Start

 

Q. Do you want to collect a reasonably small amount of data in numerical form from a large (N=30 or more) number of respondents ?

A. A traditional questionnaire is probably indicated here.  Keep the questionnaire reasonably short (12-15 questions maximum) and then analyse each question within it.

Q. Do you want to collect much more detailed data from a smaller number of respondents?

A. A series of interviews may be suggested here.  Choose your respondents with care (and not just those who will grant you an interview, or you happen to know them socially!)  For example, interviews with six personnel officers could be chosen from large and medium size companies in three different industries.

Q. Do you want to investigate one company, or department in a company, in real depth ?

A. This calls for a case study approach.  Your case study may well suggest further lines of enquiry in the future – do not argue that your case study ‘proves’ a hypothesis, however!

 

Start

 

Q. Is your data continuous e.g. such as heights and weights?

A. Use descriptive statistics and XY plots

Test using ‘t-tests’ or ANOVA     

Q. Is your data nominal or ordinal (e.g. circling one of a series of responses to a question?)

A. Use medians and barcharts/ piecharts

Test using non-parametric measures such as chi-square

 

 

Stage 1

You need to turn your interview into text form as soon as possible. If you take extensive notes rather than tape-record, this will make this task easier.  Be on the look-out for particularly good quotes that illustrate your theme.

Stage 2

Count and tabulate (simple bar-charts) the number of times that particular themes occur.

Stage 3

Illustrate your points with well-chosen quotations

e.g.

“I found doing the production was immensely hard
work but very well worthwhile”

(2nd year Drama student)

 

 

 

 

Case Study Analysis

You will have chosen your case study because it illustrates particular themes in the literature particularly well – for example, it may be a case study of a sportswear company that has dramatically increased its turnover by applying e-marketing.

Your case study should illustrate particular factors or combinations of factors that make the case you have chosen worthy of study.  The case study should give pointers to factors that might prove significant were they to be studied more extensively e.g. in a larger scale survey.

If you study two or more organisations, attempt to account for the differences observed between them e.g. are differences attributable to management style, market position, type of industry?  Remember that case studies effectively illustrate the dynamics of processes at work but they do not necessarily ‘prove’ a case to be true (nor can they when the sample size is 1!)

 

 

End