Indian Institute of Management Kashipur

Ph.D. Programme (AY 2021-22)

Course Name:Qualitative Research Methods

PhD 1st Year, Term II

Credit: 1
Instructors
Name: Prof Somnath Chakrabarti and Prof A.V. Raman (equal sharing in course and on
50:50 teaching credit basis for both faculty)
Contact Info: somnath.chakrabarti@iimkashipur.ac.in ; av.raman@iimkashipur.ac.in
Office Hours: Anytime possible with prior appointment

Course Description

This course offers a hands-on opportunity for doctoral scholars to experience the practice of
qualitative research. It provides them adequate input to discuss the dimensions and implications
of qualitative research and practice. The course will require a considerable investment of time,
with intensive reading and writing, and recurrent team discussions based on assignments. It will
involve a Project also which will deal with the practical aspects of the class learning.

Course Objectives
Appreciating the complexities and opportunities associated with doing rigorous and credible
qualitative research, at the end of the course. By the end of the course, the scholars will:
 Recognize the uniqueness and distinctiveness of qualitative research, particularly in
comparison to the positivist and post-positivist qualitative research cultures.
 Distinguish qualitative methodological approaches –from interpretive to positivist–as well as
traditions of qualitative inquiry—ethnography and netnography, case study, narrative inquiry,
phenomenology, grounded theory, action research, participant observation method, mixed
method etc –and appreciate their advantages and limitations for research in the field of
management science.
 Discuss competently selected problems and issues associated with theory, design,
implementation, reporting and publication of qualitative research.
 Advance and deepen skills in managing selected design, data collection, analysis and writing
strategies of qualitative research, via exercises and some field experience (if feasible during
COVID-19 time).
 Become acquainted with published research articles modelling theoretical, methodological and
empirical decisions in the qualitative studies.
Grading for AY 2021-22 Class Term II

Prof Chakrabarti’s Evaluation (50 Marks):

End Term Exam : 20 Marks
Class Presentation and Participation: 15 Marks
Term Paper: 15 Marks

Prof Raman’ Evaluation (50 Marks):

10 Marks take home assignment
10 Marks project presentation and report
10 Marks Book review/Paper Analysis
20 Marks End term examination

(Prof Raman will brief the scholars about the Project)

Book review– a selection of classic qualitative study books will be provided out of
which each participant has to choose one book.

[NB- Do not focus on the facts of the study but how the researcher gained
accessed, collected data analysed and interpreted data. What were the challenges
and hurdles he faced?]

# Detailed Reading has been incorporated in the course outline for Doctoral scholars’ reading and
reference and part of this will be discussed in the class sessions

Class Teaching Schedule: Would be decided later based on mutual consultation between faculty
teaching the course

Course Outline
Session Theme Readings Lead
(PRE MID Instructor
Term)
1 of Prof The Nature of Alan Bryman (2012): Chapter 1 and 17 Prof. S.
Chakrabarti Qualitative Bruce L. Berg (2001): Chapter 1 Chakrabarti
Research Hunt, M. (2010). Active Waiting: Habits and
the practice of conducting qualitative research.
International Journal of Qualitative Methods,
9(1):69-76

2 of Prof Qualitative Bruce L. Berg (2001): Chapter 2 Prof. S.

Chakrabarti Research Creswell, J. (2014): Chapter 1, 9 Chakrabarti
Designs David E. Gray (2014): Chapter 7

Burns, D. 2012. “Participatory Systemic

Inquiry”. IDS Bulletin, Vol. 43 Num. 3, May
2012 (pp. 88)
 David E. Gray (2014), Chapter 7
3 of Prof Designing a Creswell, J. (2014): Chapter 9 Prof. S.
Chakrabarti Qualitative Chakrabarti
Study Alvesson, M. & J. Sandberg. 2011. Generating
 Framework, research questions through problematization.
questions, Academy of Management Review. 36(2): 247-
problem 271

McCaslin and Wilson Scott (2003), The Five-

Question Method For Framing A Qualitative
Research Study, The Qualitative
Report,Volume 8 Number 3, September, 447-
461
Mason, Augustyn and Seakhoa-King (2010),
Exploratory Study in Tourism: Designingan
Initial, Qualitative Phase of Sequenced, Mixed
Methods Research, International Journal of
Tourism Research, 12, 432–448

4 of Prof Bounding the Bryman, A. (2012): Chapter 18 Prof. S.

Chakrabarti Territory Chakrabarti
 Sampling, Alvesson, M. and D. Karreman. 2007.
fieldwork Constructing Mystery: Empirical matters in
 Data theory development. Academy of Management
collection Review. 32(4): 1265-1281.
methods
5 of Prof The Art and Bryman, A. (2012): Chapter 20 Prof. S.
Chakrabarti Craft of
Bruce L. Berg (2001): Chapter 4-5 Chakrabarti
Interviewing Beuthin, R. 2014. Breathing in the Mud:
Tensions in Narrative Interviewing.
International Journal of Qualitative Methods.
13: 122-134
Cisneros-Puebla, Faux and May (2004),
Qualitative Researchers—Stories Told, Storied
Shared: The Storied Nature of Qualitative
Research. An Introduction to the Special Issue:
FQS Interviews I, Forum: Qualitative Social
Research, Volume 5, No. 3, Art. 37 –
September
David E. Gray (2014), Chapter 15
1 of Prof The underlying Reading- AtkinsonPaul, Amanda Coffey, and Prof. A. V.
Raman rationale behind Sara Delamont. Key themes in qualitative Raman
qualitative research: Continuities and changes. Rowman
research Altamira, 2003.
Reading Jacob, E., 1987. Qualitative research
traditions: A review. Review of educational
research, 57(1), pp.1-50.
Reading Lambert, A.M., Adler, P.A., Adler, P.
and Detzner, D.F., 1995. Understanding and
evaluating qualitative research. Journal of
Marriage and the Family, pp.879-893.

2 of Prof Reflexivity in Berger, R., 2015. Now I see it, now I don’t: Prof. A. V.
Raman Qualitative Researcher’s position and reflexivity in Raman
 research qualitative research. Qualitative
research, 15(2), pp.219-234.
3 of Prof The 4R’s of Katz, J., 2015. A theory of qualitative Prof. A. V.
Raman qualitative methodology: The social system of analytic Raman
research fieldwork. Method (e) s: African Review of
Social Sciences Methodology, 1(1-2), pp.131-
146.
4 of Prof Phenomenology Sanders, P., 1982. Phenomenology: A new way Prof. A.V.
Raman and qualitative of viewing organizational research. Academy Raman
research of management review, 7(3), pp.353-360.
Gill, M.J., 2014. The possibilities of
phenomenology for organizational
research. Organizational Research
Methods, 17(2), pp.118-137.
And multimedia study material
5 of Prof Thick Chapter 10 in Huberman, M. and Miles, M.B., Prof. A.V
Raman description and 2002. The qualitative researcher's companion. Raman
Narrative Sage.
analysis Anzul, M., Downing, M., Ely, M. and Vinz, R.,
2003. On writing qualitative research: Living
by words. Routledge.

POST MID
TERM
6 of Prof Ethnographyand
Chakrabart Netnography
i Bruce L. Berg (2001): Chapter 6
Brewer, J.D (2000): Chapter 1-3 Prof. S.
Bryman, A. (2012): Chapter 19 Chakrabarti
David E. Gray (2014): Chapter 17
Robert V. Kozinets, What is netnography, Sage
Publications, 2011,
http://methods.sagepub.com/video/what-is-
netnography

Dhiraj Murthy, Emergent Digital Ethnographic

Methods
for Social Research, Chapter 7

David E. Gray (2014), Chapter 17

Alvarado and Íñiguez-Rueda, Ethnography as a

social science perspective: a review, PSICO, v.
40, n. 1, p. 7-16, jan./mar. 2009
Iloh and Tierney (2014), Using Ethnography to
Understand Twenty-first Century College Life,
Human Affairs,24, 20–39

Heinonen and Medberg (2018), Netnography as

a tool for understanding customers:
implications for service research and practice,
Journal of Services Marketing, 32/6 (2018)
657–679
7 of Prof Participant Bryman, A. (2012): Chapter 19 Prof. S.
Chakrabart Observation David E. Gray (2014), Chapter 17 Chakrabarti
i Kawulich (2005), Participant Observation as a
 Data Collection Method, Forum: Qualitative
Social Research, Volume 6, No. 2, Art. 43 –
May

8 of Prof Grounded Theory Glaser, Barney G & Strauss, Anselm L., 1967. Prof. S.
Chakrabart The Discovery of Grounded Theory: Strategies Chakrabarti
i forQualitative Research, Chicago, Aldine
Publishing Company
Tie, Birks and Francis (2019), Grounded theory
research: A design framework for novice
researchers, SAGE Open Medicine, Volume 7:
1–8
Zeithaml, V.A., B.J. Jaworski, A.K. Kohli, K.
R. Tuli, W. Ulaga, and G. Zaltman, 2020, A
theories in Use approach to building Marketing
Theory, Journal of Marketing, January, 84 (1),
32-51.
9 of Prof Grounded Theory Mehmet Mehmetoglu and LeventAltinay, 2006, Prof. S.
Chakrabart Examination of grounded theory analysis with Chakrabarti
i an application to hospitality research,
Hospitality Management, 25, 12–33
Mills, Bonner and Francis (2006), The
Development of Constructivist Grounded
Theory, International Journal of Qualitative
Methods, 5(1), 25-35
M. Wiesche and M. C. Jurish, 2017, Grounded
Theory Methodology in Information Systems
Research, MIS Quarterly, 41 (3),

10 of Prof Mixed Methods Bryman, A. (2012): Chapter 27 Prof. S.

Chakrabart Research Creswell, J. (2014): Chapter 10 Chakrabarti
i David E. Gray (2014): Chapter 8

Bryman, A. 2006. Integrating Quantitative and

Qualitative Research: How is it done?.
Qualitative Research, Vol 6(1), pp 97-113.
Baškarada and Koronios, 2018. A philosophical
discussion of qualitative, quantitative, and
mixed methods research in social science,
Qualitative Research Journal, 18 (1), pp.2-21.
David E. Gray (2014), Chapter 8
Timans, Wouters and Heilbron (2019), Mixed
methods research: what it is and what it could
be, Theory and Society, 48:193–216
Kansteiner and König (2020), The Role(s) of
Qualitative Content Analysis in Mixed Methods
Research Designs, Forum: Qualitative Social
Research, Volume 21, No. 1, Art. 11, January

Schoonenboom and Johnson (2017), How to

Construct a Mixed Methods Research Design,
Kolner Z Soz Sozpsychol , 69(Suppl 2): 107–
131.
6 of Prof Language and Making sense of the discursive turn Stoll Prof. A.V.
 Raman meaning and Chapter 3 One world publishing, UK. Raman
qualitative
research
7 of Prof Validity, Chapter 2 and 14 in Huberman, M. and Miles, Prof. A.V.
Raman Interpretation and M.B., 2002. The qualitative researcher's Raman
triangulation in companion. Sage.
qualitative
research

8 of Prof The extended Burawoy, M., 1998. The extended case Prof. A.V.
Raman case study method. Sociological theory, 16(1), pp.4-33. Raman
method
9 of Prof Project Presentation Prof. A.V.
Raman Presentation Raman
10 of Prof Project Presentation Prof. A.V.
Raman Presentation Raman

POLICIES

General Academic Misconduct Policy of IIM Kashipur:

IIM Kashipur is strongly committed to a policy of honesty in academic affairs. Students are expected
to do their own academic work. Students are awarded degrees in recognition of successful completion
of academic coursework in their chosen fields of study. Each student, therefore, is expected to earn his
or her degree on the basis of individual personal effort. Consequently, any form of cheating or
plagiarism constitutes unacceptable academic dishonesty. Such academic misconduct will not be
tolerated at IIM Kashipur, and thus will be penalized according to the seriousness of the infraction, in
conformity with the standards, rules, and procedures of the Institute. Accordingly, students are well
advised to keep in mind that suspension and expulsion from the Institute are among the sanctions that
may be imposed for violations of the Academic Misconduct Policy.

Definitions:

 Plagiarism, as defined by the Little, Brown Essential Handbook for Writers, 4th edition, is
“the presentation of someone else’s ideas or words as your own. Whether deliberate or
accidental, plagiarism is a serious and often punishable offense” (Aaron, 2001).
 Deliberate plagiarism is “copying a sentence from a source and passing it off as your own
and, summarizing someone else’s ideas without acknowledging your debt, or buying a term
paper and handing it in as your own” (Aaron, 2001).
 Accidental plagiarism is “forgetting to place quotation marks around other writer’s words,
omitting a source citation because you’re not aware of the need for it, or carelessly copying a
source when you mean to paraphrase” (Aaron, 2001).

GUIDELINES:
The United States Naval Academy’s statement on academic plagiarism (USNA, 2004) provides the
following guidelines that will be implemented verbatim at IIM Kashipur.
 1. “Give credit where credit is due. Inevitably, you will use other people’s discoveries and
concepts. Build on them creatively. But do not compromise your honor by failing to
acknowledge clearly where your work ends and that of someone else begins. (USNA, 2004).
2. “Provide proper citation for everything taken from others. Such material includes
interpretations, ideas, wording, insights, factual discoveries, charts, tables, and appendices
that are not your own. Citations must guide the reader clearly and explicitly to the sources
used, whether published, unpublished, or electronic. Cite a source each time you borrow from
it. A single citation, concluding or followed by extended borrowing, is inadequate and
misleading. Indicate all use of another’s words, even if they constitute only part of a sentence,
with quotation marks and specific citation. Citations may be footnotes, endnotes, or
parenthetical references. (USNA, 2004).
3. Recognize the work of others even if you are not borrowing their words. Theories,
interpretations, assessments, and judgments are all intellectual contributions made by others
and must be attributed to them. (USNA, 2004).
4. Paraphrase properly. Paraphrasing is a vehicle for conveying or explaining a source’s ideas
and requires a citation to the original source. A paraphrase captures the source’s meaning and
tone in your own words and sentence structure. In a paraphrase, the words are yours, but the
ideas are not. It should not be used to create the impression of originality. (USNA, 2004).
5. Cite sources in all work submitted for credit. Your instructor may also require you to identify
the contributions of others in drafts you submit only for review. Ask your instructor for his or
her citation requirements and any discipline-specific attribution practices. (USNA, 2004).
6. Be cautious when using web-based sources, including Internet sites and electronic journals.
There is a common misperception that information found on the Internet does not need to be
cited. Web-based information, even if anonymous, must be appropriately cited. Do not cut
and paste or otherwise take material from websites without proper citation. (USNA, 2004).
7. Provide a citation when in doubt. Always err on the side of caution. (USNA, 2004).
8. Papers will be routinely submitted to www.turnitin.com for review.

Cheating by Plagiarism:
Plagiarism is a form of academic misconduct. IIM Kashipur views plagiarism as the representation of
another’s work, words, or ideas, statement of facts not generally known as one’s own without use of
an academically recognized method of citation. Work submitted at IIM Kashipur must be the original
work of the student. Original work may include the words and ideas of others, but the source of these
words and ideas must be indicated in a manner consistent with an academically recognized form,
style, and citation manual. Plagiarism subjects the student to penalties pursuant to the Academic
Misconduct Policy. Any student helping a student plagiarize is considered as guilty as the student
assisted.

Plagiarism involves using the words, information, insights, or ideas of another without crediting that
person through proper citation. Proper documentation is required for all source material as discussed
in the individual course policy statement which will be provided and explained by each instructor
during the first session of each course. It is your responsibility to know the rules for proper citation –
claiming ignorance of the proper citation rules is not an excuse for cheating. One can avoid plagiarism
by fully and openly crediting all sources used.

In the absence of guidance from the instructor, reference “APA Style Manual” (standards and rules to
be followed when referencing source material).
Cheating on Examinations and Assignments:
Academic misconduct consists of cheating of any kind with respect to examinations and assignments
as well as the unauthorized possession and/or use of exams, papers, and materials. Cheating is defined
and characterized by copying answers to examinations, quizzes, presentations, and projects from a
source not approved by the professor. This includes but not limited to “crib” notes and “cheat” sheets,
cellphones, PDA’s, I-Pods, and of course, collusion with your fellow student (neighbor). In addition,
the use of test banks, computers, answer keys, stolen exams, and instructor’s manuals are expressly
forbidden. (USNA, 2004).

Cheating subjects the student to penalties pursuant to the Academic Misconduct Policy. Cheating
includes, but is not limited to, the following:
 The unauthorized submission of work previously presented in another course.
 Having someone else write a paper for the student; purchasing a paper from someone or
through the Internet.
 Participating in an arrangement whereby work, classroom activity, or an examination is done
by another person.
 Unauthorized collaboration on assignments or work to be presented.
 Arranging to have others take examinations or to do assignments.
 Obtaining examinations prior to administration.
 Communicating or exchanging test information with other students during an exam or quiz.
 The manipulating of recorded grades or other class records in a grade book or on a computer
system or the falsifying of such information.
 Bribery.

Cheating in IIM Kashipur will not be tolerated.

Discipline for Academic Misconduct:

The professor/instructor has the authority to determine whether plagiarism or cheating has occurred.
She or he will take the appropriate action depending upon the nature of the infraction.

Expulsion: Deliberate plagiarism is unethical and dishonorable! In cases of deliberate plagiarism

and cheating, the student is subject to immediate dismissal from the program. In these cases, due
process is afforded through the appeals process.

Failing Grade: Accidental plagiarism, or sloppy scholarship, is academically unacceptable. In cases

of accidental plagiarism, the professor/instructor has the authority to issue a failing grade for the
assignment or the course depending upon the severity of the infraction. In these cases, the decision of
the faculty member is final.

Disruption to Academic Process:

Disruption of the classroom or the teaching environment is unacceptable at IIM Kashipur and is
considered a form of punishable academic misconduct. This includes email or any other form of
communication. Disruption of the academic process includes act(s) or word(s) by a student in a
classroom or teaching environment that in the estimation of a faculty member deflects attention from
the academic matters at hand. Examples of such disruption encompass: noisy distractions; persistent,
disrespectful, and/or abusive interruptions; improper language, dress, and/or behavior; and actions
that present a danger to the health, safety, and/or well-being of a faculty member, student, staff
member, or guest. Disruption also includes tampering with, defacing, or stealing library or online
materials. Punishment for such disruption can range from a verbal reprimand by the faculty member,
to dismissal of the student from class with a grade of “F,” to suspension or expulsion from the school.

References:
Aaron, J. (2001). The Little, Brown Compact Handbook. (4th ed.) Needham Heights, MA:
Pearson/Longman.
USNA, (2004). United States Naval Academy 9USNA) Statement on Academic
Plagiarism. May 4, 2004 Faculty Senate Meeting. Retrieved on February 21,
2008 from: http://www.usna.edu/Library/Plagiarism/Plagiarism.html
Mujtaba, B G. (2015), Nova Southeastern University, H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business and
Entrepreneurship, Course Outline on HRM4300 - Managing Workforce Diversity, accessed through
AACSB database and this course outline is broadly modeled after this with necessary adaptations
incorporated

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Further Details on Course Assignments (If any)

Active student participation is required in all sessions