Book Review

Anna Soulsby

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References Keil, T. (2003) ‘Book review: Blackwell Handbook of Entrepreneurship’, Internet publication. www.jibs.net, March 2003. Oviatt, B. (2005) ‘Book review: Handbook of Research on International Entrepreneurship, and Emerging Paradigms in International Entrepreneurship’, Journal of International Business Studies 36 (in press).

Stopford, J. (2002) ‘Book review: Oxford Handbook of International Business’, Journal of International Business Studies 33: 839–842. Tayeb, M. (2003) ‘Book review: Blackwell Handbook of CrossCultural Management’, Journal of International Business Studies 34: 310–311.

Handbook of Qualitative Research Methods for International Business Edited by Rebecca Marschan-Piekkari and Catherine Welch Cheltenham, UK/Northampton, MA, USA: Edward Elgar; 2004

Reviewed by Anna Soulsby Nottingham University Business School, Nottingham, UK E-mail: [email protected]

Journal of International Business Studies (2005), doi:10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8400147

This handbook consists of contributions from 44 highly experienced academics from around the world. The 28 chapters and eight vignettes are organized into six parts that are intended to cover the lifecycle of the process of conducting a qualitative research project. The editors’ intention is to ‘demystify the methodological process by capturing the experiences and practices of qualitative researchers’ (Marschan-Piekkari, pp. 5 and 6). Part one – Trends and prospects in international research – includes a chapter by the handbook’s editors, Marschan-Piekkari and Welch (Chapter 1), which provides a foundation for the rest of the handbook and gives a passionate overview of the current debates in international business (IB) research. Part two focuses on case study research. Within the field of qualitative IB research, multiple case study methodology remains the most important method so far (Pauwels and Matthyssens, p. 126; Andersen and Skaates, Chapter 23). The authors in this section provide insights into the stresses and strains of conducting fieldwork and also sound practical advice (e.g. Ghauri, Chapter 5) on how to organize and conduct case studies. The chapter by Grisar-Kasse´ (Chapter 7) on her research in Senegal is an honest and fascinating account conveying a real sense of what it is like to be powerless and at potential risk in an unfamiliar environment. Part three of the handbook – Interviewing in international business research – covers different aspects of conducting interviews, for example, Macdonald and Hellgren (Chapter 13) on the problems that researchers would rather not talk about, for example, the potential trap of losing distance and perspective. The chapter by Marschan-Piekkari and Reis (Chapter 11) on languages is particularly subtle and interesting as it draws out how the language skills of the interviewer and the respondent affect the interview process and data verification in the context of cross-cultural interviews. Part four of the handbook focuses on alternative methods and methodologies, in particular the application of ethnographic methods and critical discourse analysis to IB studies.

Journal of International Business Studies

Book Review

Anna Soulsby

590

Part five of the handbook – Researching outside the triad – consists of chapters by authors who discuss their different fieldwork experiences in Bulgaria and Russia, China, India, Russia, Vietnam and Latin America and offer practical insights based on their research. A particular strength of the handbook is that it includes contributions from researchers conducting fieldwork outside Western Europe, Canada and the United States. The concluding section of the handbook, part six, is concerned with the process of analysis (e.g. Lindsay, Chapter 24 on computer-assisted analysis of research materials) and writing (e.g. McGaughey, Chapter 26 on narratives) through to getting published. The authors in this section also offer useful and practical advice on responding to editors and reviewers (e.g. Welch and Welch, Chapter 27; Birkinshaw, Chapter 28). Two minor points, however, it would have been useful to have had (1) an overall concluding chapter and (2) a complete bibliography of all of the contributors’ references at the end of the handbook. The secondary status of qualitative research methods is powerful underlying theme running throughout the handbook. The editors argue that qualitative research ‘is regarded as a minority and even a marginalised pursuit within IB’ (MarschanPiekkari and Welch, p. 5). Marschan-Piekkari and Welch (pp. 5–7) also argue that the evidence indicates that carrying out qualitative IB research could be regarded as a ‘poor career move’ with an ‘unattractive future’ for doctoral students. Various contributors make a strong case regarding the relative neglect of qualitative research by the major journals that specialize in publishing IB research. Despite the calls for more qualitative research in the field of IB (e.g. Buckley, foreword; McGaughey, Chapter 26; Marschan-Piekkari and Welch, pp. 5– 7), the evidence provided in the chapters by Peterson (Chapter 2), who reviewed publications

Journal of International Business Studies

of articles in the Academy of Management Journal, Administrative Science Quarterly and the Journal of International Business Studies (JIBS); Andersen and Skaates (Chapter 23), who reviewed JIBS, Management International Review (MIR), International Business Review (IBR), International Marketing Review, the Journal of World Business and the Journal of International Marketing; and Welch and Welch (Chapter 27), who reviewed publications in JIBS, MIR and IBR, reveals that papers based on qualitative research studies are very much in the minority. However, despite the apparent marginalization of qualitative research studies, Welch and Welch (pp. 568 and 569) strongly argue that it is vital that qualitative researchers still continue to submit their work to major journals even if it seems that the outlets appear virtually closed. There may be various reasons for the poor representation of qualitative research in top-tier journals (Marschan-Piekkari and Welch, pp. 14–17), but this apparent bias towards quantitative studies has caused problems for the advance of IB as a discipline (Vaara and Tienari, Chapter 17). For example, the positivistic methodological traditions of the majority of IB studies have led to the paradoxical inability of IB to contribute to the broader theoretical discussions of internationalization and globalization (Vaara and Tienari, p. 343). To conclude, the Handbook of Qualitative Research Methods for International Business provides an excellent resource for IB researchers. It combines practical advice and theoretical discussion, addressing and exploring many of the issues that challenge scholars who undertake qualitative research and summarizing trends and debates in the field. As a handbook, it would be of special interest to doctoral students starting out on their research careers but it would also be a valuable source for reference by academics who are more established in the field of IB.