It is the turn of each of the following students to write a paper for this class meeting: Lefa TENG, Eduardo SCHIEHLL, Ginette SHEEHY, Zhenzhong MA, and Philippe KANONKO. The topic is hermeneutics.

Remember that you must write your paper as if you were presenting your responses to an audience of other researchers (for instance, other doctoral students, professors, journal readers) who are completely unfamiliar with the topic and who have not read the papers that you have read.

When writing your paper, be sure to state the question at the beginning of the paper.

The paper must be submitted no later than Sunday, June 9, at 10am. Follow the instructions in the syllabus for submitting the paper to AllenLee@Management.McGill.ca. By noon, all of the papers will be forwarded to the entire class via the electronic discussion list, Lee-PhD@Management.McGill.ca. All students must read these papers in preparation for class.

1. (Lefa TENG, Ginette SHEEHY.) Please answer the following:

(a) Make up your own explanation of what "hermeneutics" is, based your reading of Arnold & Fischer, your reading of Lee 1997 (focus on the section, "2. The World of Interpretivism"), and your reading of Lee 1994 (focus on pages 148 to 151). In your explanation, you may limit yourself to just five key elements or characteristics of hermeneutics. A professor of administration or a doctoral student of administration should be able, upon reading your explanation, to understand what hermeneutics is.

(b) Devote no more than a few sentences or a single brief paragraph to each of the following: What can hermeneutics tell us that experiments cannot? ...that positivist case studies cannot? ...that multivariate analysis and statistical hypothesis testing cannot? ...that explanatory surveys cannot? ...that secondary data analysis cannot? ...that interpretive case studies cannot?

(c) Describe just two or three ways in which you believe Lee's hermeneutic interpretation in "Electronic Mail as a Medium for Rich Communication: An Empirical Investigation Using Hermeneutic Interpretation" could be improved.

2. (Eduardo SCHIEHLL.) Please answer the following:

(a) Make up your own explanation of what "hermeneutics" is, based your reading of Arnold & Fischer, your reading of Lee 1997 (focus on the section, "2. The World of Interpretivism"), and your reading of Lee 1994 (focus on pages 148 to 151). In your explanation, you may limit yourself to just five key elements or characteristics of hermeneutics. A professor of administration or a doctoral student of administration should be able, upon reading your explanation, to understand what hermeneutics is.

(b) Devote no more than a few sentences or a single brief paragraph to each of the following: What can hermeneutics tell us that experiments cannot? ...that positivist case studies cannot? ...that multivariate analysis and statistical hypothesis testing cannot? ...that explanatory surveys cannot? ...that secondary data analysis cannot? ...that interpretive case studies cannot?

(c) Describe just two or three ways in which you believe Boland's hermeneutic interpretation in "Accounting and the Interpretive Act," could be improved.

3. (Zhenzhong MA.) Please answer the following:

(a) Make up your own explanation of what "hermeneutics" is, based your reading of Arnold & Fischer, your reading of Lee 1997 (focus on the section, "2. The World of Interpretivism"), and your reading of Lee 1994 (focus on pages 148 to 151). In your explanation, you may limit yourself to just five key elements or characteristics of hermeneutics. A professor of administration or a doctoral student of administration should be able, upon reading your explanation, to understand what hermeneutics is.

(b) Devote no more than a few sentences or a single brief paragraph to each of the following: What can hermeneutics tell us that experiments cannot? ...that positivist case studies cannot? ...that multivariate analysis and statistical hypothesis testing cannot? ...that explanatory surveys cannot? ...that secondary data analysis cannot? ...that interpretive case studies cannot?

(c) Describe just two or three ways in which you believe Phillips & Brown's hermeneutic interpretation in "Analyzing Communication in and around Organizations: A Critical Hermeneutic Approach," could be improved.

4. (Philippe KANONKO.) Please answer the following:

(a) Make up your own explanation of what "hermeneutics" is, based your reading of Arnold & Fischer, your reading of Lee 1997 (focus on the section, "2. The World of Interpretivism"), and your reading of Lee 1994 (focus on pages 148 to 151). In your explanation, you may limit yourself to just five key elements or characteristics of hermeneutics. A professor of administration or a doctoral student of administration should be able, upon reading your explanation, to understand what hermeneutics is.

(b) Devote no more than a few sentences or a single brief paragraph to each of the following: What can hermeneutics tell us that experiments cannot? ...that positivist case studies cannot? ...that multivariate analysis and statistical hypothesis testing cannot? ...that explanatory surveys cannot? ...that secondary data analysis cannot? ...that interpretive case studies cannot?

(c) Describe just two or three ways in which you believe Thompson, Locander & Pollio's hermeneutic interpretation in "The Lived Meaning of Free Choice: An Existential-Phenomenological Description of Everyday Consumer Experiences of Women," could be improved.