Beyond incommensurability? Empirical expansion on diversity in research

Abstract

Purpose – This paper is a practical attempt to contribute to the ongoing reappraisal of the dichotomies and categories that have become prevalent throughout marketing research. Design/methodology/approach – The paper reviews current literature on incommensurability and undertakes a comparative re-examination of two studies. Findings – How the authors view their research is constituted in retrospective terms through a marketing and consumption logic based on the principles of division, distinction and difference. Re-examination of some empirical case material suggests that in practice the perceived duality separating research traditions is unsound. A misplaced reading of paradigm incommensurability has resulted in research practices appearing oppositional and static when they are essentially undifferentiated and dynamic. An over-socialised research epistemology has raised the tangible outcomes of research activities to be dominant in directing research practice. Research limitations/implications – The comparative analysis is illustrative rather than representative. Originality/value – The paper offers an applied exposition of theoretical debates in marketing research concerning paradigm incommensurability.