Incestuous Fields: Management Research, Emotion and Data Analysis

Abstract

Many managers are turning to universities in order to gain post-experience post-graduate qualifications in management - both to supplement their experience in career terms and to broaden their understanding of their practice. The design of such programmes encourage manager/researchers to undertake research studies in their own organisations - exposing these researchers to issues connected to researching amongst at least a partially known sample. This paper argues that manager/researchers are poorly served by the lack of discussion about the effect of researching in these ‘incestuous fields’. The paper opens up some areas of debate around this issue and concludes by suggesting the basis of conversations that supervisors and students could have around this feature of management research.