Lessons Learned
17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33
34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50
51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67
68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84
85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101
102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118
119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135
136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146
This is arguably one of the first studies designed to juxtapose the RCM method with the
survey method, thus we can only draw tentative implications. Nonetheless, we need to
point out four potentially significant implications:
1. The four stage validation process — gathering a knowledge representation of
experts, choosing a theoretical structure to interpret those concepts, using the
evoked concepts to design large sample surveys, and finally using the survey
output to re-construct the causal maps — offers a useful approach to juxtapose
RCM and survey methods.
2. Although our results point to the empirical validity of the RCM approach in the task
of knowledge representation, they highlight the sensitivity of construct-level
representations of RCM to the underlying theoretical framework. Great care should
be exercised in the choice of theoretical frameworks to group evoked concepts.
3. Perhaps more specifically, our study suggests that the RCM approach can become
the basis of other large sample studies in exploratory contexts.
4. In discovery and evocative contexts, i.e., early stages of theory development,
where different theories may be competing for accuracy, RCMs derived from
experts may provide one method of standardizing the theoretical framework.
Conclusion
One of the significant challenges in theory development in new domains is the task of
coupling discovery with verification through normal science methods. To date, there has
been no systematic approach to accomplish this, since scholars who engage in discovery
are rarely the ones engaged in verification. As we have shown, causal mapping linked
to surveys may provide one method by which the linkage between discovery and
verification can be systematically juxtaposed. Finally, we would argue that such linkage
is consistent with the received wisdom from epistemology.