ABSTRACT
The theoretical framework of HRD’s role, as outlined in the Chapter 2, has very limited empirical validation, since it is based only on a literature study and two small national case study research projects. Moreover, it is unclear whether the framework is valid for the European situation, since much of the literature on which it is based is of American origin, and empirical data were only collected in the Netherlands. Therefore, to clarify the European outlook on HRD in learning-oriented organisations (the main objective of this study), data were collected in seven European countries, using a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods.
