Reflecting on how action research enables theorising in operations management: a provocation to interiority

Abstract

This reflection on action research in operations management explores some undeveloped themes: the place of meaning in the social science of OM and how quality may be assessed, how knowledge/theory is developed and how action research in OM creates impact. The case is made that action researchers’ interiority as attentiveness to data of consciousness and to data of sense as they enact the cycles of action and reflection through the meta learning cycle is undeveloped in OM research and is central to cogenerating practical knowledge and grounding the impact of their work.

Keywords:

• Action research
• interiority
• impact
• meaning
• quality
• theory

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS:

• SDG 17: Partnerships for the goals

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Paul Coughlan

Paul Coughlan is Professor in Operations Management at Trinity Business School, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland. His research explores collaborative strategic improvement of operations through network action learning. He and David Coghlan are co-authors of Collaborative Strategic Improvement through Network Action Learning: The Path to Sustainability (Edward Elgar, 2011).

David Coghlan

David Coghlan is Professor and Fellow Emeritus at Trinity Business School, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland. He specialises in organisation development, action research, action learning and is active in these communities internationally. His current book is The Handbook of Research Methods in Organisational Change (D. Szabla, D. Coghlan, W. Pasmore, J. Kim (eds.) (Edward Elgar, 2023).