The current research strategy: A triangulation

A case study research strategy has been adopted for the scope of this enquiry. Similarly to Tolofari (2008, p. 25) who considered the Swedish university system as the “case” for studying the commodification of higher education in Sweden, the Greek higher education system is the “case” for the current study. Tolofari (2008, p. 25) also considered that the definition of a state education provided by Archer (1979, p. 54) was suited in the case of higher education system in Sweden as an appropriate one to be used for his study:

“a nationwide and differentiated collection of institutions devoted to formal education, whose overall control and supervision is at least partly governmental, and whose component parts and processes are related to one another” (quoted in Bray & Kai 2007, p. 126).

In the same vein, the Greek higher education system constitutes of the HEIs (universities and TEIs) that are strongly depended, supervised and controlled by the

Ministry of Education. It is worth noting that the statutory and legal regulations that govern with much detail the administrative structure and operationability of higher education in Greece have resulted in the creation of a number of institutions that constitute separate entities; at the same time they portray an explicit homogeneity in many vital aspects. Thus, it can be supported that they form parts of a uniform national system of tertiary education (Papadeas, 2008). In particular, they are related to one another regarding their aims, goals, government and management processes. Consequently, the Greek HEIs are concerned as a state education system and it will be the “case” under investigation for the scope of this study. Further, supporting the idea of the higher education system as being a case study Tolofari (2008) made reference to statements that claim that a case could be either a student or a national education policy or even an educational programme.

It is also supported that a case study represents a form of fieldwork which examines in depth and over time one or many organizations which are considered as a bounded and integrated system (Merriam, 2002). A case study focuses on with an intensive and holistic way and describes and analyzes a phenomenon that is considered as bounded or a social constructed unit such as an individual, an individual, a group of individuals, a programme, a system or an institution (Merriam, 2002). Furthermore, it is claimed that the dynamics within single settings could be understood by using a case study strategy. As it is mentioned, the current study’s research problem and the derived research questions concern the intra organizational dynamics such as institutional and change dynamics which influence the responses of the Greek HEIs to the external governmental pressures. Consequently, the strategy of the case study is considered to

be mostly appropriate for examining and explaining the research phenomenon and answering the research questions regarding the case of the Greek HEIs that are perceived as a single setting. Furthermore, as already has mentioned above, a case study strategy allows for a phenomenon to be investigated from various standpoints and over a period of time within its social context. In this vein, a case study approach has proved to be of crucial importance for the development of theories that explain MA change and accounting practices within organisations. In addition, Burns (2000) suggested the focusing on specific organisational settings, since it provides an opportunity to clarify and render understandable the various aspects of the MA change process.

Further, on the choice of the research strategy or strategies to be adopted, Saunders et al. (2012, p. 173) claimed that these should be considered as being “mutually inclusive” instead of exclusive. For instance, in a case study, a survey strategy can be possibly used as a sub part of it. This is triangulation that refers to the use of various methods of data collection. The triangulation between case study and survey research strategies has been considered as a means of the convergences and/or divergences degree’s assessment of the obtained findings. Respectfully to the above view, the survey strategy will be employed, as part of the case study research strategy. Firstly, the adopted survey strategy will facilitate answering the particular research questions and objectives “what” and “how”. Secondly, the triangulation of both case study and survey strategies will contribute to the holistic understanding of the research problem, with the survey focusing on the incidences that have been observed in the case study and the form and the strength of relationships, and the case study providing a deeper and richer

understanding of the survey findings (Moddel, 2005). Finally, Saunders et al. (2009) claimed that the choice of the research strategy to be employed depends on the available resources and the time of the research. The survey research strategy is very valuable when survey people who are widely distributed over a geographical area. In the present inquiry, the case study under investigation is the specific case of Greek HEIs and the research will be undertaken on a national level. This implies the necessity for a survey strategy given the amount and the geographical distribution of the participants, such as staff members of the Greek HEIs.

According to the time horizon, surveys include cross-sectional and longitudinal studies. A longitudinal research design require repeated surveys and the representation of phenomena and/or the study of people over a given period of time (Canava et al., 2001; Saunders et. al., 2012). This is a “diary” perspective. A cross-sectional survey is a “snapshot” perspective and is undertaken at a particular time (Saunders et al., 2012, p. 190). The current survey strategy has taken the form of a one time cross-sectional study. The rationale for this choice is that the current study was initiated in 2008 while its aim has been to investigate the changes during a period of ten years from 1998 to 2008. As a result, conducting repeated surveys at different points in time has not been feasible. Even more, the main objective of the current study is to measure variations between and amongst same group members (i.e. Greek HEIs) rather than to measure variations across time concerning a range of issues and/or factors (Groves et al., 2004).