MSc Dissertation survey

K

kitch

Longterm Registered User
Hi
I am currently carrying out my dissertation for my MSc in Security and Risk Management with Leicester University. My research regards the implementation of the International Code of Conduct for Private Security Service Providers (2010) and the management of employees by security companies.

My underpinning theory framework for this study is two fold; 1, That by embracing the regulations, the product of a security company in a hostile region (the PSD/CP teams) will become more capable guardians and more able to deter negative consequences upon their clients (Criminological theory - Routine Activity Theory) and 2, That by adopting a stakeholder management approach to their employees/contractors, security companies will produce a more professional 'product' and thus be a more attractive proposition to potential clients (stakeholder management theory).

I still require 17 participants for my research, 2 for a pilot study and 15 for the actual research. No company names or personal information by which a person could be identified will be sought during the course of the survey. Your initial email address that the survey is sent to will contain a link to a SurveyMonkey survey. Once the survey is completed, I will have no access to which survey belongs to which person, thus assuring your privacy.

Over 600 companies have become signatories to the ICoC (2010), many I expect do not adhere to these minimum and basic regulations that pertain to training and management process's.

The aim is to gather opinions of contractors who have been working in a hostile environment for at least 3 years and who have worked for at least 2 different companies. I require participants who are enthused by this industry and who can deliver professional and constructive remarks/opinions to the questions.

A full consent and ethics introduction will be delivered by email along with the link to the survey for those who wish to be part of the research. The full dissertation will be available to participants on or around the 17th february 2014.

I also require 8 personnel for face to face semi - structured interviews in the UK in early January 2014.

All participants for the survey or the interviews must either be country managers, project managers, ops managers, team leaders, deputy team leaders, medics or team members.

I would particularly like the remaining participants to be currently studying an academic qualification. This will perhaps help someone further down the line with survey methodology etc, or indeed just another contact with someone who has completed a dissertation. I certainly would not have got this far without help and guidance from fellow students, many of whom I have never met.

Please PM me with your email address should you find this proposal of interest to you. The survey and interviews will take no longer than 1 hour to complete depending upon the depth of your answers.


Thank you for your time

Kitch
 
No, 30 surveys and 8 interviews. About the maximum for a dissertation concerned with qualitative research which is extremly time and word consuming.
 
kitch said:
No, 30 surveys and 8 interviews. About the maximum for a dissertation concerned with qualitative research which is extremly time and word consuming.
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Clarify that, are you saying the 17 you're asking for here are additional to some you already have. Or have I misread what you are asking for?
 
yes I already have the rest and more to come, I would like some more off here though as I know there are a lot of experienced people around. I could just get 30 random people to do it however I require professional operators who can express themselves clearly and can bring something to the table. As I also stated, it may help people out who are currently studying. The limitations of this small survey will be well documented in my dissertation, this is always the case with research. Future research that is required will also be documented. As long as it can be replicated too in the future by other students then it is all good. 20k words is not a lot when you consider that the survey alone with 30 people taking part answering 35 questions will produce over 1000 complete answers which will need to be analysed and coded. I expect the data to take up at least 10k words alone. This is primary research.
 
kitch well done on getting this far, been there done that, and continue to do so with a Doctorate, I hope you find the whole process enjoyable, if not a huge challenge.

I'm sure you probably are on LinkedIn, but there are a couple of good groups for postgrad research into security, I'm sure a post on them might yield some results.

Littlewoman, I think the OP has probably answered the question, but there are clear research practices in academia, each with a range of conforming protocols which can be (are) hugely boring, but a qualitative study of this nature does not benefit from a larger sample or research pool, one might even argue that x30 is quite a lot, although I think from what the OP says this is the total for both pilot and final research. If this was a qualitative piece, one aiming to develop conclusions based on statistics, then a much much broader pool would be required for credible analysis. As an example, for a similar qualitative piece for research degree (Doctorate) I used a pool of 5 participants.

kitch, who is your tutor (DM me if you prefer)? Looking at a 35 question paper (just read your post again), I'd be inclined to think that your research pool might be a little heavy; or is the x30, split between sample and final work? But that may depend on your methods of analysis.

Good luck with it, and if you want to bounce any questions, just ask.
 
Carmdale said:
Littlewoman, I think the OP has probably answered the question, but there are clear research practices in academia, each with a range of conforming protocols which can be (are) hugely boring, but a qualitative study of this nature does not benefit from a larger sample or research pool, one might even argue that x30 is quite a lot, although I think from what the OP says this is the total for both pilot and final research. If this was a qualitative piece, one aiming to develop conclusions based on statistics, then a much much broader pool would be required for credible analysis. As an example, for a similar qualitative piece for research degree (Doctorate) I used a pool of 5 participants.
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I accept that if its a qualitative study then 30 is a decent number, it was the use of the word "survey" that threw me, I would only generally use that word to mean the sort of survey that involves tick boxes and short answers. Unfortunately there are a lot of people pop up on forums asking people to take part in some badly thought out (or not thought out) survey that they've done on Survey Monkey. They then put together some thesis based on a load of nonsense which then just might end up being quoted by some civil servant ("... a study carried out by the University of Wherever have proved...") and used to formulate policy. That is why I get a little concerned about these things.
 
A survey is just that; in the terms of academic conformity (boring) a survey is / does just what is says on the tin, there are no assumptions as to the method, such as you describe, which would be a questionnaire (of a specific type). That is something separate all together.

I used to forever mix up terms which colloquially have similar meanings or might be used interchangeably, such as study, survey, review etc, but in an academic environment they each have clear delineation.

I understand your point on (if I might call it this) Mickey Mouse research, I'm sure we have all come across examples, I know I do frequently. A point to other potential research participants; don't be put off by Survey Monkey, it is a useful and widely used tool in all types of research and widely used at postgrad level - I routinely use it to conduct Doctoral level research, with my Supervisor's approval and that of the research ethics committee (REC).

If anyone approached as a possible participant in any research has any concerns or seeks clarification, at Masters level, it is fair and reasonable to ask for the tutor or department details to seek assurance; in the case of research degrees (Doctorates) the recruitment process comes with ethical restrictions and protocols based around the requirement for "informed consent", for much clearer transparency.

I hope this gives a little insight and clarification; I notice there are a few forum members at various stages of academic study, I'm sure this wont be the last such request on the forum.

littlewoman said:
I accept that if its a qualitative study then 30 is a decent number, it was the use of the word "survey" that threw me, I would only generally use that word to mean the sort of survey that involves tick boxes and short answers. Unfortunately there are a lot of people pop up on forums asking people to take part in some badly thought out (or not thought out) survey that they've done on Survey Monkey. They then put together some thesis based on a load of nonsense which then just might end up being quoted by some civil servant ("... a study carried out by the University of Wherever have proved...") and used to formulate policy. That is why I get a little concerned about these things.
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I have no problems with Survey Monkey itself, it is a very good and useful tool. Its just that it seems courses demand that a survey is done so some students throw one together just to tick the box that says they've done one. Sometimes they don't care about the results or the subject, they just want the certificate at the end. Other times people do care but don't have enough knowledge of the subject to ask the right questions. One thing that can help when doing a quantitative survey is to do a small number first and get feedback as to whether it made sense and asked the right questions. Then use that feedback to do a more meaningful survey. Usually its best to do more qualitative studies as interviews after the initial survey, as that can give you a much more in depth understanding of the issues.
 
I'd agree with you to a point on some of those issues.

However the point about doing a "tick box survey for the hell of it just to say you've done one" (my words not yours) I don't think is anything to do with the original post, and is likely much more of an issue with training from outside an academic environment. That said, there will be surveys conducted as learning exercises more for process learning than for credible research at lower / entry academic levels in particular. That's not wrong. As such, sometimes the results are not the primary goal, but the successful design and implementation of the method or tool are what is being assessed.

These type of exercises are conducted at all academic levels from Foundation through to Doctorate.

I'd agree wholeheartedly with your observations on pilot or small-scale studies; again however these have their place and function within academic conformity also, and at a Masters level they may not be routinely used (depends on the course / subject of course) where two or even three assessment methods are used one of which will be the dissertation, an exam, case study or presentation may be the others but its unlikely that a pilot study be used in this case. Much more likely is that such a study will take place in the early stages of a larger research piece, over many years, as part of a stepping stone to a final research piece.


littlewoman said:
I have no problems with Survey Monkey itself, it is a very good and useful tool. Its just that it seems courses demand that a survey is done so some students throw one together just to tick the box that says they've done one. Sometimes they don't care about the results or the subject, they just want the certificate at the end. Other times people do care but don't have enough knowledge of the subject to ask the right questions. One thing that can help when doing a quantitative survey is to do a small number first and get feedback as to whether it made sense and asked the right questions. Then use that feedback to do a more meaningful survey. Usually its best to do more qualitative studies as interviews after the initial survey, as that can give you a much more in depth understanding of the issues.
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My research is indeed using SurveyMonkey. There are are a few 'tick' questions in the first section regarding demographics and then the other sections are formed so that there is ample space for participants to comment on the questions as in depth as they are able to. I have so far received 15 completed surveys and they have given me some very informative answers with which to work with and more so that reveal information pertinent to the industry regarding the ICoC. The subject of regulation within the industry enthuses me and so this dissertation for me serves not only as 'a tick in the box' but also as a possible jump to further research in the future. I fully intend to send my findings to the oversight committee of the ICoC once it has been marked by UNI as I feel they should at least be given the chance to read the findings and discussion section should they be interested. If they aren't interested then that alone will provide me with some answers about regulation within the industry!
Carmdale, the number of 30 was given to me by my supervisor as a number to 'aim for' and I am happy that should I receive less I will work with what I get. The problems encountered in obtaining 30 surveys are indeed a part of the dissertation anyway in my methodology section. The research has to be able to be replicated anyway and so problems encountered are a welcome addition to any research project. i also suspect that my target of 8 interviews will not be reached as I only have a small time frame in january in which to complete these whilst I am home in the UK. Transcribing and coding an interview alone will take me 5 or 6 hours i imagine.

Littlewoman i am pretty sure that if i were to just throw a 'survey' together then Leicester UNI will not allow me to achieve an MSc..... from my experience of the course so far, the last 6 modules have been tough and essays that i have turned in and thought to myself ' thats at least a 75% mark' have been quite frankly ripped apart from the seams! My average from all the modules is 66% and to achieve that has caused me some hellish long nights working away and stressing. I have not found it easy whatsoever... and I cant wait til it is over to be honest so some resemblance of a normal life can hopefully return.
 
Keep at it kitch; there is a huge difference between doing academic research especially at postgrad level compared to what most would assume is "just a survey", even if they have access to Google & Wikipedia.

If I can be of any help, just ask.
 
I still require 5 participants for my research, if you have been employed in the Private Security Industry for at least the last 3 years and have worked for more than 1 company in that time and wish to air your views on regulation and management practises within the Industry then please PM me with your email address.Thanks

Kitch
 
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