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Qualitative Research in Asia’s Markets
Qualitative Market Research special issue

Special issue editors:

Giana Eckhardt, Suffolk University
Nikhilesh Dholakia, University of Rhode Island

Why This Special Issue?

The economic center of gravity of the world is shifting toward Asia, and will be fully in Asia in a couple of decades (Madhubani 2009, Overholt 2007). Because of its rising importance to the global economy, Asia is also increasingly the focus of globally-oriented intellectual discourse (Spivak 2008) and research (Cayla and Eckhardt 2008).

When undertaking marketing or consumer behavior research in Asia, qualitative methods are woefully underrepresented. Whether it is Western researchers conducting cross-cultural hypothesis testing using Asian consumers as one sample, or Asian researchers conducting empirical research in their own country, quantitative methods are employed to a much larger degree than qualitative methods compared to other geographical contexts such as North America, Europe, Oceania, and even Latin America. Doctoral dissertations in marketing or consumer behavior in India, for example, are pale imitations of quantitatively oriented western dissertations (Varman and Saha 2009).

This is surprising, given the contextual, interdependent nature of many Asian cultures, aspects of which would in many cases be better captured using in-depth methodologies such as ethnography, phenomenological interviews, and visual methods (Eckhardt 2004). When we examine the psychology, sociology and anthropology of Asian cultures, methods that capture the richness, complexities, contradictions, paradoxes and ever-changing nature of the cultures and the peoples are especially suited to this region (Eckhardt and Bengtsson 2010).

There are a few reasons why the focus on quantitative methods may be so strong in Asian research. First, many Asian scholars have been trained at the doctoral level by North American universities, or at Asian universities that follow the North American positivist model. These universities put an emphasis on quantitative methods, even to the extent that qualitative methods are sometimes not even taught or discussed. Thus, Asian marketing scholars are not familiar with when it is appropriate to use qualitative methods, what insights can be garnered from such methods, or how to use them in a rigorous manner. Second, many of the marketing/consumer research studies that have taken place in the Asian context tend to fall in the subfield of International Marketing, which in turn is very influenced by the field of International Business (IB). The IB field tends to privilege quantitative methods. For example, within IB, there is only one guide on how and when to use qualitative methods (Welch and Piekkari 2004). Finally, from an ideological perspective, Asian researchers may feel they need to use quantitative methods to gain legitimacy as researchers in the West.

Aim and Scope

Our aim with this special issue is to advocate for an increased usage of qualitative methods in Asia, when appropriate. To that end, we would like to explicate what types of marketing and consumer behavior research questions are best answered using qualitative methods, how and why qualitative methods are preferable for answering appropriate research questions, outline how certain qualitative methods need to be altered in the Asian context, and demonstrate the types of insights that can be gained from taking a qualitative approach.

To that end, we are seeking papers that address the following issues in the fields of marketing and consumer research:

• Conceptual papers describing the link between theory, culture and method in Asian contexts
• Papers that address cultural barriers in employing qualitative research approaches in Asia, and ways of overcoming or circumventing such barriers
• Empirical pieces demonstrating the use of a qualitative method in Asian contexts and the type of insights that came from employing that method
• Papers that provide insights and guidance on how to deal with Asia’s linguistic, ethnic, and economic diversity while conducting qualitative research studies
• How-to papers explicating and illustrating the use of particular qualitative methods in Asian contexts

Of course, the list above is not exhaustive. We welcome papers on other topics relevant to the theme of this special issue.

Submissions are due to the special issue editors by May 1, 2011. We anticipate having the review process complete by the end of 2011, with publication of the special issue in mid 2012. Submissions must follow all the formatting guidelines for Qualitative Market Research, including the word count. These can be accessed here: . Submissions should be emailed to geckhardt@suffolk.edu and nik@uri.edu . Please feel free to email the special issue editors with questions you may have about the suitability of your submission for the special issue at any time.

References

Cayla, J. and Eckhardt, G.M. (2008), “Asian Brands and the Shaping of a Transnational Imagined Community“, Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 35, No. 2, pp. 216-230.

Eckhardt, G. M. (2004), "The role of culture in conducting trustworthy and credible qualitative business research in China," in Handbook of Qualitative Research Methods for International Business, Catherine Welch and Rebecca Piekkari (Eds.), Cheltenham UK: Edward Elgar, pp. 402-420.

Eckhardt, G. M. and Bengtsson, A. (2010), “Naturalistic group interviewing in China,” Qualitative Market Research, Vol. 13, No. 1, pp. 36-44.

Madhubani, K. (2009), The New Asian Hemisphere: The Irresistible Shift of Global Power to the East, New York: PublicAffairs.

Overholt, W. H. (2007), Asia, America and the Transformation of Geopolitics, New York: Cambridge University Press.

Spivak, G. C. (2008), Other Asias, New York: Wiley-Blackwell.

Varman, R. and Saha, B. (2009), “Disciplining the discipline: Understanding postcolonial epistemic ideology in marketing,” Journal of Marketing Management, Vol. 25, No. 7 & 8, pp. 811-824.

Welch, C. and Piekkari, R. (eds), (2004), Handbook of Qualitative Research Methods for International Business, Cheltenham UK: Edward Elgar.

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