Research Philosophy
Discuss About The Second Language Methodology Design Routledge.
“A methodology shows how research questions are articulated {connected to} with questions asked in the field….” (Clough & Nutbrown, 2007:23).
The research methodology is an important aspect of the research. It provides direction to the research provides a blueprint of the research tools, which can be used in the research.
There are two primary purposes of the Chapter of Research Methodology in the dissertation. Firstly, it will outline the research methods and techniques, which have been used to examine the potential effect of Emotional intelligence on leadership development in the Senior NCO rank. Secondly, it will provide the reason behind the selection of different research philosophy and research approaches in the dissertation. There are a number of research approaches, research methods and research philosophy (Mason, 2002). However, it is important to select the best approach for the research, which can justify the research aims and objectives. . The primary focus of the current research is on the impact Emotional Intelligence on the leadership training and development in the DF at the Senior NCO rank. Chapter Two introduced the concept of Emotional Intelligence, the models of Emotional Intelligence and showed the link between leadership, EI, and the competencies. It also highlighted the military of other countries, which have developed EI in their leadership training. The Chapter also introduced the academic research that analyses whether EI can be thought and developed within the academic sphere. The chapter Two has provided a theoretical foundation to the research; whereas the third chapter will discuss about the research methods and techniques, which will be used for the collection of primary data.
The research philosophy is determined by the personal views of the researcher. In the present section, there will be discussion regarding the persona views of the author regarding the philosophy and how they have been shaped by experiences. In the current report, there will be discussion regarding reality (ontology), discussion about enquiring into knowledge (epistemology), the type of techniques which will be used to use to achieve the research aim (methodology) (Betley & Noble, 2017). Finally, the chapter will outline different data collection methods and analysis used to generate my findings. The current chapter will lay a solid foundation upon which to build my research.
“Your ontological position suggests that people’s knowledge, views, understandings, interpretations, experiences, and interactions are meaningful properties of the social reality which your research questions are designed to explore” (Mason, 2002). This mirrors some degree the ontological position taken in the research, and it will take a interpretivist, qualitative research process. The researcher’s behaviour and considerations will to some degree impact the outcomes of the research. The past experiences of the researcher have shaped the opinion and the ways to deal with circumstances. It is also influence interpersonal relationships. “The post-positivist social scientist expects a learning part instead of a testing one”. In choosing the research questions for the research, I emphasized that the organization psychology and leadership emphasize the ontological positions.
Ontology
“Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that deals with the origin, nature, and limits of
In the present research, epistemology has been influenced bydifferent factors. My upbringing within a military family on both sides, a sporting lifestyle where I have been involved and engrossed in team sports from my earliest years to over 24 years’ military service within the Defence Forces. All these factors have shaped my views and perspectives on life as I developed as a person and leader within the military (Gergen & Davis, 2013). My military service has offered me a wealth of experiences both at home and abroad, including nine tours of duty overseas serving in Africa, Middle East, and Asia exposing me to multinational environments’. These experiences have broadened my perspective and aided my leadership development, character development and contributed significantly to various aspects of my emotional intelligence.
There are different types of research methodologies, namely, qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods. The researcher has studied all these research methods and selected the qualitative research methods. The qualitative research methods refer to the method in which the information collected is qualitative in nature. It cannot be analysed through statistical means. Further, the qualitative research methods will provide in-depth information regarding the research.
The qualitative research methodology of semi-structured interviews and a focus group have been selected as the most suitable research methods for the research.
In the perspective of Bryman, qualitative research can be defined as “the type of research that usually deals with words instead of figures and statistics.” However, it is a basic and simple definition. There are several instances in which the researchers use statistical data to emphasize their research findings (Bryman, 2016). Morrissey provides a comprehensive explanation of qualitative research as an approach to study that aims at uncovering concealed aspects of people’s social interactions and practices; how people talk, move and interact in everyday life and how social context affects this (Atkinson & Delamont, 2010).
In the present research, qualitative research is being used. Although it is a time-consuming process as it requires planning and organising interviews with different stakeholders, it will facilitate exploring detailed information related to deep-seated cultural meanings of DF leadership training and experiences. The interview will be conducted with both serving and the retired military personnel, so that in-depth information can be collected from the stakeholders. The researcher understands that there are certain challenges associated with analysis and interpretation of qualitative data; therefore, different methods are used to assure that appropriate information is collected and no information is lost from the organization. However, due to the personal experience as a military officer, the researcher can overcome this challenge (Mackey, & Gass, 2015).
Epistemology
In the interview, the interviewee share their knowledge gained through personal experiences. The researcher forms a questionnaire and used it as a guide to conduct the interview. It is considered as semi-structured interview. Face to- face interviews can be used to have deep understanding and extraction of participant views and behaviours. This in-depth information cannot be extracted from quantitative research methods. Face-to-face interviews can create a bond or relationship between thee researcher and interview participants. It will comfort interview participants and they will easily share their expereince of leadership training and experiences (Neuman, 2014).
The observation is also a common method to gain information regarding a social phenomenon. It is used in longitudinal studies and the researcher observes the behaviour of the sample population without any interference.
As mentioned earlier the two primary means of data collection were semi-structured interviews and a focus group adopting a post-positivist approach in taken. The focus group was made up of eight senior NCOs who were undergoing their Senior NCOs Course in the NCO Training School in the Military College. They have a wide range of experiences coupled with vast knowledge of service within the DF both at home and abroad. The researcher’s aim with the focus group was to establish feedback on the current leadership training offered to NCOs in their professional development and ascertain their views and opinions on the possible value of the development of EI training to their professional development courses.
Interviews were conducted with personnel who have professional qualifications in the area of psychology to gain their perspective on EI in a military context, develop an understanding for the possible benefits and restrictions of EI in Senior NCO leadership development within the DF. The Officer Commanding the NCO Training Wing was also interviewed to gain the views and reasoning behind the current training syllabus within the NCO Training Framework and identify possible changes that can be made to these curricula (Marczyk, DeMatteo & Festinger, 2017). Finally, I spoke to Brigadier General Peter O’Hallaron to gain an understanding of the views held from DFHQ level on the current thinking of the role of EI in NCO leadership development.
External professional and academic publications from foreign militaries where EI has been explored were also used as part of my research into this area.
The data was initially coded into three groups – the focus groups, the academic view, and the military leadership. Strong themes were evident in each category, and they were further analysed through in-depth coding and combination of ideas from each group. This enabled me to link all topics, formulate a description of the interviews and focus group and support them with appropriate quotations from the transcripts, hence creating a balanced structure to present and analyse the data in Chapter 4.
Ethics are an integral part of the research. It is important that the researcher abides by the ethics so that the scientific community can maintain the goodwill of the public. The researcher will make sure that the collected information is represented in an authentic manner (Peffers, Tuunanen, Rothenberger, & Chatterjee, 2007). The researcher will also give credit to the authors, whose work has been included in the research. The interviewer will also protect the personal information of the interviewees.
Having determined my research philosophy, I felt that to best answer my research question I would carry out a qualitative, post-positive approach using a focus group along with semi-structured interviews as the most appropriate manner in which to gain data. This choice is supported by Bass who suggests that qualitative research is better equipped than quantitative when dealing with leadership. The use of semi-structured interviews as a research instrument facilitates obtaining “rich, nuanced, descriptive material that reflects the individuals’ understanding” of the subject (Gergen & Davis, 2013) through “face to face interaction”. These methods were conducted with a variety of both serving and retired personnel with the relevant expertise and experience in this research area.
References
Mason, J. (2002). Researching Your Own Practice: The Discipline of Noticing. Routledge.
Betley, R., & Noble, I. (2017). Visual Research: An Introduction to Research Methods in Graphic Design. Bloomsbury Publishing.
Gergen, M.M., & Davis, S.N. (2013). Toward a New Psychology of Gender: A Reader. Routledge.
Mackey, A., & Gass, S. M. (2015). Second language research: Methodology and design. Routledge.
Neuman, L. W. (2014). Social research methods. Pearson Education Limited.
Marczyk, G., DeMatteo, D., & Festinger, D. (2017). Essentials of research design and methodology. John Wiley.
Peffers, K., Tuunanen, T., Rothenberger, M. A., & Chatterjee, S. (2007). A design science research methodology for information systems research. Journal of management information systems, 24(3), 45-77.
Bryman, A. (2016). Social Research Methods. Oxford University Press.
Atkinson, P., & Delamont, S. (2010). SAGE Qualitative Research Methods. SAGE.
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