Unconventional Methodology in Organization and Management Research

Bryman and Buchanan have assembled an interesting and rigorous set of chapters designed to introduce readers to some of the most novel approaches to data collection, research design, and data analysis. Importantly, this assemblage includes ideas sampled from a broad array of disciplines spanning quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods domains. I strongly recommend this book to any scholar seeking to expand the tools comprising his or her methodological tool chest.

At present there are strong institutional forces pushing scholars towards publishing safe, conventional papers, which rarely advance methodological thinking or generate major theoretical advances. Unconventional Methodology in Organization and Management Research is a welcome call for pluralism and diversity, which brings together a provocative and stimulating collection of contributions. It should be compulsory reading for students of research methods, but will also provide more experienced scholars with valuable insights and hopefully challenge them to expand their methodological repertoires.

Most journal editors and readers crave 'something different' in topics of inquiry and the design of research. This book shows why conservatism in fact prevails and provides a powerful and comprehensive set of exemplars of alternative unconventional approaches, covering sources of data, methods, and modes of analysis. It will inspire scholars to be more imaginative in their research. Journal editors and their readers will be truly grateful.

At a time it is common to bemoan research which is rather boring this stimulating book conceived by Alan Bryman and David Buchanan points out that methods matter and that most researchers use a limited range of conventional approaches which affects what they see and how they see it. Furthermore researchers' methodological perspective also shapes their interpretation of the research. They point the way forward for more adventurous research with unconventional approaches to methodology including unconventional settings, unconventional research design and data collection, and unconventional analytic approaches.

Alan Bryman is Emeritus Professor of Organizational and Social Research at the University of Leicester School of Business, UK. His research interests focus on methodology, leadership, organizational analysis, Disneyization, and theme parks. He has published on social and organizational research methods, including two leading textbooks (Social Research Methods, and Business Research Methods) which have been translated into numerous other languages, and he has a specific interest in leadership in higher education. David Buchanan is Emeritus Professor of Organizational Behaviour at Cranfield University School of Management, UK. His research interests lie with change management and organization politics. He is co-author of a leading text in organizational behaviour, and co-editor with Alan Bryman of The Sage Handbook of Organizational Research Methods (2009). Current projects include studies of change in healthcare, post-crisis change, and the implications of new technology for the role of the HR function.

1: David A. Buchanan and Alan Bryman: 'Not Another Survey': The Value of Unconventional Methods Part 1 Unconventional settings and data sources 2: Laurie Cohen and Joanne Duberley: Desert Island Data: Using BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs in Organization and Management Research 3: Robin Holt and Mike Zundel: Using Fiction in Organization and Management Research 4: Andrew Knight: Innovations in Unobtrusive Methods 5: David A. Buchanan and David Denyer: Research in Extreme Contexts 6: Christopher J. Schneider: Making the Case: A Qualitative Approach to Studying Social Media Documents Part 2: Unconventional Research Design and Data Collection Methods 7: Robert Kozinets and Manuela Nocker: Netnography: Engaging with the Challenges 8: Alex Bitektine, Jeffrey W. Lucas, and Oliver Schilke: Institutions Under A Microscope: Experimental Methods in Institutional Theory 9: Steve Kempster and Ken Parry: Beyond One Voice: Co-Constructed Analytic Auto-Ethnography 10: Rebecca Whiting, Helen Roby, Gillian Symon, and Petros Chamakiotis: Participant-Led Video Diaries 11: Olivier Berthod, Michael Grothe-Hammer, and Joerg Sydow: Inter-Organizational Ethnography: Promises and Pitfalls Part 3 Unconventional Analytic Approaches 12: Paul Carlile And Karl-Emanuel Dionne: Unconventional Yet Consequential: Using A Sociomaterial Approach To Drive Impact in Organization Studies Research 13: Joerg Sydow, Arnold Windeler, Gordon Muller-Seitz And Knut Lange: Path Constitution Analysis: A Methodology For Understanding Path Dependence and Path Creation 14: Alan Bryman And David A. Buchanan: Methodology Matters