Volume 4 Issue 1 / Nov 2006
pp1‑66
Editor: Arthur Money
Editorial
"This new edition of EJBRM once again offers readers a range of interesting ideas concerning various options available to the academic researcher working in the business and management field of study.
With regards to research methodology the business and management field of study has much to offer the researcher in a number of respects. The first reason for this is that this field of study is so broad and so many interesting topics fall within its ambit. This is of course and advantage as well as a major challenge for the academics who work in this field of study. Different topics have different research methodology potentials and so researchers have much to choose from.
There is also the question of the fact that there is a stream of new and interesting ideas being generate as to how to tackle both new as well as well established research topics.
For this issue papers of topics such as ""Can methodological applications develop critical thinking?"" (Blackman and Benson), ""Getting the most from NUD•IST/Nvivo"" (Dean and Sharp), ""Applying Multidimensional Item Response Theory Analysis to a Measure of Meta‑Perspective Performance"" (Kacmar et al), ""A few proposals for designing and controlling a doctoral research project in management sciences"" (Lauriol), ""Validation of Simulation based Models: a Theoretical Outlook"" (Martis), ""Motivators for Australian consumers to search and shop online"" (Michael), ""A case study on the selection and evaluation of software for an Internet organisation"" (van Staaden and Lubbe) have been accepted.
I trust that readers will find these papers as interesting as I have."
With regards to research methodology the business and management field of study has much to offer the researcher in a number of respects. The first reason for this is that this field of study is so broad and so many interesting topics fall within its ambit. This is of course and advantage as well as a major challenge for the academics who work in this field of study. Different topics have different research methodology potentials and so researchers have much to choose from.
There is also the question of the fact that there is a stream of new and interesting ideas being generate as to how to tackle both new as well as well established research topics.
For this issue papers of topics such as ""Can methodological applications develop critical thinking?"" (Blackman and Benson), ""Getting the most from NUD•IST/Nvivo"" (Dean and Sharp), ""Applying Multidimensional Item Response Theory Analysis to a Measure of Meta‑Perspective Performance"" (Kacmar et al), ""A few proposals for designing and controlling a doctoral research project in management sciences"" (Lauriol), ""Validation of Simulation based Models: a Theoretical Outlook"" (Martis), ""Motivators for Australian consumers to search and shop online"" (Michael), ""A case study on the selection and evaluation of software for an Internet organisation"" (van Staaden and Lubbe) have been accepted.
I trust that readers will find these papers as interesting as I have."
Keywords: Black Box testing, business process, CAQDAS, coding and reporting, commercial software system, consumer behaviour, critical thinking, dynamic models, evaluation, internet, interpreting data transcription, item response theory, modeling motivating factors, NUD*IST/NVivo, qualitative research reporting, request for proposal (RFP), research methodology, scale development simulation, software, validation process, validation schemes, validation, vendors
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Deborah Blackman, Angela Benson
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Abstract
This paper outlines how using research methods to develop critical thinking was explored in a workshop and then developed into a curriculum. An exercise showed how diverse methodologies led to different answers, which were explored to consider the nature of knowledge itself and the subsequent implications. The paper concludes that such an approach can (a) develop critical thinking skills at a level of deep, rather than surface learning and (b) effectively challenge some preconceived ideas held by students about how knowledge is developed and shared. The crucial element of success was the design and implementation of the assessment.
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Since the most problematic areas in applying NUD*IST and NVivo in management research are in using them for recording, collating, analysing and reporting interview data, this paper concentrates on the use of NUD*IST and NVivo for these purposes. It examines the problems that arise in their use at the different stages (Interviewing, Transcription, Structuring and Reporting) of three types of research project: a major research project, a specialist research project and a doctoral research project. Suggestions are made as to how these problems can be mitigated. Conclusions are drawn about good practice in the use of NUD*IST and NVivo and suggestions are made on some enhancements that might be made to them. Comments are made about Interpretivism and the use of NUD*IST and NVivo and on the role of supervisors in doctoral research involving the use of NUD*IST and NVivo.
Keywords: Qualitative research reporting, CAQDAS, NUD*ISTNVivo good practice, interview transcription, coding and reporting, interpreting data
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Applying Multidimensional Item Response Theory Analysis to a Measure of Meta‑Perspective Performance
pp23‑30
K. Michele Kacmar, William L. Farmer, Suzanne Zivnuska, L. A. Witt
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Abstract
The authors introduce a scale to measure meta‑perspectives, my view of your view of me, about one's performance in an organizational setting. Applied to the performance appraisal process, this perspective allows the authors to investigate how employees think their supervisors view their performance. Meta‑perspectives thereby enrich our understanding of the relationship effects inherent in the performance appraisal process. Due to the desirable properties of item response theory (non‑sample specific item parameter estimates), a multidimensional item response theory (MIRT) model was applied to the data. This allowed for the simultaneous estimation of dimensionality and item threshold values. Data collected from 1,255 full‑time workers in two different organizations reveal that the items did not lie along a unidimensional continuum, but that three dimensions underlie the proposed scale: employee perceptions of the supervisor's view of employee work ethic, work product, and self‑regulation. The authors offer suggestions for refinement of the scale and future research.
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Analysis of available literature on the design and control of a doctoral research project has led to the updating of a certain number of "constants" concerning the difficulties PhD students encounter during this process. These "constants" revolve around the crucial yet arduous issue of what comprises a "good thesis". The present article offers a response to this question. It begins by highlighting the characteristics of the institutional context in which a doctoral study is carried out before offering three topics for thought (definition of the research project, deployment and evaluation of results). It concludes by focusing on the tension underlying all scientific research between "dissidence" (i.e., the ability to question "normal science") and "conformity" (the study's fit in an institutional context).
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Validation is the most incomprehensible part of developing a model. Nevetheless, no model can be accepted unless it has passed the tests of validation, since the procedure of validation is vital to ascertain the credibility of the model. Validation procedures are usually framework based and dynamic, but a methodical procedure can be followed by a modeller (researcher) in order to authenticate the model. The paper starts with a discussion on the views and burning issues by various researchers on model validation and the foundational terminology involved. The paper later highlights on the methodology and the process of validation adopted. Reasons for the failure of the model have also been explored. The paper finally focuses on the widely approved validation schemes (both quantitative and qualitative) and techniques in practice, since no one test can determine the credibility and validity of a simulation model. Moreover, as the model passes more tests (both quantitative and qualitative) the confidence in the model increases correspondingly.
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This paper investigates the factors that motivate Australian consumers to use the Internet to search and shop for products and services. A qualitative research method was used, utilizing a semi‑structured, in‑depth interview technique. Twenty in‑depth interviews were conducted, using a snowball sampling method. The study found that there were six motivating factors that drew consumers to search and shop online for products and services. These factors include: convenience, saving time, cheaper prices along with the ability to compare prices, good place to shop for specialty and hard‑to‑access products, higher level of consumer control, and the ease of comparing products and services.
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The authors conducted research to determine whether IT‑managers, IT auditors, users, management, etc. (all decision‑makers) use a certain evaluation and selection process to acquire software to meet business objectives and the requirement of users. An argument was used that the more thorough the software evaluation and selection process, the more likely it would be that the organisation will choose software that meets these targets. The main objective of the research was therefore to determine whether Media24 uses evaluation methods and obtain the desired results. Media24 is Africa's biggest publishing group and offers entertainment, information and education 24 hours a day and served as a good example of an Internet Service organisation that made their employees available for this research project. The results confirmed that Media24 uses suggested protocol as noted in the theory for software acquisition correctly during most stages.
Keywords: Black Box testing, business process, commercial software system, document, evaluation, request for proposal, RFP, requirements, selection, software, vendors
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