162 6: Postmodern Th eory
- Natural setting. Conduct research in the natural setting or context
because, among other reasons, “realities are whole that cannot be un-
derstood in isolation from their context.” - Human interest. Use humans as the primary data-gathering instru-
ments, as opposed to, say, paper-and-pencil instruments. - Utilization of tacit knowledge. Regard tacit (intuitive, felt) knowledge
as legitimate, in addition to prepositional knowledge. - Qualitative methods. Choose “qualitative methods” over quantitative
ones (although not exclusively) because the former are more adaptable
to dealing with multiple (and less aggregatable) realities. - Purposive sampling. Avoid random or representative sampling be-
cause, among other reasons, the researcher thereby “increases the scope
or range of data expressed.” - Inductive data analysis. Use inductive data analysis because it “is more
likely to identify the multiple realities to be found in those data.” - Grounded theory. Allow “the guiding substantive theory [to] emerge
from . . . the data.” - Emergent design. Allow the research design “to emerge (fl ow, cascade,
unfold) rather than construct it preordinately (a priori).” - Negotiated outcome. Negotiate “meanings and interpretations with the
human sources from which the data have chiefl y been drawn” because
“it is their construction of reality that the inquirer seeks to reconstruct.” - Case study reporting mode. Prefer the “case study reporting mode
(over the scientifi c or technical report).” - Ideographic interpretation. Interpret data and conclusions “ideograph-
ically (in terms of the particulars of the case) rather than nomotheti-
cally (in terms of law-like generalizations).” - Tentative application. Be hesitant about applying the fi ndings broadly.
- Focused-determined boundaries. Set boundaries to the inquiry “on the
basis of the emergent focus (problems for research, evaluands for eval-
uation and policy options for policy analysis).” - Special criteria for trustworthiness. Adopt special trustworthiness cri-
teria because the “conventional trustworthiness criteria (internal and
external validity, reliability, and objectivity) are inconsistent with the
axioms and procedures of naturalistic inquiry.” (Adapted from Lincoln
and Guba 1985, 221–240, by Farmer 1995, 216)
Grounded theory in particular is useful in public administration for its in-
ductive approach and attention to context. David Frederickson and H. George
Frederickson (2006) use such an approach when examining the implementation
of the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) in their book Measur-
ing the Performance of the Hollow State. Drawing on fi eld interviews, telephone
interviews, e-mails, and secondary data, Frederickson and Frederickson argue