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Introduction to Grounded Theory

By Steve BorgattiEn: http://www.analytictech.com/mb87/introtoGT.htm

!i"cu""ion drawn #rom: Glaser and Strauss. 1967. The Discovery of Grounded Theory.

Strauss and Corbin. 1990.Basics of Qualitative Research.

Goal" and $er"pective

The phrase "grounded theory" refers to theory that is developed inductively fro a

corpus of data. !f done ell# this eans that the resulting theory at least fits one dataset

perfectly. This contrasts ith theory derived deductively fro grand theory# ithout the

help of data# and hich could therefore turn out to fit no data at all.

Grounded theory ta$es a case rather than variable perspective# although the distinctionis nearly ipossible to dra. This eans in part that the researcher ta$es different cases

to be holes# in hich the variables interact as a unit to produce certain outcoes. %

case&oriented perspective tends to assue that variables interact in cople' ays# and

is suspicious of siple additive odels# such as %()*%1ith ain effects only.

+art and parcel of the case&orientation is a coparative orientation. Cases siilar on

any variables but ith different outcoes are copared to see here the $ey causal

differences ay lie. This is based on ,ohn Stuart -ills /12# A system of logic:

Ratiocinative and Inductive)ethod of differences && essentially the use of /natural3

e'periental design. Siilarly# cases that have the sae outcoe are e'ained to see

hich conditions they all have in coon# thereby revealing necessary causes.

The grounded theory approach# particularly the ay Strauss develops it# consists of a set

of steps hose careful e'ecution is thought to "guarantee" a good theory as the

outcoe. Strauss ould say that the 4uality of a theory can be evaluated by the process

by hich a theory is constructed. /This contrasts ith the scientific perspective that ho

you generate a theory# hether through dreas# analogies or dub luc$# is irrelevant5

the 4uality of a theory is deterined by its ability to e'plain ne data.3

%lthough not part of the grounded theory rhetoric# it is apparent that grounded theorists

are concerned ith or largely influenced by eic understandings of the orld5 they usecategories dran fro respondents theselves and tend to focus on a$ing iplicit

belief systes e'plicit.

%ethod"

The basic idea of the grounded theory approach is to read /and re&read3 a te'tual

database /such as a corpus of field notes3 and "discover" or label variables /called

categories# concepts and properties3 and their interrelationships. The ability to perceive

variables and relationships is tered "theoretical sensitivity" and is affected by a

nuber of things including ones reading of the literature and ones use of techni4ues

designed to enhance sensitivity.

1%()*% trino ingls para %nlisis de *arian8a

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)f course# the data do not have to be literally te'tual && they could be observations of

behavior# such as interactions and events in a restaurant. )ften they are in the for of

field notes# hich are li$e diary entries. %n e'aple is here.

&pen 'oding

)pen coding is the part of the analysis concerned ith identifying# naing# categori8ing

and describing phenoena found in the te't. ssentially# each line# sentence# paragraph

etc. is read in search of the anser to the repeated 4uestion "hat is this about: ;hat is

being referenced here:"

These labels refer to things li$e hospitals# inforation gathering# friendship# social loss#

etc. They are the noun" and verb"of a conceptual orld. +art of the analytic process is

to identify the more general categorie" that these things are instances of# such as

institutions# or$ activities# social relations# social outcoes# etc.

;e also see$ out the ad

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. Coding can be done very forally and systeatically or 4uite inforally. !n grounded

theory# it is norally done 4uite inforally. =or e'aple# if after coding uch te't#

soe ne categories are invented# grounded theorists do not norally go bac$ to the

earlier te't to code for that category. Foever# aintaining an inventory of codes iththeir descriptions /i.e.# creating a codeboo$3 is useful# along ith pointers to te't that

contain the. !n addition# as codes are developed# it is useful to rite eos $non as

code notes that discuss the codes. These eos becoe fodder for later developent

into reports.

%n e'aple of a code note is found here.

,(ial 'oding

%'ial coding is the process of relating codes /categories and properties3 to each other#

via a cobination of inductive and deductive thin$ing. To siplify this process# rather

than loo$ for any and all $ind of relations# grounded theorists ephasi8e causal

relationships# and fit things into a basic frae of generic relationships. The frae

consists of the folloing eleents5

Element !e"cription

+henoenon

This is hat in schea theory ight be called the nae of the

schea or frae. !t is the concept that holds the bits together.

!n grounded theory it is soeties the outcoe of interest# or it

can be the sub

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!t should be noted again that a fallacy of soe grounded theory or$ is that they ta$e

the respondents understanding of hat causes hat as truth. That is# they see the

inforant as an insider e'pert# and the odel they create is really the inforants fol$

odel.

Selective 'oding

Selective coding is the process of choosing one category to be the core category# and

relating all other categories to that category. The essential idea is to develop a single

storyline around hich all everything else is draped. There is a belief that such a core

concept alays e'ists.

! believe grounded theory dras fro literary analysis# and one can see it here. The

advice for building theory parallels advice for riting a story. Selective coding is about

finding the driver that ipels the story forard.

%emo"

-eos are short docuents that one rites to oneself as one proceeds through the

analysis of a corpus of data. ;e have already been introduced to to $inds of eos#

the field note and the code note/see above3. 4ually iportant is the theoretical note.

% theoretical note is anything fro a post&it that notes ho soething in the te't or

codes relates to the literature# to a I&page paper developing the theoretical iplications

of soething. The final theory and report is typically the integration of several

theoretical eos. ;riting theoretical eos allos you to thin$ theoretically ithout

the pressure of or$ing on "the" paper.

%n e'aple of a theoretical eo is here.

$roce""

Strauss and Corbin consider that paying attention to processes is vital. !t is iportant to

note that their usage of "process" is not 4uite the sae as @ave and -arch# ho use

process as a synony for "e'planatory echanis". Strauss and Corbin are really