Research method verses methodology: achieving quality in scholarly research for construction management

This paper analyses the various papers presented at the last three ARCOM conferences (1993, 1994, 1995) for the way researchers in construction management address the issue of methodology in scholarly research. The outcome of the analysis provides evidence of the need to give greater attention to the issue of method versus methodology, for improving the quality of academic research in construction management. The culture of research in construction management has been described as reflecting a rational approach. This implies that several procedures are undertaken in academic research without establishing a clear and methodological basis for such procedures. As a way forward for achieving a balance in the general culture of research for the discipline, it has been suggested that more interpretive approaches should be incorp9rated into construction management research. This paper argues that a clear appreciation of the distinction between what constitutes methodology, and the procedures that go with each methodology (which is-referred to in this paper as methods), would contribute towards achieving such a balance in the culture of academic research in construction management. The paper sets this out by reviewing the application of the terms method and methodology in social and management research as a way forward for improvement.