Research Methodologies for Contingency Approaches to Business Strategy

A multisite, multisource research methodology for students of corporate strategy is proposed in order to attain generalizability and statistical significance in reporting findings in such a way that the nuances and understanding of each firm's environmental context are still maintained. Also proposed is a way of incorporating testable hypotheses into sampling designs. Elements of the methodology are illustrated with the use of extant strategy research publications. The methodologies described are appropriate for investigating contingency approaches to business strategy. The analysis captures the dynamic aspects of environmental evolution and competitive changes that have to be anticipated by effective business strategies and then acted on via changing patterns of resource allocation. The hybrid methodologies offer greater analytical rigor due to their intricate sample design and multiplicity of data sources.