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1 – 10 of 86Bas Becker and Carel Roessingh
Multisited ethnography has primarily been portrayed as a challenge for the following field-worker, with the researcher taking the central role and neglecting research participants…
Abstract
Purpose
Multisited ethnography has primarily been portrayed as a challenge for the following field-worker, with the researcher taking the central role and neglecting research participants also experiencing a multisited nature of their work. The authors argue that literature on multisited ethnography merely discusses multisitedness as a methodological theme. In correspondence, the authors propose to think of multisitedness not just as a methodological theme but also as an empirical theme.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors contend etic and emic perspectives to address multisitedness empirically, which enables researchers to compare and contrast the multisited topic of inquiry in academic “outsider” terms with the etic analysis and considering the perspective of the research participants' multisited experiences using the emic perspective. To show the fruitfulness of discussing multisitedness using the complementary etic and emic analysis, the authors present the example of Mennonite entrepreneurial activities in Belize, a heterogeneous group of migrants that established themselves as successful traders and entrepreneurs.
Findings
Through an etic multisited ethnographic perspective, the authors compare and contrast four communities of Mennonites in terms of their entrepreneurial activities, technology and energy use. Through an emic perspective, the authors demonstrate how Mennonites, while preferring an in-group focus, navigate their multisited entrepreneurial activities, which require interaction with the outside world.
Originality/value
The authors highlight the value of combining etic–emic reflections to acknowledge and include the multisited nature of many social phenomena as experienced by the research participants.
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Kwanchit Sasiwongsaroj, Mitsuko Ono, Sutpratana Duangkaew and Yumi Kimura
This article presents fieldwork perspectives and research reflexivity gained from the cross-national research team, with the aim of promoting better qualitative research practices…
Abstract
Purpose
This article presents fieldwork perspectives and research reflexivity gained from the cross-national research team, with the aim of promoting better qualitative research practices in transnational research. It focuses on how the team incorporates diverse cultural perspectives and insider and outsider roles to enhance the research in the data collection process.
Design/methodology/approach
This article is drawn from the authors' qualitative research with 25 Japanese retirees in Thailand, addressing cultural challenges encountered by researchers in the cross-national team when conducting field research.
Findings
Our findings indicate that researchers with an emic view in the cross-national team who shared nationality and cultural background as the participants facilitated an effective recruitment process and productive collaboration in data gathering. They also served as cultural brokers, tailoring smooth communication during interviews on certain cultures, participant traits and sensitive issues. On the other hand, the outsiders helped the team uncover more transnational issues that the insiders had overlooked. Additionally, combining emic and etic perspectives helps to avoid ethnocentric narratives or purely etic and emic conclusions.
Originality/value
This article addresses a gap in the methodological reflections in transnational research that remains largely overlooked. Our reflection highlights the advantages of cross-national teams, which include researchers from emigration and immigration countries. Their status and roles as insiders and outsiders significantly facilitate a positive impact on the research process and increase the extent of investigating the complex cultural dynamics of transnational practices. The incorporation of emic and etic perspectives is suggested in the methodological approach for transnational migration research.
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Toni Mättö, Marko Järvenpää, Pekka Peura, Merja Kangasjärvi and Harri Lehtinen
This case study aims to report a longitudinal analysis of the development and use of local “vernacular” accounting practice and a digital rolling-forecast system known as…
Abstract
Purpose
This case study aims to report a longitudinal analysis of the development and use of local “vernacular” accounting practice and a digital rolling-forecast system known as TeamBudget in a public sector organization.
Design/methodology/approach
The study employs the constructive research approach which utilizes participative observation in the development of TeamBudget over the 15 years since 2004. The empirical data utilized includes eight interviews and documentary data for the system created.
Findings
The study demonstrates how the actions of employees responsible for developing a locally relevant financial planning system, TeamBudget, facilitated the emergence of new accounting routines associated with the newly created system. A locally created accounting system thus became institutionalized into a wider organizational setting over time. The current study presents findings that explain the routinization of informal accounting activities and the subsequent institutionalization process.
Practical implications
Understanding the potential influence of local action on the organization-wide accounting system may foster the creation of accounting tools that could spread participation and commitment throughout a public sector organization, contributing towards enhancing the enabling effect of an organizational accounting system. When designing a local budgeting system, decoupling it from the organizational system may promote its institutionalization.
Originality/value
Antecedents of informal accounting routines have received little research attention. This study illustrates actions relating to local accounting practice were antecedents of accounting routines and subsequent institutional changes in broader organizational practices in a public sector organization. The study demonstrates how vernacular accounting practice can facilitate the institutionalization process.
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Noha M. El-Bassiouny, Heba Abbas-Ali, Maik Hammerschmidt, Said Elbanna and Elisabeth Fröhlich
Annika Engström, Anette Johansson, Nina Edh Mirzaei, Kristina Sollander and Daved Barry
The purpose of this paper is to shed light on different types of knowledge created and how this links to the project design, process, and content.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to shed light on different types of knowledge created and how this links to the project design, process, and content.
Design/methodology/approach
In this paper the authors investigate participants' experiences from a three-year interactive research project, designed to trigger reflection among the participants. They apply a knowledge creation perspective on experiences expressed by participants as a result of different research project activities.
Findings
The study resulted in five categories of insights with potential for sustainable influence on the participating organizations: an understanding of concepts and theories; an understanding of the impacts of collaborative, reflective work processes; an understanding of the meaning of one's own organizational context; an understanding of the importance of increased organizational self-awareness; and an understanding of the potential for human interaction and communication.
Practical implications
The author’s findings suggest that it is possible to design a project to promote more profound and sustainable effects on a business beyond the explicit purpose of the project. They advise practitioners to make room for iterative reflection; be mindful to create a trustful and open environment in the team; challenge results with opposing views and theories; and make room for sharing experiences and giving feedback.
Originality/value
This study contributes to unraveling key practices which can nurture conditions for knowledge creation in interactive research projects and business projects alike.
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Toni Ryynänen and Visa Heinonen
Temporal consumption experiences have been conceptualised as universal, subjective or practice-based experiences. Little research, though, addresses such experiences in…
Abstract
Purpose
Temporal consumption experiences have been conceptualised as universal, subjective or practice-based experiences. Little research, though, addresses such experiences in conjunction with the repeated and situational consumption events that bring them about. The purpose of this paper is to extend current knowledge by examining how the temporal and situational intertwine during consumption events. For this purpose, the concept of a consumption timecycle based on the research data is constructed.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper takes a longitudinal and researcher-led approach to study temporal consumption experiences. The data was collected through participant observations, video recordings and personal subjective introspections during three consecutive annual Nordic motorcycle consumer trade shows (2014–2016). The data was analysed using an interpretive approach.
Findings
The results demonstrate five temporalities that characterise a consumption timecycle as follows: emerging, core, intensifying, fading and idle-time temporalities. The features of these temporal experiences are presented in the conclusions section of the paper.
Research limitations/implications
Recalled temporal experiences are mediated experiences and they differ from lived experiences. The transferability or generalisability of the results might be limited, as the case is situated in the Nordic context.
Originality/value
The paper presents the novel concept of a consumption timecycle that extends current debates about consumer time. The consumption timecycle is contrasted with established temporal concepts in consumer and marketing research.
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Viktoriya Zipper-Weber and Andrea Mandik
The negative cultural bias vis-à-vis international business and cross-cultural management has been duly acknowledged, necessitating recommendations towards investigating its…
Abstract
Purpose
The negative cultural bias vis-à-vis international business and cross-cultural management has been duly acknowledged, necessitating recommendations towards investigating its positive effects. Methodologically, quantitative research clearly predominates, and there have been calls for alternative approaches. Thus, this conceptual paper addresses the research gap (methodological and thematic) by investigating if multicultural teams can be an essential part of the global workforce and whether positive effects exist regarding dynamic capabilities, learning and knowledge transfer.
Design/methodology/approach
The underlying ethnographic research design enabled exploring within the embedded single case study from an emic perspective, including qualitative observation and semi-structured expert interviews, and provided detailed insights into the company’s multicultural work environment.
Findings
The results reveal that applying a qualitative design allowed the needed exploration and show that multicultural, geographically dispersed teams are positively experienced and considered necessary in today’s globalised world. They are likely to increase in the future. Moreover, dynamic capabilities (multicultural competencies) are indispensable for multicultural teamwork. Regarding learning opportunities, different viewpoints for discussion and the ability to reflect on these offer valuable insights. In line with theory, multiculturality is considered a “two-edged sword”, providing simultaneous benefits and challenges. Contrary to the theory, even highly important information transfers can occur virtually, although occasional physical contact is essential for trust building.
Originality/value
The multinational family business offers a unique example of a positive relationship between multiculturalism and organisational excellence and demonstrates how the application of a qualitative methodology can support theory building by delivering a revised model of dynamic capabilities in multicultural environments with geographical dispersion.
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