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ME-613 Qualitative Research Methods
5 ECTS credits – fall – 1 semester – Kristiansand
Programme
Internasjonal organisasjon og ledelse, ph.d.-program
International Management, PhD Programme
Prerequisites
PhD candidates. Applicants with relevant scientific background can be considered if the resources are
available.
Recommended previous knowledge
Ability to use the world-wide-web, library databases, word processing, e-mail, good knowledge of your
operating system (mac OSX or Windows), some knowledge in handling spreadsheets and organizing
data.
Read before course start:
Berg, Bruce L. 2009. Qualitative Research Methods for the social sciences. Boston: Allyn and Bacon,
(7th ed.)
Cassell, C. and Symon, G. 2004. Essential Guide to Qualitative Methods in Organizational Research.
London: Sage.
Richards, Lyn. 2005. Handling Qualitative Data: A Practical Guide. London, Sage Publications.
Silverman, David. 2007. A Very Short, Fairly Interesting and Reasonably Cheap Book about
Qualitative Research. London: Sage Publications.
Learning outcome
On successful completion of the course/programme, the student should be able to
1. know about the range of qualitative methods available. At the end of the course, participants
should have developed an appreciation for different epistemological and methodological
perspectives on qualitative research and be able to make appropriate methodological and
analytical choices. This also implies a consideration of criteria to evaluate the quality of
research and tactics to ensure that this quality is achieved.
2. set up qualitative research designs and chose appropriate methods to answer their research
questions. Part of the course will take the form of a workshop in which participants will develop
or present their current project and discuss it with colleagues. At the end of the course,
participants shall present a first draft of a research proposal that will include a justification for
the research, the presentation of a conceptual framework, a research design and suggest an
exploratory collection of qualitative data.
3. develop skills related to the use of the most popular data collection techniques. Specifically, at
the end of the course, participants will have acquired a certain assurance in the use of
observation and interview methods.
4. develop skills related to the use of the most popular data collection and analysis techniques.
Specifically, at the end of the course, participants will have acquired a certain assurance in the
use of observation and interview methods and will have learned the basics of software for the
analysis of qualitative data using HyperResearch http://www.researchware.com or Nvivo.
Students should download a workable demo with tutorials before course start.
Course contents
This course introduces students to qualitative methods in the social sciences. These methods cover a
wide range of approaches that are based on a variety of ontological and epistemological foundations.
All imply the collection and analysis of empirical materials expressed in terms other than numbers. In
general, enthusiasm for these approaches is based on the fact that they build on human beings’
natural modes of learning by allowing the researcher to observe, listen, exchange, take advantage of
natural experiments, and interpret in order to better understand phenomena through direct contact
with the world. However, while everyday knowledge may remain tacit, scientific research aims to
produce explicit knowledge or interpretations. For these to be credible, it becomes necessary to
systematize the collection and analysis of information: in other words to have a scientific method. This
course aims to enable participants to learn the elements of qualitative research designs, choosing
appropriate data strategies, organize data for analysis, and use a computer to analyze data that will
allow them to undertake quality qualitative research.
Teaching methods
Lectures and computer work/PC-lab. Teaching will be a combination of lectures, class discussions,
and preparing tasks with reports to the class.
Examination requirement
A structured (given topics) term paper and course tasks.
Assessment methods and criteria
Pass/Fail - where Pass must be equivalent to the letter grade B or better.
Offered as a free-standing course
No. See Prerequisites.
Faculty
Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences
Name of lecturer/contact person
Professor Rebecca Piekkari/ Associate Professor Bjørn-Tore Flåten
Credit reduction
No
Estimated work load
Class room: 30 hours
Reading course literature: 60-65 hours
Preparing class room tasks: 5 hours
Writing term paper and answering course tasks: 35-40 hours
Altogether: 130-140 hours
Literature
Mandatory literature (read before course start)
Berg, Bruce L. 2009. Qualitative Research Methods for the social sciences. Boston: Allyn and Bacon,
(7th ed.)
Cassell, C. and Symon, G. 2004. Essential Guide to Qualitative Methods in Organizational Research.
London: Sage.
Richards, Lyn. 2005. Handling Qualitative Data: A Practical Guide. London, Sage Publications.
Silverman, David. 2007. A Very Short, Fairly Interesting and Reasonably Cheap Book about
Qualitative Research. London: Sage Publications.
Recommended literature
General texts
Elster, Jon, Explaining Social Behavior. More nuts and bolts for the social sciences. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 2007.
Patton, M.Q., Qualitative Research and Evaluation Methods, 3e Edition, Newbury Park : Sage, 2002.
Miles, M.B. and Huberman, A.M. Qualitative data analysis, Sage publications, 1994.
Yin, R.K., Case Study Research, 2003
Silverman, David. 2004a. Doing qualitative research: A practical handbook. London, Sage
Publications.
Silverman, David (ed). 2004b. Qualitative research: Theory, method and practice. 2nd ed. London,
Sage Publications.
On evaluating and writing up qualitative research:
Golden-Biddle, K. and Locke, K., Composing Qualitative Research, Thousand Oaks, CA : Sage, 2007.
Golden-Biddle, K. and Locke, K. Appealing work: An investigation of how ethnographic texts convince.
Organization Science, 4(4), 1993, 595-616
On case study research (including debate):
Yin, Robert K. 2002. Case Study Research: Design and Methods. 4th ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications.
Eisenhardt, K.M., Building theory from case study research, Academy of Management Review, 14(4),
1989, (532-550).
Dyer, W.G. and Wilkins, A.L. Better stories not better constructs to generate better theory: A rejoinder
to Eisenhardt, Academy of Management Review, 16(3), 1991, 613-619.
Eisenhardt, K.M. Better stories and better constructs: The case for rigor and comparative logic,
Academy of Management Review, 16(3), 1991, 620-627.
Eisenhardt, K.M. and Graebner, M.E. Theory building from cases: Opportunities and challenges,
Academy of Management Review, 50(1), 2007, 25-32.
On ethnography
Spradley, J.P. Participant Observation, New York : Rinehart and Winston, 1980, chap. 3, 4, (63-84).
Emerson, Robert M., Fretz, Rachel I., and Shaw, Linda L. 1995. Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes.
Chicago and London, The University of Chicago Press
Kisfalvi, V.: “Subjectivity and emotions as sources of insight in an ethnographic case study: A tale of
the field,” M@n@gement, 9(3), 2006, 109-127.
On grounded theory
Suddaby, R. What grounded theory is not. Academy of Management Journal, 49, 2006, 633–642.
Selected exemplars of qualitative research published in the major management journals
Barley, S.R.. Technology as an occasion for structuring: Evidence from observations of CT scanners
and the social order of radiology departments, Administrative Science Quarterly, 31, 1986, 78-108.
Boje, David M. 1991. The storytelling Organization: A Study of story Performance in an Office Supply
Firm. Administrative Science Quarterly, 36:106-26.
Boje, David M., Rosile, Grace Ann, Durant, Rita A., and Luhman, John T. 2004. Enron spectacles: A
critical dramaturgical analysis. Organization Studies, 25(5): 751-774.
Corley, K.G. and Gioia, D.A. Identity ambiguity and change in the wake of a corporate spin-off.
Administrative Science Quarterly, 49(2), 2004, 173-208.
Dutton, J. E. and Dukerich, J.M.. Keeping an eye on the mirror: Image and identity in organizational
adaptation. Academy of Management Journal, 34(3), 1991, 517-554. (Best paper in AMJ in 1991)
Ferlie, E., Fitzgerald, L., Wood, M. and Hawkins. The nonspread of innovations: The mediating role of
professionals, Academy of Management Journal, 48(1), 2005, 117-134. (Best paper in AMJ in 2005)
Gersick, C.J.G.. Time and transition in work teams: Toward a new model of group development,
Academy of Management Journal, 31(1), 1988, 9-41. (Best paper in AMJ in 1988)
Gersick, C.J.G.. Journey 2 : Time and transition in my work on teams : Looking back on a new model
of group development, In P.J. Frost and R. Stablein (Eds.) Doing Exemplary Research (pp. 52-76),
Newbury Park : Sage, 1992 (The story behind the previous article)
Greenwood, R. and Suddaby, R.. Institutional entrepreneurship in mature fields: The big five
accounting firms, Academy of Management Journal, 49(1), 2006, 27-48. (Best paper in AMJ in 2006)
Isabella, L.A. Evolving interpretations as change unfolds: How managers construe key organizational
events, Academy of Management Journal, 33(1), 1990, 7-41, (Best paper in AMJ in 1990).
Maitlis, S. The social processes of organizational sensemaking. Academy of Management Journal,
48(1), 2005, 21-49.
Orr, Julian. 1996. Talking about Machines: An ethnography of a modern job. Ithaca, New York: ILR
Press. (see especially ch. 8 War Stories of the Service Triangle.)
Perlow, Leslie A., Gittel, Judy Hoffer, and Katz, Nancy. 2004. Contextualizing patterns of work group
interaction: Toward a nested theory of structuration. Organization Science, 15(5): 520-536.
Van Maanen, John and Kunda, Gideon. 1989. ‘Real Feelings:’ Emotional Expression and
Organizational Culture. Research in Organizational Behavior, Vol II, pages 43-103.
On-line materials:
http://www.qsrinternational.com/resources/literature/booksonnvivo/books.htm