Abstract:

Research in management and organization studies (MOS) is informed by diverse philosophical approaches, shaping how research is conducted and assessed. Yet, ontological and epistemological considerations, and associated assumptions, are rarely addressed when reporting on research, reviews of such practice being rarely undertaken. We review reporting practice for ten MOS journals for one calendar year, our data set comprising 421 empirical articles. In 87.9% of these, reporting of research philosophies is ‘absent’. For the remaining 12.1%, detail of reporting varies comprising three predominantly additive practices. Authors tend to either: ‘refer’ to their philosophical approach by name; refer to it and ‘explain’ it in abstract terms; refer, or explain in abstract terms, and ‘apply’ it considering explicitly its implications for their research. We characterise these findings as a reporting framework - AREA (Absent, Refer to, Explain, Apply) - offering a series of recommendations to stimulate thought regarding the reporting of research philosophies.

Please choose your submission type: Full Paper

Primary Track: Research Methodology

Keywords: Epistemological issues and theoretical conceptualizations  ,Reflexivity in business and management research 

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Prof Natasha Mauthner