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Effectuation and the Think-Aloud Method for Investigating Entrepreneurial Decision Making

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Complexity in Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Technology Research

Part of the book series: FGF Studies in Small Business and Entrepreneurship ((FGFS))

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Abstract

Research on effectuation has the opportunity to advance from an intermediate development stage along two main directions. First, effectuation exists as an alternative to classical models for testing hypotheses; and second, effectuation has introduced a grounded approach that envisions new theoretical elements and further theories. In this chapter, I discuss the potential effectuation has for both theory testing and theory building. I present the methods from which effectuation theory emerged, namely the think-aloud method, and their protocols and content analysis. I offer hints for the implementation of such methods and provide an illustration from a related research project. I also discuss sample size and elicitation tool construction. I conclude with limitations of the effectuation approach to research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Trento, via Inama 5, 38122, Trento, Italy

    M. Laura Frigotto

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  1. M. Laura Frigotto
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Correspondence to M. Laura Frigotto .

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  1. University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany

    Elisabeth S.C. Berger

  2. Inst Marketing & Management, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany

    Andreas Kuckertz

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Frigotto, M.L. (2016). Effectuation and the Think-Aloud Method for Investigating Entrepreneurial Decision Making. In: Berger, E., Kuckertz, A. (eds) Complexity in Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Technology Research. FGF Studies in Small Business and Entrepreneurship. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27108-8_9

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