Researching Alienation

In this chapter, the author outlines a way to research Marx’s approach to alienation that moves beyond polemics. In doing so, he describes his chosen method of collecting, analysing and presenting data setting out the rationale for his chosen methodology, critical realism (CR), underpinned with participatory action research (PAR). The chapter also provides a description of the organisations of the book’s three research settings, whilst also detailing the processes involved in obtaining the appropriate data. The research aimed to ask whether Marx’s approach can explain lived alienated experiences of groups in three distinct settings: ICT professionals, academics researching the ethical implications of ICT, and senior end-users. The author determines that several of his findings and secondary literature have informed his rejection of a positivist approach.