Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Identity, Privilege, and Power in Critical HRD

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Human Resource Development

Abstract

HRD definitions provide a basic understanding of what HRD practitioners do and what scholars investigate most are focused on performance improvement, competency, and knowledge. The purpose of this chapter is to expand HRD’s narrow definitions and introduce and overview a critical understanding of how identity, privilege, and power are central to individual learning, (dis)empowerment, and experience. Identity is defined by roles individuals occupy, specific characteristics, and by group membership. Society values identities differently, considering particular identities as the norm and morally neutral or superior. This valuation bestows privilege and power on individuals enjoying certain identities and provides limited opportunities to those with less valued identities. The chapter concludes with suggestions for HRD researchers and practitioners to critically assess the significance of identity, privilege, and power in their work.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 189.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 249.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 249.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Avci, O. (2016). Critical theory and what it has to offer to human resource development. Uluslararası Ekonomik Araştırmalar Dergisi, 2(1), 33–41.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bajpai, K., & Sahni, V. (2008). Hegemony and strategic choice. In C. Chari’s (Ed.), War, peace and hegemony in a globalized world: The changing balance of power in the twenty first-century (pp. 103–108). Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory. General Learning Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Basden, A. (N.D.). Reflections on power and power relations. http://kgsvr.net/dooy/power.html

  • Black, L. L., & Stone, D. (2005). Expanding the definition of privilege: The concept of social privilege. Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, 33(4), 243–255.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bleiweis, R. (March 24, 2020). Quick facts about the gender wage gap. Center for American Progress. https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/women/reports/2020/03/24/482141/quick-facts-gender-wage-gap/

  • Bohonos, J. (2019). Including critical whiteness studies in the critical human resource development family: A proposed theoretical framework. Adult Education Quarterly, 69(4), 315–337. https://doi.org/10.1177/0741713619858131

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brookfield, S. D. (2004). The power of critical theory: Liberating adult learning and teaching. Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown, N. (2019). Identity boxes: Using materials and metaphors to elicit experiences. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 22(5), 487–501. https://doi.org/10.1080/13645579.2019.1590894

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Caldwell, R. (2007). Agency and change: Re-evaluating Foucault’s legacy. Organization, 14(6), 769–792.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Callahan, J. (2005). Power, control, and gender: Training as catalyst for dysfunctional behavior at the United States Air Force Academy. In M. Morris, F. M. Nafukho, & C. M. Graham (Eds.), Academy of human resource development conference proceedings (pp. 1064–1070). Academy of Human Resource Development.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carbado, D. W. (2005). Privilege. In E. P. Johnson & M. G. Henderson (Eds.), Black queer studies (pp. 190–212). Duke University Press. https://doi.org/10.1515/9780822387220-011

  • Carnoy, M. (1986). The state and political theory. Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Castrodale, M. (2017). Critical disability studies and mad studies: Enabling new pedagogies in practice. The Canadian Journal for the Study of Adult Education, 29(1), 49–66.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clarke, C., & Matthews, J. (2021). Advancement and leadership development. In D. Telem & C. Martin (Eds.), Diversity, equity and inclusion (pp. 11–21). Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Collins, J. C. (2012). Identity matters: A critical exploration of lesbian, gay, and bisexual identity and leadership in HRD. Human Resource Development Review, 11(3), 349–379. https://doi.org/10.1177/153448312446810

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Crenshaw, K. (1991). Mapping the margins: Intersectionality, identity politics, and violence against women of color. Stanford Law Review, 43, 1241–1299.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Daldal, A. (2014). Power and ideology in Michel Foucault and Antonio Gramsci: A comparative analysis. Review of History and Political Science, 2(2), 149–167.

    Google Scholar 

  • De Souza, E. R., Ispas, D., & Wesselmann, E. D. (2017). Workplace discrimination against sexual minorities: Subtle and not-so-subtle. Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences, 34(2017), 121–132. https://doi.org/10.1002/CJAS.1438

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deetz, S. (2003). Disciplinary power, conflict suppression and human resources management. In M. Alvesson & H. Willmott (Eds.), Studying management critically (pp. 23–45). Sage.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Donovan, P. (2015). Practicing power: Undiscussables, power and HRD. In J. L. Callahan, J. Stewart, C. Rigg, S. Sambrook, & K. Trehan (Eds.), Realising critical HRD: Stories of reflecting, voicing and enacting critical practice (pp. 176–198). Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elliot, C., & Turnbull, S. (2005). Critical thinking in human resource development. Routledge.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Fenwick, T. (2014). Conceptualizing critical human resource development (CHRD): Tensions, dilemmas, and possibilities. In R. Poell, T. Rocco, & G. Roth (Eds.), Routledge companion to human resource development (pp. 113–123). Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fenwick, T. J. (2004). Toward a critical HRD in theory and practice. Adult Education Quarterly, 54(3), 193–209.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flannery, D. D. (1994). Changing dominant understandings of adults as learners. Confronting Racism and Sexism. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 61, 47–57.

    Google Scholar 

  • Foucault, M. (1980). Power/knowledge. Pantheon Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Foucault, M. (1982). The subject and power. Critical Inquiry, 8(4), 777–795.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Foucault, M. (1988). “Technologies of the self:” Lectures at University of Vermont, Oct. 1982. Technologies of the self, 16–49. University of Massachusetts Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Foucault, M. (1991). Discipline and punish: The birth of a prison. Penguin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Foucault, M. (1997). Technologies of the self. In P. Rabinow’s (Ed.), Michel Foucault: Ethics, subjectivity and truth (pp. 223–252). Penguin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Foucault, M. (1998). The history of sexuality: The will to knowledge. Penguin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Foucault, M. (2000). Power. New Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gaventa, J. (2003). Power after Lukes: A review of the literature. Institute of Development Studies.

    Google Scholar 

  • Githens, R. (2009). Capitalism, identity politics, and queerness converge: LGBT employee resource groups. New Horizons in Adult Education and Human Resource Development, 23(3), 18–31. https://doi.org/10.1002/nha3.10347

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gordon, C. (1991). Governmental rationality: An introduction. In G. Burchell, C. Gordon, & P. Miller (Eds.), The Foucault effect: Studies in governmentality (pp. 1–51). The University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hamlin, B., & Stewart, J. (2011). What is HRD? A definitional review and synthesis of the HRD domain. Journal of European Industrial Training, 35(3), 199–220.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heiskala, R. (2001). Theorizing power: Weber, Parsons, Foucault and neostructuralism. Social Science Information, 40(2), 241–264.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heyes, C. (2002). Identity politics. In E. Zalta (Ed.), The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/identity-politics/

  • Hill Collins, P. (2019). Intersectionality’s definitional dilemmas. Annual Review of Sociology, 41, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-soc-073014-112142

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Horrocks, A., & Callahan, J. L. (2006). The role of emotion and narrative in the reciprocal construction of identity. Human Resource Development International, 9(1), 69–83. https://doi.org/10.1080/13678860600563382

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jessop, B. (2012). Marxist approaches to power. In E. Amenta, K. Nash, & A. Scott (Eds.), The Wiley-Blackwell companion to political sociology (pp. 3–14). Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jo, S. J., & Park, S. (2016). Critical review on power in organization: Empowerment in human resource development. European Journal of Training and Development, 40(6), 390–406. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJTD-01-2016-0005

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jørgensen, K. M., & Keller, H. D. (2008). The contributions of communities of practice to human resource development: Learning as negotiating identity. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 10(4), 525–540. https://doi.org/10.1177/152342208320374

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kirby, M., Kidd, W., Koubel, F., Barter, J., Hope, T., Kirton, A., Madry, N., Manning, P., & Triggs, K. (2000). Sociology in perspective. Heinemann.

    Google Scholar 

  • Knights, D. (2009). Power at work in organizations. In M. Alvesson, T. Bridgman, & H. Willmott (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of critical management studies (pp. 144–165). Oxford University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Korte, R. F. (2007). A review of social identity theory with implications for training and development. Journal of European Industrial Training, 31(3), 166–190. https://doi.org/10.108/0309059071073950

  • Kulkarni, M. (2012). Social networks and career advancement of people with disabilities. Human Resource Development Review, 11(2), 138–155.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lawless, A., Sambrook, S., & Stewart, J. (2012). Critical human resource development enabling alternative subject positions within a master of arts in human resource development educational programme. Human Resource Development International, 15(3), 321–336. https://doi.org/10.1080/13678868.2012.689214

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liegghio, M. (2013). A denial of being: Psychiatrization as epistemic violence. In B. A. LeFrançois, R. Menzies, & G. Reaume (Eds.), Mad matters: A critical reader in Canadian mad studies (pp. 122–129). Canadian Scholars Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lukes, S. (1974). Power: A radical view. Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lukes, S. (2005). Power: A radical view (2nd ed.). Palgrave Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ma Rhea, Z. (2007). Where the global meets the local: Workforce diversity education. In L. Farrell & T. Fenwick (Eds.), Educating the global workforce: Knowledge, knowledge work and knowledge workers (pp. 127–140). Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mambrol, N. (2016). Foucault’s concept of power. https://literariness.org/2016/04/05/foucaults-concept-of-power/

  • McGuire, D., & Jørgensen, K. M. (2011). Human resource development: Theory and practice. Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • McInnes, P., Corlett, S., Coupland, C., Hallier, J., & Summers, J. (2017). Exploring traditions of identity theory for human resource development (HRD). In K. Black, R. Warhurst, & S. Corlett (Eds.), Identity as a foundation for human resource development (pp. 21–38). Routledge.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • McIntosh, P. (1989). White privilege: Unpacking the invisible knapsack. Peace and Freedom, 49(4), 10–12.

    Google Scholar 

  • Metcalfe, B. D. (2008). A feminist poststructuralist analysis of HRD: Why bodies, power and reflexivity matter. Human Resource Development International, 11(5), 447–463. https://doi.org/10.1080/13678860802417569

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, S. (June 11, 2020). Black workers still earn less than their white counterparts. Society for Human Resource Management. https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/compensation/pages/racial-wage-gaps-persistence-poses-challenge.aspx

  • Mizzi, R. C., & Rocco, T. (2013). Deconstructing dominance: Towards a reconceptualization of the relationship between collective and individual identities, globalization and learning at work. Human Resource Development Review, 12(3), 364–382. https://doi.org/10.1177/1534484313477410

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mizzi, R. C., & Walton, G. (2014). Catchalls and conundrums: Theorizing ‘sexual minority’ in social, cultural and political contexts. Philosophical Inquiry into Education, 22(1), 81–90.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nackoney, C. K., & Rocco, T. S. (2008). Critically strategic HRD: Possibility or pipe dream? Proceedings for the 48th Adult Education Research Conference (pp. 282–287). St. Louis, MO. https://newprairiepress.org/aerc/2008/papers/49/

  • Osanloo, A. F., Boske, C., & Newcomb, W. S. (2016). Deconstructing macroaggressions, microaggressions, and structural racism in education: Developing a conceptual model for the intersection of social justice practice and intercultural education. International Journal of Organizational Theory and Development, 4(1), 1–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Preston, R., & Arthur, L. (1997). Knowledge societies and planetary cultures: The changing nature of the consultancy in human development. International Journal of Educational Development, 17(1), 3–12.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Procknow, G. (2017). Silence or sanism: A review of the dearth of discussions on mental illness in adult education. New Horizons in Adult Education and Human Resource Development, 29(2), 4–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Procknow, G. (2019a). The pedagogy of saneness: Sane-centricity in popular culture as pedagogy. New Horizons in Adult Education & Human Resource Development, 31(1), 4–21.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Procknow, G. (2019b). The pedagogy of saneness: A schizoaffective storying of resisting sane pedagogy. International Journal of Qualitative Studies, 32(5), 510–528.

    Google Scholar 

  • Procknow, G., & Rocco, T. S. (2016). The unheard, unseen, and often forgotten: An examination of disability in the human resource development literature. Human Resource Development Review, 15(4), 379–403.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Procknow, G., Rocco, T. S., & Munn, S. L. (2017). (Dis) ableing notions of authentic leadership through the lens of critical disability theory. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 19(4), 362–377.

    Google Scholar 

  • Raffnsoe, S., Mennicken, A., & Miller, P. (2017). The Foucault effect in organizational studies. Organizational Studies, 40(2), 155–182.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reynolds, A. L., & Pope, R. L. (1991). The complexities of diversity: Exploring multiple oppressions. Journal of Counseling & Development, 70, 174–180.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rocco, T. S., Bernier, J., & Bowman, L. (2014). Critical race theory and HRD: Moving race front and center. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 16(4), 457–470.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rocco, T. S., Munn, S. L., & Collins, J. C. (2018). The critical turn in human resources development. In M. Milana, J. Holford, S. Webb, P. Jarvis, & R. Waller (Eds.), The Palgrave international handbook on adult and lifelong education and learning (pp. 227–244). Palgrave Macmillan.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Rocco, T. S., & West, G. W. (1998). Deconstructing privilege: An examination of privilege in adult education. Adult Education Quarterly, 48(3), 171–184.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rutherford, J. (1990). A place called home: Identity and the cultural politics of difference. In J. Rutherford (Ed.), Identity: Community, culture and difference (pp. 9–27). Lawrence & Wishart Ltd.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sambrook, S. (2008). Critical HRD: A concept analysis. Personnel Review, 38(1), 61–73.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scheper-Hughes, N. (1993). Death without weeping: The violence of everyday life in Brazil. University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schmidt, S. (2016). An honor to train: The professional identity of army trainers. In I. R. M. Association (Ed.), Professional development and workplace learning: Concepts, methodologies, tools, and applications (pp. 1692–1707). IGI Global.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Sørensen, M. K. (2014, September). Foucault on power relations. http://www.irenees.net/bdf_fiche-notions-242_es.html

  • Stephen, A. (2019). Philosophy for busy people. Michael O’Mara Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stets, J. E., & Serpe, R. T. (2013). Identity theory. In J. DeLamater & A. Ward (Eds.), Handbooks of sociology and social research (pp. 31–60). Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sue, D. W. (2010). Microaggressions, marginality, and oppression. In D. W. Sue (Ed.), Microaggressions and marginality, manifestation, dynamics, and impact (pp. 3–24). Wiley & Sons.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sue, D. W., Capodilupo, C., Torino, G., Bucceri, J., Holder, A., Nadal, K., & Esquilin, M. (2007). Racial microaggressions in everyday life: Implications for clinical practice. American Psychologist, 62(4), 271–286.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Syed, J., & Metcalfe, B. D. (2017). Under western eyes: A transnational and postcolonial perspective of gender and HRD. Human Resource Development International, 20(5), 403–414. https://doi.org/10.1080/13678868.2017.1329367

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tajfel, H. (2010). Social identity and intergroup relations. Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Usher, R., & Solomon, N. (1999). Experiential learning and the shaping of subjectivity in the workplace. Studies in the Education of Adults, 31(2), 155–163.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Välikangas, A., & Seeck, H. (2011). Exploring the Foucauldian interpretation of power and subject in organizations. Journal of Management and Organization, 17(6), 812–827.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, J., Wang, G., Ruona, W. E. A., & Rojewski, J. W. (2005). Confucian values and the implications for international HRD. Human Resource Development International, 8(3), 311–326. https://doi.org/10.1080/13678860500143285

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weber, M. (1978). Economy and society (G. Roth & C. Wittich, Trans). University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wekker, G. (2006). The politics of passion: Women’s sexual culture in the Afro-Surinamese diaspora. Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wolff, J. (Winter 2017 Edition). Karl Marx. In E. N. Zalta (Ed.), The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2017/entries/marx/.

  • Wolframe, P. M. (2013). The madwoman in the academy, or, revealing the invisible straightjacket: Theorizing and teaching saneism and sane privilege. Disability Studies Quarterly, 33(1). http://dsq-sds.org/article/view/3425

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA

    Tonette S. Rocco

  2. University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada

    Robert C. Mizzi

  3. York University, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Greg Procknow

Authors
  1. Tonette S. Rocco
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Robert C. Mizzi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Greg Procknow
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Tonette S. Rocco .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Joshua C. Collins

  2. Durham University Business School, Millhill Lane, Durham, UK

    Jamie L. Callahan

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Rocco, T.S., Mizzi, R.C., Procknow, G. (2023). Identity, Privilege, and Power in Critical HRD. In: Collins, J.C., Callahan, J.L. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Human Resource Development. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-10453-4_16

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation