Down the Wrong Rabbit Hole: Methodological Traps in Researching Emotions in Post-Merger Integration

Abstract

We call the attention of management scholars to the methodological traps inherent to data collected using self-reported emotions experienced in the context of merger integration. In a systematic review, we identified fifteen peer-reviewed empirical articles where authors discuss the impact of emotions in post-merger situations based on interview data. We found that authors of twelve studies appear to have been unaware of the problems of the interview method; or implicitly accepted the inherent and unavoidable distortions and biases of self-reported emotions over time. We argue that these distortions and biases represent threats to data validity and reliability. In support of this position, we cite literature suggesting it is difficult for researchers to reconstruct emotions experienced based on interviews conducted a few weeks after the events, so that results based on this method may not be valid. The authors of these articles all relied on data collected several months or years after merger events, and then sought to assess the impact of emotions at the time of the merger. As a consequence, conclusions based on these data may be unreliable. We conclude with recommendations for overcoming this potential source of invalid data in post-merger integration studies. Keywords: Emotions, interview, merger, change process, delayed recall