Developing qualitative propositions in sales research: existing approaches and a new multiphasic technique. Issue 1 (2nd January 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Johnson, Jeff S.
• Is Part Of: Journal of personal selling & sales management. Volume 40:Issue 1(2020)
• Page Start: 19
• Page End: 24
• Publication Date: 2020-01-02
• Subjects: qualitative propositions -- proposition guidelines -- proposition-making techniques -- multiphasic design -- sales research; Selling -- Periodicals; Sales management -- Periodicals; 658.81
• DOI: 10.1080/08853134.2019.1604143
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0885-3134

Abstract

Abstract: Many qualitative sales researchers have encountered the proposition problem: the desire to include propositions in their qualitative work coupled with the discomfort in how to do so effectively. Propositions are often a meaningful addition to qualitative articles in their provision of explicitly stated relationships for researchers to examine in the future. However, advancing propositions that satisfy the major criteria of strong propositional advancement can be a significant challenge. The purpose of this article is to aid qualitative sales researchers in their quest to include propositions by providing a better understanding of effective proposition usage and advancing a newly derived technique to the literature – comparative proposition generation through multiphasic qualitative designs. This technique offers qualitative sales researchers an important additional mechanism through which to advance meaningful propositions to help guide research in the sales domain.