Tuesday, January 28, 2020
Research The Interpretivism Philosophy Management Essay
Research The Interpretivism Philosophy Management Essay Firstly, it is the research philosophy. There are two main types of philosophy and they are positivism and interpretivism. In this research the interpretivism philosophy will be applied to adopt the nature of theories on the factors influencing the project management performance. Secondly, it is the research approach that includes deduction and induction. In this research, the induction approach is considered the appropriate approach for the project management when the researcher examines three factors influencing the project management performance at BORDA Vietnam. Thirdly, it is the research strategy. There are three categories of research strategy such as exploratory, descriptive and explanatory. To pursue the purpose of this research is to explore the understanding of the concepts of project management and the impacts of factors on the project management performance at BORDA Vietnam, the exploratory strategy is selected to use. Fourthly, it is research methodology. There are two methods when conducting the research generally. They are quantitative and qualitative. With each method there are advantages and disadvantages duing application. In this research, the qualitative method is chosen to apply due to its appropriateness for the topic of factors influencing the project management performance at BORDA Vietnam. Fifthly, it is the data collection and data processing that describes how the primary and secondary data will be collected and how the collected data will be analysed to have findings for the next chapters. Last but not least, it is ethical issues of the research. 3.1 Research philosophy Sauders at al. (2009) emphasises that the research philosophy relates to the development of knowledge and its nature. It will reflect the researchers view of the world and underpin the research strategy. There are different philosophies of the research such as positivism, realism, interpretivism and pragmatism and these belong to the research philosophy which is the first layer of the research onion (Sauder et al., 2009). Depending on the type of research topic which philosophy will be adopted in the research? 3.1.1 Positivism Positivism reflects the philosophical stance of the nature scientist (Sauder et al., 2009). The positivism philosophy is applied to the research for generating the existing theories to develop the hypotheses and these hypotheses will be tested with highly structured and large samples relating to the observation and numeric data. However, when observing the social reality (Sauder et al., 2009), the researcher is independent from which is observed. 3.1.2 Interpretivism In the management research, the interpretivism refers to the understanding difference between the human as social actors (Sauder at al., 2009:16) and the objects. It focuses on the subjective meanings and the interpretation of the meanings behind the social phenomena. By applying the interpretivism philosophy for the research, the qualitative methodology is more appropriate to help the researcher conduct the small sample with in-depth interview and focus group interview. Project management performance plays an important role in the success of the project. However, there are many factors but the research focusing on three key factors influencing the project management performance. The factors are leadership style, teamwork and staff motivation. For conducting the research, the interpretivism philosophy is selected to help the researcher interpret the meanings of contextual observations and collected information from interview. 3.2 Research approach Research approach relates to the theory of the research. It explicit the concerned questionnaires for survey or guidelines for interview. There are two different kinds of research approaches, deduction and induction. Sauder et al. (2009) pointed out that the deductive approach is when to develop the theory and hypotheses and the research strategy is designed to test those hypotheses. The deductive approach is believed to be more appropriate with the positivist philosophy. Other way round, it is inductive approach in which the data is collected and theory is developed as the results of data analysis. The inductive approach is considered more appropriate with the interpretivist philosophy. 3.2.1 Deductive approach Deductive approach involves in the development of theory and hypothesis. The data or findings from questionnaire survey, guideline interview and secondary sources are the results to be tested to confirm or reject the hypotheses (Gill and Johnson, 2010). This approach is suitable with large sample from the quantitative method. 3.2.2 Inductive approach Inductive approach allows the researcher to develop the theory base on analysis of the phenomena. The theory is developed based on the result of data analysis. Sauder et al (2009) suggested that the small sample conducted for the research is suitable with the inductive approach. The research on factors that influence the project management at BORDA is to pursue the purpose of identifying and analysing three burning factors really affecting the performance of project management at BORDA Vietnam. The small sample of interview with the managers and staffs of BORDA office and involved partners will be conducted. Therefore, the inductive approach is considered more appropriate to conduct this research. 3.3 Research strategy Research strategy plays an important role during conducting the research. According to Sauders at al. (2009:141) the research strategy helps to guide the research questions, objectives, the extent of existing knowledge, the amount of time, other available resources and to underpin the research philosophy. There are three categories of research strategy such as (1) exploratory, (2) descriptive and (3) explanatory (Yin, 2003, cited in Sauderset al.2009:141). Each category is valuable with different research purposes. However, it is pointed out that the purpose of enquiry may change over time (Robson, 2002, cited in Sauders et al, 2009:139). 3.3.1 Exploratory The exploratory strategy is useful to clarify the understanding of the phenomena by finding out what is happening, to seek new insights, to ask questions and to assess phenomena in a new light (Robson, 2002: 59, cited in Sauders et al., 2009:139). There are three principal ways of conducting the exploratory research: A research of the literature Interviewing experts in the subject Conducting focus group interviews (Sauders et al. 2009:140) 3.3.2 Descriptive The object of descriptive research is to portray an accurate profile of persons, events or situations (Robson, 2002:59, cited in Sauderset al.2009:140). It means that before the data is collected, it should be a clear picture of which data should be collected. However, the descriptive research is as one piece of exploratory research and also the explanatory research. 3.3.3 Explanatory Explanatory research focuses on explaining the relationship between variables (Sauderset al.2009:140) of a situation or a phenomena. This strategy is more quantitative in the research methodology. In addition, it can be a combination between the quantitative and qualitative methods in the research methodology by collecting the qualitative data for explanation of the reason to the phenomena or problem. The purpose of the research is to gain the understanding about the concept of project management and impacts of factors influencing the project management performance in BORDA Vietnam. In view of the foreging, the exploratory strategy is chosen to use in this research that helps the researcher to interpret the findings to the meanings of this research. 3.4 Research methodology There are two main types of research methods: (1) qualitative and (2) quantitative. Each method will be selected to use depending on specific research topic and analysis sample. 3.4.1 Qualitative method According to Sauders et al.,(2009:480) the qualitative data refers to all non-numeric data or data that have not been quantified and can be a product of all research strategies. There are many things in human life which may not be quantitative. They are no worse for that. If they are of non-quantitative nature, they can be investigated in terms of their own categories and such investigation is no less scientific than measurement (Michell, 1999:14, cited in Giorgi A, 2005:80). When conducting the qualitative research, the purpose is to understand the meanings expressed through words (Sauderset al.2009:482) of the problem or phenomena from real world settings (Golafshani N, 2003:600). The qualitative research means such methods like interviews and observations are dominant in the naturalist (interpretive) paradigm and supplementary in the positive paradigm ((Golafshani N, 2003:600). The qualitative data after being collected is inputed into the analysis process through three main types: Summarising (consideration) of meanings; Categorisation (grouping) of meanings; Structuring (ordering) of meanings using narrative. (Sauderset al.2009:490). 3.4.2 Quantitative method According to Ponterotto J.(2005:128), the quantitative method focuses on the strict quantification of observations (data) and on careful control of empirical variables. This method needs the large sample and uses of statistical procedures to examine the meanings and variables (Ponterotto and Grieger, 1999, cited in Ponterotto, 2005:128). The quantitative research helps the researcher familiarize with the problem or phenomena to be studied and develop the hypotheses to be tested through the quantitative techniques. The categories of quantitative method include (1) the emphasis is on facts and causes of behaviour (Bogdan and Biklen, 1998, cited in Golafshani N, 2003:597); (2) the information is in the form of numbers that can be quantified and summarised; (3) the mathematical process is the norm for analysing the numeric data and (4) the final result is expressed in statistical terminologies (Charles, 1995, cited in Golafshani N, 2005:598). From the different above definitions and concepts of research methods, the researcher select the qualitative method that is considered the most suitable and conceptual analysis shall be applied via observation of daily management work at BORDA Vietnam and the in depth interview to all staffs and managers of BORDA office and partners involving in the project. It is small sample. The qualitative method will help the researcher find out the key crucial factors affecting the performance of the project management. The qualitative method will be described through the research process in the figure below: Research objectives Theories relating to the project management Qualitative method, data collection: + Primary data: in-depth and group focus interview, daily observations + Secondary data: desk research Discussion and analysis of findings Identification of weaknesses corresponding causes in PM Recommendations solutions for improving PM performance Figure 3.1: Research process (Source: Authors design) 3.5 Data collection The data used for this research comes from both primary and secondary sources. 3.5.1 Secondary source Secondary data collection: the data will be collected from the books, articles, journals publication, reports, annual working plans, desk research, evaluations. These resources provide the information and data on the activities and project implementation at BORDA Vietnam. 3.5.2 Primary data In-depth interview: the in-depth interviews will be conducted with 15 staffs of BORDA office and involved partners, 2 focus group interviews for staffs and managers to collect their opinions, comments and assessments on current project management performance and the factors influencing the project management performance at BORDA Vietnam. The contents of the in-depth interview guideline shall be flexible and subject to the persons interviewed to be able to get the best results for analysis, summarising and consolidation. The tentative duration for the interviews shall last from 15 October to 31 October 2012. The primary data collected through the interviews is used to give insights into the main factors influencing the project management performance within the implementation progress. Observation from daily management work: The researcher is a part of this team, so that the daily management work at BORDA Vietnam will be observed. 3.6 Data processing The information and data from the interviews shall be collected, summarised, consolidated and analysed to see the problems of project management and examined whether the factors such as leadership style, team work and staff motivation have an effect on the performance of the project management at BORDA Vietnam or not. The feedback from the interviewees is also considered the useful inputs for the recommendations and solutions of the researcher. 3.7 Research ethics In the scope of this research, the researcher focus on examining the practices of financial and human resource management to the project management performance at BORDA Vietnam in the period of 2011 2013. Because of time limits, the research cannot be conducted for other factors such as the role of management of quality, information system, knowledge, relationship, etc. to the project management performance. The research will use both the secondary and primary data, especially the in-depth interview questions for information collection. Before interviewing, the researcher will ask the potential interviewees directly or through emails and telephones for their convenience and agreement of spending time and providing the information, opinions. Without agreement, the researcher will not provide the name of interviewees in the research or any sensitive information will be kept confidentially for the researcher only. Moreover, this is an independent study from the point of view of the researcher. The findings and recommendations will be proposed to the high management level of BORDA to help improve the project management performance of project implementation in Vietnam. Chapter summary Through this chapter, the researcher describes the picture of how the research will be conducted and how data is collected and analysed. After studying about the different types of research philosophy, approach, strategy, method the researcher select: Research philosophy: interpretivism Research approach: inductive Research strategy: exploratory Research method: qualitative The findings from the in depth interviews with individuals of 15 interviewees and two focus group interviews for staffs and managers of BORDA Vietnam and involved partner VAWR/ CTIC and from the daily observation of the management work as well as from the desk research of the secondary data, the meanings shall be summarised, categorised ans structured (Sauders et al., 2009:490) The research ethics are mentioned at the end of this chapter. The researcher will ask for acceptance of using the personal information from the interviewees. Without the agreement, it will be considered the confidential information and will not be displayed in the research.
Sunday, January 19, 2020
Ishmael Essay -- essays research papers
A review of... Ishmael à à à à à In the past few centuries there have been a handful of books written that offer up ideas about humanity that are so completely new to a reader but are so completely convincing that they can force a reader to take a step back and assess all that they know to be true about their life and their purpose. Daniel Quinn has succeeded in creating such a book in Ishmael, a collection of new ideas about man, his evolution, and the ââ¬Å"destinyâ⬠that keeps him captive. à à à à à When I began reading Ishmael I was amazed by the ideas offered by Quinn. Like in Rambo and the Dalai Lama by Gordon Fellman I was looking at the world not as it must be but as it could be. I was very suprised and excited, that as a member of ââ¬Å"generation Xâ⬠that tries so hard to create their own destiny, that I had never perceived or questioned ââ¬Å"Mother Cultureâ⬠. à à à à à In the first one hundred pages if Ishamel I found a number of convincing ideas that I believe I will take away with me. The greatest of these being that the technology that we believe will prolong our existence is the same driving force that propells us to extinction. I believe that Quinn illustrated this idea superbly with his narrative of the aeronauts. Man knew that he could fly but he didnââ¬â¢t know all the rules. And instead of leaving it be until he did he was so sure of himself that he made his attempts blindly and came to a much quicker end than if h...
Saturday, January 11, 2020
Iran Contra Affair Essay
In 1979, an Iranian government supported terrorist group overtook the US embassy. They captured 52 people. In an order to obtain the release of the American hostages being held in Lebanon, The Reagan Administration secretly began to sell weapons to Iran. This went against an American ban on arms sales to Iran, which had been in affect since the embassy had been seized. (Corrigan 40-41) These deals were arranged through Robert McFarlane, who was the head of the National Security Council. One of McFarlaneââ¬â¢s main staff members was Marine Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North. McFarlane gave North the responsibility of handling the details of the deal and told him not to send anything to Iran until the hostages had been released. North wanted to keep the deal going so he allowed Israel to ship the weapons before any hostages had been released. McFarlane criticized North, but North kept his job. McFarlane was replaced with Rear Admiral John M. Poindexter. North tried to convince Poindexter to continue the arms-for-hostage deal with Iran. North realized that there was a massive amount of money being made in this trade. He used some of this money made could be used to support an anti-communist organization in Central America. This organization, that was active in Nicaragua, was known as the Contras. The Contras were also highly supported by Reagan and his administration, seeing as we were in the Cold War against Communism. (Lawson 41-60) In the early 1980s, Congress passed a series of amendments known as the Boland Amendments. The Boland Amendments made it illegal for the U. S. military to further aid the Contras. (Cohen) The National Security Council was formed in 1947 to acquire secret information about the military plans of Russia throughout the Cold War. (Lawson 49) In 1985, North and McFarlane gave several letters to Congress, in which he lied about the questions that they had been asked about their involvement in supporting the Contras in Nicaragua. North lied again in a face-to-face meeting with Congress in 1986. North told the House Intelligence Committee he was involved neither in fundraising for, nor in providing military advice to, the Contras. In 1987 he was confronted with these accusations to which he admitted to misleading Congress with the answers he gave them. When the president later asked Attorney General to gather the relevant facts, North and Poindexter shredded and altered official documents on November 21, 1986. The destruction of these documents was a major loss to Congress, because they were now unable o use those destroyed documents against North in court. (http://icah. infobaselearning. com/pdocument. aspx? ID=129729&search=iran+contra+north) Further complicating the situation, Congress granted immunity to North and Poindexter so that they could eliminate the need for the testimony of President Reagan and Vice President Bush. Oliver North and Poindexter, while accused and under intense investigation were ultimately convicted. (http://icah. infobaselearning. com/pdocument. aspx? ID=110538&search=iran+contra+north) Lt.à Colonel Oliver North was criminally charged, prosecuted and convicted but later the convictions were overturned upon appeal due to the fact that he was granted immunity. North should have been convicted of his crimes and faced his time in jail for what he did. North burned legal documents containing crucial evidence for his trail, he lied to Congress about using the money from the Iran weapons sales to help the Contras, and by helping the Contra, he violated the Boland Amendments. On November 21, 1986, Oliver North shredded documents that were to be used in court as evidence. These documents were important legal information concerning his involvement in helping the Contras. His destruction of these documents led to Congress losing very valuable data to prove whether he was a scapegoat or a criminal. The fact that he destroyed the evidence made it clear that he wasnââ¬â¢t being honest and that led Congress to believe his other criminal charges. Oliver North violated many laws. The two most flagrant legal violations were the Boland Amendments and the American ban on arms sales to Iran. North continued to sell the weapons to Iran without any argument even though he knew it was against the law that was put in place by Congress. He went against the banned sales of guns with Iran, which was put in place to keep Iran from gaining powerful weaponry and putting American citizenââ¬â¢s lives in danger. His involvement and encouragement of continuing the illegal trade to aid the policies that he believed in should lead to his punishment. Also, the fact that he was also using federal money and weapons for the Contra agenda is a misappropriation of funds and of his position of power.
Friday, January 3, 2020
The Hippie Movement - 1662 Words
Thesis: During the 1950ââ¬â¢s the hippie movement began, hippies rebelled against society, had their own way of living, and had an impact on the world. I. Introduction A. How hippies formed B. What inspired them to be this way C. Thesis II. Rebelling Against Society A. Drop out 1. From school 2. From materialistic life B. Drugs 1. LSD, marijuana, etc. 2. Sold them to stay living III. Living style A. Fashion 1. Clothes and shoes 2. Hair and accessories B. Living 1. In small groups, sharing possessions 2. Moved from place to place 3. Begged for money C. Music 1. Connected at concerts 2. Musicians IV. Impact A. Disapproval 1. Ronald Reganâ⬠¦show more contentâ⬠¦Though many people became hippies or just supported the hippies, there were a number of Americans who did not approve of the hippie lifestyle and culture. When Ronald Regan was the governor of California, he once defined a hippie as someone ââ¬Å"who looked like Tarzan, walked like Jane, and smelled like Cheetah.â⬠Along with stating this, he did not support the way hippies thought life should be lived in America (Chepesiuk 1). The violence increased as the popula tion of hippies got larger and violence was greatly increased after a black male was stabbed at a California ââ¬Å"free music festivalâ⬠(Firm 128). The number of drug arrests and rapes raised as more criminals moved in to take advantage of the young, free living people (Chepesiuk 1). Hippie icons began to die of drug overdoses and the outraged emotions of the hippies who looked up to them, eventually led to more violence. Along with the violence came more antiwar movements (Firm 128). There were not only antiwar movements but also political, environmental, religious, and more. To organize together, hippies would use word of mouth, letters, and posters to get a large movement or rally together for a specific cause that they believed in (Chepesiuk 2). In the early 1970ââ¬â¢s after all of the violence, drugs, and unusual lifestyles the hippie movement began to decline, they realized they could not ââ¬Å"dropShow MoreRelatedEssay The Hippie Movement of 1960s America1422 Words à |à 6 Pagesconvictions. The American hippie movement of the 1960s was strengthened by the drastic increase of the youth population because of the the baby boomers, a longer adolescent period due to the improved economy, and the use of media and communications, such as TVs and radical college newspapers. There were two reactions to the hippie movement: the first, an angry uproar across the fifty states from the elder upper classes, and second, an inspiration for a few to try the hippie ways themselves. ââ¬Å"A fewâ⬠Read MoreHippie Culture : The Hippie Movement1068 Words à |à 5 PagesThe emergence of alternative cultures and movements during the 1960s were remarkably distinctive in which it contributed to the overall characteristics of the 1960s America. In particular, the hippie counter-culture was developed and it was popular amongst the younger Americans because they believed in peace. They wanted to live differently and wanted to be free from the mainstream society. In the film Easy Rider, it portrayed the hippie culture and at the same time, it portrayed the rejection ofRead MoreHippie Movement1719 Words à |à 7 Pages------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- THE CONTROVERSY OF THE HIPPIE MOVEMENT ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------- Read MoreThe Hippie Counterculture Movement1751 Words à |à 8 PagesHippie Counterculture Flower child, a name that forms in the mind an image of an innocent child, denoted the youth of the mid-1960s. These youth, otherwise called the hippies, relied not so much on innocence, but instead sought freedom to distinguish the conformity the past generations held. Before these youth, the Beats or Beatniks from the Beat Generation spread throughout the Western Worlds around the 1950s. The Beatsââ¬â¢ philosophy paralleled that of the hippies, however, their focus centeredRead MoreThe Counterculture Of The Hippie Movement1768 Words à |à 8 Pagesform of movements, mainly initiated by young people who rejected the mainstream society rules. In the following report I will be focusing on the hippie movement that started in 1960s and how the. Woodstock Music and Art Festival of 1969 became the most important music festival of the 1960s counterculture and thus a symbol of the hippie movement. Identity, body and fashion are some of the topics that will be talked in the following pea ce of work in context with the values, beliefs of the hippie movementRead MoreThe Anti-War and Hippie Movements1344 Words à |à 5 Pagestriggered the Anti-War movement and the Hippie counter culture such as the growing United States involvement in Southern Vietnam, the gruesome images that the evening news showed uncensored, the draft that caused many thousands of men to lose their lives and their minds as the end result of the war. This war triggered a great sense of what is right and wrong in specifically young people. Social justice and moral justice were some of the main focal points of the Anti-War and Hippie movements. This war allowedRead MoreThe Influence Of The Hippie Subculture1575 Words à |à 7 Pagesthe teenage ideology was influenced by the Hippie subculture Born from the social turmoil, and the differing opinions of people during the Vietnam War. The Hippie movement first gained traction in American Colleges and Universities. These young adults during the 1950s, are considered to be the very first pioneers of the hippie subculture. Through the youthsââ¬â¢ rebellious nature against the main ideals of society, and the growing popularity of the hippie subculture, hippies, through the 50s up untilRead MoreThe Trend Of The American Hippie Movement2191 Words à |à 9 PagesIntroduction The major trend of the American hippie movement from the 1960s had a major influence on the way New Zealand used drugs and how international trends still influence drug use today. Drug use patterns in New Zealand are very similar to other countries in the western world but also shows how some popular trends of ââ¬ËHard Drugsââ¬â¢ did not become a huge problem due to the isolation of New Zealand and how hard it was to bring in illegal drugs such as heroin. How international trends and idealsRead MoreThe Hippie Movement and the Beat Movemnt1704 Words à |à 7 PagesHow the Hippies got hip with the beat of the Beat Movement Jack Kerouac once said, ââ¬Å"the only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the starsâ⬠(Kerouac 5). Kerouac was the symbol of the Beat Movement. He was the rebellious and adventurous man, who during his time wasRead MoreThe New Left / Hippie Movement1132 Words à |à 5 PagesStruggle for Equality Stansell (2010) noted, early in the women s emancipation movement, which was profoundly embedded in the New Left, activists took an belligerent approach to their protests. Protests against sexism in the media vacillated from putting stickers saying Sexist on distasteful advertisements to embracing sit-ins at community media outlets, all the way to damage of newspaper offices p. 311. This method sometimes crossed the line into vulgarity, as at the 1968 sit-down outside the
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)