TEAM ROLE THEORIES

Get Complete Project Material File(s) Now! »

CHAPTER 3:RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY

INTRODUCTION

In this chapter, the research design and methodology used in the study are presented in more detail. A rationale is provided for selecting a qualitative research methodology, and the role of a qualitative researcher is briefly explored. The population and sampling strategy used in this study are discussed. Details are provided on the data collection methods used in the study, namely in-depth interviews and focus interviews. Next, the mode of analysis is explained and, finally, the chapter shows how research trustworthiness was ensured and what quality criteria were applied.

CHOOSING A SUITABLE APPROACH

Yin (1989:27) explains that a “research paradigm is the logic that links the data to be collected to the initial questions of a study”.
As has already been stated, a qualitative interpretivist approach was adopted and the study was positioned in a post-positivist paradigm. The guiding paradigm and principles have already been discussed extensively in Chapter The overall strength and research value of this design lies in the in-depth insights that can be achieved, as well as in the establishment of rapport with the participants (Mouton, 2001:1). In reporting the findings, as the researcher, I had a unique and exciting opportunity to include my own voice in my presentation of the diverse voices of all the participants in this research project.
Since an inductive theory discovery design was used in this study, the process allowed me to develop a theory while simultaneously grounding the research account in empirical data. The strengths of this type of inquiry were that it led to in-depth insights, made the interviewees part of the process and led to thick description.

RATIONALE FOR SELECTING A QUALITATIVE APPROACH

I have an inner drive to understand people and “things” – even those things which seem obvious to others. When I selected my research method, it was therefore only natural that I would select an inquiry strategy that would focus on interaction, personal communication, human relations and deeper senses of understanding.
Abraham Maslow (1949:202) once commented with some regret:
“…we are still forced by academic custom to talk about our own experiences in about the same way as we might talk about bacteria, or the moon or about white rats, assuming the subject-object cleavage, assuming that we are detached, distant and uninvolved, assuming that we are unmoved and unchanged by the act of observation….”
The approach chosen in this study and the way it was reported on illustrates my response to his lament. Avoidance of what Maslow describes in part underpins the paradigm I argued from when I had to choose an appropriate research method. From the outset, I realised that my research journey would be subjective, rather empathetic, and embedded in personal as well as in human relations. The characteristics of qualitative research that attracted me and best suits the research question at hand are summarised in Table 3.1 (next page).

THE ROLE OF THE QUALITATIVE RESEARCHER

I believe that there is no such thing as a neutral stance. Every researcher has a face, an identity, preferences, a certain style etc. Possible sources of bias need to be communicated explicitly to the reader of a research report and should not be hidden. As the researcher, I enacted a crucial role in this qualitative research process, therefore the reader should realise that true objectivity is a myth. I was subjective when conducting this study, since any researcher is only human. However, I made my own biases, preferences and assumptions as clear as possible to the respondents, which illustrated my acute awareness of my own limitations as researcher.
I am female and in my forties (see Figure 3.1, above); I work with teams every day, think in a “right brained” manner and believe in simplicity and honesty. Furthermore, I am a trainer and an organisational development (OD) consultant who is both a team member and work with teams. All these factors may have influenced my views. However, following a sound methodological research approach when collecting and interpreting data assisted me in working around subjective and local influences.
I regard reflexivity in research as very important. I therefore constantly had to take stock of my actions and my role in the research process. I consistently strove to remain non-judgemental in my approach, even though I showed empathy with the emotional undertones of the respondent’s reactions. Morse, 1994) stresses that by showing emotional understanding, a researcher can create common ground with the respondents.
In terms of researcher skills, Yin (1989) suggests that a researcher should develop or already possess the following skills when pursuing truths through research: the ability to ask the right question and interpret the answers – it is no wonder that Morse (1994:225) remarks that qualitative research is only as good as the researcher;

• the willingness to be flexible and the ability to read the situation; and
• the distance to be unbiased.

Challenges faced by a qualitative researcher

Researchers have to “avoid control” (Ragin et al., 2003), and throughout the interview process I therefore had to allow the subjects and material to guide me. However, this did not mean that the qualitative intervention could not be controlled. Instead, it implied that I acknowledged that I was unable to control the data and the environment in which the data was being collected.
Another challenge that researchers face is having to stay part of the research process and using themselves as a research tool. When conducting this qualitative research, in many cases, there was no clear separation between the collection of data and the analysis thereof. As has already been explained, quite often I had to analyse the data as it was collected and the next step was determined by what I learned.

 RESEARCH POPULATION AND SAMPLING STRATEGY

The research sampling strategy was discussed in Chapter 1, but the selection of data sources needs to be explained in more detail.
Typical case sampling involves taking a sample of what one would call typical, normal or average for a particular phenomenon. Participants for my study were selected for a specific reason and not randomly. The initial two focus group interviews were conducted with “natural” project teams that were deliberately selected to enable me to gain a better understanding of the issue at hand. The business unit managers at both GijimaAst and the Auditor General assisted me in making my choices in terms of existing teams.

CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW AND ORIENTATION OF STUDY
1.1 BACKGROUND, RATIONALE FOR AND VALUE OF THE STUDY
1.2 RESEARCH PARADIGM
1.3 PROBLEM STATEMENT
1.4 RESEARCH QUESTION
1.5 CONTEXT AND SCOPE OF THE STUDY
1.6 PURPOSE AND UNIQUENESS OF THE RESEARCH
1.7 RESEARCH DESIGN
1.8 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
1.9 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS
1.10 OUTLINE OF CHAPTERS
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW: TEAMING IN ORGANISATIONS
2.1 INTRODUCTION
2.2 IMPORTANCE OF A LITERATURE REVIEW
2.3 INTRODUCING TEAMS
2.4 DEFINING TEAMS
2.5 TEAM IDENTITIES / TYPES OF TEAMS
2.6 TEAM ROLE THEORIES
2.7 TEAM DEVELOPMENT THEORIES
2.8 TEAM FUNCTIONING THEORIES
2.9 INDIVIDUALS IN TEAMS
2.10 CONCLUSION
CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
3.1 INTRODUCTION
3.2 CHOOSING A SUITABLE APPROACH
3.3 RATIONALE FOR SELECTING A QUALITATIVE APPROACH
3.4 THE ROLE OF THE QUALITATIVE RESEARCHER
3.5 RESEARCH POPULATION AND SAMPLING STRATEGY
3.6 DATA COLLECTION METHOD
3.7 DATA REDUCTION
3.8 USING TECHNOLOGY IN QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
3.9 DATA MANAGEMENT, STORAGE AND RETRIEVAL
3.10 ENSURING RESEARCH TRUSTWORTHINESS AND QUALITY  CRITERIA
3.11 CONCLUSION
CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH RESULTS AND FINDINGS
4.1 INTRODUCTION
4.2 CODING AND IDENTIFICATION OF THEMES
4.3 THEME 1: INDIVIDUAL LEVEL EXPECTATIONS
4.4 THEME 2: TEAM LEVEL EXPECTATIONS
4.5 THEME 3: ORGANISATIONAL / LEADERSHIP EXPECTATIONS
4.6 THEME 4: 21st CENTURY TEAM CHALLENGES
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 INTRODUCTION
5.2 THE FOUR EVOLVING THEMES
5.3 EXPERIENCING TEAMS AND TEAMWORK
5.4 KEY OBSERVATIONS: THE 21ST CENTURY TEAM PARADOX
5.5 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
5.6 IMPLICATIONS OF THE STUDY
5.7 RESEARCHER PERSPECTIVES
5.8 CONCLUDING REMARKS AND POSSIBILITIES FOR FUTURE RESEARCH
GET THE COMPLETE PROJECT