Grounded Theory is by far the most widely used research method across a wide range of disciplines and subject areas, including social sciences, nursing and healthcare, medical sociology, information systems, psychology, and anthropology. This handbook gives a comprehensive overview of the theory and practice of Grounded Theory, taking into account the many attempts to revise and refine Glaser and Strauss' original formulation and the debates that have followed.

PART ONE: ORIGINS AND HISTORYGT in Historical Perspective - Antony Bryant and Kathy CharmazAn Epistemological AccountDiscovery of GT in Practice - Eleanor Krassner CovanLegacy of Multiple MentorsLiving GT - Susan Leigh StarCognitive amd Emotional Forms of PragmatismPART TWO: GTM AND FORMAL GTDoing Formal Theory - Barney GlaserEssential Properties for Growing GT - Phyllis SternEvolution of Formal GT - Margaret KearneyOrthodoxy versus Power - Jane HoodPART THREE: GT IN PRACTICEGrounding Categories - Ian DeyDevelopment of Categories - Udo KelleAbduction - Jo ReichertzSampling in GT - Janice MorseMemo-Writing in GT - Lora LempertCoding - Judith HoltonPART FOUR: PRACTICALITIESMaking Teams Work in Conducting GT - Carolyn WienerTeaching GT - Sharlene Hesse-BiberGT as a Tool for IS Research - Cathy UrquhartPART FIVE: GT IN THE RESEACRH METHODS CONTEXTGT and Situational Analysis - Adele Clarke and Carrie FrieseGT and Action Research - Bob DickIntegrating GT and Feminist Methods - Virginia OlesenAccommodating Critical Theory - Barry GibsonGT and the Politics of Interpretation - Norman DenzinGT and Diversity - Denise O'Neil Green et alEthnography - Stefan Timmermans and Iddo TavoryPART SIX: GT IN THE CONTEXT OF THE SOCIAL SCIENCESGT and Reflexivity - Katja Mruck and Guenter MeyMediating Structure and Interaction - Bruno HildenbrandTensions in Using GT - Karen LockeGT and Pragmatism - Joerg Struebing