十字路口的中国管理研究:一些哲学层面的思考

Chinese Management Research at a Crossroads:Some Philosophical Considerations

这篇评论从哲学层面讨论一些关于中国管理研究情境化的问题。首先需要注意的是,不同的哲学派系可以对情境化进行不同的解释;其次,根据迪昂-奎因(Duhem-Quine)论题,实证普适性的重复检验是一种适合在中国情境下测试西方理论的方法;第三,由于难以确定性地推翻已有的管理理论,试图创造新的理论来解释独特的中国管理现象,可能导致理论的过度繁衍,并延续薄弱甚至虚假的理论;最后,文章建议用实证规律式的研究作为理论应用和理论创新以外的另一选择。

In this commentary,I discuss some philosophical issues related to contextualizing Chinese management research.First,it should be noted that contextualization can be interpreted in different ways by different philosophical perspectives.Second,the Duhem-Quine thesis implies that replications,in the form of empirical generalization,are an appropriate means of testing Western theories in a Chinese context.Third,owing to the difficulty of conclusively falsifying management theories,attempts to create theories that explain unique Chinese management phenomena may lead to theory proliferation and the perpetuation of weak,or even false,theories.Finally,I propose the study of empirical regularities as an alternative to the theory application and theory creation approaches.