EXAMINING THE EPISTEMOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF PROJECT AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT RESEARCH: METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES

The authors argue that project management lacks a single unified theory, and that projects operate in open systems where outcomes depend heavily on context. Despite this, research practice often adopts methodologies that implicitly assume closed systems and linear causality. The paper contends that the search for general cause–effect patterns tends to marginalize the particular features that shape outcomes, while exclusive focus on the particular prevents the development of shared patterns and normative recommendations. The article reviews paradigms and epistemological foundations in the field and then audits recent journal publications to examine whether researchers state and apply methodology coherently.