SEARCH FOR PARTICIPANTS

The first points of contact were Muslim and Buddhist Associations in Australia and Singapore [app. VI.22]. The initial search in the telephone directory assistance of both countries for ‘Muslim’ and ‘Buddhist’ gave several useful leads. Those in Australia were phoned and appointments were arranged with suitable persons. Those in Singapore were first emailed a letter requesting for assistance to suitable referrals [app. VI.23]. A letter was also forwarded by one of the researcher’s supervisors enlisting support for the surveys [app. VI.24]. The associations were then contacted by phone when no response was received after about two weeks.

As mentioned above, the ‘Malay’ and ‘Muslim’ categories were removed after two and a half months of unsuccessful attempts at finding these respondents in Australia and Singapore.

Most Buddhist associations were unable to provide assistance because of confidentiality with members’ list. Some others were helpful with referrals. However, not all of these referrals were interested to participate in the research. In most instances, participants were found through the researcher’s personal contacts. The following describes how each of the categories of participants was sought.

Australia - Chinese-Christians

Five of these were recruited from the researcher’s personal contacts. The remaining one was a respondent from the random sample.

Australia – Chinese-Buddhists

Requests through friends and relatives furnished a list of five people. Three referrals were given by one of the Chinese officials from the Budddhist organisation in Melbourne. These referrals were followed up and resulted in positive responses.

Australia – Caucasian-Buddhists

Most of the contacts (through email, post, phone and face-to-face) with the Buddhist organisations listed on BuddhaNet Buddhist Internet Directory [app. VI.22] did not produce any referrals. The contacts made with managers of golf clubs, the Lions and Rotary Clubs and masonic temples in Melbourne [app. VI.22] were similarly unproductive.

The main Buddhist official body in Victoria was able to assist with contacts in Singapore and Malaysia. Two Buddhist respondents from the qualitative interview sample also gave assistance with referrals. One of these respondents had kindly invited the researcher to a Buddhist festival celebration at the temple. This visit provided two participants. Two further referrals from friends of the researcher led to two successful responses.

Singapore and Malaysia – Caucasian-Christians

A search of ‘Caucasian’ sounding names in the Directors’ List found in Kompass Singapore and Malaysia produced the names and contact details of directors and/or managers of prospective companies. A check was then made in The Dun & Bradstreet Who Owns Whom 1999/2000 database to ensure that these companies were ‘locally owned’ and sampling consistency could be achieved for comparisons to be made between the studies.

Each company was selected at random and the key official contacted by phone. After their consent to participate was obtained, the survey [as per random sample in app. VI.16] was emailed, faxed or posted as directed with a covering letter [app. VI.25]. Changes in reference to the appropriate country were the only ones made to the survey.

As the researcher did not want participation to be hampered by inquiries into the personal characteristics of the prospective respondents, this information was learnt only on receipt of the survey. Owing to this, more than the required number of six participants for each category had to be canvassed. This was also found necessary because due to work pressures, the few who agreed to respond changed their minds. Some respondents were found to be unsuitable, for example, they were agnostic or of religions other than Christianity. In other instances, Managing Directors/Directors had handed the survey over to their Human Resource Manager who did not fit into any of the required categories of participants. Seven responses from Singapore and six from Malaysia were received in the final count.

Singapore and Malaysia – Caucasian-Buddhists

Contacts were made with a wide range of organisations [list in app. VI.22]. These included

[b] the international division as well as overseas offices of the Chambers of Commerce found in Singapore and Malaysia, for example, The American and British Chambers of Commerce;

[c] social ethnic associations such as The American Association of Malaysia, The Association of British Women in Malaysia etc.;

[d] departments dealing in either Chinese Studies, Southeast Asian Studies or Sociology in the main universities of Singapore and Malaysia.

The time given and the number of contacts made via the phone, email, fax, post and personal visits to Buddhist temples and associations located in the three countries, were by far the highest for the search for participants to fulfil the Caucasian-Buddhist categories. Every lead continued to be followed up until the time the analysis for this study was due to complete even though the search for participants officially ceased after seven arduous months. Seven participants were eventually found from Australia and three were obtained from Malaysia. None resulted from Singapore.

Malaysia – Chinese-Christians and Buddhists

The names of prospective participants were selected in much the same manner as that which had been described in the above section on ‘Singapore and Malaysia – Caucasian-Christians’. In this instance, however, the search from Kompass Malaysia involved directors or senior executives with ‘Chinese’ names. Of the seven that responded, six were Buddhists and one was a Christian. The remaining participants were secured through personal contacts.

Malaysia – Malay-Muslims

Kompass Malaysia was also enlisted for company directors with ‘Malay’ names. Seven were received in total and they were from Human Resource Managers who responded on behalf of the Director of the company who had been contacted by the researcher initially.

6.10.3 DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED IN FINDING PARTICIPANTS