Jan 28 2009
Qualitative Research and Case Study Research in Accounting
Nordic PhD program in Management Accounting
Qualitative Research and Case Study Research in Accounting
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Research students in accounting are invited to attend a course in Qualitative Research and Case Study
Research in Accounting, equivalent to 5 ECTS points. The course is organised in collaboration
between the Aarhus School of Business, Aarhus University, Denmark; the School of Business,
Economics and Law at Gothenburg University, Sweden and the Norwegian School of
Economics and Business Administration.
AIMS
Case studies are increasingly being used in many disciplines, and it is recognised that case
research can be powerful in developing, modifying and extending theory in both exploratory and
explanatory research designs.
This course focuses on case study research and the roles of case studies in different
methodological traditions in the fields of accounting and management.
It will cover the characteristics of good case research design and issues relating to writing-up the
results of case research.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
On completion of this unit successful students will be able to:
• Understand how case study research methods are used in different methodologies.
• Understand the different uses in case studies in different areas of accounting and
management research.
• Design and analyze case studies
• Critique existing case study research papers.
CONTENTS
• The diverse uses of case studies in different research methodologies
• What is meant by ‘case study’ and ‘case study research’ and when it is an appropriate
choice of research design – what are the implications of choosing a case study design?
• Examining different uses of case study in accounting research, and critiquing designs.
• Issues of validity, reliability and generalization.
• Practical issues of case study research for doctoral projects.
• Weaknesses of case study design.
• Critiquing existing case research papers.
TEACHING AND LEARNING METHODS
The course will begin with lectures to give the background and to provide principles and
frameworks for designing case study research. The participants will then take part in group-work
in which they will critique existing case study research papers and present their critiques to the
other course members. Finally, they will select a case study in their research area and prepare a
critique of the methodology and the case study research methods.
PRELIMINARY READING
The following two papers, which will be discussed during the lectures, must be read before the
course:
• Merchant, K.A., and Riccaboni, A., Performance-based Management Incentives in the
Fiat Group: A Field, Management Accounting Research, Vol.1 No.4, December 1990,
pp.281-303.
• Scapens, R.W. and Roberts, J. Accounting and Control: A Case Study of Resistance to
Accounting and Change, Management Accounting Research, Vol.4 No.1, March 1993,
pp.1-32.
The following reading provides additional background:
• Scapens, R. W., (2004), “Doing Case Study Research”, in Humphrey, C. & B Lee (Eds),
The Real Life Guide to Accounting Research, Elsevier, pp. 257-279.
The following two books cover much of the material to be discussed in the course and should
provide a source book both during and after the course:
• Mason, Jennifer, Qualitative Researching, Sage, 2nd edition, 2002.
• Flick, Uwe, An Introduction to Qualitative Research, Sage, 3rd edition 2006.
PREPARATION FOR THE COURSE
Participants are expected to submit a one-page summary of their research; identifying the nature
of the research issues, the research methods adopted, and their progress to date.
In addition to the above preliminary readings, prior to the course participants will be given
several (about 4 – depending on the number of participants) references to published case studies,
and they will be expected to be familiar them. In addition, groups of participants will be asked to
lead a discussion of one of these cases during the course.
LECTURER
Professor Robert W. Scapens, Manchester Business School, United Kingdom, E-mail:
Robert.Scapens@mbs.ac.ku
ADMINISTRATOR
Professor Hanne Nørreklit, Aarhus School of Business, Aarhus University, Denmark,
Telephone: +45-89486377, E-mail: hann@asb.dk
LANGUAGE
The course is conducted in English.
DATES, TIME AND LOCATION
The course will be held from Monday 25 – Friday 29 May 2009 in room R125 at the Aarhus
School of Business, Aarhus University, Fuglesangs Allé 4, 8210 Aarhus V, Denmark.
The course begins at 13:00 on the first day and finishes at 12:30 on the last day.
COSTS
Course participants are responsible for their own travel costs and accommodation.
REGISTRATION
The course is limited to 15 participants.