Hoai Anh Nguyen Dang
Hoai Anh Nguyen Dang
Hoai Anh is a PhD student at Western Sydney University, School of Business. Her research focuses on corporate social responsibility, green innovation and management. In these studies, she applies qualitative research approach (including observation and in-depth interviews) to deeply understand more about the phenomenon and process. She works at International School of Business, University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
Session
Background: Researchers interested in business and management practices can gather significant insights from interviewing stakeholders within workplace settings, which supports naturalistic enquiries. However, stereotyped responses, or answers which are clichés or platitudes, can limit the usefulness of the interview data, with conventionally conducted “question-answer” interviews potentially rendered meaningless should employees be too guarded in their interactions. This suggests researchers may need to look beyond conventional data collection techniques when interviewing employees, using a concept card technique. Although more commonly used in health and education settings, a concept card technique, being an extension of photo-elicitation, is one approach which may be helpful when interviewing in the workplace.
Aim: Much of the research on photo-elicitation, and the related use of concept cards, has focused more on the outcomes (result) of employing the approach to interviewing, rather than how (process) to use the method. It has even been suggested reason researchers have favoured alternative methods over photo-elicitation is the lack of pragmatic guidance regarding how to use the approach. As such, the aim of this paper is to develop a set of protocol regarding the planning, design, and use of concept cards to assist researchers wishing to utilise the method.
Description: The study developed a ten-step process, adopting a deductive reasoning approach to developing researcher-gathered concept cards and implementing these in interviews. This ten-step process was then tested within a PhD study by interviewing internal and external stakeholders of a sample of Vietnamese companies regarding social benefits of Green Innovation. Green Innovation is not, in itself, a sensitive topic but is an emerging concept. As such, there was a very distinct possibility that understanding of Green Innovation amongst the participants could be low which could cause the participants to be reluctant, or uncomfortable, with sharing their views. This created a challenging proposition for the novice researcher undertaking the interviews, but one where it was felt the use of concept cards would be valuable interview aids.
Outcomes: The ten-step process for concept card interviewing was an effective framework for investigating the social impact of Green Innovation in Vietnam. Providing participants with the opportunity to self-select concept cards for discussion encouraged responses based on each participant’s individual stories and helped minimise clichéd responses. Further, it helped reduce barriers between the interviewer and participants, with participants enjoying the ability to provide their own input, leading to collaborative knowledge expansion and a marked increase in the motivation of participants to explore Green Innovation in more depth.
Conclusion: Following the ten-step process, the concept card approach to interviewing can be successfully applied in a workplace setting, helping to minimise the potential of clichéd responses from participants and encouraging high levels of participant engagement within the interviews.