The Study of Personnel Management as an Occupation, Using Repertory Grid

Abstract

This paper describes part of a research project into personnel management as an occupation, and argues for the study of personnel managers in the context of the organisations in which they work. The research draws on Kelly's personal construct theory by examining the way 20 personnel specialists in four organisations interpret and make meaningful the roles of others encountered in their working world. These ‘interpretations’ or constructs were discovered by using a repertory grid technique, and the results are compared between each of the four organisations. Some possible explanations are offered of the ways in which the personnel specialists studied cope with values that conflict with their own, and of how they are able to integrate within their organisations' cultures.

Citation

Tyson, S. (1979), "The Study of Personnel Management as an Occupation, Using Repertory Grid", Personnel Review, Vol. 8 No. 3, pp. 34-39. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb055389