Towards process research: Presuppositions and the vine metaphor

Abstract

Researchers socially accepted understandings, including those embraced from specific academic communities, are critical in how they conduct research and in the way their intuition leads to research questions and methods. An issue is that understandings are often based on unknown and unsuspected presuppositions inculcated in academic communities. This paper presents a meta position of changing viewing points and understandings from which to approach B2B research. The shade vine metaphor is introduced to open a set of different understandings concerning research viewing points as being braided with an entity and temporal process path of development. The ideas are developed by re-appraising the Cartesian epigram and approach, and by presenting an exemplar ‘business interaction’, as understood within the business and industrial network approach. The exposition of possible researcher understandings and presuppositions against the background of research development paths provides a capability to B2B researchers that enhances opportunities for future research, and does so within a frame that encompasses constructivist studies of processes and dynamics. Guidance is provided for research that adopts a temporal rather than a mechanistic process approach. The research viewing points presented, by fore fronting temporality, are likely to aid investigation of sustainability and biodiversity for future generations.