CALL FOR PAPERS
Special Issue of the Journal of International Business Studies
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Special Issue Editors:
Rosalie L. Tung (Simon Fraser University,
tung@sfu.ca) Julian Birkinshaw
(London Business School,
jbirkinshaw@london.edu) Mary Yoko Brannen (San Jose
State University/INSEAD,
branne_m@cob.sjsu.edu)
Deadline for submission: September 18, 2009
Tentative publication date: Spring or Summer 2011
Introduction
This special issue seeks to shape the future direction for qualitative
research in the field of international business. Our purpose is to showcase
high-quality qualitative studies, to encourage debate on the merits of
various approaches to qualitative research, and to help build a common
understanding of the appropriate standards for publishing qualitative
research in JIBS and other leading journals. We seek original research
contributions that are informed by qualitative research methods, as well as
manuscripts that address the value, the methods, or the potential of
qualitative research in international business.
Special Issue Theme
Over the past two decades, quantitative methods have come to dominate the
field of international business research. This state of affairs mirrors the
broader trend towards more sophisticated empirical methods in the social
sciences. It is driven both by the gradual maturation of the field of
international business and by the norms propagated within our own academic
community that typically equate quantitative data with "hard science".
While there are clear merits associated with quantitative methods, the
multi-cultural, multi-dimensional and dynamic nature of the field of
international business lends itself to many different research methodologies
- including qualitative methods. In order to understand the complexities
and relative newness of some of the topics under investigation in
international business, it is often inappropriate to engage in large sample
studies or reductionist methods. Rather, thick description, exploratory
research and comparative analysis that focus on theory building and
hypotheses generation, to cite a few approaches, may be more suitable.
Indeed, many of the landmark studies in international business, such as
Chris Bartlett and Sumantra Ghoshal's Managing across Borders and E.T.
Hall's Silent Language, were built explicitly around qualitative insights.
There is a great deal of awareness of the merits of qualitative research
methods in international business, and recently there have been some
attempts to bring it closer to the fore (e.g. Marschan-Piekkari and Welch's
Handbook of Qualitative Research Methods for International Business).
Despite the efforts of some scholars and journal editors, the number of
articles in leading journals using qualitative methods continues to fall.
We would like to reverse this trend and use this Special Issue to bring
qualitative methods back into the mainstream of international business
research.
Topics for the Special Issue
In this Special Issue, we hope to showcase exemplars of various forms of
qualitative research that advance our understanding of international
business phenomena. Qualitative research encompasses a diversity of methods
that includes, but is not limited to, single or multiple case study,
ethnographic/field studies, unobtrusive observations, interviews, narrative
analysis, participant observation/action research, grounded theory practice,
and archival analysis of documents and texts.
Some topics suitable for inclusion in the Special Issue include:
. Original research contributions that use qualitative methods in an
effective way.
. Examples of how to use multiple case studies as a way of deductively
testing strong constructs induced from base ethnographies in international
business research.
. Qualitative studies used to triangulate uncertain or "squishy"
quantitative results.
. Exemplars of the Constant Comparative Method (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) as
praxis (dialogue between practice and academe) used to build theory in IB.
. Exemplars of rigorous theory induction in IB to build strong constructs
and testable propositions.
The Special Issue Editors have intentionally kept the above list of
suggested topics short so as to stimulate creativity and thereby encourage
prospective authors to adopt a variety of perspectives in approaching this
subject. All submissions must fit within the domain statement of the journal
and follow the JIBS policy statements including the Statement of Editorial
Policy, Instructions for Contributors, Style Guide and Code of Ethics; see:
http://www.jibs.net.
Submission Process
All manuscripts will be reviewed as a cohort for this Special Issue.
Manuscripts must be submitted in the window between September 1 and
September 18, 2009, at
http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jibs. Please select
the option from the special issue drop-down menu on Manuscript Central that
identifies your paper as a submission for the "Qualitative Research & IB"
Special Issue, and include the words "Qualitative Research and IB Special
Issue Submission" on your title page. All submissions will go through the
JIBS regular double-blind review process and follow the same norms and
processes. As manuscripts are accepted for publication, they will be posted
in the Advance Online Publication system on
http://www.jibs.net.
For more information about this Call for Papers, please contact the Special
Issue Editors or the JIBS Managing Editor (
managing-editor@jibs.net).
-------------------
Anne Hoekman
Managing Editor, Journal of International Business Studies
JIBS Editorial Office
Academy of International Business
Michigan State University
Tel: +1-517-432-1452
Fax: +1-517-432-1009
E-mail:
managing-editor@jibs.net
Web: www.jibs.net