Abstract

GONDIM, Sônia Maria Guedes; PEDRO; COELHO JUNIOR, Francisco Antônio  and  PEREIRA, Marcos Emanoel. Explanatory models for work and organizational phenomena: epistemological, theoretical, and methodological issues. Rev. Psicol., Organ. Trab. [online]. 2016, vol.16, n.4, pp. 316-323. ISSN 1984-6657.  http://dx.doi.org/10.17652/rpot/2016.4.12641.

This paper aims to discuss explanatory models in Work and Organizational Psychology by analyzing their metatheoretical underpinnings. In particular, the paper analyzes the concepts of causes and reasons, both of which perform a central role in the constitution of scientific models. We demonstrate that experimental, correlational, and case study explanatory models use causes and reasons as strategies of knowledge building, and as a means of linking phenomenon, data, and theory. We also discuss the methodological implications of such use of causes and reasons by scientific models. The paper concludes by discussing theoretical and methodological issues involved in the attempts at building complex models in WOP - showing that, in order to be complex, a model needs to include in its formulation stable-dynamic, cause-reason, and contextual distance-proximity analyses, as well as the theory-phenomenon-data triad.

Keywords : theory; phenomenon; causes; reasons; explanatory models.

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