Ethical Considerations

Social researchers should be ethical during their research and related activities. Saunders et al. (2007) mentioned ethics in the context of a research as a appropriateness of the researcher's behaviour in relation to the rights of those who become the subject of study, or are affected by it. Blumberg et al. (2005, p.92 see Saunders et al., 2007) defines ethics as the "moral principles, norms or standards of behaviour that guide moral choices about our behaviour and our relationships with others".

Keeping in view the criticality of the ethical considerations for this research and in order to protect data of the Case Study organisations and to manage ethical implications, the researcher developed comprehensive data protection protocol in line with the requirements of the University Research Governance and Ethical Approval Committee and in compliance with Data Protection Act.

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4.6.10 (a) The Case Study Data Protection Protocol

While preparing case study data protection protocol, various provisions were considered to cater ethical areas which are mentioned below:

i- Permission from the Potential Case Study Organisations: A formal permission was obtained from the potential organisations for the purposes of their participation/contribution to the case study research based on semi-structured interviews and study of the relevant documentary evidences. The permission was granted and a non-disclosure agreement was signed.

ii- Research Subjects (Interviewees) Consent: The present researcher contacted the business excellence / quality managers in the selected organisations either directly or through Dubai Quality Award Secretariat to explain the nature of the research project. They were showing interest and cooperation as the researcher assures to maintain non-disclosure and confidentiality throughout and even after the assignment. Moreover, each individual was communicated through the contact persons i.e. the business excellence / quality managers of the organisation. Further, each individual was sent “research project information sheet for interviewee” explaining research data collection process prior to the conduct of an interview. Then a written and informed consent of the research subjects/interviewees was obtained on individual basis before conducting the actual interviews. (See Appendix-1: Informed Consent Form).

iii- Record of Information: The information obtained during the interviews was recorded through notes taken on the paper during the interview. As such no sound recording was permitted by the interviewees as well as their respective organisation. To maximise its validity and authenticity, the information obtained during the interview through written notes was clearly typed and sent to each interviewee for his/her review and approval.

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iv- Storage, Security and Confidentiality of the Information: The information obtained during the interviews was stored in a hard plastic folder as they were written notes. Similarly, all documentary evidences viewed in the case study organisations in support of and in relation to the interviews were recorded where allowed. No document or their photocopy was allowed to be taken by the case study organisation. To ensure maximum security of the electronic data stored, it has been password protected. All this stored information in electronic or written form has been kept in the researcher's sole custody at a safe place in a cabinet with no access to anybody other than the researcher himself in order to ensure maximum security and confidentiality of the information.

v- Protection of Identity and Anonymity of Data: To maintain the confidentiality level, interviews were done one-on-one and not in front of other participants. Further to ensure anonymity of the participant, names have been masked and coded. Identity of both case study organisations and individuals participating in the case study research is fully protected by the researcher. No organisational or individual identity whatsoever is revealed in the case study publication(s) and the case study results will be presented anonymously. To ensure complete protection of the case study organisations' and individuals' identity, appropriate coding was used.

vi- What If an Interviewee Opts to Drop Out after Interview: It was conveyed to each individual that in case a research subject/interviewee opts to drop out after being interviewed, all the information obtained through him/her will be destroyed immediately.

vii- Length of Holding Interview Recordings and Other Documentary Evidences: The records of interviews will be kept in safe custody of the researcher at least for ten years from the date of interviews.

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viii-Secure Destruction of Records after Elapsing the Holding Period: After elapsing the holding period, all the case study interview recordings on paper sheet and other relevant paper documents such as text files will be destroyed by the researcher in strict confidentiality using the paper shredder.

ix- Sharing of the Recordings: All interviewees were clarified that there is no intention of the researcher to share the recordings of the case study interviews and other related documents with anyone except for the extremely rare case if the examiners of the researcher's PhD thesis demand to see the original evidence of data collected.

x- Other Ethical Issues Considered:

 Organisation’s “Health and Safety Policy” was confirmed and followed.  Organisation’s “No Smoking Policy” was adhered.

 Official break timing such as lunch break was also observed. Most of the interviews were planned either before or after lunch breaks.

xi- Potential Risk (If Any): There wasn’t any risk involved in the research either for the case study organisation or to the individual. Selected organisations showed their willingness to cooperate for this research work. No risk was sought for individuals as well because their names were masked and remained confidential during and after the study. Secondly their relevant organisation agreed to participate in this study, so they allowed relevant people to participate.

137 4.6.11 Triangulation

As mentioned by Denscombe (2007), triangulation involves the practice of viewing things from more than one perspective, so findings can be corroborated by comparing the data produced by different methods. Collis and Hussey (2003) suggested that the use of different methods was intended to achieve the triangulation of data, and to overcome the possibility of bias with a single method approach. According to Saunders et al. (2007, p. 139), triangulation in social and managerial research, referred to the use of different data collection techniques within one study in order to ensure that the data are telling you what you think they are telling you.

In this research study, internal and external triangulation were performed in analysing the research data derived from the different collection methods and the different interviewees’ levels in the case study organisations. Internal triangulation was a method of cross-checking the existence of certain phenomena and the accuracy of individual account, via gathering data from a number of interviews. Meanwhile, external triangulation was the use of several data collection methods within one case study in order to increase the validity of the findings and the researcher confidence in the reliability of the information obtained. Yin (2011) claimed that the most important benefit which emerged by employing multiple sources of evidence is the development of converging lines of inquiry, i.e. a process of data triangulation. Yin (2011) further recommended that using multiple sources of evidence as a way to ensure construct reliability.

Based on the above discussion, the author chose interview as a main source of evidence. The semi-structured open-ended interviews were supported by other sources of evidence, i.e. documentation review, observation and archival records. By employing multiple sources of evidence, the data collected was triangulated to find convergence of information about the subject researched.

138 4.6.12 Translation

The official language in Dubai is English. All the interviewees had good command of English. The interview questions were developed in the English language and all interview sessions were conducted in English, therefore no language translation was required.