Early Human History

This is the first chapter in which we will begin to delve into human history to better understand the growth and development of HRD as a discipline, as well as its current practice. Historical research, like any research epistemology, carries with it strengths and weaknesses. Johnson and Christensen (2008) def ine historical research as an “attempt to arrive at an account of what has happened in the past by systematically examining past events or combinations of events” (p. 435). Isaac and Michael (1995) give clear cause for when historical research is appropriate. Its purpose is: “To reconstruct the past systematically and objectively by collecting, evaluating, verifying, and synthesizing evidence to establish facts and reach defensible conclusions, often in relation to particular hypotheses” (p. 48). The dirty words in Isaac and Michael’s statement are systematically and objectively.