851164

Course

Methodology in Qualitative Research: Organization and Management Analyses (runs annually)

Faculty

Professor Jesper Strandgaard, Associate Professor Anne Reff Pedersen, and Associate Professor Per Darmer, all from the Department of Organization, CBS

Course Coordinator

Per Darmer

Prerequisites

It is a prerequisite that the participants’ work on their research projects has reached a phase – including the empirical work – where they can bring forth ideas about, reflections upon, experiences and problems from their analyses.

The participants are required to submit a written presentation – 7-10 pages – which is read by the other course participants and form the basis for discussions and reflections of each other’s projects. Deadline for submission of the presentation is 7 February 2017.

It is a precondition for receiving the course diploma that the PhD student attends the entire course.

Aim

The objective of the course is to help the participants in their methodological choices and reflections connected to their PhD project. It is done by contrasting the projects to each other and relating them to selected methodologies for organizational and management analyses. The aim of course is to give the participants a profound understanding of the key considerations that must accompany studies of organizations and other social systems.

The methodology course differs from more specialized courses on method (which typically address only one methodological aspect or approach such as ‘the qualitative interview’ or ‘case studies’) and more general courses on qualitative and quantitative methods by focusing upon and dealing with the overall methodology of the project: the relation between research questions, the empirical field, the theoretical framework, data generation and analysis, and the composition of the thesis. The ambition of the course is to create awareness of and discuss the methodological coherence of each project and the connections between the different elements (research question(s), theory, empirical data and composition) in the project’s overall research design.

Course content

The course is built up around four basic methodological elements:

1) How to work with the research question?

2) How to develop and use a theoretical framework?

3) How to generate and analyse data?

4) How to write the dissertation?

The course mornings are lectures focusing upon specific methodological themes followed by discussion and plenary debate. The afternoons are reserved for presentations and discussions of the participants’ projects and discussions of these in groups of 4-6 persons.

The course is based on the following assumptions and premises:

- Research as a creative process involving both learning processes and personal development

- An organizational and management sociological methodology that seeks to constantly interweave theory and empirical material related to organization and management processes.

- Methodology as linkages between theoretical perspectives, methods and techniques, empirical field, researcher and work process.

- Methodology as a practice which finds its legitimacy in relation to the completion of the research project and the research publications’ ability to convince relevant research and practitioner communities.

Teaching style

The course is not an introductory course to methodology with the intention of giving ‘solutions’ to the participants’ projects in terms of one specific ‘how-to-do design’ (as ‘solutions’ differ between projects). The course, instead, invites to a joint discussion, exploration, and reflection to develop the participants’ methodological competences especially in relation to their own project, but also as a qualified participant in research-related connections as opponent, reviewer, etc. The reflection is based on two elements (that mutually benefit each other throughout the course):

1) Discussion of methodological questions related to the course participants’ own projects.

2) Presentation and discussion of methodological reflections and experiences related to completed research projects.

Lecture plan

Monday 6 March
13.00 – 14.00 Introduction to the course Presentation of the program and the participants 14.00 – 17.00 Research Question(s) and Focus ’Tricks of the Trade’ What is an interesting project? How do you create a research question? The development of the research question The aim and research interest of the project The status and consequences of the research question Contribution and profiling Speakers: Associate professor, Per Darmer, CBS, IOA Associate professor Anne Reff Pedersen, CBS, IOA Professor, Jesper Strandgaard Pedersen, CBS, IOA
Tuesday 7 March
9.00 – 12.00 The Role and Status of Theory in the Project How is theory included in the project? What is ’theory’ in my project? Different strategies for the interplay between theory and empirical data (theory-driven or phenomenon-driven, theory testing or problem identifying, one-or-more theories approach?) Speakers: Associate professor, Magnus Larsson, CBS, IOA Professor MSO, Morten Thanning Vendelø, CBS, IOA 12.00 – 13.00 Lunch 13.00 – 14.30 Project Discussion I 14.30 – 15.00 Pause 15.00 – 16.30 Projects discussion II 18.00 Dinner
Wednesday 8 March
9.00 – 12.00 Data Generation and the Analysis Process I (ethnographic methods) Choice of data generation methods Analysis of data Relevance in relatioon to the problemdefinition and the theory of the project Speakers:Professor MSO, Signe Vikkelsø, CBS, IOA Associate professor, Per Darmer, CBS, IOA 12.00 – 13.00 Lunch 13.00 – 14.30 Projects discussion III 14.30 – 15.00 Pause 15.00 – 16.30 Projects discussion IV 16.30 – 17.00 Pause 17.00 – 18.30 Projects discussion V
Thursday 9 March
	9.00 – 12.00 Data Generation and the Analysis Process II (archive- and case studies) Choice of data generation methods Analysis of data Relevance in relation to the problem definition and the theory of the project Speakers: Associate professor, Peter Kjær, RUC Professor, Jesper Strandgaard Pedersen, CBS, IOA 12.00 – 13.00 Lunch 13.00 – 14.30 Projects discussion VI 14.30 – 15.00 Pause 15.00 – 16.30 Projects discussion VII
Friday 10 March
	09.00 – 12.00 The Composition of the Dissertation (9.00 – appr.10.00) Strategies for writing (Anne Reff Pedersen) (10.00 – appr. 11.00) Styles of writing and narration (Per Darmer) (11.00 – appr. 11.30) How it could be done: An example (Anders Ravn Sørensen) (11.30 – appr. 12.00) Discussion Speakers: Associate professor, Anne Reff Pedersen, CBS, IOA Associate professor, Per Darmer, CBS, IOA Postdoc fellow, Anders Ravn Sørensen, CBS, MPP Professsor, Jesper Strandgaard Pedersen, CBS, IOA 12.30 – appr. 14.00 Rounding off the course Summing up, evaluations, light lunch (sandwiches) and melancholy goodbye Course responsible: Associate professor, Anne Reff Pedersen, CBS, IOA Professor, Jesper Strandgaard Pedersen, CBS, IOA Associate professor, Per Darmer CBS, IOA

Learning objectives

The course provides students with
- Greater insights into a number of approaches to organizational analyses,
- Offers a larger repertoire to choose from, and
- A better foundation for making qualified and consistent choices.

The course improves the students' ability to critically and constructively evaluate the coherence and adequacy of different choices and parts of the research process. This strengthens the research methodology of their own projects and develops their competences to discuss and help other’s research projects (the latter increases their competences in connection with other research-related tasks, such as: Reviewer and opponent / discussant).

Exam

N/A

Other

N/A

Start date

06/03/2017

End date

10/03/2017

Level

PhD

ECTS

Language

English

Course Literature

A course compendium with selected texts on the four headlines of the morning lectures. Background literature: Denzin & Lincoln (eds.) (1994) Handbook of Qualitative Research. Sage · Becker, H. (1998): Tricks of the Trade. How to Think About Your Research While You’re Doing it. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago.

Fee

DKK 6,500 (covers the course, coffee/tea, lunch and one dinner)

Minimum number of participants

Maximum number of participants

Location

Copenhagen Business School
Kilevej 14 A
DK-2000 Frederiksberg
Room: K4.74

Contact information

PhD Support
Katja Høeg Tingleff
Tel.: +45 38 15 28 39
E-mail: kht.research@cbs.dk

Registration deadline

11/01/2017

Please note that your registration is binding after the registration deadline.

In case we receive more registrations for the course than we have places, the registrations will be prioritized in the following order: Students from Doctoral School of Organisation and Management Studies (OMS), students from other CBS PhD schools, students from other institutions than CBS.

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