Book•
Qualitative research & evaluation methods
01 Jan 2002-Iss: 1
TL;DR: In this paper, conceptual issues and themes on qualitative research and evaluaton methods including: qualitative data, triangulated inquiry, qualitative inquiry, constructivism, constructionism, complexity (chaos) theory, qualitative designs and data collection, fieldwork strategies, interviewing, tape-recording, ethical issues, analysis, interpretation and reporting, observations vs. perceived impacts and utilisation-focused evaluation reporting.
Abstract: This book explains clearly conceptual issues and themes on qualitative research and evaluaton methods including: qualitative data, triangulated inquiry, qualitative inquiry, constructivism, constructionism, Complexity (chaos) theory, qualitative designs and data collection, fieldwork strategies, interviewing, tape-recording, ethical issues, analysis, interpretation and reporting, observations vs. perceived impacts and utilisation-focused evaluation reporting.
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01 Jan 2008
TL;DR: The authors investigated the socialization experiences of newly hired engineers in a large U.S.-based, global manufacturing company and found that new engineers encountered engineering processes of a different nature than they learned in school.
Abstract: After several years of demanding study, new engineers graduate from higher education as professionals eager to apply their expertise to solving “real world” problems. Yet, the transition from school to the workplace involves a socialization process through which new graduates attempt to learn the specific tasks and expectations of their job and begin to integrate into the social context of the organization. Research indicates that this socialization process is important for framing new employees’ experiences and forming their perceptions of work and the organization. These socialization experiences have immediate effects on job satisfaction and learning, and potentially long-term effects on turnover and commitment to the organization and profession 1, 2, 3 . This paper reports the findings of a study investigating the socialization experiences of newly hired engineers in a large U.S.-based, global manufacturing company. In this organization, new engineers encountered engineering processes of a different nature than they learned in school. The social and organizational contexts within which they worked influenced the problems and processes they experienced—often introducing greater complexity, ambiguity, and subjectivity than expected. How the new engineers in this study perceived and learned about engineering work in this organization depended to a large extent on their interactions with coworkers in their work groups. These findings provide greater description and clarification of these socialization experiences, along with the relationship of these experiences to their education.
56 citations
Dissertation•
01 Jan 2009
TL;DR: In this article, a study of the institutionalization of synchrotron radiation is presented, focusing on the changing dynamics of science, changes in science policy, and the identification of scientific entrepreneurs.
Abstract: Synchrotron radiation laboratories are large scientific facilities where various scientific experiments are carried out by the use of radiation produced by particle accelerators. Research with synchrotron radiation emerged in the 1960s and 1970s as a peripheral activity at particle physics laboratories. It has since expanded and taken over facilities from particle physics, and developed specialized accelerators of its own, gradually becoming an important resource for a variety of scientific disciplines, foremost for different types of studies of materials on atomic and molecular level. This thesis is a study of the institutionalization of synchrotron radiation – its scientific and technological, but also political and sociological, development. Three case studies, chosen to complement each other, highlight different aspects of this process. The Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource in Menlo Park, California, was a pioneering laboratory in the early days of synchrotron radiation. MAX-lab in Lund, Sweden, originated as a small scale university project and expanded gradually to become a national and international user facility. The European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble, France, is a multinational collaborative European project and one of the world’s largest synchrotron radiation laboratories. The analysis is organized around three themes: the changing dynamics of science, changes in science policy, and the identification of scientific entrepreneurs – actors with particularly strong roles in the institutionalization. In recent decades, science has encountered increased demands for accountability and social and economic returns, resulting in disciplinary and organizational restructurings and internal sociological changes. These include the collectivization of scientific research and the sophistication of scientific instrumentation. The thesis identifies synchrotron radiation laboratories as manifestations of these trends; they are a new type of ‘big science’, sustaining small scale science in various fields – small science on big machines. It is argued that both the laboratories and the scientific activities they host are particularly well adapted to the new social and political conditions.
56 citations
Cites background or methods from "Qualitative research & evaluation m..."
...…document analysis and interviews are three main categories, and Making sense of the laboratory * 27 a combination of various adaptations of the three is supposed to enable the fieldworker to crosscheck findings and let different sources validate and imply each other (Patton 2002, p 306)....
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...In both cases, interviews are essential sources of information, and in some instances the only possible sources of information, because observation and documents both need clarifying in interviews and tend to inspire questions and areas of discussion for the interviews (Patton 2002, p 307)....
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...Narratology or narrative analysis provides a method framework for the collection, handling and analysis of creative, non-fictional, recounted stories of human experiences over time (Patton 2002, p 116)....
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors explored the emergence and implementation of traceability systems in the Western Australian (WA) Halal food industry and explored how individuals in facilitating organizations perceive the Halal idea logic and the benefits that a traceability system can provide to the halal food processing industry.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the emergence and implementation of traceability systems in the Western Australian (WA) Halal food industry. In particular, to understand how individuals in facilitating organizations perceive the Halal idea logic and the benefits that a traceability system can provide to the Halal food processing industry. Design/methodology/approach – An empirical qualitative approach was employed to examine these issues utilizing in-depth interviews. Thematic analysis was carried out using Leximancer software. Findings – Findings suggest that individual’s perception of Halal idea logic is aligned to the roles they perform. These perceptions were impacted by the specific objectives or business interests of each organization. Facilitating organizations also perceive that traceability systems are a strategic tool in the Halal food processing industry. Practical implications – The research provides insights into how to improve existing understanding of the Halal idea logic ...
56 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compared qualitative data of a good teacher's characteristics in China and the USA and found no differences among teachers', students' and parents' perceptions of good teachers in China on most of the items.
Abstract: Since the 1920’s many researchers have conducted studies exploring the qualities of good teachers. However, a limited number of empirical studies have been conducted in the People’s Republic of China (hereafter called China). The current study has two objectives. The first one aims to compare a good teacher’s characteristics in China and the USA. To achieve this, qualitative data of a good teacher’s characteristics were collected in China. The results obtained from China were then compared to those reported in the USA. The second objective was to test whether or not there are differences among teachers’, students’ and parents’ perceptions of a good teacher’s characteristics in China. To achieve this, questionnaires were administered, and then statistical analyses were conducted. The qualitative data analyses have revealed four themes about the characteristics of good Chinese teachers: Teacher ethics, professional skills, professional development, and students’ test scores. The ANOVAs have found no differences among teachers’, students’ and parents’ perceptions of the qualities of good teachers in China on most of the items. This study helps readers better understand good teachers in a Chinese context and provides a framework for future comparative study between China and the USA regarding the qualities of good teachers.
56 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the perception of tourists in Pu-Tuo-Shan, one of the Four Sacred Mountains of China, and found that the Buddhist worldview plays a significant role in shaping their attitudes.
56 citations