Towards Transformative Supply Chain Research and Practice
A Critical Systems Perspective
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 7169207 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Amanda Gregory (The Business School University of Hull Hull UK), Jonathan P Atkins (University of Hull), Jonathan Atkins (The Business School University of Hull Hull UK), Ashish Dwivedi (0000-0003-2943-0066, Interdisciplinary Research and Practice Division University of Essex Colchester UK, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 42 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 242-259 |
| Publication date | 2025-01-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Systems Research and Behavioral Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1092-7026 • E-ISSN: 1099-1743 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1002/sres.3108 |
| OpenAlex | W4405852625 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 65 |
The argument that the supply chain discipline needed to make an epistemological break with functionalism in favour of a systems approach was made by Mears‐Young and Jackson (1997) but it has largely been overlooked. This paper seeks to address this oversight by demonstrating what a systems (multiparadigm, multimethodological) approach involves and means for supply chain theory and practice: the adoption of a broad range of paradigmatic perspectives, the juxtaposition and interplay of different perspectives and the creation of opportunities for understanding and action that offer the potential for transformational insight and change. Such a systems approach is demonstrated through the employment of three contrasting perspectives (objective‐positivist, subjective‐interpretivist and radical‐critical) to the case study of the supply chain for personal protective equipment (PPE) in the United Kingdom during the first year of the Covid pandemic. This case study is complex and multifaceted and demonstrates well the urgent practical need for a systems approach to supply chain theory and practice as each supply chain perspective offers only partial insight and understanding. In summary, this paper seeks to advance supply chain theory and practice by articulating what a systems approach to it involves
Business · Engineering ethics · Epistemology · Pedagogy · Process management · Sociology · Supply chain · Transformative learning · Complex Systems and Decision Making · Computer Science · Engineering · Innovation and Socioeconomic Development · Philosophy · Psychology · Supply Chain Resilience and Risk Management · Artificial Intelligence · Marketing
Systemic Intervention
The co-dependency concept
What passes as a rigorous case study?
Reflexivity and Researcher Positionality
Persuasion With Case Studies
Critical systems practice 3
Critical systems practice 1
Critical systems practice 2
Critical systems practice 4
Qualitative Researching
The Possibility of Naturalism
Transformative Paradigm
Paradigms Lost and Pragmatism Regained
Qualitative Case Study Methodology
Research Design
An introduction to cybernetics
Qualitative Research Designs
Making Sense of Risk
Mutual aid versus volunteerism
Caricaturing and Categorising in Processes of Argument
Thematic networks
Pragmatism as a Paradigm for Social Research
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2025 - 2025 (1) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |