1. Conducting Empirical Work Geoff Walsham Lecture 3 of Course on Interpretive Research in IS - Oslo University

2. Contents of Lecture 3 Role of the researcher Gaining and maintaining access Conducting interviews Gathering other field data Working in different countries Ethical issues and tensions

3. Role of the Researcher Outside researcher/involved researcher (Walsham 1995) See it now more as a spectrum of involvement From ‘neutral’ researcher (as perceived by the research subjects) to action researcher Very important to make your role clear to the field subjects

4. Advantages of Close Involvement Good for in-depth access to people, issues, data etc. Being able to observe and/or participate in action rather than merely accessing opinions Being seen by field participants as trying to make a substantial contribution to the field site, not just the literature

5. Disadvantages of Close Involvement Very time-consuming Field subjects may be less open with the researcher in some cases - researcher perceived as having a vested interest And there is a danger of the researcher becoming ‘socialised’ into the views of those in the field Reporting difficulties - reporting on oneself

6. Gaining Access Need to have good social skills! Persistence Willingness to accept ‘no’ for an answer Going at the research situation from different angles e.g. London Insurance Market (Barrett and Walsham 1999)

7. Maintaining Access Need to have good social skills! Liked and/or respected by the field subjects Sensitivity to short-term problems of the field subjects in their organizations e.g. particularly busy times for them Useful reports, feedback, presentations

8. Conducting Interviews (see also Walsham 1995) Reassuring the interviewee at the start about your purpose/confidentiality Balance between passivity and over- direction during the interview Keeping a close watch on the agenda/time Ending the interview - further contact/other people

9. Advantages of Tape Recording Truer record of what was said compared to extensive field notes Can return to the transcript later for alternative forms of analysis Useful for picking out direct quotes in writing-up Popular with neo-positivist reviewers in establishment journals

10. Disadvantages of Tape Recording Very time-consuming/expensive to do transcriptions and then extract themes May make the interviewee less likely to be open and/or truthful Does not capture the non-verbal elements of the interview

11. Gathering Other Field Data Sectoral context - press/media/other publications Internal documents - strategies/ plans/ evaluations Direct observation and/or participant observation (to observe action)

12. Other Field Data (continued) E-mails Web sites Chat rooms Surveys (on-line and off-line) (N.B. Interpretive research is not only qualitative research)

13. Example - Current Research Project on Organization Linked to Open Source Software Sectoral context - yes - open source software movement Internal documents - limited - but do have strategy presentation Direct or participant observation - no e-mails/web sites - yes; chat rooms - not yet Surveys - no

14. Working in Different Countries (see, for example, Walsham 2001) Can learn a lot about countries before going there: history, politics, religion, ways of living Through both non-fiction and fiction sources Valuable in your own country also!

15. Different Styles of Interview Arranged at the last minute or planned well in advance Long or short introductions Groups or individuals Attitudes to hierarchy Interviewing through an interpreter

16. Ethical Issues and Tensions Confidentiality for individuals Investigating issues which are not part of the explicit research agenda Giving the organization ‘bad news’ Reporting in the literature - disguise Reporting in the literature - critique