Report R2.18 Reconciling Relevance and Rigour: The Rocky Road of Research in Professional Fields Seminar Leader: Kajri Misra, Doctoral Scholar, Cornell Univrsity, USA km245[at]cornell.edu The seminar leader sought to examine issues related to research in professional fields in the context of her doctoral studies. Six other cases of doctoral research were also considered to analyze the questions that emerged. She also took inputs from a review of the doctoral programme at her department in which she was actively involved. A comparison was made between disciplinary research and professional research. Adding to the cumulative knowledge of a particular discipline through original contribution is a commonly recognized objective of good disciplinary research. The conceptual basis of a discipline is expected to be stable and there is usually a tradition of research that sets the tone for new studies. Professional research is typically multidisciplinary and rooted in real life problems. The practice base constantly shifts, evolves and renews itself. This is reflected in the choice of problems and in research design. The tussle between context specificity and universality of research moulds the manner in which researchers proceed. Through extensive preliminary readings of related concepts, theories and empirical findings the researcher aims to sharpen the terms in which a research problem is posed and decides on a research design. In professional research, conceptual boundaries tend to be uncertain and there is often the need to examine works in a number of related disciplines. Understanding the limits of concepts used in one’s study is necessary before the researcher can define a problem precisely. There are two approaches possible at this stage. One could fall back upon previously explored constructs and meanings. However, there is the danger of falling into set ways of thinking and overlooking the possibility that previous attempts may be insufficient for one’s purpose. Here, the researcher has to make a conscious decision that suits his/her research objectives. The doctoral study under discussion examined the comparative efficacy of different institutional arrangements for decentralized local governance. The researcher zeroed in on Jan Kooiman’s exposition of the concept of ‘governance’ for the purpose of her study. ‘Decentralisation’ was examined, based on public choice theory democratic theory, public administration theory and organization theory. The Seminar Leader also illustrated how orginal research questions can change as the study progresses. In the context of the current study, the adequacy of the original research design and methodology for addressing the changed question was also discussed. There was some discussion on what ‘theory’ is. It was suggested that while concepts denoted ideas or assumptions, theories are interconnected concepts that lead to certain expectations. Nevertheless, theories are simple approximations of complex practical worlds. The value of one’s research could also be assessed from two dimensions. Criteria that are external to the problem under study (e.g., peer acceptance) drive many researchers. Effective criteria however, are intrinsic to the system and are also called technical criteria. Rigour is a consideration at all stages of a research process especially in following a research methodology. It is commonly understood as the level of thoroughness, confidence, and control that ensures quality of research findings. In professional fields there is also the added onus of being relevant and useful for a system of users. Thus a professional field often builds knowledge by enhancing the effectiveness of a functioning system. Review, assembling and systematization of practitioners’ knowledge for further improving practice, are also legitimate ways of knowledge building in professional fields. The multidisciplinary orientation ensures that addition to the field can be decided only after multiple bodies of knowledge related to the action or process being studied are reasonably explored. Reported by Jacob D. Vakkayil, with inputs from D. P. Dash. Copyleft Xavier Institute of Management, Xavier Square, Bhubaneswar 751013, India Research World (ISSN 0974-2379) http://www1.ximb.ac.in/RW.nsf/pages/Home |
