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Understanding research philosophies and approaches
Article · January 2009
CITATIONS READS
79 462,782
3 authors, including:
Mark NK Saunders
University of Birmingham
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, Chapter 4
CONFIDENTIAL: Uncorrected WIP proof, NOT for circulation or distribution. © Pearson Education.
Understanding research philosophy
and approaches to theory development
Learning outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
• define ontology, epistemology and axiology, and explain their relevance
to business research;
• reflect on your own epistemological, ontological and axiological stance;
• understand the main research paradigms that are significant for
business research;
• explain the relevance for business research of philosophical positions
such as positivism, critical realism, interpretivism, postmodernism and
pragmatism;
• reflect on and articulate your own philosophical position in relation to
your research;
• distinguish between deductive, inductive, and abductive approaches to
theory development.
4.1 Introduction
Much of this book is concerned with the way in which you collect data to answer your
research question(s). Most people plan their research in relation to a question that needs to be
answered or a problem that needs to be solved. They then think about what data they need
and the techniques they use to collect them. You are not therefore unusual if early on in your
research you consider whether you should, for example, use a questionnaire or undertake
interviews. However, how you collect your data belongs in the centre of the research ‘onion’,
the diagram we use to depict the issues underlying the choice of data collection techniques
and analysis procedures in Figure 4.1. In coming to this central point you need to explain why
you made the choice you did so that others can see that your research should be taken seri-
ously (Crotty 1998). Consequently there are important outer layers of the onion that you need
to understand and explain rather than just peel and throw away!
122
M04_SAUN6627_07_SE_C04.indd 122 6/8/15 2:12 PM
,CONFIDENTIAL: Uncorrected WIP proof, NOT for circulation or distribution. © Pearson Education.
This chapter is concerned principally with the outer two of the onion’s layers: philoso-
phy (Sections 4.2 and 4.3) and approach to theory development (Section 4.4). In Chapter 5
we examine the layers we call methodological choice, strategy and time horizon. The sixth
layer (data collection and analysis) is dealt with in Chapters 7–13.
Our own beliefs and assumptions
about what is important affected
all of us in the decisions we made
about what we wished to study and
at which university, and the research
we undertook in order to make that
decision. Like us, every year hun-
dreds of thousands of people each
make the personal decision about
what and where to study. Not only
is the variety of possible under-
graduate and master’s programmes
extremely diverse, ranging from the
natural sciences to the arts and hu-
manities, as well as including voca-
tional subjects such as business and
management, but there are also, po-
tentially, thousands of universities to
choose from.
Each individual applicant’s personal decision about the nature of information prospective stu-
about the programme they wish to study and at dents require. They highlight how prospective stu-
which university is based, at least in part, on what dents’ information needs upon which they can base
motivates them to study, the information they find their decisions differ markedly across a variety of
useful in making decisions, alongside a wide variety dimensions. These include whether or not prospec-
of other influencing factors. Recent research under- tive applicants are students continuing directly from
taken for the Higher Education Funding Council an undergraduate degree or returning to study after
England (Dye 2013; Mellors-Bourne et al. 2014) on a period in employment, and whether or not they
the decisions made about taught master’s degree are overseas or UK-based applicants.
programmes acknowledges that applicants are a Just as our beliefs and assumptions affected our
diverse and complex group. Not surprisingly, the decisions about what to study and at which univer-
researchers conclude that these people approach sity, they can also have an important impact on the
their decision making in different ways. Drawing research we decide to pursue and the methodology
on their findings, they offer clear recommendations and methods we use.
123
M04_SAUN6627_07_SE_C04.indd 123 6/8/15 2:12 PM
, Chapter 4 Understanding research philosophy and approaches to theory development
Positivism Philosophy
Approach to
theory development
CONFIDENTIAL: Uncorrected WIP proof, NOT for circulation or distribution. © Pearson Education.
Methodological
Mono method choice
Deduction Critical
quantitative
realism
Survey Mono method
Experiment qualitative
Archival
Cross-sectional research
Multi-method
Data quantitative
collection Case study Inter-
and data Abduction pretivism
analysis Strategy(ies)
Ethnography
Multi-method
Longitudinal Action qualitative
research Time
Narrative Grounded
horizon
inquiry theory Mixed method
simple Post-
Mixed method Induction modernism
complex
Techniques and
procedures
Pragmatism
Figure 4.1 The research ‘onion’
Source: © 2015 Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill
4.2 The philosophical underpinnings
of business and management
What is research philosophy?
The term research philosophy refers to a system of beliefs and assumptions about the
development of knowledge. Although this sounds rather profound, it is precisely what
you are doing when embarking on research: developing knowledge in a particular field.
The knowledge development you are embarking upon may not be as dramatic as a new
theory of human motivation, but even answering a specific problem in a particular
organisation you are, nonetheless, developing new knowledge.
Whether you are consciously aware of them or not, at every stage in your research
you will make a number of types of assumption (Burrell and Morgan 1979). These
include assumptions about human knowledge (epistemological assumptions), about the
realities you encounter in your research (ontological assumptions) and the extent and
ways your own values influence your research process (axiological assumptions). These
assumptions inevitably shape how you understand your research questions, the meth-
ods you use and how you interpret your findings (Crotty 1998). A well-thought-out and
consistent set of assumptions will constitute a credible research philosophy, which will
124
M04_SAUN6627_07_SE_C04.indd 124 6/8/15 2:12 PM
Understanding research philosophies and approaches
Article · January 2009
CITATIONS READS
79 462,782
3 authors, including:
Mark NK Saunders
University of Birmingham
132 PUBLICATIONS 12,625 CITATIONS
SEE PROFILE
Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:
Participant selection View project
All content following this page was uploaded by Mark NK Saunders on 17 October 2016.
The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.
, Chapter 4
CONFIDENTIAL: Uncorrected WIP proof, NOT for circulation or distribution. © Pearson Education.
Understanding research philosophy
and approaches to theory development
Learning outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
• define ontology, epistemology and axiology, and explain their relevance
to business research;
• reflect on your own epistemological, ontological and axiological stance;
• understand the main research paradigms that are significant for
business research;
• explain the relevance for business research of philosophical positions
such as positivism, critical realism, interpretivism, postmodernism and
pragmatism;
• reflect on and articulate your own philosophical position in relation to
your research;
• distinguish between deductive, inductive, and abductive approaches to
theory development.
4.1 Introduction
Much of this book is concerned with the way in which you collect data to answer your
research question(s). Most people plan their research in relation to a question that needs to be
answered or a problem that needs to be solved. They then think about what data they need
and the techniques they use to collect them. You are not therefore unusual if early on in your
research you consider whether you should, for example, use a questionnaire or undertake
interviews. However, how you collect your data belongs in the centre of the research ‘onion’,
the diagram we use to depict the issues underlying the choice of data collection techniques
and analysis procedures in Figure 4.1. In coming to this central point you need to explain why
you made the choice you did so that others can see that your research should be taken seri-
ously (Crotty 1998). Consequently there are important outer layers of the onion that you need
to understand and explain rather than just peel and throw away!
122
M04_SAUN6627_07_SE_C04.indd 122 6/8/15 2:12 PM
,CONFIDENTIAL: Uncorrected WIP proof, NOT for circulation or distribution. © Pearson Education.
This chapter is concerned principally with the outer two of the onion’s layers: philoso-
phy (Sections 4.2 and 4.3) and approach to theory development (Section 4.4). In Chapter 5
we examine the layers we call methodological choice, strategy and time horizon. The sixth
layer (data collection and analysis) is dealt with in Chapters 7–13.
Our own beliefs and assumptions
about what is important affected
all of us in the decisions we made
about what we wished to study and
at which university, and the research
we undertook in order to make that
decision. Like us, every year hun-
dreds of thousands of people each
make the personal decision about
what and where to study. Not only
is the variety of possible under-
graduate and master’s programmes
extremely diverse, ranging from the
natural sciences to the arts and hu-
manities, as well as including voca-
tional subjects such as business and
management, but there are also, po-
tentially, thousands of universities to
choose from.
Each individual applicant’s personal decision about the nature of information prospective stu-
about the programme they wish to study and at dents require. They highlight how prospective stu-
which university is based, at least in part, on what dents’ information needs upon which they can base
motivates them to study, the information they find their decisions differ markedly across a variety of
useful in making decisions, alongside a wide variety dimensions. These include whether or not prospec-
of other influencing factors. Recent research under- tive applicants are students continuing directly from
taken for the Higher Education Funding Council an undergraduate degree or returning to study after
England (Dye 2013; Mellors-Bourne et al. 2014) on a period in employment, and whether or not they
the decisions made about taught master’s degree are overseas or UK-based applicants.
programmes acknowledges that applicants are a Just as our beliefs and assumptions affected our
diverse and complex group. Not surprisingly, the decisions about what to study and at which univer-
researchers conclude that these people approach sity, they can also have an important impact on the
their decision making in different ways. Drawing research we decide to pursue and the methodology
on their findings, they offer clear recommendations and methods we use.
123
M04_SAUN6627_07_SE_C04.indd 123 6/8/15 2:12 PM
, Chapter 4 Understanding research philosophy and approaches to theory development
Positivism Philosophy
Approach to
theory development
CONFIDENTIAL: Uncorrected WIP proof, NOT for circulation or distribution. © Pearson Education.
Methodological
Mono method choice
Deduction Critical
quantitative
realism
Survey Mono method
Experiment qualitative
Archival
Cross-sectional research
Multi-method
Data quantitative
collection Case study Inter-
and data Abduction pretivism
analysis Strategy(ies)
Ethnography
Multi-method
Longitudinal Action qualitative
research Time
Narrative Grounded
horizon
inquiry theory Mixed method
simple Post-
Mixed method Induction modernism
complex
Techniques and
procedures
Pragmatism
Figure 4.1 The research ‘onion’
Source: © 2015 Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill
4.2 The philosophical underpinnings
of business and management
What is research philosophy?
The term research philosophy refers to a system of beliefs and assumptions about the
development of knowledge. Although this sounds rather profound, it is precisely what
you are doing when embarking on research: developing knowledge in a particular field.
The knowledge development you are embarking upon may not be as dramatic as a new
theory of human motivation, but even answering a specific problem in a particular
organisation you are, nonetheless, developing new knowledge.
Whether you are consciously aware of them or not, at every stage in your research
you will make a number of types of assumption (Burrell and Morgan 1979). These
include assumptions about human knowledge (epistemological assumptions), about the
realities you encounter in your research (ontological assumptions) and the extent and
ways your own values influence your research process (axiological assumptions). These
assumptions inevitably shape how you understand your research questions, the meth-
ods you use and how you interpret your findings (Crotty 1998). A well-thought-out and
consistent set of assumptions will constitute a credible research philosophy, which will
124
M04_SAUN6627_07_SE_C04.indd 124 6/8/15 2:12 PM
