engage in methodological practices that could be improved and that may result in
incorrect conclusions regarding theory and practice. Guest et al.’s ( 2003 ) summary
concluded that:
Despite the positive thrust of most published empiricalWndings, Wood ( 1999 ) among
others has noted that the quality of the research base supporting the relationship between
HR and performance is relatively weak.... questions remain about the measurement of
both HR and performance, and about the weight and relevance of tests of association and
causation. (p. 295 )
While there is often a (well-motivated) call for better theory in HR, it is just as
important to improve methodology. Some improvements require additional
resources (e.g. multiple raters, longitudinal data), but others do not (e.g. presenting
meaningful eVect size estimates and interpretation, testing forWt correctly, correct-
ing for random measurement error when the relevant reliability information is
available, using alternative estimators). If we are to draw policy inferences from our
research, we need to be as conWdent as possible in ourWndings and conclusions.
Keeping a focus on methodology is an important requirement to do so.
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