Data collection method

Once the survey research strategy is selected, the next step is to identify the most appropriate data collection method for the research design and the cost-time limitations of this PhD research. Accordingly, brief descriptions of each representative data collection technique, as well as the justification for choosing a questionnaire as the data collection method, are presented as follows.

4.4.1 Archival and documentary research

Archival and documentary research is based on the analysis of available historical and archival information from different categories of documents such as communications, individual records, organisational and government sources, and media sources (Saunders et al., 2016). The documents used for investigating are often applied as secondary data (Saunders et al., 2016). The historical archive data analysis method is often used with a single or multiple case study research design, but is sometimes also applied in combination with survey or panel study (Flynn et al., 1990), with the rationale of triangulating aggregate collected data to ensure the reliability of the data (Saunders et al., 2016).

In this thesis, the archival and documentary research data collection method was not adopted because of either detailed archival and documentary data about the history of relationships between client and contractors, nor the outcomes in projects in Chile were available to the public.

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4.4.2 Participant observation

Participant observation is another type of data collection method where the researcher takes part in the activities of the research subjects and becomes a member of the team, organisation or community (Saunders et al., 2016). This participation can be categorised into four types, namely complete participant, complete observer, observer-as-participant, and participant-as-observer. The choice of one of these categories basically depends on the research questions. Participant observation is convenient for social research where the research question is related to exploring the dynamics of situations (Saunders et al., 2016).

Participant observation is also very useful for theory development and hypothesis formulation (Flynn et al., 1990); consequently, it is suitable for qualitative (inductive) research (Babbie, 2010) that uses either the case study or panel study research strategy (Flynn et al., 1990).

Since this study adopts survey to gather data; participant observation is not a convenience choice.

4.4.3 Interviews

Saunders et al. (2016, p. 388) define the research interview as a “purposeful conversation between two or more people requiring the interviewer to establish rapport, to ask concise and unambiguous questions and to listen attentively”. The interview is one of the most frequently applied techniques in engineering and construction management research case studies (Dainty, 2008). There are three basic types of interviews – structured, semi-structured, and unstructured or in-depth – that differ in levels of formality and structure (Saunders et al., 2016). For structured interviews (or quantitative research interviews) the researcher uses a script based on a set of specified questions that are asked as written and each response is recorded on a pre-code. In contrast, semi-structured and in-depth interviews are non-standardised. In semi-structured interviews, the researcher uses a list of possible questions and related themes that can be either omitted or added to if necessary, depending on the course of the conversation, to assure satisfactory data collection. The responses are

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recorded by audio recordings and note taking. The third type of interview, unstructured or in-depth, uses an informal process wherein the researcher works from his or her clear and thorough understanding of the topic, without relying on a list of predefined questions. Audio recording and note taking are also necessary for this type of interview process.

Interviewing is a preferred technique for qualitative (inductive) research where complicated research subjects require deep analysis to clarify questions or the terminologies used (Babbie, 2010). This face-to-face conversation method can generate more confidence for the researcher with regard to response rate, response bias and missing values in the data collected (Saunders et al., 2016). In addition, interviews are also effective to confirm that the interviewee fully understands the context of the questions; that allows the researcher to refine the questions if it is necessary to do so to elicit the deepest answer(s) (Babbie, 2010).

Despite the benefits from the flexibility and applicability of this method in social science research, there are also disadvantages, mainly associated with semi-structured and in-depth interviews, beginning with higher costs and longer time requirements than those relating to other techniques. For example, persuading individuals to agree to be interviewed can sometimes be difficult; and detailed transcriptions are necessary for coding and finding patterns in the data to develop or to test the hypotheses (Flynn et al., 1990). Secondly, the interview is a very good choice used in case study research strategy to apply where there are a limited number of cases and individuals. Owing to these disadvantages and the use of survey, the interview is not an appropriate option for this study.

4.4.4 Questionnaires

Flynn et al. (1990, p. 259) identify the questionnaire as “the most common method used in survey research” that represents a favoured data collection technique in business and management research (Saunders et al., 2016), as well as engineering and construction project management (Dainty, 2008). Saunders et al. (2016) defines questionnaires as a data collection technique consisting of a predetermined instrument specifically designed to obtain original

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data, to which all respondents answer the same set of ordered and predefined questions; such as the self-completed questionnaire (e.g., online, postal, delivery and collection), and the interviewer-completed questionnaire (e.g., telephone, face-to-face) (Babbie, 2010).

Self-completed questionnaires represent the cheaper and quicker option because the researcher does not necessarily have to be present at the site (Babbie, 2010), and are therefore a recommended choice when the research has a limited schedule and budget (Saunders et al., 2016). For instance, the time and cost of collecting data from geographically dispersed samples can be drastically reduced by using self-administered questionnaires, particularly online-based, that can capture and automatically save the data without the possibility of increasing method bias that arises in cases that transfer data by hand (Saunders et al., 2016).

A self-administered questionnaire is the preferred choice of data collection method for this study. In the first place, questionnaires are strongly linked to survey research strategies and quantitative (deductive) research design. Second, survey questionnaires represent the most appropriate method to cross-national studies like this one (i.e., data gathered from project managers in Chile). Third, there is a solid body of knowledge about value creation processes that provides sophisticated definitions and validated measures of key constructs.

Finally, this method addresses the restrictions in time and cost relevant to this doctoral research.