Critical social science and emancipation:II, development and application

How can industrial relations scholars engage with practice while remaining critical? Part I argued that a notion of real interests establishes the grounds for action. This notion can be developed in terms of differing dimensions of interests. These dimensions are illustrated using concrete examples. The dimensions do not provide direct answers in specific instances; personal judgement remains essential. But they provide some tools for thinking about these issues. They also help to identify the conditions under which intervention is unproblematic and hence where institutional reform in industrial relations and ‘uncritical management studies’ more generally can be acceptable from a critical point of view.