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The purpose of this paper is to see to what extent Hans-Georg Gadamer’s hermeneutic philosophy could be used to unveil how corporate discourse about financial crimes (in codes of ethics) is closely linked to the process of understanding.

Corporate ethical discourse of 20 business corporations will be analyzed, as it is conveyed within their codes of ethics. The companies came from five countries (USA, Canada, France, Switzerland and Brazil). In the explanatory study, the following industries were represented (two companies by industry): aircrafts/trains, military, airlines, recreational vehicles, soft drinks, cigarettes, pharmaceuticals, beauty products, telecommunications and banks.

Historically-based prejudices in three basic narrative strategies (silence, chosen items and detailed discussion) about financial crimes are related to the mindset, to the basic outlook on corporate self-interest or to an absolutizing attitude.

The historically-based prejudices that have been identified in this explanatory study should be analyzed in longitudinal studies.

The historically-based prejudices that have been identified in this explanatory study should be analyzed in longitudinal studies. Historically-based prejudices could be strengthened by the way corporate codes of ethics deal with financial crimes. They could, thus, have a deep impact on the organizational culture in the long-run.

The paper analyzes the way corporate codes of ethics use given narrative strategies to address financial crimes issues. It also unveils historically-based prejudices that follow from the choice of one or the other narrative strategy.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the experiential nature of knowledge creating interaction and to introduce a framework to explore it theoretically coherently with hermeneutic phenomenology and Hans-Georg Gadamer’s concept of play.

This paper presents a literature-based conceptual analysis of the concept of play. Gadamerian conception is related with the descriptions of knowledge creating interaction in the research of knowledge management and with the uses of the concept of play in the field of Library and Information Science (LIS). Theoretical analysis is applied in this study to structure the argumentation.

This study illustrates how the preconceptions of experiences and different modes of being in interaction are implicitly present in the research of knowledge creation (KC) in the descriptions of interaction and human factors enhancing KC. A framework for examining KC in organizational circumstances is developed based on the hermeneutic phenomenology and Gadamer’s concept of play, which provide a basis for understanding KC as being together in interaction.

This theoretical study develops a framework for examining the process of KC also empirically. In this study the examination of hermeneutic phenomenology is limited to the conceptions of play, authenticity and everydayness; phenomenology offers means for further explication of human being and experience.

This study provides a new view on KC based on hermeneutic phenomenology and play, and contributes to the examination of interactive knowledge processes in the field of LIS.

The purpose of this paper is to present a framework for empirically studying knowledge creation (KC) with phenomenological approach and propose that understanding interaction as play conceptualized by Hans-Georg Gadamer allows examining KC starting from the idea of a human being interacting in the events of co-creation. The presented framework is used to examine KC in a community of librarians and teachers collaborating to promote children’s joy of reading.

An ethnographic approach is applied to investigate knowledge-creating interaction in a working community. The triangulated data consist of ethnographic observations and video recordings of the community’s gatherings, its members’ interviews and produced documents.

The phenomenological conceptions of temporality of a human being and play are suitable for understanding being in the knowledge-creating interaction, as they give means to understand the meaningfulness of the past experiences, but promote an open attitude toward the future possibilities in a way which promotes KC. Studying interactive events allows understanding how KC can be examined as a collective accomplishment. The playful mode of being in the event was seen as a way to use the limited time available for interaction effectively.

The empirical study was conducted in one community, and further research is needed to test the developed approach in other contexts.

The results may be utilized to develop organizational circumstances, which promote KC by acknowledging the meaningfulness of interaction.

The study presents a novel way to conceptualize and examine KC as an experience and an event with phenomenological approach.

Argues preliminarily that quantitative‐mathematical social science, including economics, is not possible because it applies a method useful in other areas to a field to which it cannot be applied and because the truth claim of science so conceived is self‐referential to begin with. The argument is primarily based on the classic Gadamerian hermeneutic critique of the natural sciences and on the conception of the social sciences as related to phronésis.

This book review aims to draw attention to the often disregarded philosophical foundations of the library. Both the library as an institution and the science that studies its workings, are critically analyzed and put into an epistemological and even ideological perspective.

The original work by Vesa Suominen is explored in detail and its key findings subjected to criticism.

The book displays great originality and questions a number of long held beliefs regarding the library. Moving away from the more usual pragmatic and instrumentalist view of the library, the author proposes an approach that values the content of a library independant of its user. This approach, however, raises a number of questions.

Literature on the philosophical aspects of libraries and library science is scarce. Through this review we try to kindle a discussion that involves the basic mission statement of the modern library.

Discusses the implications of two traditional philosophical notions ‐ hermeneutic and dialectic ‐ for contemporary theory and practice in the field of social and economic development. States that hermeneutic and dialectic are forms of inquiry and discourse dedicated to grasping cultural meaning from within, but also to finding resources criticism and reform within that understood universe of cultural meaning. Emphasizing H.‐G. Gadamer’s work on philosophical hermeneutics, shows how the appropriation of one’s own horizon of assumptions is essential to the task of listening to and interpreting unfamiliar cultural horizons. Emphasizing the Socratic, dialogical conception of dialectic, shows how risking opinions through mutual inquiry can be a more fruitful form of cultural critique than the more confrontational rhetorical models of debate. Concludes that these collaborative qualities of hermeneutic and dialectic are especially relevant to varieties of development theory that emphasize ethics, community development, and the need to involve all participants in the task of defining the aims of development.

Reflexivity involves critical reflection by the qualitative researcher as to the influence of the researcher's culture, history and belief on the conduct and outcome of the research. It is often seen as a practice exercised in the analysis of results in order to attempt to objectify the research. The purpose of this paper is to argue that the value of reflexivity is located in its practice in the field encounter as a means of recognising and embracing subjectivity. In order to widen reflexivity as hermeneutics, the paper draws on Gadamer's philosophical hermeneutics as developed in “Truth and Method”.

This is a conceptual paper which distils critical themes from Gadamer's truth and method and applies them to the concept of reflexivity as applied in the field.

The paper suggests that reflexivity is an important component in the field encounter. Immersion in the language and terms of the field is critical to understanding meaning; who I am, my past, my lived experience are essential inputs to my research; the researcher's opinions, ideas and outspoken statements are part of the fabric of qualitative research; qualitative interpretation as a creative exercise; qualitative research should bring insight and understanding that can be applied to catalyse change.

Understanding and applying reflexivity in the field will provide innovative insights which can be carried through to the data analysis.

This study uniquely applies Gadamer's philosophical hermeneutics to reflexivity and the field encounter.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the construction/reproduction of capitalist discourse through social and environmental reporting (SER) and, from this, to consider the implications that this may have for the function that SER serves.

The paper employs the discourse theory of Laclau and Mouffe to frame SER as a hegemonic practice. Laclau and Mouffe's discourse theory is also used as a lens by which to interpret the findings of an empirical study exploring managerial perceptions of SER motivations and organisational‐socio‐environmental interactions.

The paper finds that both SER and corporate social responsibility (CSR) are driven by numerous motivations, although these motivations essentially form part of a business case. In turn, the necessity of this business case appears to shape and constrain the ideologies that underpin and are communicated through SER.

The debate within the SER literature around which set of motivations best explains the existence of SER is challenged here by the notion that the vast majority of these motivations may be understood as falling into some sort of business case. Moreover, this business case is one that constrains the perceived function of practices such as SER and CSR. One limitation of the study relates to the importance of SER in wider processes of ideology construction and dissemination. SER may be peripheral in this regard.

A practical implication of this paper is the recognition of the structural and ideological impediments to fuller accountability that are faced by corporate managers.

The paper explores SER combining both critical theory and qualitative fieldwork. It is one of very few papers to interpret SER explicitly through the lens of discourse theory.

This article focuses on the various phenomenological approaches and their scope in the Human Resource Management (HRM) domain.

The authors reviewed and elaborated various phenomenological approaches, and their convergence, divergence and scope in the field of HRM.

The theoretical underpinnings of phenomenology reveal that with its philosophical differences, phenomenology emanates various spectrums in the form of different approaches. Furthermore, these approaches, e.g. Post-Intentional Phenomenology and Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, have the potential to understand and uncover various phenomena in the field of HRM.

Phenomenological approaches could be employed to uncover various complex phenomena in the field of HRM. Phenomenological approaches can be used to examine the everyday life experiences of employees, as they could contribute to reframe and enhance the HRM practices in the organization.

The study contributes to the authors' knowledge of employing various phenomenological approaches to explore the diverse phenomena in the field of HRM.

Drucker's views about ethics are supported by the philosophical foundations of Aristotle and Confucius with regard to the responsibilities and interdependencies that exist between individuals, organizations, and societies. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate Peter F. Drucker's work in the field of ethics as being applicable to the twenty‐first century and beyond.

The approach used to research the topic was qualitative and constructive in nature. Primary resources relied on published scholarly work from Peter F. Drucker and Aristotle, in connection with work from other scholarly sources.

The research demonstrates the continued viability of Peter F. Drucker's work in the field of ethics, as being applicable to the twenty‐first century and beyond.

The paper offers substantive underpinnings for the current study of ethics in the business disciplines, while at the same time suggesting that “plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose” (The more things change, the more they stay the same).

As a contribution to honor the life and works of Peter F. Drucker, the paper is original in that Drucker's work in the field of ethics is highlighted. The paper is supported by ancient philosophical underpinnings that offer a foundation for Drucker's work and allow his lessons to continue for generations to come.