Guest editors’ introduction to the focused issue: Qualitative research methods in international business

journal of International Business Studies (2011) 42, 573-581. doi: 10.1057/jibs.2011.19 It is exhilarating to write the introduction to this Special Issue as it presents an important opportunity for qualitative research to reclaim its position as an integral part of international business (IB) research. The field of IB was founded on a rich qualitative research legacy (e.g., Bartlett, 1979; Crozier, 1965; Fayerweather, 1969; Johanson & Vahlne, 1977; Kindleberger, 1956; Prahalad, 1975; Wilkins, 1970, 1974). Over time, however, such methods have been progressively marginalized in our field as quantitative methods have become the norm. This shift in emphasis has mirrored the broader trend toward more positivistic empirical methods in the social sciences. The field of IB is multidisciplinary in scope, and interdisciplinary in content and methodology (statement of JIBS editorial policy). However, as our respective home disciplines came under growing pressure to solidify their legitimacy as scientific endeavors that merit scholarly attention, it is not surprising that we began to take on the norms propagated within our own academic communities that typically equated quantitative data with hard science. While there are clear merits associated with quantitative methods, the multi-cultural, multi-dimensional and dynamic nature of the field of IB lends itself to a broad range of research methodologies, qualitative methods being one of them. In order to understand the complexities of emergent and evolving phenomena scattered over distance, and the differentiated contexts typical to many topics under investigation in IB, it is often inappropriate to engage in large-scale, cross-sectional studies or reductionist methods in the absence of well-developed theory. Rather, thick description, exploratory research and comparative case analysis that focus on inductive theory building and hypotheses generation may be more suitable.

We examine the citations from four international business (IB) journals over 2000‐2004 to show the areas, the journals, and the institutions that impact IB research. The leading works that influence IB research are primarily management journals, scholarly books, and IB journals. IB research is published in non‐IB journals, as well and this has influenced the recent research in IB journals. U.S. and non‐U.S. academic institutions and non‐academic organizations are among the top 100 institutions that impact IB research, indicating that this research is a truly global endeavor. Finally, recent IB research is influenced more by recent published research than by past research. Scholarly books have become less influential, while the economics, finance, and marketing journals show no change in the influence on IB research over time.

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to conduct a study on the articles published in the four top international business (IB) journals to examine how four cultural models and concepts – Hofstede’s (1980), Hall’s (1976), Trompenaars’s (1993) and Project GLOBE’s (Houseet al., 2004) – have been used in the extant published IB research. National cultures and cultural differences provide a crucial component of the context of IB research.Design/methodology– This is a bibliometric study on the articles published in four IB journals over the period from 1976 to 2010, examining a sample of 517 articles using citations and co-citation matrices.Findings– Examining this sample revealed interesting patterns of the connections across the studies. Hofstede’s (1980) and Houseet al.’s (2004) research on the cultural dimensions are the most cited and hold ties to a large variety of IB research. These findings point to a number of research avenues to deepen the understanding on how firms may handle different national cultures in the geographies they operate.Research limitations– Two main limitations are faced, one associated to the bibliometric method, citations and co-citations analyses and other to the delimitation of our sample to only four IB journals, albeit top-ranked.Originality/value– The paper focuses on the main cultural models used in IB research permitting to better understand how culture has been used in IB research, over an extended period.

Exports and exporting firms have long been studied in the fields of both international business (IB) and competitiveness. While IB concentrates on the performance of firms and, within this scope of interest, on the processes from a company or managerial perspective, the competitiveness stream has primarily focused on country-level implications from the point of view of policy making. Qualitative studies are frequent in IB research, while quantitative methods have been more widespread in competitiveness research. The novelty of this work is to use both types of research in relation to the same population in order to compare findings. Based on the notion that the qualitative and quantitative research are complementary, this paper investigates how SME performance can be assessed based on financial performance patterns and what conclusions can be drawn for competitiveness at firm and national levels. An explorative qualitative research — where financial figures were also collected — was performed in the case of ten Hungarian small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to discover the processes and mechanisms of export excellence. A quantitative research was performed to explore the financial performance patterns of privately-owned companies in Hungary. Findings show that export intensive SMEs are amongst the financially high performing Hungarian firms. Based on qualitative research findings, we propose that outstanding management, continuous learning and innovation — also frequent in competitiveness narratives — may be the factors explaining the success of such firms.

Lusophone African (LA) multinational enterprises (MNEs) are becoming a significant pan-African and global economic force regarding their international presence and influence. However, given the extreme poverty and lack of development in their home markets, many LA enterprises seeking to internationalize lack resources and legitimacy in international markets. Compared to higher income emerging markets, Lusophone enterprises in Africa face more significant challenges in their internationalization efforts. Concomitantly, conducting significant international business (IB) research in these markets to understand these MNEs internationalization strategies can be a very daunting task. The fast-growing rise of social media on the Internet, however, provides an opportunity for IB researchers to examine new phenomena in these markets in innovative ways. Unfortunately, for various reasons, qualitative researchers in IB have not fully embraced this opportunity. This article studies the use of social media in qualitative research in the field of IB. It offers an illustrative case based on qualitative research on internationalization modes of LAMNEs conducted by the authors in Angola and Mozambique using social media to identify and qualify the population sample, as well as interact with subjects and collect data. It discusses some of the challenges of using social media in those regions of Africa and suggests how scholars can design their studies to capitalize on social media and corresponding data as a tool for qualitative research. This article underscores the potential opportunities and challenges inherent in the use of social media in IB-oriented qualitative research, providing recommendations on how qualitative IB researchers can design their studies to capitalize on data generated by social media.

The Welch et al. (J Int Bus Stud 42(5):740–762, 2011) JIBS Decade Award-winning article highlights the importance of the contextualization of international business research that is based on qualitative research methods. In this commentary, we build on their foundation and develop further the role of contextualization, in terms of the international business phenomena under study, contemporaneous conversations about qualitative research methods, and the situatedness of individual papers within the broader research process. Our remarks are largely targeted to authors submitting international business papers based on qualitative research, and to the gatekeepers – editors and reviewers – assessing them, and we provide some guidance with respect to these three dimensions of context.

Purpose: The paper aims to explore the role and significance of qualitative methods in the research process, particularly focusing on their ability to interpret and understand complex social phenomena. It highlights the complementarity between qualitative and quantitative approaches and their joint use in comprehensive research. Design/methodology/approach: This paper utilizes a theoretical approach to describe and analyze qualitative research methods, including observation, interviews, and group discussions. The discussion is grounded in a comparison with quantitative methods, emphasizing the interpretive and subjective aspects of qualitative research, which allows for a deeper understanding of phenomena. Findings: The paper finds that qualitative methods play a crucial role in providing insights into phenomena that cannot be quantified. It highlights the importance of qualitative research in building theories from observed experiences, the value of respondents’ personal experiences, and the essential interaction between researchers and participants. The findings also support the argument that qualitative and quantitative research are complementary, and using both approaches can enhance research outcomes. Research limitations/implications: The paper acknowledges that purely qualitative research may lack generalizability due to its focus on individual or small group data. It suggests future research should continue to integrate both qualitative and quantitative methods to enhance the validity of the results. Practical implications: While not directly aimed at providing commercial or economic recommendations, the findings emphasize the importance of incorporating qualitative methods in research processes to gain richer, more contextually grounded insights that can inform policy- making, social programs, and educational practices. Social implications: The research can influence public attitudes by promoting a more nuanced understanding of social phenomena. It underscores the value of qualitative research in capturing human experiences and behaviors, which could be used to inform social policy and educational reforms. Originality/value: This paper contributes to the field by offering a comprehensive exploration of qualitative research methods, highlighting their relevance in capturing the complexities of social phenomena. It is of value to researchers in social sciences, education, and policy development who seek to integrate qualitative approaches into their research methodologies. Keywords: qualitative research, observation, interviews, social phenomena, research methodology. Category of the paper: Research Paper, Conceptual Paper.

1. Michelle Butina, PhD, MLS(ASCP)CM[⇑][1] 1. University of Kentucky, College of Health Sciences, Lexington, KY 2. Suzanne Campbell, PhD, MLS(ASCP)CM 1. Seward County Community College/Area Technical School, Liberal, KS 3. Wendy Miller, EdD, MT(ASCP)SI 1. Elgin Community College, Elgin, IL <!-- --> 1. Address for Correspondence: Michelle Butina, PhD, MLS(ASCP)CM, Assistant Professor and Program Director, Medical Laboratory Science, University of Kentucky, College of Health Sciences, 900 South Limestone Street, CTW Bldg. Rm. 126E, Lexington, KY 40536-0200, (859) 218-0852, Michelle.Butina{at}uky.edu 1. Compare and contrast qualitative and quantitative research methods and their uses. 2. Identify the five commonly used qualitative research methods. > "Within the last twenty years qualitative research has become a mature field of study with its own literature base, research journals, special interest groups, and regularly scheduled conferences". > > - Dr. Sharan B. Merriam, professor of adult education and continuing education, University of Georgia, 2009 INTRODUCTION Medical laboratory practitioners know how to perform experiments and have participated in surveys. However qualitative research and its methods remain an unknown to many in the medical laboratory science profession. This series provides readers with an introduction to qualitative research methods. A simple definition of qualitative research is not possible; therefore a description of its purpose and characteristics is provided. As Merriam (2009) described, "Qualitative researchers are interested in understanding how people interpret their experiences, how they construct their worlds, and what meaning they attribute to their experiences." The primary characteristics of qualitative research include: 1) the focus on understanding peoples' experiences with intent to convey experiences into meaning, 2) the researcher is the key instrument for data collection and analysis, 3) the research process is inductive and not deductive, and 4) the product of qualitative research is richly descriptive. Other characteristics of qualitative research include that the study design is often emergent and flexible, data is often collected in the natural setting, multiple forms of data may be collected, and sample selection is usually purposeful and small.1,2 Qualitative versus Quantitative There are three approaches to research, qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods. The qualitative research approach was introduced and described in the section above. A… 1. Compare and contrast qualitative and quantitative research methods and their uses. 2. Identify the five commonly used qualitative research methods. [1]: #corresp-1

&lt;div class="WordSection1"&gt;&lt;p&gt;I am honored for being an alumnus of KEMC, and am delighted to write this editorial for the Annals. I have, ever since done my research and taught qualitative methods, felt that clinical methods are quite akin to qualitative research. Then, why only few clinical researchers use qualitative methods? A witness to this assumption is the research published in the Annals. In this treatise, I try to identify some parallels between the two types of methods and argue for the clinicians to invest in learning qualitative research methods to practice clinical methods well.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; Qualitative research is to identify and interpret issues from the perspective of participants, their experience of: illness or disability, using health service, and to appreciate the meanings they give to the behaviour, events or objects in the context of their social and cultural norms. In this type of research, the emphasis is on exploring the associations and understanding the phenomenon in its holism; and not, like in quantitative research, from an outsider’s perspective and for certain specific aspects.&lt;sup&gt;1&lt;/sup&gt; It requires participants with specific characteristics, selected purposely that can best inform the research topic. More participants, identified inductively during data collection, are added to develop full and multiple perspectives about the cases.&lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; No preset data collection tool is used, instead qualitative researcher guided by a research question acts as an instrument, since the line of enquiry he changes during data collection as new understanding is gained and/or the situation changes.&lt;sup&gt;3&lt;/sup&gt; The data for research is derived from the observation, interviews or verbal interactions, focus group discussions, document reviews, life histories etc. and the researcher asks why, how and under what circumstances things occur; and not just what, where and when. It is recorded in words or pictures and log book is used to record notes arising from interviews, observations, extracts from documents etc.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; In health care settings patients are the subjects for clinical methods. The clinician, even prior to any verbal communication, observes the patient, e.g. for his gait and appearance. If in a bed or examination couch, his posture could give some clue to the illness. Inspection, a clinical method, is like systematic observation, which is qualitative method, should be holistic. In my third year during bedside teaching, Professor (late) Rashid Ahmed Qureshi said, &lt;em&gt;“patient has come to you as a whole and not his stomach in a tray”&lt;/em&gt;, when a student straight went to examine abdomen of a patient with acute abdomen. History taking, another clinical method, is like conducting semi structured in depth interview – a qualitative research method. In both disciplines, we are told, &lt;em&gt;“not to ask leading, but follow up and probing questions”; &lt;/em&gt;and Professor (late) Alamgir Khan, while teaching clinical methods, would add, &lt;em&gt;“if a good history is taken, you will establish diagnosis in over 65% of cases”. &lt;/em&gt;Likewise, as part of history taking, documents related to patient’s illness history and treatment are reviewed similar to document review in qualitative research.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; The two approaches however differ in how the data is analysed. In clinical practice, diagnosis is established based on the pathophysiological knowledge or patient’s clinical condition is discussed in clinicopathological conference.&lt;sup&gt;4&lt;/sup&gt; On the other hand, qualitative research employs meaning based data analysis, whereby the qualitative data is transformed into some form of explanation, understanding or interpretation of people and situation that is investigated.&lt;sup&gt;5,6&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt; In conclusion, the history, the observation and the review of document related to patient are since obtainned using qualitative methods, the clinician trained in these methods could not only conduct these methods well but also interpret the data to identify and detect obstacles to the change in clinical condition and the reasons why improvement does or does not occur.&lt;sup&gt;7&lt;/sup&gt; Finally, while it is heartening that research forums are organised in the institutions affiliated with KEMU, in order the research is richer, the researchers’ skills in qualitative research methods should be built.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;

Purpose This paper aims to address key challenges in conducting qualitative research within international business (IB), focusing on the role of theory, authenticity, theorizing and quality criteria. Design/methodology/approach The paper acknowledges the pluralism inherent in qualitative research and its relevance to IB, identifying four key challenges: (1) positioning theory within qualitative research, (2) maintaining authenticity in research practices, (3) theorizing from qualitative research, and (4) evaluating trustworthiness. The authors offer suggestions based on their experiences to help researchers navigate these challenges. Findings The paper suggests that qualitative IB researchers often struggle due to the lack of standardized methodologies and the complexity introduced by pluralism. However, it emphasizes the potential of qualitative research in IB, particularly for understanding complex, evolving IB phenomena. Research limitations/implications The paper provides suggestions on how to improve the research contributions to IB scholarship by embracing the special characteristics of qualitative research. Practical implications The paper offers operationalizations and examples of how qualitative IB researchers can address the outlined challenges related to the role of theory, authenticity, theorizing, and quality criteria in practice. Social implications The paper brings forth ways of improving qualitative IB research quality, and therefore also increasing its research impact. Originality/value This paper contributes to the growing discourse on pluralism in IB research, offering a comprehensive overview of challenges faced by qualitative researchers. It provides practical advice for overcoming these challenges and advocates for a more inclusive, contextually grounded approach to IB theorizing.

Research integrity matters. It enables researchers to trust each other and their findings, and provides a basis for society’s trust in our research. We explore research integrity using the lens of international business (IB) research, focusing on IB research methods. We narrow the topic further by focusing on ethical issues associated with a single project by a single author. We examine the methodological challenges involved in conducting research in the complex IB environment and propose best practices for both quantitative and qualitative IB research methods. In some ways, this is a “back to basics” message; in other ways, we draw attention to the heightened complexity of the IB environment and the need to invest in rigorous methods and ethical practices in our unending pursuit of truth.

Making sense of qualitative research: a new series

Objectives: Qualitative health research can contribute to knowledge building in public health and medicine, but there is a lack of research-oriented training of qualitative methods at universities with public health programs and in medical schools. The aim of this paper is to describe our experiences in conceptualising, implementing and evaluating an elective on qualitative methods in the Master of Public Health (MPH) programme at the Medical Faculty of the Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) Munich. Methods: A new research-oriented elective (3 Credit Points) was developed and delivered to MPH and medical students in summer 2016. This elective consisted of three blocks that were complemented by two practice sessions. The students worked in small groups. These groups developed a research question and a qualitative study design addressing the thematic focus of vaccinations. Each student conducted two semi-structured interviews with a semi-structured interview grid. Students transcribed the interviews, analysed them according to content analysis and presented the results collaboratively. Results: In that semester, 16 students successfully completed the elective. Groups of two to three students worked on their respective research questions, presented, and reflected on their research results. The participants evaluated the module as very good, particularly with regard to the structure and consistency of the blocks. To facilitate individualised mentoring and guidance, a high student-lecturer ratio is required. Timeframe and workload should pay tribute to the module's credit points. Conclusions: We successfully implemented a research-oriented elective providing a first-hand experience with qualitative health research methods. Students were able to learn about the theory and practical application of qualitative research in the field of medicine and public health.

Journal of International Business Studies (2010) 41, 1259–1274. doi:10.1057/jibs.2010.41 OVERVIEW OF 41.8: HOFSTEDE AND GLOBE IN CROSS-CULTURAL RESEARCH While Hofstede’s work was not the first systematic study on crossnational cultures, his seminal book, Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values (1980), succeeded in putting cross-cultural analysis at the forefront of international business (IB) research. In a later paper, he boldly asserted that the “business of international business is culture” (1994: 1). Despite the criticisms that have been voiced against his work (see McSweeney, 2002; Oyserman, Coon, & Kemmelmeier, 2002), Hofstede’s influence on the fields of IB and management is undeniable: according to Harzing’s “Publish or Perish” citation index, as of June 2010 there were over 54,000 citations to his work. This is a remarkable record that attests to, first, the growing popularity of cross-cultural research in light of continued internationalization of the world economy, and second, Hofstede’s personal impact on scholarly research. This JIBS issue brings together 10 articles on culture and IB, all of which were submitted to the editorial team led by JIBS Editorin-Chief Lorraine Eden. While the articles were independently submitted through the regular double-blind reviewing process, the decision to join them in one collection creates, in effect, a Special Issue on “Culture in International Business Research”, which the JIBS editors hope will be widely read and cited by IB scholars. In general terms, the papers in this collection fall into one of two categories: (1) articles and commentaries about conceptual and methodological issues associated with Hofstede’s oeuvre vs the Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness (GLOBE) project’s cultural dimensions, and (2) articles and perspectives that use culture and/or cultural dimensions, as well as the operational measurement thereof, to explain differences in behavior and practices across countries. The common feature of all these scholarly pieces is that they challenge particular assumptions often made too easily in conventional cross-cultural research. The first paper in this collection is a perspective written by Franke and Richey that cautions against “questionable generalizations from small numbers of countries in international business research”. Using statistical analysis to support their assertion, Franke and Richey argue that in order to draw “credible” generalizations in IB, a minimum of 7–10 countries must be used. This is an important message: researchers should never formulate strong conclusions about the impact of cultural dimensions on Journal of International Business Studies (2010) 41, 1259–1274 & 2010 Academy of International Business All rights reserved 0047-2506

&lt;p&gt;Existing discussion of the relationships between globalization, communication research, and qualitative methods emphasizes two images: the challenges posed by globalization to existing communication theory and research methods, and the impact of post-colonial politics and ethics on qualitative research. We draw in this paper on a third image – qualitative research methods as artifacts of globalization – to explore the globalization of qualitative communication research methods. Following a review of literature which tentatively models this process, we discuss two case studies of qualitative research in the disciplinary subfields of intercultural communication and media audience studies. These cases elaborate the forces which influence the articulation of national, disciplinary, and methodological identities which mediate the globalization of qualitative communication research methods.&lt;/p&gt;