How Classic Grounded Theorists Teach the Method
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Abstract
Grounded theory upsets PhD students’ world view. By the time they reach the classroom to learn grounded theory, research, to them, usually means deductively verifying established propositions. In quantitative research courses, they learned that they must design research that can be objectively judged to be reliable and valid; that research questions and related hypotheses (which remain static throughout a study) must include standardized measurements for strictly defined dependent and independent variables; that the pre-investigation literature review and synthesis must be comprehensive and phenomenon focused; that measurement of concepts must have internal and external validity; that the findings can be verified through replication; that exacting descriptions of sample selection, procedures, and instrumentation must be specified and approved by an ethics committee; and that significant findings are measured by strict statistical benchmarks. Imagine students’ confusion when they begin to learn about classic grounded theory, a unique research method of inductive discovery, rather than deductive verification. A method in which the processes are standard, yet fluid; the phenomenon of study is not known beforehand; the sample selection changes as data emerges; the literature review follows data analysis; and the final product is tentative. The rules of quantitative research that they believed were carved in stone simply do not apply to grounded theory. Those of us who teach grounded theory understand that we must help students move toward a different way of thinking about research. I have taught grounded theory to PhD students for many years, with variable results, so I wanted to learn more about how others teach grounded theory. I reached out to expert classic grounded theorists around the globe, who shared their strategies. This paper is not a primer on classic grounded theory. It is simply a synthesis of teaching approaches that these professors and mentors use to guide students as they learn the grounded theory method.
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