Developing an e-learning theory for interaction and collaboration using grounded theory: a methodological approach

Abstract

Grounded Theory (GT) is becoming an increasingly prevalent research methodology in many fields. Although researchers use it in qualitative and quantitative studies, it is more popular with qualitative studies, as evidenced by the citations from previous research. This paper aims to document and present how we used GT in our qualitative research to construct an e-learning theory for interaction and collaboration. It also includes the justification of GT. We adopted and adapted the constructivist GT (CGT). Therefore, this paper discusses the CGT methodology, its philosophical, ontological and epistemological perspectives. It also includes the research design that captures how we sampled the participants, collected, analyzed and interpreted the data, and how we documented the research findings in the context of CGT. It also includes the justification of the decisions we made and the extent to which they align with CGT. Using CGT, we listened to, observed and captured e-learners’ and e-tutors’ stories and experiences which yielded rich and insightful data that informed the development of the e-learning theory for interaction and collaboration. We also present the challenges we experienced when using CGT and the strategies we used to overcome them. Finally, we have included the methodological insights we drew from using CGT in our research. This paper has presented the CGT design strategy; thus, it will be helpful, especially to novice and future researchers aspiring to use the methodology to conduct their research.