Interdisciplinary Studies in the Humanities

Connecting Critical Hermeneutics with the Management and Organizational Studies: An Analysis of the Philosophy and Methods of its Implementation in Organizations

Document Type : Original Research Paper

Authors

H. Danaeefard 1
N. Amrollahi Biuki 2
S. H. Fatemi Aghda 3

1 Professor of Public Management, Faculty of Management and Economy, Tarbiat Modares University, Terhan, Iran.

2 Assistant professor of Public Management, Faculty of Management and Economy, Ardakan University, Yazd-Iran.

3 Ph.D student of Management, Ardakan University, Yazd, Iran.

https://doi.org/10.22035/isih.2016.215
Abstract
Critical hermeneutics is rooted in philosophy of knowledge, in general, and in the methodology of human sciences, in particular. This approach is methodologically considered as a qualitative study with the aim of achieving internal understanding in various fields such as linguistic, longitudinal and experimental sciences. Jürgen Habermas, one of the precursors of Frankfurt School, is the pioneer of this method. In 1981, he published one of his best works entitled “Communicative Interaction Theory”, and added the symbolic aspects of social interaction to Frankfurt critical theory. Thus, critical hermeneutics does not pursue a “unifying answer”; rather it seeks to portray the social phenomena that are derived through discourse. Discourse, as a means of obtaining data, is used in critical hermeneutics and as Habermas posited, the essential prerequisite for discourse is to provide space devoid of any trace of power. In this qualitative study, the researchers conducted in-depth interviews with individuals, and by transcribing the interviews, converted the phenomenon into text. These texts constitute the research data of the study. Then, the researchers interpreted the textual form of the phenomena and represented the obtained results in several limited themes, each of which is further split into certain limited categories. Since the main advantage of critical hermeneutics is developing and reorienting the existing interpretative approaches to the study of management, this paper attempts to examine this approach as a qualitative research method in organization and management studies, and represent its process and key features.

Highlights

1. Exploring the critical role of development of non-positivism paradigms, such as critical and interpretive paradigms, in epistemology, ontology and methodology of management science.

2. Understanding critical hermeneutics as the qualitative method in organizational and management studies.

3. The increasing importance of using realization and interpretation of studies in humanities instead of using discovery and explanation methods in natural science studies.

4. Pay attention to the organization as a social text and interpreting the textual phenomena of organization.

5. The need to depict realization of organizational phenomena, resulting from discourse, as a means of gathering data in critical hermeneutics approach.

Keywords

qualitative research
interpretive paradigm
critical hermeneutics
meaningful contexts
discourse
freedom

Subjects

Ahmadvand, Sh., & Hamidi, S. (1392/2014). Čāhār revāyat dar fahm-e motāle’āt-e miyānreštei [Four narrations of understanding the interdisciplinary studies]. Interdisciplinary Studies in the Humanities, 6(1), 31-53.   http://dx.doi.org/10.7508/isih.2014.21.002
Derakhsheh, J., & Nosratpanah, M. S. (1393/2014). Karbord-e raves tahlil-e hermenotik dar motale’at-e eslami [Hermeneutical Method of Analysis in Islamic Studies]. Journal of Jostarha-ye Siyasi-ye Mo’aser/Contemporary Political Studies, 5(3), 39-62.
Frankel, R. M., & Devers, K. J. (2000). Study design in qualitative research--1: Developing questions and assessing resource needs. Education for Health, 13(2), 251-261.
Gadamer, H. G. (1977). Philosophical hermeneutics. University of California Press.
Gaeeni, A., & Hosseinzadeh, A. (1391/2012). Pārādāymhā-ye segāne-ye esbātgerāyi; Tafsiri va hermenotik dar motāle’āt-e modiriyat va sāzmān [The trio paradigms of positivism, interpretativism and hermeneutics in management]. Jornal of Rāhbord-e Farhang/Strategy for Culture, 19, 103-138.
Hatch, M., & Yanow, D. (2003). Organization theory as an interpretive science. The Oxford handbook of organization theory, 63-87. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199275250.003.0003
Heidegger, M. (1962). Being and time (J. Macquarrie & E. Robinson, Trans.). NY: State University of New York Press. (Original work published 1926)
Herda, E. A. (1999). Research conversations and narrative: A critical hermeneutic orientation in participatory inquiry. Praeger Publishers.
Jamadi, S., Olia, M. (1392/2013). Zamine va zamāne-ye padidāršenāsi: Jostāri dar zendegi va andišehā-ye Husserl va Heidegger [?????]. Tehran, Iran: Qoqnus.
Law, R. (2004). From research topic to research question: a challenging process. Nurse researcher, 11(4), 54-66. http://dx.doi.org/10.7748/nr2004.07.11.4.54.c6215
Linstead, S. (1993). Deconstruction in the study of organizations. In J. Hassard & M. Parker (Eds.), Postmodernism and organizations (pp. 49-70). London: Sage.
Manoochehri, A. (1381/2002). Hermenotik, dāneš va rahāyi [hermeneutic, knowledge and freedom]. Tehran, Iran: Našr-e Boq’e.
McGaughey, D. (1988). Through myth to imagination. Journal of the American Academy of Religion, 56(1), 51-76. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jaarel/LVI.1.51
McGuire, S. (1979). Interpretive sociology and Paul ricoeur. Human Studies, 4(1), 179-200.
Michaels, M. B. (2009). The organization in front of the text: a critical hermeneutic inquiry in employee policy appropriation (Doctoral dissertation). University of San Francisco.
Mortazavi, S. Kh. (1385/2006). Hermenotik va raveš šenāsi-ye olum-e ensāni [Hermeneutics as a research methodology in humanities]. Paper presented to the National Congress on Humantities.
Phillips, N., & Brown, J. L. (1993). Analyzing communication in and around organizations: A critical hermeneutic approach. Academy of Management journal, 36(6), 1547-1576. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/256821
 Pierovich, A. E. (2009). Tradition and change in urban China: A critical hermeneutic inquiry of language, culture and identity in Shanghai (Doctoral dissertation). University of San Fransisco.
Ricoeur, P. (1373/1994). Zendegi dar donya-ye matn [‎La vie dans le monde du texte] (B. Ahmadi, Trans.). Tehran, Iran: Našr-e Markaz.
Rikhtegaran, M. R. (1378/1999). Manteq va mabhas-e elm-e hermenotik [Logic & discourse of hermenutics]. Tehran, Iran: Našr-e Kongre.
Sajjadi, S. M. (1378/1999). Čand mabhas-e asāsi dar falsafe-ye ta’lim va tarbiyat [Some essentials on philosophy of education]. Tehran, Iran: Amir Kabir.
Tavana, M. A. (1393). Pārādāym-e vāqe’gerāyi dar farāsu-ye esbātbgerāyi va hermeotik: be su-ye raveš šenāsi-ye miyānreštei [The paradigm of critical realism: Approach to an interdisciplinary methodology]. Interdisciplinary Studies in the Humanities,7(1), 27-56.  http://dx.doi.org/10.7508/isih.2015.25.002
Thompson, J. B. (1990). Ideology and modern culture: critical theory in the era of mass communication. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
Vaezi, A. (1379/2000). Čisti-ye hermenotik [The nature of Hermenutic]. Journal of Zehn, 3, 115-149.
 
Send comment about this article
Enter Name.
Enter a valid email address.
Enter a vaid affiliation.
Enter comments (At leaset 10 words)
CAPTCHA Image
Enter Security Code Correctly.

  • Receive Date 12 February 2016
  • Revise Date 02 July 2016
  • Accept Date 16 May 2016

Article View 10,423
PDF Download 9,246

Home

Editorial Board

Publication Ethics

Reviewers

Submission

Contact Us