IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/entthe/v46y2022i1p3-20.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Advancing Qualitative Entrepreneurship Research: Leveraging Methodological Plurality for Achieving Scholarly Impact

Author

Listed:
  • Elco Van Burg
  • Joep Cornelissen
  • Wouter Stam
  • Sarah Jack

Abstract

This editorial aims to advance the use of qualitative research methods when studying entrepreneurship. First, it outlines four characteristics of the domain of entrepreneurship that qualitative research is uniquely placed to address. In studying these characteristics, we urge researchers to leverage the plurality of different qualitative approaches, including less conventional methods. Second, to help researchers develop high-level theoretical contributions, we point to multiple possible contributions, and highlight how such contributions can be developed through qualitative methods. Thus, we aim to broaden the types of contributions and forms that qualitative entrepreneurship research takes, in ways that move beyond prototypical inductive theory-building.

Suggested Citation

  • Elco Van Burg & Joep Cornelissen & Wouter Stam & Sarah Jack, 2022. "Advancing Qualitative Entrepreneurship Research: Leveraging Methodological Plurality for Achieving Scholarly Impact," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 46(1), pages 3-20, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:entthe:v:46:y:2022:i:1:p:3-20
    DOI: 10.1177/1042258720943051
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1042258720943051
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/1042258720943051?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Genevieve Musca & Linda Rouleau & Mark de Rond, 2014. "New Forms of Organizational Ethnography," Post-Print hal-01639422, HAL.
    2. Alfredo De Massis & Josip Kotlar & Mike Wright & Franz W. Kellermanns, 2018. "Sector-Based Entrepreneurial Capabilities and the Promise of Sector Studies in Entrepreneurship," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 42(1), pages 3-23, January.
    3. Eesley, Charles & Wang, Yanbo, 2017. "Social influence in career choice: Evidence from a randomized field experiment on entrepreneurial mentorship," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(3), pages 636-650.
    4. Slade Shantz, Angelique & Kistruck, Geoffrey & Zietsma, Charlene, 2018. "The opportunity not taken: The occupational identity of entrepreneurs in contexts of poverty," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 416-437.
    5. McKnight, Brent & Zietsma, Charlene, 2018. "Finding the threshold: A configurational approach to optimal distinctiveness," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 493-512.
    6. Susanna Khavul & Garry D. Bruton & Eric Wood, 2009. "Informal Family Business in Africa," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 33(6), pages 1219-1238, November.
    7. Sarah L. Jack, 2005. "The Role, Use and Activation of Strong and Weak Network Ties: A Qualitative Analysis," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(6), pages 1233-1259, September.
    8. Crawford, G. Christopher & Aguinis, Herman & Lichtenstein, Benyamin & Davidsson, Per & McKelvey, Bill, 2015. "Power law distributions in entrepreneurship: Implications for theory and research," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 30(5), pages 696-713.
    9. Denise E. Fletcher, 2011. "A curiosity for contexts: Entrepreneurship, enactive research and autoethnography," Entrepreneurship & Regional Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(1-2), pages 65-76, January.
    10. Linda Rouleau & Mark de Rond & Genevieve Musca, 2014. "From the Ethnographic Turn to New Forms of Organizational Ethnography," Post-Print hal-01639436, HAL.
    11. Friederike Welter & Ted Baker & David B. Audretsch & William B. Gartner, 2017. "Everyday Entrepreneurship—A Call for Entrepreneurship Research to Embrace Entrepreneurial Diversity," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 41(3), pages 311-321, May.
    12. Timo van Balen & Murat Tarakci & Ashish Sood, 2019. "Do Disruptive Visions Pay Off? The Impact of Disruptive Entrepreneurial Visions on Venture Funding," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(2), pages 303-342, March.
    13. Alain Fayolle, 2014. "Handbook of Research on Entrepreneurship : What We Know and What We Need to Know," Post-Print hal-02298201, HAL.
    14. Hans Berends & Elco van Burg & Erik M. van Raaij, 2011. "Contacts and Contracts: Cross-Level Network Dynamics in the Development of an Aircraft Material," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 22(4), pages 940-960, August.
    15. Johan Wiklund & Mike Wright & Shaker A. Zahra, 2019. "Conquering Relevance: Entrepreneurship Research's Grand Challenge," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 43(3), pages 419-436, May.
    16. Nicholas S. Argyres & Alfredo De Massis & Nicolai J. Foss & Federico Frattini & Geoffrey Jones & Brian S. Silverman, 2020. "History‐informed strategy research: The promise of history and historical research methods in advancing strategy scholarship," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(3), pages 343-368, March.
    17. McMullen, Jeffery S., 2019. "A wakeup call for the field of entrepreneurship and its evaluators," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 34(3), pages 413-417.
    18. Jeremy C. Short & David J. Ketchen Jr. & Aaron F. McKenny & Thomas H. Allison & R. Duane Ireland, 2017. "Research on Crowdfunding: Reviewing the (Very Recent) past and Celebrating the Present," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 41(2), pages 149-160, March.
    19. Joep P. Cornelissen, 2017. "Preserving Theoretical Divergence in Management Research: Why the Explanatory Potential of Qualitative Research Should Be Harnessed Rather than Suppressed," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 54(3), pages 368-383, May.
    20. Van de Ven, Andrew H. & Engleman, Rhonda M., 2004. "Event- and outcome-driven explanations of entrepreneurship," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 343-358, May.
    21. Pratima Bansal & Wendy K. Smith & Eero Vaara, 2018. "New Ways of Seeing through Qualitative Research," Post-Print hal-02312197, HAL.
    22. Malin Malmström & Jeaneth Johansson & Joakim Wincent, 2017. "Gender Stereotypes and Venture Support Decisions: How Governmental Venture Capitalists Socially Construct Entrepreneurs’ Potential," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 41(5), pages 833-860, September.
    23. Greve, Henrich R., 2018. "Show Me the Data! Improving Evidence Presentation for Publication," Management and Organization Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 14(2), pages 423-432, June.
    24. Jack, Sarah L. & Anderson, Alistair R., 2002. "The effects of embeddedness on the entrepreneurial process," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 17(5), pages 467-487, September.
    25. Nambisan, Satish & Wright, Mike & Feldman, Maryann, 2019. "The digital transformation of innovation and entrepreneurship: Progress, challenges and key themes," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(8), pages 1-1.
    26. Pratima Bansal & Wendy K. Smith & Eero Vaara, 2018. "New Ways of Seeing through Qualitative Research," Post-Print hal-02276705, HAL.
    27. Gerald F. Davis & Christopher Marquis, 2005. "Prospects for Organization Theory in the Early Twenty-First Century: Institutional Fields and Mechanisms," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 16(4), pages 332-343, August.
    28. Erica Field & Seema Jayachandran & Rohini Pande, 2010. "Do Traditional Institutions Constrain Female Entrepreneurship? A Field Experiment on Business Training in India," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 100(2), pages 125-129, May.
    29. Garud, Raghu & Gehman, Joel & Giuliani, Antonio Paco, 2014. "Contextualizing entrepreneurial innovation: A narrative perspective," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(7), pages 1177-1188.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Guerrero, Maribel & Pugh, Rhiannon, 2022. "Entrepreneurial universities’ metamorphosis: Encountering technological and emotional disruptions in the COVID-19 ERA," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    2. Fink, Alexander A. & Klöckner, Maximilian & Räder, Tobias & Wagner, Stephan M., 2022. "Supply chain management accelerators: Types, objectives, and key design features," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    3. Abd Hamid, Hamizah & Pidduck, Robert J. & Newman, Alexander & Ayob, Abu Hanifah & Sidek, Farhana, 2023. "Intercultural resource arbitrageurs: A review and extension of the literature on transnational entrepreneurs," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 165(C).
    4. Van Lancker, Evy & Knockaert, Mirjam & Collewaert, Veroniek & Breugst, Nicola, 2023. "Preparing for scaling: A study on founder role evolution," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 38(4).
    5. McSweeney, Jordan J. & McSweeney, Kevin T. & Webb, Justin W. & Devers, Cynthia E., 2022. "The right touch of pitch assertiveness: Examining entrepreneurs' gender and project category fit in crowdfunding," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 37(4).
    6. Drummond, Conor & McGrath, Helen & O'Toole, Thomas, 2023. "Beyond the platform: Social media as a multi-faceted resource in value creation for entrepreneurial firms in a collaborative network," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    7. Santos, Susana C. & Caetano, António & Brochado, Ana, 2023. "Why am I so successful? Self-presentation and deliberative attributions of success in entrepreneurship," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 19(C).
    8. Ivan Miroshnychenko & Giorgio Vocalelli & Alfredo Massis & Stefano Grassi & Francesco Ravazzolo, 2024. "The COVID-19 pandemic and family business performance," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 62(1), pages 213-241, January.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Castellanza, Luca, 2022. "Discipline, abjection, and poverty alleviation through entrepreneurship: A constitutive perspective," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 37(1).
    2. Mariëtte Kaandorp & Elco van Burg & Tomas Karlsson, 2020. "Initial Networking Processes of Student Entrepreneurs: The Role of Action and Evaluation," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 44(3), pages 527-556, May.
    3. Maribel Guerrero & Francisco Liñán & F. Rafael Cáceres-Carrasco, 2021. "The influence of ecosystems on the entrepreneurship process: a comparison across developed and developing economies," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 57(4), pages 1733-1759, December.
    4. Packard, Mark D., 2017. "Where did interpretivism go in the theory of entrepreneurship?," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 32(5), pages 536-549.
    5. Phillip H. Kim & Karl Wennberg & Grégoire Croidieu, 2016. "Untapped Riches of Meso-Level Applications in Multilevel Entrepreneurship Mechanisms," Post-Print hal-02276717, HAL.
    6. Funmi (Olufunmilola) Ojediran & Alistair Anderson, 2020. "Women’s Entrepreneurship in the Global South: Empowering and Emancipating?," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-22, November.
    7. Smith, Brett R. & McMullen, Jeffery S. & Cardon, Melissa S., 2021. "Toward a theological turn in entrepreneurship: How religion could enable transformative research in our field," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 36(5).
    8. Elco van Burg & A. Georges L. Romme, 2014. "Creating the Future Together: Toward a Framework for Research Synthesis in Entrepreneurship," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 38(2), pages 369-397, March.
    9. Teerikangas, Satu & Colman, Helene Loe, 2020. "Theorizing in the qualitative study of mergers & acquisitions," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 36(1).
    10. Esther Salvi & Frank-Martin Belz & Sophie Bacq, 2023. "Informal Entrepreneurship: An Integrative Review and Future Research Agenda," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 47(2), pages 265-303, March.
    11. Jean–Luc Arregle & Bat Batjargal & Michael A. Hitt & Justin W. Webb & Toyah Miller & Anne S. Tsui, 2015. "Family Ties in Entrepreneurs’ Social Networks and New Venture Growth," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 39(2), pages 313-344, March.
    12. Ilse Svensson de Jong, 2021. "When Wrong Is Right: Leaving Room for Error in Innovation Measurement," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-14, July.
    13. Meyer, Camille, 2020. "The commons: A model for understanding collective action and entrepreneurship in communities," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 35(5).
    14. Lavlu Mozumdar & Geoffrey Hagelaar & Valentina C. Materia & S. W. F. Omta & Mohammad Amirul Islam & Gerben Velde, 2019. "Embeddedness or Over-Embeddedness? Women Entrepreneurs’ Networks and Their Influence on Business Performance," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 31(5), pages 1449-1469, December.
    15. Xaver Neumeyer & Susana C. Santos & Michael H. Morris, 2019. "Who is left out: exploring social boundaries in entrepreneurial ecosystems," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 44(2), pages 462-484, April.
    16. Elert, Niklas & Sjöö, Karolin & Wennberg, Karl, 2020. "When Less Is More: Why Limited Entrepreneurship Education May Result in Better Entrepreneurial Outcomes," Working Paper Series 1322, Research Institute of Industrial Economics.
    17. Catherine Welch & Eriikka Paavilainen-Mäntymäki & Rebecca Piekkari & Emmanuella Plakoyiannaki, 2022. "Reconciling theory and context: How the case study can set a new agenda for international business research," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 53(1), pages 4-26, February.
    18. Karolina Bähr & Alexander Fliaster, 2023. "The twofold transition: Framing digital innovations and incumbents' value propositions for sustainability," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(2), pages 920-935, February.
    19. Kosmynin, Mikhail & Jack, Sarah L., 2022. "Alternative investing as brokering: The embedding process of a Social Impact Bond model in a local context," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 17(C).
    20. McKeever, Edward & Jack, Sarah & Anderson, Alistair, 2015. "Embedded entrepreneurship in the creative re-construction of place," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 30(1), pages 50-65.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:entthe:v:46:y:2022:i:1:p:3-20. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.