Abstract
Despite the centrality of research phenomena, the process of their definition is often neglected and reduced to a simple choosing of pre-established subjects of interest. However, good research not only includes empirical work aimed at more or less ‘given as fact’ phenomena. It also involves phenomena construction: that is, the process of generating and establishing phenomena to investigate and theorize. We contend that phenomena construction is not separate from, but integral to, both the empirical and theorizing phases in research. As few phenomena are truly ‘given’ or straightforward to observe, good research calls for careful and creative construction of the phenomenon under investigation. We propose and elaborate a framework that enables researchers to generate and establish research phenomena beyond those currently available in their specific area of interest and, based on this, to produce more imaginative and impactful research.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1737-1765 |
| Number of pages | 29 |
| Journal | Journal of management studies |
| Early online date | 29 Jun 2023 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 31 Jul 2024 |
Bibliographical note
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: We would like to thank the editor Daniel Muzio and the three anonymous reviewers for their constructive and helpful comments on earlier versions of this article. Additionally, we would like to express our gratitude to Yannis Gabriel, Richard O’Quinn, and Harald Tuckermann for their valuable feedback on an earlier draft of this article. Open access publishing facilitated by The University of Queensland, as part of the Wiley - The University of Queensland agreement via the Council of Australian University LibrariansKeywords
- research methods
- research phenomena
- theory
- theory development
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Business and International Management
- Strategy and Management
- Management of Technology and Innovation