smeal c ollege of b usiness t heory d evelopment as o bservational puzzle - solving donald c....
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SMEAL COLLEGE OF BUSINESS
THEORY DEVELOPMENT AS OBSERVATIONAL PUZZLE-SOLVING
Donald C. Hambrick
SMEAL College of Business 2
OUTLINE
SMEAL College of Business 3
OUTLINE
1. De-Mystifying Theory• Q and A
SMEAL College of Business 4
OUTLINE
1. De-Mystifying Theory• Q and A
2. Theory Development as Observational Puzzle-Solving: Some Personal Experiences
• Q and A
SMEAL College of Business 5
OUTLINE
1. De-Mystifying Theory• Q and A
2. Theory Development as Observational Puzzle-Solving: Some Personal Experiences
• Q and A
3. Theory Development From Rich Qualitative Data
• Q and A
SMEAL College of Business 6
OUTLINE
1. De-Mystifying Theory• Q and A
2. Theory Development as Observational Puzzle-Solving: Some Personal Experiences
• Q and A
3. Theory Development From Rich Qualitative Data
• Q and A
4. Open Discussion
SMEAL College of Business 7
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
What is “theory”?
SMEAL College of Business 8
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
What is “theory”?
• The scientist’s job: to search for and explain patterns
SMEAL College of Business 9
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
What is “theory”?
• The scientist’s job: to search for and explain patterns
• Let’s adopt Dubin’s classic perspective
X Y
SMEAL College of Business 10
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
What is “theory”?
• The scientist’s job: to search for and explain patterns
• Let’s adopt Dubin’s classic perspective
X YWhy?
SMEAL College of Business 11
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
What is “theory”?
• The scientist’s job: to search for and explain patterns
• Let’s adopt Dubin’s classic perspective
X YWhy?
theory!
SMEAL College of Business 12
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
What is “theory”?
• The scientist’s job: to search for and explain patterns
• Let’s adopt Dubin’s classic perspective
• Or, as Kaplan said, “Theory explains why empirical patterns were observed or are expected to be observed.
X YWhy
theory!
SMEAL College of Business 13
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
A couple examples:
SMEAL College of Business 14
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
A couple examples:
Equity Theory
SMEAL College of Business 15
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
A couple examples:
Equity Theory
Increased (or Decreased)
Effort
One’s Perception
of Being Overpaid
(or Underpaid)
Relative to One’s
Contribution
SMEAL College of Business 16
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
A couple examples:
Equity Theory
Increased (or Decreased)
Effort
One’s Perception
of Being Overpaid
(or Underpaid)
Relative to One’s
Contribution
Why?• Sense of “debt”
SMEAL College of Business 17
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
A couple examples:
Equity Theory
Agency Theory (as applied to corporate governance)
Increased (or Decreased)
Effort
One’s Perception
of Being Overpaid
(or Underpaid)
Relative to One’s
Contribution
Why?• Sense of “debt”
SMEAL College of Business 18
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
A couple examples:
Equity Theory
Agency Theory (as applied to corporate governance)
Badoutcomes
for theowners
When owners hire
others to manage
their firms…
Increased (or Decreased)
Effort
One’s Perception
of Being Overpaid
(or Underpaid)
Relative to One’s
Contribution
Why?• Sense of “debt”
SMEAL College of Business 19
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
A couple examples:
Equity Theory
Agency Theory (as applied to corporate governance)
Badoutcomes
for theowners
When owners hire
others to manage
their firms…
Why?• Hired managers… • shirk • steal • pursue their own objectives
Increased (or Decreased)
Effort
One’s Perception
of Being Overpaid
(or Underpaid)
Relative to One’s
Contribution
Why?• Sense of “debt”
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
So, what does it mean to make a “theoretical contribution”?
20
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
So, what does it mean to make a “theoretical contribution”?
21
Badoutcomes
for theowner
When owners hire
others to manage
their firms…
Agency Theory
Why?• Hired managers… • shirk • steal • pursue their own objectives
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
So, what does it mean to make a “theoretical contribution”?
• develop a brand-new theory
22
Badoutcomes
for theowner
When owners hire
others to manage
their firms…
Agency Theory
Why?• Hired managers… • shirk • steal • pursue their own objectives
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
So, what does it mean to make a “theoretical contribution”?
• develop a brand-new theory • add to an existing theory
• clarify the operative mechanisms (mediators)• introduce moderators• add new concepts
23
Badoutcomes
for theowner
When owners hire
others to manage
their firms…
Agency Theory
Why?• Hired managers… • shirk • steal • pursue their own objectives
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
So, what does it mean to make a “theoretical contribution”?
• develop a brand-new theory • add to an existing theory
• clarify the operative mechanisms (mediators)• introduce moderators• add new concepts
• identify or elaborate on the implications of the theory
24
Badoutcomes
for theowner
When owners hire
others to manage
their firms…
Agency Theory
Why?• Hired managers… • shirk • steal • pursue their own objectives
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
So, what does it mean to make a “theoretical contribution”?
• develop a brand-new theory • add to an existing theory
• clarify the operative mechanisms (mediators)• introduce moderators• add new concepts
• identify or elaborate on the implications of the theory• “subtract from” the theory
• identify important boundary conditions• logically argue or demonstrate that the theory
is weak/wrong
25
Badoutcomes
for theowner
When owners hire
others to manage
their firms…
Agency Theory
Why?• Hired managers… • shirk • steal • pursue their own objectives
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
How do we assess the “quality” of a theoretical contribution?
26
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
How do we assess the “quality” of a theoretical contribution?• generality
• including the scope of its implications• a very encompassing theory
qualifies as a paradigm
27
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
How do we assess the “quality” of a theoretical contribution?• generality
• including the scope of its implications• a very encompassing theory
qualifies as a paradigm• simplicity
28
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
How do we assess the “quality” of a theoretical contribution?• generality
• including the scope of its implications• a very encompassing theory
qualifies as a paradigm• simplicity• accuracy
29
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
How do we assess the “quality” of a theoretical contribution?• generality
• including the scope of its implications• a very encompassing theory
qualifies as a paradigm• simplicity• accuracy• surprise
30
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
How do we assess the “quality” of a theoretical contribution?• generality
• including the scope of its implications• a very encompassing theory
qualifies as a paradigm• simplicity• accuracy• surprise
When Sutton and Staw refer to “strong theory,” what do they mean?
31
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
How do we assess the “quality” of a theoretical contribution?• generality
• including the scope of its implications• a very encompassing theory
qualifies as a paradigm• simplicity• accuracy• surprise
When Sutton and Staw refer to “strong theory,” what do they mean?• clarity of argumentation• logical consistency
32
SMEAL College of Business
DE-MYSTIFYING THEORY
Questions?
33
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
34
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Where do theoretical ideas not come from?
35
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Where do theoretical ideas not come from?• reading in isolation
36
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Where do theoretical ideas not come from?• reading in isolation• thinking in isolation
37
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Where do theoretical ideas not come from?• reading in isolation• thinking in isolation• intentions to theorize
38
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Where do theoretical ideas not come from?• reading in isolation• thinking in isolation• intentions to theorize
Instead, theoretical ideas “emerge” from observational puzzle-solving: “Why is it…?”“Have you ever noticed…?”
39
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Where do theoretical ideas not come from?• reading in isolation• thinking in isolation• intentions to theorize
Instead, theoretical ideas “emerge” from observational puzzle-solving: “Why is it…?”“Have you ever noticed…?”
Namely, to develop theory, you need data!• aggregate, large-N data• fine, rich, small-N data• accumulation of data – via experience
40
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Let me illustrate with three of my successes in theory/concept development:
• Upper echelons theory
• Managerial discretion
• Behavioral integration (within top management teams, or TMTs)
41
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Upper echelons theory:
42
StrategicChoice
ExecutiveCharacteristi
cs
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Upper echelons theory:
(more accurately a “framework”)
43
StrategicChoice
ExecutiveCharacteristi
cs
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Upper echelons theory:
(more accurately a “framework”)
Originally (in 1975) a term paper for a PhD seminar
44
StrategicChoice
ExecutiveCharacteristi
cs
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Upper echelons theory:
(more accurately a “framework”)
Originally (in 1975) a term paper for a PhD seminar
The data that puzzled me: Why does Fortune magazine devote space to reporting the detailed demographic backgrounds of 500 CEOs every year?
45
StrategicChoice
ExecutiveCharacteristi
cs
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Upper echelons theory:
(more accurately a “framework”)
Originally (in 1975) a term paper for a PhD seminar
The data that puzzled me: Why does Fortune magazine devote space to reporting the detailed demographic backgrounds of 500 CEOs every year?
Later, (in 1983), a discussion with my PhD student Phyllis Mason
The data that puzzled me: I wonder if I’m having any effect on my MBA students?
46
StrategicChoice
ExecutiveCharacteristi
cs
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Upper echelons theory:
(more accurately a “framework”)
Originally (in 1975) a term paper for a PhD seminar
The data that puzzled me: Why does Fortune magazine devote space to reporting the detailed demographic backgrounds of 500 CEOs every year?
Later, (in 1983), a discussion with my PhD student Phyllis Mason
The data that puzzled me: I wonder if I’m having any effect on my MBA students?
I wonder if executives who have MBAs are any different from those without MBAs?
47
StrategicChoice
ExecutiveCharacteristi
cs
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Hambrick & Mason (AMR, 1984) was a happy confluence of three things
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a fun discussion with Phyllis Mason in 1983
recollection of the 1975 paperinsights from my 1979
dissertation on environmental scanning
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCESThe eventual Upper Echelons model:
49
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Managerial Discretion(a concept, not a theory)
50
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Managerial Discretion(a concept, not a theory)
• initially presented by Hambrick and Finkelstein, ROB, 1987
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SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Managerial Discretion(a concept, not a theory)
• initially presented by Hambrick and Finkelstein, ROB, 1987
• definition: latitude of managerial action(Or, how much choice does a manager
have?)
52
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Managerial Discretion(a concept, not a theory)
• initially presented by Hambrick and Finkelstein, ROB, 1987
• definition: latitude of managerial action(Or, how much choice does a manager
have?)
• introduced as a way to bridge, or reconcile, opposing views about how much influence executives have over organizational outcomes.
53
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Of course, managerial discretion has major implications for upper echelons theory:
54
StrategicChoice
ManagerialDiscretion
ExecutiveCharacteristi
cs
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
So, where did we get the idea of managerial discretion?
55
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
So, where did we get the idea of managerial discretion?
The data that puzzled us: Why does CEO pay differ so greatly between different industries?
56
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
So, where did we get the idea of managerial discretion?
The data that puzzled us: Why does CEO pay differ so greatly between different industries?
But also, from years before, my puzzlement about the CEO of the Penn State University Credit Union…
57
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
So, where did we get the idea of managerial discretion?
The data that puzzled us: Why does CEO pay differ so greatly between different industries?
But also, from years before, my puzzlement about the CEO of the Penn State University Credit Union…
58
CEO glass
cubicle
Tellers/clerks
FrontDoor
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Behavioral Integration(a concept, not a theory)
59
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Behavioral Integration(a concept, not a theory)
• initially presented by Hambrick, ROB, 1994
60
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Behavioral Integration(a concept, not a theory)
• initially presented by Hambrick, ROB, 1994
• definition: the degree to which members of a TMT engage in mutual and collective interaction
61
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Behavioral Integration(a concept, not a theory)
• initially presented by Hambrick, ROB, 1994
• definition: the degree to which members of a TMT engage in mutual and collective interaction
• of course, behavioral integration has major implications for upper echelons theory, particularly if the TMT is the unit of analysis
62
StrategicChoice
BehavioralIntegration
TMTCharacteristi
cs
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
So, where did the concept of behavioral integration come from?
The data that puzzled me:
63
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
So, where did the concept of behavioral integration come from?
The data that puzzled me:
• In field interviews, some CEOs needed a lot of clarification when I started asking about their “top management teams.”
64
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
So, where did the concept of behavioral integration come from?
The data that puzzled me:
• In field interviews, some CEOs needed a lot of clarification when I started asking about their “top management teams.”
• Then, when I started talking to TMT members, and watching them in action, it became clear that some senior groups have very few “team” properties.
65
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
So, where did the concept of behavioral integration come from?
The data that puzzled me:
• In field interviews, some CEOs needed a lot of clarification when I started asking about their “top management teams.”
• Then, when I started talking to TMT members, and watching them in action, it became clear that some senior groups have very few “team” properties.
“Team? How do you define “team”? When I think of a team, I think of interaction, give-and-take, and shared purpose. Here, we’re a collection of strong players but hardly a “team.” We rarely meet as a team – rarely see each other, in fact. We don’t particularly share the same views. I wouldn’t say we actually work at cross-purposes, but a lot of self-centered behavior occurs. Where’s the “team” in all this?”
66
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Of course, I cannot begin to describe the many wonderful theoretical ideas I have not had.
67
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Of course, I cannot begin to describe the many wonderful theoretical ideas I have not had.
All I know is what’s worked for me:
Theory development as observational puzzle-solving
68
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT: SOME PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
Questions?
69
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
“It is the intimate connection with empirical reality that permits the development of a testable, relevant, and valid theory.”
Glaser and Strauss
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SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
“It is the intimate connection with empirical reality that permits the development of a testable, relevant, and valid theory.”
Glaser and Strauss
Want to come up with theoretical ideas?Get inside organizations. Talk to managers and workers.Think about what you hear and see.
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SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
“It is the intimate connection with empirical reality that permits the development of a testable, relevant, and valid theory.”
Glaser and Strauss
Want to come up with theoretical ideas?Get inside organizations. Talk to managers and workers.Think about what you hear and see.
Want to come up with really good theoretical ideas?Get inside organizations. Talk to managers and workers.Think about what you hear and see.
72
SMEAL College of Business
In-depth qualitative research can be useful in several ways:
73
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
SMEAL College of Business
In-depth qualitative research can be useful in several ways:
It can lead directly to a theory.
74
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
SMEAL College of Business
In-depth qualitative research can be useful in several ways:
It can lead directly to a theory. (e.g., Eisenhardt, Burgelman, Gioia)
75
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
SMEAL College of Business
In-depth qualitative research can be useful in several ways:
It can lead directly to a theory. (e.g., Eisenhardt, Burgelman, Gioia)
It can help you understand your phenomena of interest.
76
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
SMEAL College of Business
In-depth qualitative research can be useful in several ways:
It can lead directly to a theory. (e.g., Eisenhardt, Burgelman, Gioia)
It can help you understand your phenomena of interest.
(Li, Xin, Tsui and Hambrick – IJV leadership teams)
77
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
SMEAL College of Business
In-depth qualitative research can be useful in several ways:
It can lead directly to a theory. (e.g., Eisenhardt, Burgelman, Gioia)
It can help you understand your phenomena of interest. (Li, Xin, Tsui and Hambrick – IJV leadership teams)
It can help guide the design of a quantitative study.
78
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
SMEAL College of Business
In-depth qualitative research can be useful in several ways:
It can lead directly to a theory. (e.g., Eisenhardt, Burgelman, Gioia)
It can help you understand your phenomena of interest. (Li, Xin, Tsui and Hambrick – IJV leadership teams)
It can help guide the design of a quantitative study.
It can help you make sense of, or interpret, quantitative results.
79
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
SMEAL College of Business
In-depth qualitative research can be useful in several ways:
It can lead directly to a theory. (e.g., Eisenhardt, Burgelman, Gioia)
It can help you understand your phenomena of interest. (Li, Xin, Tsui and Hambrick – IJV leadership teams)
It can help guide the design of a quantitative study.
It can help you make sense of, or interpret, quantitative results.
“We uncover all kinds of relationships in our hard data, but it is only through the use of soft data that we are able to explain them.”
80
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Mintzberg
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Some suggestions:
81
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Some suggestions:
When going into the field, you face a delicate balance…
82
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Some suggestions:
When going into the field, you face a delicate balance…
Open-mindedness, no pre-conceived ideas:
83
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Some suggestions:
When going into the field, you face a delicate balance…
Open-mindedness, no pre-conceived ideas:
“…case research is begun as close as possible to the ideal of no theory under consideration and no hypotheses to test.”
Eisenhardt
84
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Some suggestions:
When going into the field, you face a delicate balance…
Open-mindedness, no pre-conceived ideas:
“…case research is begun as close as possible to the ideal of no theory under consideration and no hypotheses to test.”
Eisenhardt
vs.
Absorptive capacity, a readiness to comprehend
85
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Some suggestions:
When going into the field, you face a delicate balance…
Open-mindedness, no pre-conceived ideas:
“…case research is begun as close as possible to the ideal of no theory under consideration and no hypotheses to test.”
Eisenhardt
vs.
Absorptive capacity, a readiness to comprehend
∙ study relevant literatures∙ study press accounts, public information
86
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Some suggestions:
In your field research, look for big themes, but also be alert to small cues.
• Who is most willing to talk to you? • How energetic and spontaneous do they seem to be?
• How informed/knowledgeable do they seem to be?• Do all your interviewees describe things the same
way?
87
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Some suggestions:
In your field research, look for big themes, but also be alert to small cues.
• Who is most willing to talk to you? • How energetic and spontaneous do they seem to be?
• How informed/knowledgeable do they seem to be?• Do all your interviewees describe things the same
way?
A couple examples:
88
Li, Xin, Tsui, Hambrickinterviews of IJV team
leaders
Li and Hambrick’sconcept of factional
groups
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Some suggestions:
In your field research, look for big themes, but also be alert to small cues.
• Who is most willing to talk to you? • How energetic and spontaneous do they seem to be?
• How informed/knowledgeable do they seem to be?• Do all your interviewees describe things the same
way?
A couple examples:
89
Li, Xin, Tsui, Hambrickinterviews of IJV team
leaders
Li and Hambrick’sconcept of factional
groups
Interviews of CEOsabout their TMTs
Research onchief operating officers
(COOs)
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
90
Division Division Division CFO General VP, VP, VP GM GM GM Counsel HR R&D Corporate Development
CEO
Without a COO:
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
91
Division Division Division CFO General VP, VP, VP GM GM GM Counsel HR R&D Corporate Development
CEO
CEO
CFO General COO VP, VP, Counsel HR Corporate Development
Division Division Division VP, GM GM GM R&D
Without a COO:
With a COO:
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Some suggestions:
Be very alert to the performance conditions, or recent track record, of the organization(s) you are studying.
• Are you being told about what works, what doesn’t work, or what? • The performance context can greatly color your interviewees’ remarks.
92
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Some suggestions:
Be very alert to the performance conditions, or recent track record, of the organization(s) you are studying.
• Are you being told about what works, what doesn’t work, or what? • The performance context can greatly color your interviewees’ remarks.
Also, while far less feasible, try to comprehend the lenses, or biases, of your individual interviewees.
93
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
94
Eisenhardt’s Table 1:Process of Building Theory from Case Study Research
Step
Getting Started
Selecting Cases
Crafting Instrumentsand Protocols
Entering the Field
Analyzing Data
Shaping Hypotheses
Enfolding Literature
Reaching Closure
SMEAL College of Business
THEORY DEVELOPMENT FROM RICH QUALITATIVE DATA
Questions?
95
SMEAL College of Business
SOME CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
When it comes to theory development, don’t be paralyzed by holding yourself to too high a standard.
96
SMEAL College of Business
SOME CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
When it comes to theory development, don’t be paralyzed by holding yourself to too high a standard.
We need “big theories” and “small theories.”
97
SMEAL College of Business
SOME CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
When it comes to theory development, don’t be paralyzed by holding yourself to too high a standard.
We need “big theories” and “small theories.”
“Some social scientists yearn for a Theory That Sweeps Away All Others. We think it is bad to reserve the word theory to mean only Good Theory or Grand Theory or Unassailable Theory. We would like writers to feel free to use theory whenever they are theorizing.”
Runkel and Runkel
98
SMEAL College of Business
SOME CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
When it comes to theory development, don’t be paralyzed by holding yourself to too high a standard.
We need “big theories” and “small theories.”
“Some social scientists yearn for a Theory That Sweeps Away All Others. We think it is bad to reserve the word theory to mean only Good Theory or Grand Theory or Unassailable Theory. We would like writers to feel free to use theory whenever they are theorizing.”
Runkel and Runkel
We need thoroughly developed and “half-baked” theories.
99
SMEAL College of Business
SOME CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
When it comes to theory development, don’t be paralyzed by holding yourself to too high a standard.
We need “big theories” and “small theories.”
“Some social scientists yearn for a Theory That Sweeps Away All Others. We think it is bad to reserve the word theory to mean only Good Theory or Grand Theory or Unassailable Theory. We would like writers to feel free to use theory whenever they are theorizing.”
Runkel and Runkel
We need thoroughly developed and “half-baked” theories.
“Products of the theorizing process seldom emerge as full-blown theories.”
Weick
100
SMEAL College of Business
Questions?
About anything!!
101