Using Case Research to Reconstruct Concepts
提出基于实用主义-互动主义范式的概念重构方法，通过文献回顾和案例研究，以“天生全球化”企业为例，展示如何评估和重建管理研究中的概念。
Concepts are regarded as the building blocks of theory, yet there is little debate about the evolution and application of the concepts that we use in management. As measurement concerns overtake conceptualization, concepts are treated as empirical facts rather than theoretical constructions. They may be stretched to increase their empirical coverage, without considering the theoretical implications. We provide an alternative pathway for the career of a concept, based on a pragmatist–interactionist paradigm. Our alternative, concept reconstruction, involves evaluating the state of an existing concept by reviewing its usage in existing research. The results of this review are used to guide the appropriate case selection strategy for subsequent fieldwork. Evidence from fieldwork is then used to reconstruct the concept. As an illustration of our methodology, we analyze a popular concept in international management and entrepreneurship: the “born global” firm or “international new venture.” We investigate the stretching of this concept by conducting a review of its usage in the scholarly literature, and by using the results of a “most-likely” case study to provide a way forward for reconstructing this concept.