Grounded theory describes a methodological approach to the discovery and generation of "adequate sociological theory" (Wells 1995) directly from qualitative data, was originated and most fully articulated by Glaser & Strauss in their seminal work ëThe Discovery of Grounded Theory: strategies for qualitative researchí (1967). The objective of the grounded theoretical approach, as interpreted by Wells (1995), is an explanation of the variability in social interactions, the social structural conditions that support the interactions, the consequences of the interactions and the conditions that support changes in interactions over time.

Whilst there are a variety of applied interpretive assessments of what constitutes grounded theory, it would seem that the one developed by Strauss and Corbin (1990) is referenced most commonly by researchers as being essentially "the clearest theoretical exposition of this important research tradition" (Miller & Fredericks 1999). Strauss and Corbin define a grounded theory as one that is;

".......inductively derived from the study of the phenomenon it represents. That is, it is discovered, developed and provisionally verified through systematic data collection and analysis of data pertaining to that phenomenon. Therefore, data collection, analysis and theory stand in reciprocal relationship with each other." (Strauss & Corbin 1990 p23)

In an historical context, grounded theory is generally regarded having evolved from and continues to be compatible with the symbolic interactionist approach to the study of human behaviour (Robrecht 1995, Wells 1995) which characterised the work of sociologist George Herbert Mead and later that of Blumer (1969). Symbolic interactionism, as articulated by Blumer, is based on three key premises:

"Human beings act toward things based on the meaning that the things have for them; the meaning of such things is derived from the social interaction that the individual has with his fellows; and meanings are handled in, and modified through an interpretive process and by the person dealing with the things that they encounter." (Blumer 1969 p2)

It has been suggested by a number of authors that grounded theory has been and continues to be the research methodology of choice in the qualitatively oriented research fields of medicine, nursing, social work and education (Wells 1995, Miller & Fredericks 1999). The common socio-behavioural foundation that these human science research fields share with the study of organisationally contexted human interaction suggests that grounded theory may also be a useful methodology for application in the investigation of phenomena in this later domain. It is the extent of grounded theoryís practical and theoretical suitability as a form of qualitative inquiry into organisationally contexted phenomena that we are seeking to evaluate.