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Home→The Westburn Dictionary of Marketing→G→grounded theory

grounded theory

Definition:
A research methodology popularized by Glaser and Strauss in which the researcher collects data about a single subject without any preconceived idea concerning its content or structure. The data set is then content analysed to identify common themes or constructs which are then used to develop generalizations about their meaning and relationship to one another (theory). Thus the theory is 'grounded' in the data rather than the data having been collected to test a pre-existing theory, a procedure which it is held is likely to bias the data used.

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© Westburn Publishers Ltd 2002, The Westburn Dictionary of Marketing edited by Michael J Baker, ISBN 978-0-946433-01-8. www.themarketingdictionary.com. Entry: [Michael J. Baker],.