How I Became a Pragmatist in Management and Organisational Research

Whilst different approaches of management and organizational research exists, the nature of the research environment, the objectives the researcher seeks as well as the philosophical beliefs of the researcher informs largely the specific research methods the researcher adopts in the conduct of any research. As a researcher is naturally predisposed to a particularform of research orientation, the modern research environment however requires versatility. It is for this reason that researchers keeps fairly a balanced insight across different research orientations even as they still continue to hold on to their preferred philosophical and methodological stances.

For some, one is either positivist or interpretivist depending on the chosen methodology. But for others there is a middle ground where the methodologies at the two extremes are integrated which then creates a third strand for researchers to choose from. Yet for some other researchers, philosophy doesn't matter, preconceptions about methodology doesn't matter. What matters is pragmatism. Here, the research objectives and the kind of methodology that better aids in the attainment of the objectives is what remains paramount. And for an individual with a diverse background, that makes him/her exposed to different management and organizational environment, there cannot be fixation about research orientation.