Testing for Normality and Reliability

Before considering the possible analysis of significance which could be carried out on the quantitative survey data, the distribution of this data was established. The normal distribution of data is a surprisingly common type of distribution and the special properties of this distribution are relied upon heavily by parametric tests. As a sample size increases, “the means of the samples taken from practically any population approach a normal distribution” Sekaran (2003, p. 267). There are many forms of statistical tests, that assume a normal population, but as they are quite robust, they and are satisfactory even in the absence of exact normality (Suliman & Abdulla, 2005). The range and the inter-quartile range give an idea of the spread of a sample but most of the values play no role in calculating them. The standard deviation is a measure of variability that takes account of all the data in a sample and is only ever used for scale data and is usually the measure of variability reported with the mean. Although, a system of classification offers respondents a range of possible answers, as this research does, using a 5 point Likert scale from strongly agree to strongly disagree, it is possible to place all classifications in order, and is known as ordinal data (Easterby-Smith et al 2002). It is however difficult to be sure that the difference between ‘agree’ and ‘strongly agree’ is the same as the difference between ‘neither agree nor disagree’ and ‘agree’. If there is confidence that the interval between any certain variable is the same as between others this is known as interval data (Easterby-Smith et al 2002).

5.10. Summary

There are a number of methodological strategies which were considered at the start of this research. It was also necessary to consider how each of these strategies might be linked to a particular design or philosophy, but the research strategy chosen reflects the fact that careful thought was given to why the particular strategy was selected and includes valid reasons for the decisions made regarding the research.

The justification for the choice was based on the research questions and objectives and the fact that business and management research is often a mixture between scientific and social research. The philosophical stance taken to any research is known as the research paradigm and basically this means the assumptions about how the research views reality which subsequently influences on how the research is conducted, and the approach to the entire process of the research study.

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The justification for this study comes from the increasing interest in management development and human resources development in general and Libya in particular, to develop, improve, and upgrade performance of human resources to achieve the required level of effectiveness, and to remain competitive in the world economy. Additionally as real world studies are very commonly evaluative; i.e. their purpose is to assess the worth or value of something, a flexible design was considered appropriate, because the specific focus of this evaluation was on two comparative cases.

Justification for the use of a case study design is that this is a tried and tested strategy for doing research which involves an empirical investigation of a particular contemporary phenomenon within its real life context using multiple sources of evidence. For this research all the managers at each company where approached and asked to participate. Documentary evidence was also collected from each company and non participant observation was used to observe and record what people do in terms of their actions and their behaviour without the research being involved.

The main data collection tool was the questionnaire that was delivered by hand to each respondent and collected later. The main advantage being that all the completed responses could be collected within a short period of time and any initial doubts that the respondents might have on any question were clarified on the spot. The research was also able to introduce the research topic and motivate the respondents to offer their frank answers. Telephone interviews were used in retrospect to gather specific information regarding management development within the companies. The use of qualitative interviews by telephone was employed because of the advantages associated with access, speed and lower cost. With regards to data analysis strategy, the analysis and interpretation of this research data forms the major part of a research project the tools of analysis used will depend on whether quantitative or qualitative data has been collected.

The research considered development at both the individual as well as the organisational level. At the individual level management development was considered a process that included both formal and informal programmes by which managers gain the skills, abilities and knowledge to manage themselves and others and to perform effectively in managerial roles. At the organisational level, management development was considered

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to be a process which could be planned or unplanned but in any case would be deliberate, that helps managers in the organisation to learn, grow, and improve and develop their experience, skills, abilities, ideas, knowledge, culture, personal identity and relationships, so they can contribute to the effective development for the achievement of organisational goals and strategies. The objective was to analyse the current management development practices in a Libyan organisation and explore the extent to which a typically Libyan approach to MD can be improved by transference of Western models. Because standardisation lies at the heart of survey research, the primary concern was to gather consistent answers to consistent questions. It was important therefore to standardise the questionnaire as a measuring instrument.

The sampling frame used and design of the questionnaire and its distribution all affect the response rate, the reliability and validity of the data collected. In addition the way the sample was selected, their responses collected, analysed and interpreted, and the consistency of the research lend credibility of the research findings. This research believes that the procedure would produce similar results under constant conditions on all occasions. In the final analysis the research process for this study offered validity, by establishing correct operational measures for the concepts being studied. There is analysis to establish whether a causal relationship, whereby certain conditions are shown to lead to other conditions. The studies finding should be generalisable to Libyan companies in general and the operations of this study could be repeated, at any of them with the same results. In the next chapter provides the cases to be studied are introduced and the documentary and anecdotal evidence concerning the value, contribution and purpose of management development within each company is presented.

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CHAPTER SIX