Introduction
The main purpose of the study is to assess the current state of qualitative research approaches when applied in the field of organisational changes on the international scale. In addition, the research objective of authors is to promote the notion that such a method needs to be utilized in a scientific community more frequently regarding specific concepts (Garcia & Gluesing, 2013). The nature of the research is exploratory because it introduces new connotations to the qualitative research methodological frameworks. The model proposed in the study focuses on successfully applying the given research techniques by using journals as inputs and categorizing them their methods. The major findings are that international organisation change phenomena can be understood in-depth with consideration for all nuances only through qualitative measures (Garcia & Gluesing, 2013). The latter methodological framework can be effectively employed in order to uncover new organisational ideas and theories, which are no observable through other approaches. The authors emphasize that theory development plays a central role in the qualitative research of the organisational change around the globe. In addition, the given method is highly useful in testing the existing theories and building a validation basis for the subject at hand. Lastly, it is required in testing new methodological frameworks and developing more novel and advanced ones.
Methods & Empirics
Research Method
The article does not go into detail on the methodology used in the study. According to an external source, the role of the qualitative method of analysis is paramount in cross-cultural assessments (Jackson & Niblo, 2003). In an organisational change study focused on diversity, the main approach is similar to the article, where the derived data format is utilized (Jordan, 1995). In the case of developing international joint venture studies, it is critical to use a qualitative research method in order to outline the key features and methodological predispositions (Parkhe, 1993). Thus, the authors primarily utilize the qualitative approach in order to answer the research questions. They actively used software tools to conduct the qualitative analysis, and these instruments are NVivo, Atlas.ti, Qualrus, and WORDij (Garcia & Gluesing, 2013). These measures are effective at taking into consideration that there are statistical differences among a wide range of languages. It is important to assess a number of languages in order to correctly observe the international context of the research question. Another essential component is the keyword selection process, where these tools need to find the relevant pieces of research to build a representative sample size.
Data Collection
Prime mode of data was collected from a number of journals, and the articles within these journals were used to identify the nature of the research approach applied in studying the topic of organisational change. The process of data collection was based on selecting the most relevant journals that are specific to change and categorizing according to their qualitative features, such as descriptors (Garcia & Gluesing, 2013). The general instrument used in measuring the collected data was derived from the keywords within the journals. In order to increase the overall specificity of the selected studies, the keyword “change” was tracked to spot the topics on organisational change. Such an approach allowed the researchers to narrow the pool of studies down and be more precise in establishing the statement. The following steps were directly focused on identifying the nature of the methodological frameworks in order to categorize and classify the studies according to the given feature.
Sampling Technique
Identify the target population
The article was written primarily for researchers studying organisational changes on both national and international scales, and thus, the target group are the researchers themselves.
Describe the sampling technique
The sampling was based on already existing data on the subject and quota sampling technique was utilized. The authors state: “Broad searches in change-focused journals such as the Journal of Applied Behavioral Science and Journal of Organizational Change Management, as well as searches in several of the best management and international management journals revealed patterns in the ways that qualitative methods have been used in international and change research.” (Garcia & Gluesing, 2013, p. 426).
Assess how well the sample represents the population
The sample does not represent the target population because the study was conducted on the existing literature and not real individuals. Thus, it is designed to represent the methodological frameworks within the scientific community of researchers studying organisational change phenomena.
Evaluating Qualitative Research – Trustworthiness
Credibility and Dependability
The study is credible because researchers focus on already approved data points, and it is dependable due to the authors describing real organisational change concepts and their relation to qualitative approaches.
Transferability
The research is also transferable because the researchers use reliable arguments with duplicable outcomes.
Confirmability
It is confirmable because the authors are utilizing objective qualitative features and instance values in order to support the thesis.
Describe the tools used for analysing the data
The tools used are libraries and journal databases, as well as keyword searches.
Critical Review
In general, the article is highly contributory regarding the assessment of the role of qualitative research in understanding organisational changes in the context of international corporations. However, it lacks a sufficient sample size compared to other inquiries. For instance, another study that addresses justifying the outcome knowledge within approaches of interpretation possesses a larger sample size and utilizes a more extended range of literature (Sandberg, 2005). It is important to understand that the general population is the total number of objects of observation possessing a certain set of attributes, limited in space and time. A finite volume sample needs tp possess all the properties of the initial population that are significant from the point of view of the research objectives. The key problem is the fact that the study heavily relies on the keyword appearance rate and the instances of word “change.” However, one should be aware that organisational change might be described as such, and other terms might be used. A change might also refer to incorrect attribution of the phenomenon, where a study assesses a non-organisational shifts, but it is related to organisations.
Another major issue of the article is the quality of the sample, where particular journals were selected without proper justification. A representative sample is one of the key concepts in data analysis. Representativeness determines how much it is possible to generalize the results of a study using a certain sample to the entire general population from which it was collected. The data analysis based on it will contain bias in estimates and lead to falsification of the results. A prerequisite for constructing a representative sample is the equal probability of including each element of the population in it. In order for the conclusion obtained by examining the sample to be extended to the entire general population, the sample must be representative. Therefore, the overall selection of journals is not based on solid reasoning and logic, which undermines the evidence presented by the authors. In contrast, the other research is more direct with the literature and sample selection process, and there is a sound underlying reason behind the choices.
References
Garcia, D., & Gluesing, J. C. (2013). Qualitative research methods in international organizational change research. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 26(2), 423-444.
Jackson, M. S. & Niblo, D. M. (2003). The role of qualitative methodology in cross-cultural research. Qualitative Research Journal, 3(1), 18-27.
Jordan, A. T. (1995). Managing diversity: Translating anthropological insight for organization studies. The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 31(2), 124-140.
Parkhe, A. (1993). Messy research, methodological predispositions, and theory development in international joint ventures. Academy of Management Review, 18(2), 227-268.
Sandberg, J. (2005). How do we justify knowledge produced within interpretive approaches? Organizational Research Methods, 8(1), 41-68.