies of research with particular research needs that phenomenology could address.

Work Worth Doing

What is the meaning of our work? How do we find the work that is ours, work that is worth doing for us as individuals? This study attempted to answer these questions in understanding the experience of discovering one’s calling. It was undertaken with a group of professionals who work in areas serving the natural environment and used phenomenology to penetrate and apprehend the six themes of their experience. This article helps understand the meaning of their calling in its experiential components and offers support for its relevance in organizational life. Pseudonyms have been employed in this writing.