Students

MQBS7025 – Advanced Qualitative Research Approaches in Business and Economics

2023 – Session 2, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Jaco Lok
jaco.lok@mq.edu.au
By appointment
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
MQBS7010 and MQBS7020
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This unit addresses comprehensive and practical considerations of qualitative research design, covering a range of qualitative research methodologies and analytical tools that are based on the main research philosophies underpinning qualitative research in business and organisation research. The topics include advanced research approaches and methods such as ethnography, discourse analysis, and critical approaches. It helps students develop advanced research skills that are critical to knowledge generation in business research and problem solving.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Explain the relative advantages and disadvantages of a diverse range of qualitative research methods used in management research in developing a research design
  • ULO2: Conduct qualitative research using a sound understanding of different coding and interpretation strategies that are consistent with their respective research question, method, and research philosophy
  • ULO3: Develop a theoretical research contribution by relating findings from qualitative data analysis to a literature review
  • ULO4: Analyze textual data in ways that are consistent with different research philosophies that can underpin qualitative research

General Assessment Information

Late Assessment Submission Penalty (written assessments) :

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a grade of ‘0’ will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted.

Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55 PM. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical concern.

For any late submissions of time-sensitive tasks, such as scheduled tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, and/or scheduled practical assessments/labs, students need to submit an application for Special Consideration.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Report 30% Yes 26/09/2023
Essay 30% Yes 14/11/2023
Weekly Reveiw 40% Yes Weekly (minimum of 5 from weeks 1-8)

Report

Assessment Type 1: Report
Indicative Time on Task 2: 33.3 hours
Due: 26/09/2023
Weighting: 30%
This is a hurdle assessment task (see assessment policy for more information on hurdle assessment tasks)

Select three recent (within the last 5 years) empirical research papers from three top academic journals that have used the same particular research method, and write a 3,000 word report that critically analyzes and compares the three papers in terms of:

1) The way they position the research question in relation to existing literature

2) The way they justify their research methods

3) The extent to which, and ways in which, their main theoretical contributions is supported by, and connected to, the findings
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Explain the relative advantages and disadvantages of a diverse range of qualitative research methods used in management research in developing a research design
  • Conduct qualitative research using a sound understanding of different coding and interpretation strategies that are consistent with their respective research question, method, and research philosophy
  • Develop a theoretical research contribution by relating findings from qualitative data analysis to a literature review
  • Analyze textual data in ways that are consistent with different research philosophies that can underpin qualitative research

Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 33.3 hours
Due: 14/11/2023
Weighting: 30%
This is a hurdle assessment task (see assessment policy for more information on hurdle assessment tasks)

Select any text (e.g. report; interview transcript; series of news or opinion articles on a particular topic) and write a 3,000 word research report that presents the findings of three different analyses that are each based a different research philosophy: (neo-)positivist, interpretive, and critical. Justify the coding and interpretation techniques you used for each analysis in relation to your research question, making use of the relevant literature on qualitative research methods. Support your main findings using data fragments and/or summary tables.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Explain the relative advantages and disadvantages of a diverse range of qualitative research methods used in management research in developing a research design
  • Conduct qualitative research using a sound understanding of different coding and interpretation strategies that are consistent with their respective research question, method, and research philosophy
  • Develop a theoretical research contribution by relating findings from qualitative data analysis to a literature review
  • Analyze textual data in ways that are consistent with different research philosophies that can underpin qualitative research

Weekly Reveiw

Assessment Type 1: Reflective Writing
Indicative Time on Task 2: 44.4 hours
Due: Weekly (minimum of 5 from weeks 1-8)
Weighting: 40%
This is a hurdle assessment task (see assessment policy for more information on hurdle assessment tasks)

For each of the sessions from weeks 2 -12 of the course, write a 500-1,000 review that:

1) Summarizes what you believe to be the most important learnings from the lecture and readings in each week

2) Critically discuss how the materials covered could relate to your own research project e.g. how might you use some of the points discussed to improve, critique, and/or justify your research project?
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Explain the relative advantages and disadvantages of a diverse range of qualitative research methods used in management research in developing a research design
  • Conduct qualitative research using a sound understanding of different coding and interpretation strategies that are consistent with their respective research question, method, and research philosophy
  • Develop a theoretical research contribution by relating findings from qualitative data analysis to a literature review
  • Analyze textual data in ways that are consistent with different research philosophies that can underpin qualitative research

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

The unit will be taught face to face in class.

All learning resources are available on Ilearn

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Unit information based on version 2023.02 of the Handbook