Course content
This course is meant to bridge between the comprehensive “KAN-CGMAO2004U
Qualitative Methods and Reasoning“ course that the students take in the first
semester, and the research project to be designed and executed in the fourth
semester. Whereas the first course takes an “opportunistic approach” to doing
qualitative research and is built on hands-on experience in collecting and analyzing
qualitative field materials, this course takes a more “design-oriented approach”,
focusing on the different choices involved in designing a qualitative research project.
Building on the knowledge the students acquired in the first course, this course is
based on intensive student-teacher interactions to get the students closer to the
state of the art in research practice.
During this elective, we will discuss the research process as a series of
choices, each of which entails pros and cons and is consequential to the other
choices and to the overall project. These choices include:
1. Paradigmatic stand (from post-positivist to constructivist)
2. Research question (level of analysis, focus on experience or construction);
3. The case study (what makes a good case? E.g., extreme case versus a typical
case; homogeneity versus heterogeneity of interviewees, etc.)
4. Data collection (interviews, observations, or archival, or a mix thereof)
5. Data analysis (thematic, comparative, or longitudinal/process approach);
6. Ways of theorizing
7. Ways of presenting qualitative insights
In discussing each of these decision-points, we will map the terrain of possibilities,
the implication of various choices, their pros and cons, and the kinds of
considerations (e.g., ethical, practical) they should weigh as students design their
research project. We will also highlight that these decisions are not made in isolation. Instead, they are interdependent and should fit each other to ensure the overall coherence of the research project. We will also exemplify the various choices through examples from management and strategic research on entrepreneurship, decision-making, and leadership
See course description in course catalogue