Qualitative Organizational Research Research Articles

Conducting Qualitative Research in Organizations Ethically: Organizationality as a Heuristic to Identify Ethical Challenges

The consideration of research ethics to protect the research participants is a central element of empirical social research. Empirical research in organizations has certain characteristics: the research field is organized hierarchically and characterized by formal membership, specific control mechanisms, positive and negative sanctions, etc. Drawing on existing literature, we use the concept of “organizationality” to argue the characteristics of organizations lead to specific ethical challenges, for example dealing with layered field accesses, power asymmetries, and potentially strong sanctions. These challenges make it difficult to ensure confidentiality and non-maleficence and protect participants from risks. We present ethical challenges that typically arise at critical stages of the qualitative research process (planning, field access, the field, data storage, publication, and data archiving). This paper offers a heuristic to identify ethical challenges in qualitative organizational research. It extends the debate on research ethics in qualitative social research to organizational contexts, thereby bringing into focus the structural dimensions of harm.

Top-down internal communication and its importance for the sustainability of agricultural organizations from the perspective of Tomas Bata´s management philosophy.

The benefits of internal communication not only can be associated with higher performance, but also with increased awareness of the values within an organization, setting and achieving objectives, getting involved in beneficial activities, encouraging employees' personal development and, last but not least, educating and motivating employees to take responsibility. A responsible working environment facilitates effective internal communication, which is in line with the principles of the Bata Management System. The aim of this paper is to evaluate whether setting top-down internal communication is in line with the sustainable principles of Tomas Bata in organizations in the Czech Republic. The article assesses workplace communication and relationships, including social sustainability and social responsibility, focusing on their added value for corporate practice in all areas of business. The study is based on quantitative research in organizations across sectors and qualitative research in agricultural organizations (questionnaire survey n1 = 183; focus group n3 = 5), using the tools of descriptive statistics, logistic regression and cluster analysis. The results have shown that combining methods of top-down communication is crucial for communicating information efficiently, stimulating employees and achieving the organization´s objectives and that Tomas Bata´s philosophy concerning communication setting can be implemented even more easily in the current digital age than it was in the past if organizations are interested. The research contributes to a better understanding of how the Bata Management System can be applied within each organization, how effective communication settings will help prevent conflicts that workers are engaged in, increase their stabilization, and facilitate the application of Bata's sustainable legacy in the international space. Research makes a significant contribution to advancing knowledge of effective communication from the perspective of Bata for the sustainability of agricultural organizations where the principles have not yet been explored. This is evidenced by the zero overlap with previously published articles despite the rapid progress of research and technology.

“Practicing care in qualitative organizational research: moral responsibility and legitimacy in a study of immigration management”

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide insight into the reciprocal relations between the caregiving imparted by immigration centre managers and the role of the researcher in responding to the care that is given by managerial caregivers. To enable this, we draw on a feminist theory of care ethics that considers individuals as relationally interdependent.Design/methodology/approachThe analysis draws on a semi-structured interview study involving 20 Finnish immigration reception centre managers.FindingsInsight is generated by reflecting on moments of care that arise between research participants and the researcher in a study of immigration centre management. We emphasise the importance of mature care, receptivity and engrossment in building caring relationships with research participants by acknowledging the care they give to others. Our findings draw attention to the moral and epistemological responsibility to practice care in organizational research.Originality/valueThe paper highlights the relationality between practicing care in immigration centre management and doing qualitative organizational research, both of which rely on mature care, receptivity and engrossment in order to meet the other morally. We draw attention to the moral responsibility to care which characterises researcher–researched relationships and emphasise the importance of challenging methodological discourses that problematise or dismiss care in qualitative organizational research.

Fictionalizing dialogue: interpretative phenomenological analysis in organizational research

PurposeThis paper proposes a dialogical approach for analyzing and presenting Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) data in organizational research.Design/methodology/approachThe paper explores the story behind a story, showing how qualitative research can be fictionalized and reflexively framed in contemporary organizational settings, illustrated by IPA research conducted by the authors, into selection interviewing in Australia. Drawing from researchers' narrative notes that reflexively interpret interview data in narrative form, the data were re-interpreted in fictionalized dialogical form, enabling findings to be analyzed and presented more interactively.FindingsThe application of new interpretative techniques, like fictionalized dialogue, contributes to a richer interpretation of phenomena in qualitative organizational and management research, not limited to IPA studies.Originality/valueFictionalized dialogue brings to the surface an additional level of analysis that contributes to thematic analysis in a novel manner, also serving as a communicative tool.

Linguistic Inclusion: Challenging Implicit Classed Communication Bias in Interview Methods

Social class influences communication behaviors in a variety of ways, including, for example, norms regarding volume, silence, and language use. Communication typical of white-collar backgrounds is often privileged in social life, while communication common to blue-collar backgrounds is marginalized. However, organizational scholars rarely discuss such tendencies and their impact on research methods and findings. Indeed, as scholars, we are often trained that verbose, rich interview data is ideal for all qualitative organizational communication research, even as these standards implicitly privilege white-collar communication norms. In this study, scholars are called to reimagine the most commonly used method of qualitative data collection, interviews, in order to address implicit classed communication biases in qualitative organizational communication scholarship. As knowledge about discourse, materiality, and organizing continues to evolve in organizational communication, it is imperative that scholars develop more inclusive methods. We propose and discuss more inclusive methods of data collection that can involve unlearning biased approaches to methods, and consider specific techniques such as photovoice, linguistic pilot tests, and conscientious fieldwork.

Quality in Qualitative Organizational Research: types of triangulation as a methodological alternative

The dichotomous debate between objectivity and subjectivity in Social Sciences and the differences between qualitative and quantitative approaches in research are related to the strong demand for validation and accreditation of studies. Thus, the main objective of this paper is to discuss quality in qualitative research, through a systematic analysis of the typologies of triangulation strategy, highlighting the following quality dimensions in research: reliability, credibility, transferability and confirmability. There is a considerable amount of research about quality in qualitative research, as well as about triangulation. However, the main differentiator of this paper is the systematic presentation of triangulation typologies, which allow for the improvement of quality in qualitative research. The authors believe that the focus on "how to" improve quality, and not quality itself, makes this paper original. Among the main findings, it can be highlighted the effort to systematize and present guidelines in order to improve credibility in qualitative research, by means of the triangulation strategy presented in a framework that will allow the reader to have a better understanding of the proposals in this work. The authors understand that the main implication of this paper is mainly in providing guidance to researchers, particularly those dealing with qualitative research, on how they could improve the quality of their research.

Qualitative Organizational Research: Core Methods and Current Challenges

Qualitative Organizational Research: Core Methods and Current Challenges

The handicap of lists, QROM and the future

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to consider the contribution that this journal has made to the development of qualitative research over the ten years of Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management’s (QROM’s) lifetime and its potential to contribute further in the future. Design/methodology/approach – Reflections are made from the author’s standpoint as a longstanding associate editor of QROM and a UK academic in the field of accounting. Findings – Concern is expressed about the way in which the use of a particular journal list in UK institutions – namely, the ABS list – has skewed development away from qualitative research during the hitherto lifetime of QROM but how, despite that handicap, QROM has made a notable contribution. Originality/value – A reflection informed by both the disciplinary and geographical context as well as ten years’ service as an Associate Editor of this journal.

Looking back: ten years of visual qualitative research

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the development of visual qualitative research in organizations and management over the past ten years, the experience of editing a special issue ofQualitative Research in Organizations and Managemententitled “Exploring the visual in organizations and management”, and the potential contributions this journal could make to the advancement of this significant area of research.Design/methodology/approach– This paper provides an overview and critical reflections on visual qualitative research in the study of organizations and management.Findings– The authors note that organization studies have been slow to develop visual research compared to other disciplines, especially the humanities and branches of the social sciences. However, development has been rapid over the past decade, and the authors comment on the diverse visual empirical material and the range of conceptual approaches.Research limitations/implications– The paper is a condensed reflection. It predicts a “mainstreaming” of visual research in future years and an increased integration of the visual into the study of management processes and organizations.Practical implications– This piece provides useful directions and references for researchers new to the field and different ways of thinking the visual and visual methodologies.Originality/value– The paper provides a rapid overview of the state of visual research in organizations and management studies.

Ten years of Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management: some reflections

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the progress that has been made in qualitative research in the field of information systems (IS) and across management and organizational studies more generally. Design/methodology/approach – This paper is an opinion piece based on the author’s experience as a qualitative researcher. Findings – Qualitative research in the fields of IS and management and organizational studies has come of age. Almost all of the top journals publish qualitative research. Research limitations/implications – Given that this paper is an opinion piece, it does not contain empirical data. However, this not detract from the strength of the argument. Originality/value – This paper provides a high-level assessment of the state of qualitative research across business and management for the special anniversary issue of the journal.

Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management: ten years on

Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management: ten years on

A Round-Table Discussion of “Big” Data in Qualitative Organizational Communication Research

The forum guest editor Ryan Bisel in this issue takes on the topic of big data and presents a round table that grew out of a conference panel. Five scholars engage in a discussion of the social and cultural trend of big data and implications to qualitative organizational communication research. The contributors respond to questions and delve into a number of issues, from theoretical, to institutional, to operational, to practical, by sharing thoughts and experiences about definition, assumptions, theory building, execution at every stage of a big data project and reflections beforehand and afterward.

Qualitative Research: A Case for a Multi-Angle View to Enhance ‘Validity’

Qualitative and quantitative organizational research methods have been fiercely debated with regards to their ‘value’ in terms of the ‘validity’ and ‘generalizability’ of their respective research outcomes. Qualitative or phenomenological research paradigm requires a ‘holistic’ approach to analysing a particular phenomenon in order to address ‘validity’ and ‘generalizability’ issues, and therefore necessitates more ‘intense’ and ‘comprehensive’ approach to data analyses. This conceptual paper adds to the current debate among the positivists and the phenomenologists on the superiority of a particular research method and, resorting to the dialectical analysis, contributes to the current literature on organizational research methods through conditionalising the ‘validity’ and ‘generalizability’ of the research outcomes under the qualitative research paradigm to the use of appropriate ‘research design’. Using the microfinance sector’s paradigm shift of the 1990s as a case, the paper argues that, under the qualitative research paradigm, ‘viewing’ and ‘analysing’ a qualitative set of data with a combination of two or three established theoretical constructs would help the researcher overcome the relative ‘flaw’ or ‘incapacity’ of a single theoretical construct to address all aspects of a social phenomenon under investigation, and therefore, not only enhance readers’ understanding of the issue but also conclude the research with relatively more ‘valid’ and ‘generalizable’ outcomes.

Exploring the Back Alleys of Publishing Qualitative Organizational Communication Research

Exploring the Back Alleys of Publishing Qualitative Organizational Communication Research

Pathways to Mindful Qualitative Organizational Communication Research

Pathways to Mindful Qualitative Organizational Communication Research

Qualitative Organizational Research – Core Methods and Current Challenges

Qualitative Organizational Research – Core Methods and Current Challenges

The romance of wonder in organization studies

Wonder is the romance of all human study – a two-in-oneness of beautiful mystery and a rational inquiring mind. To wonder is to be open to mysteries beyond the known; it is to engage the largest questions of life; and above all, it is to come into being as a human person by reaching to the humanity of all peoples that resides in the transcendent. In this essay, we describe the wonder of organizational studies as literally a romance; a marriage of distinctive forms of human reasoning that, while they may show up in one and the same person, are essentially male and female. We look for wonder in a collection of stories about qualitative research in organizations in which organizational scholars at their best unite male and female aspects of human reasoning in wonder. In their stories, we find the soulful mystery and romance that delights and enchants the study of persons and organizations.

The feel of experience: phenomenological ideas for organizational research

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to look at how phenomenology can be used to explore the meaning and experience of organizational life. It argues that phenomenology provides more than just themes or leitmotifs forpost hocanalysis of narrative data; in its basic formulation, phenomenology is a way of thinking – a method – which illuminates the embodied, subjective and inter-subjective qualities of the life-world.Design/methodology/approach– The paper follows Husserl's command to “go back to the things themselves” to access raw experience, asking ourselves, “what does experience mean phenomenologically?” We draw on the work of Merleau-Ponty to “flesh out” the embodied aspects of that phenomenological experience, outlining how the idea of a “field of presence” grounds our reflections in the here-and-now and gives our selfhood its coherence.Findings– The paper presents data on the diverse meanings of “experience” to suggest that phenomenological and organizational understandings can be differentiated in terms of both temporality and selfhood. The paper argues that these differentiations expose different ways of thinking about the world more generally, drawing on Husserl's philosophy of the “natural attitude” to propose that one of its derivations, an “organizational attitude”, is obscuring our view of embodied experience.Practical implications– The paper provides practical guidelines for those interested in researching the embodied, experiential qualities of organizational life. These emphasize the need to suspend the “organizational attitude”, modify how the authors position and explain the research, and attend to the interplay between the felt sense of the world and the words used to articulate it.Originality/value– The logic of the body helps the authors to work towards a more integrative, conciliatory epistemological position for qualitative organizational research. The paper uses a phenomenological view of embodiment – as both subjectively experienced and objectively presented to the world – to suggest that the body, particularly when it is sick, is giving us clues for how to conceptualize the life-world of work.

Book review: Qualitative Organizational Research: Core Methods and Current Challenges

Book review: Qualitative Organizational Research: Core Methods and Current Challenges

Use of qualitative research in foodservice organizations

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present the challenges encountered when conducting qualitative research in foodservice operations and to discuss the strategies to overcome the identified challenges.Design/methodology/approachThe researchers conducted food safety observations, interviews, and focus groups with more than 600 foodservice employees and managers. The researchers encountered multiple challenges including institutional review board approvals, managements' willingness to participate, and organizational and cultural barriers.FindingsObtaining in‐depth, credible information through observations, interviews, and focus groups adds depth and breadth to hospitality studies. However, given high industry turnover, recruitment and retention throughout a study is problematic. Moreover, researchers encounter many barriers as they obtain data, such as establishing authenticity and overcoming Hawthorne and halo effects.Originality/valueStrategies to increase participation and thereby improve qualitative research have not been previously addressed in the hospitality literature