The Politics of Research

Keltner, Gruenfeld, and Anderson (2003) describe power as the ability to influence someone by either assisting them or withholding something they value. According to French and Raven (1959), the sources of such power can develop from position, control of resources, information, expertise, social connections, and personal characteristics.

Politics can be defined as "competition between competing interest groups or individuals for power and leadership" (Merriam-Webster, n.d.-b). Combining the ideas of power and politics provides us with the context for politics in research: In essence, politics in research relates to someone’s ability to exert influence over the researcher by assisting or hindering their research.

Cameron and Price (1999) discuss politics in research in four different spheres:

• control: Essentially, this sphere of research politics determines what you can or cannot research. Powerful stakeholders, such as those who fund your research or (if you are performing research within your own organization) your boss, can tell you what you should or should not study.
• access: Access to information, data, or the people who can provide information or data is the lifeblood of research. In business and management research, one of the easiest ways to exert influence is to restrict access to resources.
• honesty: Research participants can influence research based on their willingness to provide honest answers. Participants might choose not to be honest for several reasons, primarily fear of adverse consequences if their superiors were to find out what they reported. Participants can refuse to answer questions, provide partial truths, or lie outright, which can significantly influence research outcomes.
• research as a political threat: Often, business and management research results in an improved understanding of why something is not working as expected (e.g., why an enhanced commission system has not resulted in increased sales) or a criticism of current processes and systems (e.g., the current management style results in disengaged employees). Certain people within an organization might feel threatened by the potential outcomes of your research, attempting to use the politics of control, access, and honesty to prevent or dilute it.

 

Under normal circumstances, an imbalance of power exists in business and management research, and it does not necessarily favor the researcher. The researcher cannot change this, but understanding how power can be exercised (and by whom) can afford them the opportunity to develop strategies to get what they need despite it. It will also be important for them to consider how the power imbalances within an organization might influence the process and outcomes of the research. Information of this sort is usually recognized as a limitation in any research project.