
Mats Alvesson
Professor

Pre-understanding : An interpretation-enhancer and horizon-expander in research
Author
Summary, in English
Pre-understanding – our presuppositions of reality – underlies all research. Many researchers probably also draw productively on their pre-understanding in their studies. However, very few rationales and methodological resources exist for how researchers can enrich their research by mobilizing their pre-understanding more actively and systematically. We elaborate and propose a framework for how researchers more actively, systematically and visibly can bring forward their pre-understanding and use it as a positive input in research, alongside formal data and theory. In particular, we show how researchers, in dialogue with data and theory, can mobilize their pre-understanding as an interpretation-enhancer and horizon-expander throughout the research process, including stimulating imagination and idea generation, broadening the empirical base, and evaluating what empirical material and theoretical ideas are interesting and relevant to pursue.
Department/s
- Organizational Studies
Publishing year
2022
Language
English
Pages
395-412
Publication/Series
Organization Studies
Volume
43
Issue
3
Document type
Journal article
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Topic
- Other Social Sciences not elsewhere specified
Keywords
- hermeneutics
- interesting studies
- knowledge production
- pre-understanding
- research methods
- theory development
Status
Published
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISSN: 0170-8406