Qualitative Perspectives on Green Human Resource Management (ghrm): a Qualitative Study of Stakeholder Perceptions, Decoupling, and Enactment
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Purpose: This qualitative research examines Green Human Resource Management (GHRM) in organizations, looking particularly at stakeholder perceptions, operational practices, policy-practice decoupling, employee agency, and environmental enactment. Using qualitative interview data and systematic literature synthesis, the study portrays the employee and managerial experience of green HR practices in real-world organizational contexts. Methodology: This research uses a dual-stage qualitative exploratory design integrating a systematic synthesis of 25 core empirical qualitative studies (screened from 581 initial records across Google Scholar, PubMed, and SciSpace) with semi-structured primary interviews conducted with organizational actors. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using thematic analysis. The interview guide explored personal, interpersonal, operational, structural, and institutional determinants of GHRM behavior. Findings: The findings show a practical, everyday operational profile of GHRM centered on low-friction entry points such as paperless working, digital communication, energy conservation, and informal resource reuse. However, a widespread policy-practice decoupling persists, driven by resource deficits, passive leadership, and competing workload priorities. While employees frequently exhibit bottom-up environmental agency, formal green training, performance metrics, and reward systems remain underdeveloped. Originality/Value: The findings offer theoretical contributions by conceptualizing GHRM as a pluriform, situational, and relational social interpretation process going beyond quantitative measurement instruments. The qualitative research captures stakeholders' lived perceptions and enactment of sustainability in organizational settings. Keywords: Green Human Resource Management, qualitative research, policy-practice decoupling, employee green behavior, organizational sustainability, semi-structured interviews.
Source: Perspectives in Social Sciences
Authors: Prof. Dr. Rabia Ishrat, Syeda Lala Rukh
Language: English
Subfield: Marketing
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W7224149871