The grounded theory method and case study data in IS research: issues and design - Information Systems Foundations: Constructing and Criticising - page 43

5. The grounded theory method and
case study data in IS research: issues
and design
Walter D. Fernández, School of Business and Information
Management, The Australian National University
Abstract
While social scientists have been using the grounded theory method for almost 40 years,
the IS field has been a late adopter of the methodology. Thus, even as grounded theory's
importance as an IS research method has increased over the last decade, many miscon-
ceptions and misunderstandings about the method and its use still exist in our com-
munity. This paper presents important aspects of the Glaserian approach to grounded
theory studies. The account is based on a personal perspective acquired from both doing
grounded theory research and reading the wide grounded theory literature. Readers
will benefit by gaining a deeper understanding of the approach, including its nature
and benefits as well as its risks and demands. The objective of this paper is to help novice
IS researchers interested in theory-building studies to grasp the complexity and nature
of the method.
Introduction
Martin and Turner (1986, p. 141) defined grounded theory as an 'inductive theory dis-
covery methodology that allows the researcher to develop a theoretical account of the
general features of the topic while simultaneously grounding the account in empirical
observations of data.' 1 In grounded theory everything is integrated; it is an extensive
and systematic general methodology (independent of research paradigm) where actions
and concepts can be interrelated with other actions and concepts - in grounded theory
nothing happens in a vacuum (Glaser, 1978; Glaser and Strauss, 1967).
The grounded theory method offers 'a logically consistent set of data collection and
analysis procedures aimed to develop theory' (Charmaz, 2001 p. 245). These procedures
allow the identification of patterns in data; by analysing these patterns researchers can
derive theory that is empirically valid (Glaser and Strauss, 1967; Martin and Turner,
1986). This is so because 'the theory-building process is so intimately tied with evidence
that it is very likely that the resultant theory will be consistent with empirical observa-
tion'(Eisenhardt, 1989). 2
An excellent example of grounded theory in information systems research can be found
in Orlikowski (1993), which won MIS Quarterly's Best Paper Award for 1993. Grounded
theory allowed Orlikowski to focus on elements of context and process and on actions
of important players associated with organisational change. This influential paper played
an important role in making IS scholars aware of the usefulness of grounded theory for
1
Grounded theory is also a deductive method.
2
Grounded theory is (a) an approach consisting of methods and (b) a theory of research. In this paper, 'grounded theory' and
'grounded theory method' refer to grounded theory approach.