scholarly journals Welcome to the desert of the real: reality, realism, measurement, and C-OAR-SE

2016 ◽  
Vol 50 (11) ◽  
pp. 1959-1968 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nick Lee ◽  
John Cadogan

Purpose This paper provides a balanced commentary on Rossiter’s paper “How to use C-OAR-SE to design optimal standard measures” in this issue of the “European Journal of Marketing”. It also relates the comments in general to Rossiter’s other C-OAR-SE work and throws light on a number of key measurement issues that seem under-appreciated at present in marketing and business research. Design/methodology/approach The authors use conceptual argument based on measurement theory and philosophy of science. Findings The authors find that Rossiter’s work makes a number of important points that are necessary in the current stage of development of marketing and social science. However, the authors also find that many of these points are also well made by fundamental measurement theories. When measurement theory is correctly interpreted, the idea of multiple measures of the same thing is not problematic. However, they show that existing social science measurement practice rarely takes account of the important issues at play here. Practical implications The authors show that marketing, management and social science researchers need to get better in terms of their appreciation of measurement theory and in their practices of measurement. Originality/value The authors identify a number of areas where marketing and social science measurement can be improved, taking account of the important aspects of C-OAR-SE and incorporating them in good practice, without needlessly avoiding existing good practices.


2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 128-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judy Zolkiewski

Purpose This paper aims to debate the challenges related to balancing relevance and ranking in management research. Design/methodology/approach This is a commentary on and review of challenges faced by twenty-first century management academics. Findings There is a chasm between managerial relevance and current managerial research; however, with academic buy-in, there are ways in which the chasm can be crossed. Research limitations/implications The implications of this are wide reaching for management researchers. They are challenged to consider different methodologies, strategies and dissemination avenues for their research. Practical implications Researchers need to consider not only collaboration with practitioners, as they pursue solutions to managerial problems, but also more inter-disciplinary research that addresses the wicked problems of management in practice. Social implications Solving the challenge of managerial relevance of business research has the potential to allow the contribution of business academia to be fully appreciated by practitioners. Originality/value The value of this thought-piece is that it challenges business and management academics to challenge the status quo and fight to make their research relevant to and valued by the business world.



Kybernetes ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 622-636 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Joh. Adriaenssen ◽  
Jon-Arild Johannessen

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a general scientific methodology on tenets from Mario Bunge’s philosophy. Design/methodology/approach – Systemic thinking and conceptual generalisation. Findings – A general scientific methodology based on tenets from Mario Bunge’s philosophy of social science. Research limitations/implications – Using quantitative methods to conduct a research to test Asplunds motivation theory and North’s action theory. Practical implications – How to conduct a research based on a systemic perspective. Social implications – An advantage of linking a systemic perspective to organisational psychology studies is that it may result in new ways of looking at old problems and bring new perspectives to the methods used. One explanation may be the fact that while researchers within various organisational psychology subject fields are largely specialists, the systemic perspective is oriented towards general scientific methodology. Originality/value – The authors have not seen anybody who have tried to apply systemic thinking as a general methodology for research.



2016 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 80-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian J. Hurn

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to emphasise the importance of effective cultural diplomacy in increasing influence abroad, both commercially and politically. It covers the institutions used to advance cultural diplomacy and focuses on their use in nation branding as a form of “soft power”. Design/methodology/approach – Review of the various key institutions involved, with examples. Findings – Increasing use of cultural diplomacy by companies and nations to enhance their profile to assist in gaining competitive advantage in exports, foreign trade, attracting inward investment and tourism. Emphasises its value and methods as an important part of training and development. Research limitations/implications – Selective review of recent good practice. Practical implications – Highlights key areas of success and also examines areas where success has been tempered by altered circumstances at a later date. Originality/value – The review is backed by critical examination and analysis of the recent use of institutions involved.



2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 237-248 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Gibbs ◽  
Kate Maguire

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss the relationship between individual practitioners’ personal values and their developing professional agentic values. It considers how the former might be in tension with the prescribed forms of practice held to be “professional” by professional bodies, warranting membership, and indeed, any licence to practice. Design/methodology/approach – The paper seeks an understanding of the different personal and collective ontological stances and tensions that practitioners may experience as they progress through their careers, attempting to align their own values with those of the collective values within their profession. It is a conceptual paper. Findings – The authors explore the ideas through a Heideggerian reading of transdisciplinarity which the authors find helpful. Research limitations/implications – This is a conceptual paper and my therefore may suffers from lack of empirical evidence which the authors would consider helpful as the next stage of development Practical implications – Through the lens of an “I” and “we” framework introduced in the paper and the use of a professional doctorate, the authors discuss how a practitioner and profession’s values may be in tension. Social implications – There may be issues of professional engagement which will impact on the development of the professions themselves. Originality/value – The authors believe this to be an original approach to understanding professional and personal values in professional doctorates



2014 ◽  
Vol 29 (7/8) ◽  
pp. 633-641 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lars-Johan Åge

Purpose – This study aims to analyze how and why managers adopt and use business-to-business (B2B) research. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected through participant observations, focus groups and interviews in three organizations that had used a certain conceptual model from B2B research. Findings – The study suggests that managers use B2B research in an action-oriented, flexible and dynamic manner. Such conceptual or translational use is characterized by managers’ creative translation of the research to match the problems they are facing at that particular time. Research limitations/implications – This study suggests that researchers and managers are on equal footing, and can contribute to one another in an active and creative way. Practical implications – Through translating research into their specific context, managers can find a new spectrum of research usage in their organization, but can also contribute to research in an interactive and creative way. Originality/value – This study gives empirical examples for how and why a certain piece of B2B research has been used by managers in three organizations. Moreover, this study contributes to existing models relating to marketing use by giving examples of the active translation process in which managers adopt the research to their specific challenges.



2014 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 117-123
Author(s):  
Martyn Sloman

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review apprenticeship policy in the UK and to present examples of good practice. Design/methodology/approach – The approach takes the form of a review of three cases. Findings – Apprenticeships are not an easy option. An apprenticeship scheme, and indeed any training initiative, will not command support within an organisation unless it can be seen to assist the business in economic terms. Context is critical. Practical implications – The paper argues for a more realistic assessment of the role of apprenticeship at the level of government policy and in the organisation. Originality/value – The paper offers a different and more measured perspective on apprenticeships, which contrast with current uncritical hype and over-selling.



2018 ◽  
Vol 74 (3) ◽  
pp. 490-508 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ayse Gursoy ◽  
Karen Wickett ◽  
Melanie Feinberg

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate tag use in a metadata ecosystem that supports a fan work repository to identify functions of tags and explore the system as a co-constructed communicative context. Design/methodology/approach Using modified techniques from grounded theory (Charmaz, 2007), this paper integrates humanistic and social science methods to identify kinds of tag use in a rich setting. Findings Three primary roles of tags emerge out of detailed study of the metadata ecosystem: tags can identify elements in the fan work, tags can reflect on how those elements are used or adapted in the fan work, and finally, tags can express the fan author’s sense of her role in the discursive context of the fan work repository. Attending to each of the tag roles shifts focus away from just what tags say to include how they say it. Practical implications Instead of building metadata systems designed solely for retrieval or description, this research suggests that it may be fruitful to build systems that recognize various metadata functions and allow for expressivity. This research also suggests that attending to metadata previously considered unusable in systems may reflect the participants’ sense of the system and their role within it. Originality/value In addition to accommodating a wider range of tag functions, this research implies consideration of metadata ecosystems, where different kinds of tags do different things and work together to create a multifaceted artifact.



2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Fuetsch ◽  
Julia Suess-Reyes

Purpose One of the central requirements of research is that the knowledge acquired should not only be academically rigorous, but also socially useful. If an article fails to address practical relevance, the audience will question its value and respond with “so what?”. Due to recent criticism regarding the practical relevance of innovation research, the purpose of this paper is to examine whether a similar “ivory divide” prevails in research on innovation in family businesses. More specifically, this paper investigates to what extent and at what depth researchers generate practical implications for innovation in family businesses. Furthermore, different strategies to bridge the “ivory divide” are discussed. Design/methodology/approach This literature review systematically analyses the findings of 50 journal articles focusing on innovation in family businesses published between 2004 and 2015. Based on this, the articles are classified according to their degree of practical relevance. Findings Although the findings unanimously show the relevance of innovation for strengthening business’s performance, only a minority of articles offer in-depth implications for practitioners in terms of practical guidance for action and application-oriented recommendations. A number of reasons for the development of this “ivory divide” are discussed and suggestions for how the connection between research and practice could be strengthened are provided. Originality/value This paper attempts to provide an impulse toward more practically oriented family business research in order to increase its interestingness to academics and its value to practitioners.



2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen A. Tarnoff ◽  
Eric D. Bostwick ◽  
Kathleen J. Barnes

Purpose Faculty participation in the assurance of learning (AoL) is requisite both for the effective operation of the system and for accreditation compliance, but faculty often resist engaging in AoL tasks. The purpose of this paper is to provide specific recommendations to address faculty concerns and to guide AoL systems toward maturity. Design/methodology/approach This paper provides a comprehensive model of faculty resistance perspectives aligned to AoL maturity, provides specific responses to faculty resistance and introduces success markers of progress toward maturity. Findings Specifically, a three-stage model of AoL system maturity is presented and aligned with five faculty perspectives. For each faculty perspective, responses targeting causal factors are proposed and signs of progress toward the next level of faculty engagement are highlighted. Practical implications Faculty and AoL leaders will be able to identify their current stage of AoL system maturity and implement practical solutions to move to the next stage of system maturity. Social implications Understanding the motivations for faculty resistance will facilitate more meaningful and effective internal interactions as a school seeks to improve its AoL system. In turn, a more effective AoL system will promote better learning experiences for students; and better learning allows students to become productive in their chosen careers more quickly, thus improving society as a whole. Originality/value To the knowledge, no prior paper has organized faculty resistance along a maturity continuum, provided targeted responses based on the level of maturity or included signs that indicate growth toward the next level of maturity.



2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 447-458 ◽  
Author(s):  
Göran Svensson

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe potential flaws and pitfalls in the contemporary process of testing the theory of a research model in business research through the use of covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM). Design/methodology/approach – This paper offers a foundation for discussion, debate and questioning regarding the contemporary process of testing the theory of a research model in business research through CB-SEM. Findings – The contemporary process to test theory of a research model through CB-SEM in business research lacks to a large extent a stepwise and iterative process of an accumulation of knowledge to build sound and rigorous business theory that is both reliable and valid over time as well as across contexts. Research limitations/implications – This paper provides an awakening toward further debate and discussion on the relevance and suitability of the contemporary process to test the theory of a research model through CB-SEM in business research – is it science, quasi-science or just nonsense? Practical implications – The primary implication of this paper is that its content will challenge most readers ' preconceptions of the topic and stimulate debate. Subsequently, it is the author’s hope that the content is thought-provoking and counterintuitive. Some scholars might reject the content, while others may find it valuable. Originality/value – The paper intends to provide counterintuitive thoughts regarding the contemporary process of testing the theory of a research model in business research through the use of CB-SEM. CB-SEM offers potentially valuable merits in business research settings, if applied and performed properly.



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