Employee engagement has been researched extensively in the management and human resource development (HRD) literature. However, the relationship between employee perceptions of HRD practices, engagement, and turnover intentions has not been sufficiently studied. In response, this two‐study research examined the extent to which employees' perceived support for participation in HRD practices (PSHRD), engagement, and turnover intent were associated with each other in the service sector. Two samples (nStudy 1 = 490 and nStudy 2 = 511) of U.S. service sector employees were used. Using structural equation modeling, the results of both studies confirmed the theorized partially mediated model. Study 2 expanded on the initial model by adding the moderating variable positive reciprocity beliefs between PSHRD and emotional engagement, which has not yet been empirically tested. However, the moderator was found to be statistically insignificant. Implications for HRD theory, practice, and future research are discussed.

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Purpose The purpose of this conceptual paper is to provide a foundation for human resource development (HRD) scholars in attempts to devise mechanisms for establishing and facilitating actionable pathways through which unlearning can be acknowledged and serve as a contributing agent for HRD interventions. This paper concludes with a call to action for our HRD colleagues to join us in further examination of unlearning interventions within the organizational context. Design/methodology/approach This paper narratively details the literature associated with the myriad social science domains that have investigated the unlearning process. Additionally, a cross-disciplinary literature review provides the basis for an operational definition of unlearning provided herein. Findings The field of HRD is devoted to creating learning organizations as well as utilizing change initiatives to develop organizations. However, unlearning has been largely ignored within the field of HRD. Originality/value The first contribution is by answering the call of scholars across varied disciplines to further investigate unlearning within the organizational context (Bettis and Prahalad, 1995; Hedberg, 1981; Nystrom and Starbuck, 1984). Additionally, this paper seeks to specifically address the role that unlearning holds within the field of HRD as it builds upon the definition provided by Wang et al. (2017) and offers its own operational definition. Finally, this paper provides the only known review of cross-disciplinary research pertaining to unlearning.