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A Balanced Approach to Research in Supply Chain Management

In: Research Methodologies in Supply Chain Management

Author

Listed:
  • Susan L. Golicic

    (University of Oregon)

  • Donna F. Davis

    (Rawls College of Business, Texas Tech University)

  • Teresa M. McCarthy

    (College of Business and Economics, Lehigh University)

Abstract

Summary When choosing a research strategy, there are tradeoffs in control, realism and generalizability. Quantitative research methods optimize control and generalizability (external validity), while qualitative research maximizes realism (internal validity). Logistics scholars agree that logistics and supply chain management are steeped in the positivist paradigm and that past research is primarily normative and quantitative. An imbalance exists in the conduct and publishing of rigorous qualitative research studies such as grounded theory, ethnography, phenomenology, semiotics, and historical analysis. At the same time, the business environment in which logistics and supply chain phenomena are located is becoming increasingly complex and less amenable to using just a quantitative approach. In order to accurately describe, truly understand and begin to explain these complex phenomena, research streams should include more studies using qualitative methods. Researchers who exclusively choose one approach or the other seriously delimit the scope of their inquiry and, thereby, their ability to contribute to the body of knowledge.

Suggested Citation

  • Susan L. Golicic & Donna F. Davis & Teresa M. McCarthy, 2005. "A Balanced Approach to Research in Supply Chain Management," Springer Books, in: Herbert Kotzab & Stefan Seuring & Martin Müller & Gerald Reiner (ed.), Research Methodologies in Supply Chain Management, pages 15-29, Springer.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:sprchp:978-3-7908-1636-5_2
    DOI: 10.1007/3-7908-1636-1_2
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Brandenburg, Marcus & Govindan, Kannan & Sarkis, Joseph & Seuring, Stefan, 2014. "Quantitative models for sustainable supply chain management: Developments and directions," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 233(2), pages 299-312.
    2. Cynthia Hardy & Vikram Bhakoo & Steve Maguire, 2020. "A New Methodology for Supply Chain Management: Discourse Analysis and its Potential for Theoretical Advancement," Journal of Supply Chain Management, Institute for Supply Management, vol. 56(2), pages 19-35, April.
    3. Batwa, Abbas & Norrman, Andreas & Arvidsson, Ala, 2021. "How Blockchain interrelates with trust in the supply chain context: Insights from tracing sustainability in the metal industry," Chapters from the Proceedings of the Hamburg International Conference of Logistics (HICL), in: Kersten, Wolfgang & Ringle, Christian M. & Blecker, Thorsten (ed.), Adapting to the Future: How Digitalization Shapes Sustainable Logistics and Resilient Supply Chain Management. Proceedings of the Hamburg Internationa, volume 31, pages 329-351, Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Institute of Business Logistics and General Management.
    4. Tobias Rebs & Marcus Brandenburg & Stefan Seuring & Margarita Stohler, 2018. "Stakeholder influences and risks in sustainable supply chain management: a comparison of qualitative and quantitative studies," Business Research, Springer;German Academic Association for Business Research, vol. 11(2), pages 197-237, September.

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