Research summaries
This category features summaries of other people’s research that I’ve read. I sometimes include brief commentary and criticism. Even if I include some critical comments, most of the research here is excellent work—I try not to waste my time reading bad research.
Wolfswinkel, Furtmueller and Wilderom 2013: Using grounded theory as a method for rigorously reviewing literature
Wolfswinkel, Joost F, Elfi Furtmueller and Celeste P M Wilderom. 2013. Using grounded theory as a method for rigorously reviewing literature. European Journal of Information Systems (2013) 22, 45–55. doi:10.1057/ejis.2011.51; published online 29 November 2011. Rationale: This paper is part of the recent cottage industry of literature review guides in information systems research. (I don't use "cottage industry" disparagingly—I myself am very much involved in this stream or research). Objectives: Wolfswinkel et...
read moreTsang and Ellsaesser 2011: How Contrastive Explanation Facilitates Theory Building
Tsang, Eric W. K. and Florian Ellsaesser. 2011. How Contrastive Explanation Facilitates Theory Building. Academy of Management Review 36, 2, 404–419. Rationale and background: This paper is in response to the Academy of Management Review call for papers on new kinds of organizational theorizing. It appears in the special issue section called the “Forum for New Theory Development” in issue 2011 36:2. Here Tsang and Ellsaesser present the theory of contrastive explanation as a tool to refine theory development....
read moreShepherd and Sutcliffe 2011: Inductive Top-Down Theorizing
Shepherd, Dean A. and Kathleen M. Sutcliffe. 2011. Inductive Top-Down Theorizing: A Source of New Theories of Organization. Academy of Management Review 36, 2, 361–380. Rationale and background: This paper is in response to the Academy of Management Review call for papers on new kinds of organizational theorizing. It appears in the special issue section called the “Forum for New Theory Development” in issue 2011 36:2. More specifically, there has been many calls for researchers to combine deductive approaches (going...
read moreAlvesson and Sandberg 2011: Generating Research Questions Through Problematization
Alvesson, M. & Sandberg, J., 2011. Generating Research Questions Through Problematization. Academy of Management Review, 36(2), pp.247-271. Rationale: There has been much concern about the staleness of management research, with apparently little radically new theories being produced. Thus, the Academy of Management Review called for papers for a special forum on theory development. This is one of the accepted papers for this special section in volume 36, issue 2. Objectives: This study contends that much of the staleness in management...
read moreUrquhart et al 2010: Putting the “theory” back into grounded theory: guidelines for grounded theory studies in information systems
Urquhart, C., Lehmann, H. & Myers, M.D., 2010. Putting the “theory” back into grounded theory: guidelines for grounded theory studies in information systems. Information Systems Journal, 20(4), pp.357–381. Rationale and objectives: Grounded theory is on the rise in information systems research. However, much such research uses techniques from grounded theory without a strong focus on actual theory development. This article attempts to refocus on the theory development aspect of grounded theory. Although it is...
read moreWeber 2012: Evaluating and Developing Theories in the Information Systems Discipline
Weber, Ron 2012. “Evaluating and Developing Theories in the Information Systems Discipline,” Journal of the Association for Information Systems (13:1), pp. 2-30. Rationale: There is much interest in theory building, yet detailed guides on how to do this are still lacking in clarity. Objectives: Weber uses a formal ontological framework to define the elements of a theory, and thus expound in detail the elements of high-quality theory. He illustrates his evaluatory techniques by evaluating Griffith et al (2003) in detail....
read moreLee 2007: Crafting a Paper for Publication
Lee, Allen S. (2007) "Crafting a Paper for Publication," Communications of the Association for Information Systems: Vol. 20, Article 7. Available at: http://aisel.aisnet.org/cais/vol20/iss1/7 Rationale: This paper gives practical tips on how to craft ("to make or produce with care, skill, or ingenuity", p. 34, quoted from Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary 2006) a paper for publication in a leading research journal. Lee compiles the tips from his own experience as a senior scholar in IS and from various tips...
read moreHirschheim 2008: Some Guidelines for the Critical Reviewing of Conceptual Papers
Hirschheim, Rudy (2008) "Some Guidelines for the Critical Reviewing of Conceptual Papers," Journal of the Association for Information Systems: Vol. 9: Iss. 8, Article 21. Available at: http://aisel.aisnet.org/jais/vol9/iss8/21 Rationale: This editorial commentary was written by Rudy Hirschheim two years after becoming the senior editor of the IS Research Perspectives section of the Journal of the Association for Information Systems. He addresses reviewers with the purpose of guiding them in reviewing conceptual articles, which is...
read moreTsang & Kwan 1999: Replication and Theory Development in Organizational Science: A Critical Realist Perspective
Tsang, E.W.K. & Kwan, K.-M., 1999. Replication and Theory Development in Organizational Science: A Critical Realist Perspective. The Academy of Management Review, 24(4), pp.759-780. I read this as a critical realist piece in management. In addition, its treatment of replication in managemetn and organizational sciences (including qualitative research) is pertinent to my study of systematic literature reviews. Rationale: Replication is an important aspect of developing scientific knowledge. However, in the social sciences, particularly in...
read moreWhetten 1989: What constitutes a theoretical contribution?
Summary of Whetten, D.A., 1989. What constitutes a theoretical contribution? Academy of Management Review, 14(4), p.490–495.
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