Strategic management and the philosophy of science: The case for a constructivist methodology

In this paper we suggest that constructivism has the potential to inform research in strategic management. The realist paradigm currently dominates strategy research, and constructivism, a well-established tradition in the philosophy of science, is often ignored However, a study of strategy literature and research reveals that it is drawn on more frequently than is explicitly acknowledged. Constructivism occupies a methodological space characterized by ontological realism and epistemological relativism. Ontological realism is an important cornerstone of a field as applied as strategy, while epistemological relativism helps us explore the constructed nature of the field, where the researcher is an active participant rather than a reactor or information processor In this paper; we demonstrate the precedents and possibilities for constructivist research in strategic management We examine some of the existent constructivist works in the strategy literature, and point to specific techniques, including historical analysis, to demonstrate how this perspective may advance the boundaries of strategy research. Copyright (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.