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Adeline Cooney looks at the reasons for choosing either Glaserian or Straussian grounded theory when conducting research and why she made her choice in a recent study
Abstract
Choosing between Glaserian and Straussian grounded theory when selecting a methodological approach can be challenging, but few papers consider this decision-making process. This paper explores the Glaser-Strauss debate using an example of a study which explored whether older people experience a sense of home in residential settings.
key words
* grounded theory
* Strauss
* Glaser
* Corbin
Introduction
Those who plan to use grounded theory inevitably come to a point where they must choose between Glaser and Strauss. Relatively little is written about how to make this choice or the factors that should Influence the decision. This paper will:
* Explore the differences between Glaser's and Strauss's approaches to grounded theory.
* Share criteria to support decision making.
* Trace decisions used in research that explored whether older people experience a sense of home in residential settings.
Glaser and Strauss - background and context
Grounded theory was developed in the 1960s (Glaser and Strauss 1965. Glaser and Strauss 1 968) and the methodology was first described by Glaser and Strauss in The Discovery of Grounded Theory in 1967. Barney Glaser and Anselm Strauss were sociologists but had very different research backgrounds. Glaser studied at Columbia University where he trained in the use of quantitative survey methods. In contrast. Strauss received his PhD from the University of Chicago, famed for the 'Chicago tradition' and qualitative research. Their different experiences and perspectives helped shape grounded theory but may also account for some of the differences that later emerged in their approaches.
In 1967, Glaser and Strauss criticised quantitative and qualitative approaches to research, believing that neither tradition had reduced 'the embarrassing gap between theory and empirical research' (Glaser and Strauss 1967). In their opinion, there was an overemphasis on verifying theory at the expense of generating theory. Their goal in developing grounded theory was to return attention to the generation of theory. Consequently, they explained in their book 'how the discovery of theory from data - systematically obtained and analysed... can be furthered' (Glaser and Strauss 1967).
The keyword here is 'systematic'. Their goal was to systematise...