Alternative paradigms and the study and practice of performance management and evaluation

Steve McKenna, Julia Richardson, Click to edit Master subtitle style Laxmikant Manroop

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This paper explores and compares positivist approach to PME with approaches located in other paradigms, more specifically interpretivism and critical theory. The paper calls for innovation through paradigmatic diversity in PME research and scholarship rather than further, incremental development of prescriptive models. 4/29/12

Paradigm

model; pattern; typical or stereotypical example; (in the philosophy of science) a very general conception of the nature of scientific endeavor within which a given enquiry is undertaken.

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Ontology

the branch of metaphysics that studies the nature of existence or being as such. In logic the set of entities presupposed by a theory Ontology concerns our assumptions about reality. Is there an objective reality out there or is it subjective, existing only in our minds? It is a systematic account of Existence. philosophy) An explicit formal

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Epistemology

a branch of philosophy that investigates theorigin, nature, methods, and limits of human knowledge. Epistemology asks the question How do we know what we know?

Defined narrowly, epistemology is the study of knowledge and justified belief. As the study of knowledge, epistemology is concerned with the following questions: What are the necessary and sufficient conditions of knowledge? What are its sources? What 4/29/12

Positivism

a philosophical system founded by Auguste Comte, concerned with positive facts and phenomena, and excluding speculation upon ultimate causes or origins.

logical positivisma strong form of empiricism, especially as established in the philosophical system of Auguste Comte, rejects metaphysics and theology as seeking knowledge beyond the scope of experience, and holds that experimental investigation and 4/29/12 observation are the only sources of

Interpretivism/ anti-positivism

A sociological approach that emphasizes the need to understand or interpret the beliefs, motives, and reasons of social actors in order to understand social reality.

Burrell and Morgan (1979 p. 227) note that the interpretive paradigm embraces a wide range of philosophical and sociological thought which shares the common characteristic of attempting to understand and explain the social world primarily from the point 4/29/12

Critical Theory

Critical theory has been defined as theory which can provide the analytical and ethical foundation needed to uncover the structure of underlying social practices and to reveal the possible distortion of social life embodied in them.

Research conducted within this dominant paradigm, therefore, is not concerned with efficient working 4/29/12

There are two main strands of thought that we wish to highlight in relation to a critical ontology, both of which emphasize the centrality of the concepts of control and power.

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First, structuralism highlights the idea that power and therefore control, is embedded in the structures of society. As a consequence, we can understand workplace relationships better if we appreciate power imbalances and inherent inequalities that pervade the social system. These imbalances can be based on social hierarchy, gender, race, etc., but they are important in determining how control is

Critical structuralists may identify with the possibility of a truth that can be discovered, however, they operate within critical realism (Archer, 2000), suggesting that in order to access this truth, broad social, political and economic forces need to be acknowledged. A key plank of critical structuralism, therefore, is the assumption that 4/29/12 social, political and economic forces

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