Complete thesis - Murdoch University

the method is extremely useful in developing context-based, process-oriented descriptionsand explanations of the phenomenon, grounded theory approaches are becomingincreasingly common in the IS research literatureor chosen from those applied within either a positivist or interpretivist context. In theinterpretivist tradition, the focus of these techniques is on openness to alternative perspectivesand on the identification of ambiguities in the data and the setting. Such strategies include:• field study – the object of study is subjected to direct observation by the researcher• questionnaire-based survey – this involves the collection of written data from interviewees,or the collection of verbal responses to relatively structured questions• interview-based survey – involves the recording of verbal data from interviewees, whicharises in relatively unstructured interviews or meetings• case study – involves the collection of considerable detail, from multiple sources, abouta particular, contemporary phenomenon within its real-world setting. Case study researchis the most common qualitative method used in IS, and can be positivist, interpretive,or critical, depending upon the underlying philosophical assumptions of theresearcher.A general shift in IS research away from technological to managerial and organisationalissues is seen to have led to an increasing interest in the application of qualitative researchmethods (Myers, 1997), as well as a wider acknowledgement of the importance of relevanceto practitioners. In their discussion Benbasat and Zmud (1999) maintain (and it shouldbe noted that both authors acknowledge they have mainly espoused a positivist researchtradition) that the nature of IS scholarship has placed an emphasis on rigour over practicalrelevance in order to establish IS as an academic discipline and to gain the respect of moreestablished disciplines. Among other reasons, they also cite the constraints imposed byresearch-oriented institutions which stress theory-based empirical research, economics, ormathematical modelling-based work in the pursuit of rigour.Software Engineering researchClarke (2000) also identifies an engineering approach to research. Based on a pragmatistview, strategies explore:• construction – involves the conception, design and creation (or prototyping) of an informationtechnology artefact and/or technique (most commonly a computer program,but sometimes a physical device or a method). The new technology is designed to183