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Research activities aimed at improving the quality and effectiveness of management are conducted not only by researchers but also by managers at all levels of organizational structure. In the process of management research, the researcher or manager often has to conclude the unknown based on existing knowledge. In this regard, the knowledge of philosophical assumptions and research methods is an important competence of management personnel (Bell et al., 2018). This paper aims to identify and evaluate a range of management research methods and strategies based on ontological, epistemological, axiological, and paradigmatic assumptions of management research.
Philosophical assumptions help to develop management knowledge, even making decisions on a specific problem in any organization. At every stage of research, several assumptions are made, including epistemological, about knowledge, ontological, about the realities that can be faced, and radiological, about the values that affect the research process (Biedenbach & Jacobsson, 2016). These assumptions influence the way how people understand the used methods and research questions, and how they interpret the findings. Well-considered and coherent assumptions can lead to reliable management research.
Epistemology refers to the assumptions about human knowledge, which means the establishment of reasonable and proper knowledge and its communication to others. Different researchers accept different epistemology assumptions (Luoto et al., 2017). This diversity of epistemological approaches gives a big choice of methods, but the outcomes of different assumptions must be taken into account (Ghauri et al., 2020). For instance, the positivist assumption that real facts give the best evidence can result in the selection of quantitative research methods. In this case, the research findings will be considered objective, but at the same time, they will not give a complex view of the realities of a particular organization. It means that only individual epistemological assumptions can control what one considers rightful for particular research.
Ontological assumptions form the way people see the research objects. This method determines how the manager sees business management and the choice of the research project (EicherCatt, 2016). The resistance to change in an organization is exemplary in this case. The ontological assumption helps to research the ways to eliminate this issue, looking for the employees who resist change and the actions that may prevent this resistance (Rechberg, 2018). There can be a different type of ontological assumption, focused on how this resistance can benefit organizations.
Besides ontological and epistemological assumptions, each organization has an axiological approach, its system of values that permeates all the activities of personnel and affects its goals and results. Values manifest in priorities, behavior, relationships, and many other factors (Ethiraj et al., 2018). The companys ability to create key values that will combine the efforts of all structures of the organization is one of the deepest sources of successful activity in general, and anti-crisis development of the organization in particular (Albanese & Paturas, 2018). The companys management strategy, which is based on a certain value system, allows assessing the situation and concentrating funds and resources on overcoming emerging difficulties and solving development problems.
The paradigmatic assumption sets a definite vision of the world and outlines a circle of problems that have meaning and solutions (Rolfe et al., 2016). It is a valid transfer of reality, the facts that people consider as true. Everything that is not included in this circle does not deserve consideration (McAbee et al., 2017). The paradigm ensures that a solution to the problem exists; it also sets acceptable methods and means of obtaining this solution.
With the help of philosophical assumptions, moving from the known to the unknown, the researcher can either use knowledge about certain facts, approach general principles, conclude particular phenomena based on general assumptions. This transition is conducted with the help of such research methods as induction and deduction, which means obtaining knowledge about the object through logical inferences (Oral, 2019). Induction is a research method in which the general conclusion is based on a private one, while deduction is a way of reflection, through which a general assumption leads to a private conclusion (Jebb et al., 2017). These two methods are important for the development of theoretical knowledge through empirical.
Trying to connect each of these two methods with a philosophical concept, it can be seen that deduction is more consistent with positivism (ODonoghue, 2018). Deduction involves the generalization of the results obtained, that is, the distribution of its conclusions to a significant number of economic objects (Quinlan et al., 2019). Positivism constitutes a single reality, according to which, individuals are subjects that solve problems in the process of processing information. When the deductive method relies on data analysis, induction helps to study human interpretations of the events. It requires the collection of quality data and the flexible application of methods and tools during the study (George et al., 2016). For this reason, it is consistent with interpretivism, according to which the experience of each employee is unique.
To sum up, the validity of theoretical conclusions and the value of practical recommendations for solving a particular management problem directly depend on the correct understanding of the nature of management knowledge, methodology, and research strategies. Management research strategy involves the use of several different philosophical assumptions, research methods, and a combination of different techniques. Fundamental ontological, epistemological, axiological, and paradigmatic assumptions are necessary for strong management research. They support the effective evaluation of the situation and contribute to productive research.
References
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