Dr. Hadley of Niigata University discussed the value and challenges of Grounded Theory as it applies to research in applied linguistics. He began by defining in broad terms what is meant by grounded theory as, he argues, the term is often misapplied and misunderstood in a number of disciplines. He continued by giving a background in the history of grounded theory and discussing the foundations laid out by Barney Glazer and Anselm Strauss.
After laying that groundwork, he continued by explaining how grounded theory works as a research model. Beginning with a very small group and expanding upwards, grounded theory, he argues, is a very pragmatic based concept which relies very heavily on the social interactions to guide the researcher in developing a working theory. A very ground up approach to research.
