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An Exploration of the Influence of Social Position on HRM Adoption:
A Case of HRM in Pakistan

KHALIL AHMED CHANNA

PhD

The University of Edinburgh

2016
DECLARATION

In accordance with the University of Edinburgh regulations for Research Degrees
the author declares that:

(a) This thesis has been composed by the author

(b) It is the result of the author’s own original research

(c) It has not previously been submitted for other degree or professional
qualification

The copyright of this thesis belongs to the author.

Signed.......................................................................
31st May, 2016
Dated........................................................................

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Praises be to the Divine Force who looks after everyone and helps those in times of
difficulty and sadness. Without His blessings and guidance I would never have achieved
this milestone.

Keeping in tune with tradition and custom, and primarily of my own accord, I would like
to thank my Supervisors Dr Xiaobai Shen and Dr Sara Chaudhry, who guided me with
their wise words at every step of my PhD journey.

Words cannot express how grateful I am to my Parent, my Baba Sain, my wife,
Shamrose, and my three lovely daughters, Aatiqa, Aamna, and Aaliyah, for their
extended support, love, and patience. My special thanks to my brother, Nazeer Ahmed,
who always encouraged me and showed faith in my abilities and skills.

I would like to thank my Alma Mater, the Sukkur Institute of Business Administration
(Sukkur IBA) and its Director, Prof. Nisar Ahmed Siddiqui for funding my PhD
research.
A graceful acknowledgement is also forwarded to all my Edinburgh business school
colleagues, friends in Edinburgh, and well-wishers who supported me during my PhD
journey as well as during my pleasant stay in Edinburgh.

I dedicate this thesis to my late grandmother, Amma JiJi, whose prayers and teachings
will always guide me.

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ABSTRACT

This thesis explores human resource management (HRM) adoption by investigating the
influence of multiple HRM actors’ social position, capital resource(s) exchange
mechanism, dispositions, social classes, habitus, social expectation, and national and
global environmental factors.
The objectives of this thesis were achieved through systematically conducting three
different studies for the thesis. The first study was carried out to gain insight into the
influence of social position on HRM academics’ adoption. The major contribution of this
study was a theorising model on HRM academics’ adoption. It shows which capital
resource is very sought after and how it plays a role in developing HRM academics’
dispositions, which in turn provides them with the drive and motivation to adopt western
HRM ideas and knowledge. The second study was carried out to gain insight into the
mechanism and formation of capital resource(s) exchange that influences HRM
practitioners to adopt western HRM ideas, knowledge, and practices. The main
contribution of this study comprised empirical insights into the importance and role of
social class (élite and emerging class); habitus and socialisation (primary and secondary
socialisation) as developers and controllers of the mechanism of capital resource(s)
exchange; and formation of social position. The third study investigated a gap between
accepted (adopted) HRM ideas and knowledge, and actual HRM practices. The major
contribution of this study was its theorising on the factors that influence this gap. It
explored the influences of conflicting factors such as actors’ professional and
occupational orientation and position, social position, and social expectation, which
develop the gap.
This thesis adopted a qualitative abductive research approach. It conducted qualitative in-
depth interviews with 19 HRM academics, 15 MBA-Alumni HRM practitioners, and 10
non-MBA-Alumni HRM practitioners. Qualitative observation in two business schools
and five business organisations in multiple industries was carried out to enrich the data
collection.
This thesis contributes to the existing body of knowledge by providing insights into
individual actors’ level HRM adoption, which is an underexplored area in Pakistan and
similar developing countries. By employing theoretical and analytical tools based on
Bourdieu’s theory of practices and social position, Rogers’s and Tarde’s theorising of
adoption, and findings of empirical studies of macro institutions, cultural sensitive views,
and institutional factors’ framework in the diffusion of HRM, this thesis explored,
examined, and theorised HRM adoption at different individual actors’ level in business
organisations and business schools in Pakistan. In that respect, this thesis theoretically
contributes to Bourdieu’s theory and its unique use in international HRM, organisation
studies, and management research. This thesis empirically contributes to the
understanding of management and think tanks in business schools, business
organisations, educators, HRM practitioners, and relevant government and regulatory
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bodies who can benefit from the findings of this research by understanding the different
factors and social structures affecting western HRM’s effectiveness and its applications.
It also suggests to these stakeholders the factors that affect individuals’ and employees’
adoption of western HRM and western management ideas, knowledge, and practices; any
change in strategies, policies, and procedures; and problems in their implementation.

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Contents
DECLARATION ................................................................................................................................ i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................................. ii
ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................................... iii
List of Tables .................................................................................................................................. x
List of Figures ................................................................................................................................ x
List of Abbreviations .................................................................................................................... xi
Chapter One: Introduction ............................................................................................................ 1
1. 1 Background of the research ............................................................................................... 2
1.2 The Significance of this thesis ............................................................................................. 5
1.3 Research setting .................................................................................................................. 8
1.3.1 Pakistan: Country profile and chronology of the events that led to the entry of
western management ideas, knowledge, and practices in the country ............................... 8
1.4 Human resource management: Proliferation in the world and in Pakistan ..................... 14
1.5 HRM adoption defined ...................................................................................................... 20
1.6 The significance of HRM actors’ social position ................................................................ 24
1.7 Gap in the literature .......................................................................................................... 25
1.8 Objective of the thesis ...................................................................................................... 27
1.9 Structure of the thesis ....................................................................................................... 29
1.10 Study one: The influence of HRM academics’ social position on HRM adoption ........... 30
1.11 Study two: A mechanism of capital resources exchange and social position formation:
study of MBA-HRM graduated practitioners .......................................................................... 32
1.12 Study three: Knowing-doing gap between adopted and implemented HRM in Pakistani
organisations ........................................................................................................................... 34
1.13 New terminologies used in this thesis ........................................................................ 37
1.13.1 Contingent capital ................................................................................................ 37
1.13.2 Capital Endowment ......................................................................................... 38
1.13.3 Soft Exchange ....................................................................................................... 38
1.13.4 Hard Exchange...................................................................................................... 40
1.13.6 Elite Class and Emerging class .............................................................................. 40
1.14 Summary ......................................................................................................................... 41
Chapter Two: Research Methodology ........................................................................................ 43
2.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 43
2.3 Philosophical positioning .................................................................................................. 43
2.3.1 Social constructionism ............................................................................................... 49
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2.3.2 Phenomenology ......................................................................................................... 52
2.3.4 Research approach ..................................................................................................... 54
2.3.5 Abductive approach ................................................................................................... 57
2.3.6 Research Design ......................................................................................................... 59
2.4 Research Site ..................................................................................................................... 60
2.5 Participants ....................................................................................................................... 61
2.5.1 Rationale behind selection of participants and representing cases .......................... 62
2.6 Data Collection Methods .................................................................................................. 63
2.6.1 In-Depth Interviews .................................................................................................... 64
2.6.2 Qualitative observations ............................................................................................ 66
2.6.3 Document review ....................................................................................................... 69
2.7 Data Analysis ..................................................................................................................... 70
2.7.1 Grounded Theory: As Data Analysis Method ............................................................. 70
2.7.2 Variants of GT: Induction, Deduction, and Verification ............................................. 72
2.7.3 Variant of GT: coding techniques and format of theory ............................................ 75
2.7.4 GT’s Data Analysis Procedure Adopted for the Studies in this Thesis ....................... 76
2.7.4.1 Identifying empirical themes .............................................................................. 77
2.7.4.2 Constructing conceptual categories .................................................................... 78
2.7.4.3 Developing a process model ............................................................................... 78
2.7.4.4 Why focus on individual level analysis ................................................................ 79
2.7.5 Ethical considerations ................................................................................................ 80
Chapter Three: The influence of social position on HRM academics adoption .......................... 84
3.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 84
3.2 Literature Review .............................................................................................................. 89
3.2.1 Organisational and individual level adoption ................................................................ 89
3.2.2 Human Resource Management (HRM) as western management idea ......................... 91
3.2.3 HRM in developing country contexts ............................................................................. 93
3.2.4 Social position: Bourdieu’s theory of practice, capital endowment and disposition .... 96
3.2.5 Theory of Practice and social position ....................................................................... 97
3.2.6 Theory of Practice in the Context .............................................................................. 98
Species of Capital ................................................................................................................ 98
Economic capital ............................................................................................................. 98
Cultural capital ................................................................................................................ 99
Social Capital ................................................................................................................... 99
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Dispositions ......................................................................................................................... 99
3.3 Empirical Setting and Research Methodology ................................................................ 102
3.3.1 Data Collection ............................................................................................................. 103
3.3.2 Data Analysis ............................................................................................................... 104
3.4 Data Analysis ................................................................................................................... 105
3.4.1 First stage analysis ................................................................................................... 105
3.4.2 Second stage analysis ............................................................................................... 108
3.4.3 Third stage analysis .................................................................................................. 113
3.4.3.1 First-order within case Analysis ............................................................................ 113
Frank, Assistant professor HRM: location-A ..................................................................... 113
Dr Sebastian: The professor of Management at location-B .............................................. 119
Nicola: Senior Lecturer (Assistant Professor) at location-B .............................................. 123
Ulmer: Lecturer human resource management: Location-A ............................................ 127
3.4.3.2 Second-Order Cross Case Analysis ........................................................................ 131
3.4.3.2.1 Capital resources ................................................................................................ 132
3.4.3.2.1 Disposition.......................................................................................................... 136
3.5 HRM Adoption ............................................................................................................. 139
3.6 Discussion and Conclusion: ............................................................................................. 141
Chapter Four: HRM Practitioners Adoption: ............................................................................. 145
The influence of capital Resources Exchange Mechanism and formation of social position. .. 145
4.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 145
4.2 Literature Review ............................................................................................................ 149
4.2.1 Capital Resources exchange ......................................................................................... 150
4.2.1.1 Cultural capital ...................................................................................................... 152
4.2.1.2 Social capital .......................................................................................................... 153
4.2.1.3 Symbolic capital .................................................................................................... 154
4.2.2 Habitus ......................................................................................................................... 154
4.2.3 Human Resource Management ................................................................................... 156
4.3 Empirical setting and research methodology ................................................................. 159
4.3.1 MBA alumnus as HRM practitioners ............................................................................ 159
4.3.2 Data collection ............................................................................................................. 160
4.4 Data Analysis ................................................................................................................... 161
4.4.1 First stage Data analysis ........................................................................................... 161
4.4.2 Second Stage Data Analysis ...................................................................................... 163
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4.4.3 Within-case analysis: first order analysis ................................................................. 167
Ruchie: HRM manager in national airlines. ................................................................... 167
Aleeba, HR Manager, Pakistan based Multinational firm in Food and beverage industry.
....................................................................................................................................... 170
Aleesha, HR director, banking sector ............................................................................ 174
Lexman: HR Director, Petroleum Company. ................................................................. 177
4.4.4 Cross-case analysis and Discussion: Second order Analysis ..................................... 182
4.4.4.1 Capital resources ............................................................................................... 182
Capital Resources .......................................................................................................... 187
4.4.4.2 Acquisition of dominant form of capital resource through exchange mechanism
....................................................................................................................................... 188
4.4.4.3 Soft Exchange .................................................................................................... 188
4.4.4.4 Hard Exchange................................................................................................... 189
4.4.4.5 Habitus as structure or context ......................................................................... 191
4.4.4.6 Primary socialisation ......................................................................................... 192
4.4.4.7 Secondary socialisation ..................................................................................... 193
4.5 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................... 194
Chapter Five: Exploring the gap between adopted and actual HRM: A study of HRM actors in
Pakistan ..................................................................................................................................... 197
5.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 197
5.2 Literature Review ............................................................................................................ 201
5.2.1 Bourdieu’s field in context ........................................................................................ 203
5.2.2 Social Space .............................................................................................................. 204
5.2.3 Social Position ........................................................................................................... 205
5.2.4 Historical developments in HRM adoption ............................................................... 206
5.2.5 HRM adoption and de-coupling ................................................................................... 210
5.2.6 Decoupling ................................................................................................................ 212
5.3 Research Setting and Method ......................................................................................... 216
5.3.1 HRM practices in Pakistan ........................................................................................... 216
5.3.2 Data Collection ............................................................................................................. 218
5.4 Data Analysis ................................................................................................................... 220
5.4.1 First stage Analysis .................................................................................................... 220
5.4.2 Second stage analysis ............................................................................................... 221
5.4.2.1 First order within case Analysis ............................................................................. 224
Alex: HRM academic ...................................................................................................... 224
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