The paper is concerned with problems of research methodology in organization studies. It places the main emphasis on the “research design,” which is seen as an important tool for the planning, the substantiation and the practical guidance of research procedures. The explicit discussion and improvement of research designs is proposed to be a major contribution also to concept and theory development in Organization Science. The basic content of the paper is an empirical analysis and evaluation of the status quo in design conceptions for organization studies. For this, some 300 empirical studies (in German and English) have been critically reviewed, 74 of them described in detail. The results show many deficiencies in the elaboration of the research designs, especially the ties between design and theory (or research question) are often weak or unclear. But there are also good examples which can be used as starting points for further improvements. The development over time shows shifts toward more reflection/discussion of available alternatives in the methods of data collection and more critical examinations of the data quality. This also leads to increasing applications of multi-method designs. A comparison between German and US studies show differences along the quantitative-qualitative line, which opens chances of mutual learning processes.

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This paper examines local policy implementation of Cleaner Production (CP) in China. As the major policy implementer, China's local government plays a crucial role in promoting CP. A better understanding of the factors affecting local government's incentives regarding CP and different strategies available to the local government can help policy makers and implementers improve CP practices and other environmental policy outcomes. This paper uses the cases of Hangzhou and Guiyang to demonstrate that local conditions of policy implementation have a direct impact on the success of CP promotion. Based on 35 in-depth interviews, statistical data and internal government reports, we find that the location-based incentives of local government strongly influence their implementation strategies; and that the choices of different strategies can bring out various policy results. From this study, the identified location-based incentives are affected by energy resource endowment, economic development stage and technological competence. The successful implementation strategies involve using different policy instruments synthetically, regulating CP service organizations by controlling their qualifications, differentiating CP subsidizations, and improving transparency of project progress and outcomes.