Validation of a participant selection method within a mixed sequential research design for case studies of sustainable supply chains*

The literature on Sustainable Supply Chain Management (SSCM) suggests incorporating multi-disciplinary approaches and mixed methodologies; however, the literature is scarce on how to select participants for the qualitative phase, within an Explanatory Sequential Design (ESD). This research applies and validates the Pathway participant selection method (MSP) within ESD, investigating the influence of integration with secondary stakeholders on advanced SSCM practices in SMEs. The literature on SSCM recognizes the importance of a rigorous qualitative case selection method, based on previous quantitative data. As a result, the MSP Pathway selected the “precise” cases (SMEs) where the independent variable best influences the dependent one. The selection ended with a validation and prioritization of the cases by experts, according to defined criteria. The results demonstrate the applicability and relevance of the DEXPLIS method and its MSP.