Small business and enterprise development: questions about research methodology

This paper examines the traditional and contemporary approaches to conducting research into the marketing management activities of entrepreneurial small firms (ESF). It argues that these approaches are inappropriate in that they fail to take adequate account of the nature and characteristics of such enterprises and the individuals who manage them. It is contended that the best approaches are to be found under the auspices of the wider qualitative paradigm. In particular a syncretised qualitative methodology within a multiple reality ontology is offered for consideration. Importance of entrepreneurial small firms (ESF) to the macro economy Hodgetts and Kuratko (1995) suggest that small businesses not only create employment but are the economic engine driving the global quality of life (see Hills (1995)). Indeed, Storey (1994) specifically notes that small firms, however they are defined, constitute the bulk of enterprises in all economies in the world. Undoubtedly small firms and entrepreneurship do play a major role in the world economy (Bygrave, 1994; Timmons, 1994). Growth of research interests in the ESF As small firms become an increasingly more important part of global economies, then more and more researchers are seeking to understand the practices and activities of these enterprises. This often reflects the interest of government, government agencies and particularly those that are charged with responsibility for enterprise development. Such research has to date been broad in its remit, extending from the traditional functional areas of management to funding, cultural and even research issues. Over the past 20 years in particular, there has been the steady emergence of a range of academic journals which are focusing specifically on small firms’ research agenda. These include the Journal of Small Business Management, The International Small Business Journal, Entrepreneurship: Theory and Practice, Journal of Business Venturing, Small Business Economics, The Asia Pacific International Management Forum, The Journal of Entrepreneurship and Regional Development and the Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development. In addition, there is the imminent launch of a new International International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, Vol. 5 No. 1, 1999, pp. 5-18. © MCB University Press,