what’s wrong with calling humans a resource - valid,invalid
Article abstract:.
- Backgrounds:.
- While there is criticism of calling human beings “resources,” the need for them in business management is also pointed out.
- The author explored the academic views and root causes of this problem.
- [Human Resource Management (HRM) Origins:.
- Created in the United States in the mid-20th century as a response to declining labor productivity and the problem of labor alienation.
- Initially, the goal was to restore humanity, and the designation “Resources” did not have negative connotations.
- HRM Core Philosophy:.
- Emphasis on people as an economic resource
- Emphasis on human beings as human beings
- Treat human beings as special entities different from goods, money, and information
- Contemporary issues:.
- The HRM philosophy has been forgotten and the operation is heavily weighted toward economic and strategic aspects.
- They tend to ignore humanity and treat it as a resource, as mere labor.
- Practical issues:.
- The possibility that treating human beings as resources may lead to a loss of motivation and professional ethics, resulting in lower productivity.
- It could lead to the decline or destruction of the organizational culture.
- Conclusion:.
- It is not the designation “resource” itself that is the problem, but the business management attitude behind it.
- We need to go back to the original philosophy of HRM and be willing to apply it to management while emphasizing the importance of humanity. The author suggests that this issue be viewed as a deeper business management issue rather than just a nomenclature problem.
tokoroten It sounds like you’re saying that people without followership get mad when called a “resource”.
If you are committed to your business goals, it doesn’t matter if you are a “resource” for them, but if you are working on the basis of wanting to be recognized by others, you get mad when people call you a “resource”.
- People who are working to achieve their goals consider resources to include themselves, so they inadvertently refer to others as resources, and they feel that they don’t understand why those who oppose them do so.
- tokoroten’s hypothesis is that the reason for the backlash is a lack of followership.
- Probably not very correct.
In the first place, “whether a person P is X” and “how a person P feels about being called X” are two completely different things.
- Homo sapiens,” “yellow race,” and “Alaska males” are all correct descriptions of me.
- It’s hard for me to come up with expressions that really miff me, so I can tolerate these expressions just fine.
- ‘Would you call some person P X if it is known that he/she would be uncomfortable being called X?’
- If you wanted to maintain friendly relations, it would be reasonable not to invite them.
- In other words, a person called X is either
- Not known to be offensive.
- They don’t want to maintain friendly relations.
When there is a person A who has (self-)acknowledgement that he/she is R and a person B who self-identifies as not being R, A does not see anything wrong with calling others R, but B feels uncomfortable being called R. I feel that “resource” just happens to be substituted for “R”. … - Resource Self-Acknowledgement - I obviously self-identify as a resource. - Think about how you can use those limited resources to increase your own well-being. - I don’t know how someone who doesn’t self-identify as a resource thinks and lives, but I don’t need to know.
- In general, it means that sometimes we make mistakes when we think of how others feel as an extension of how we feel.
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