Career Development of Muslim Women - Essay Example

Running Head: CAREER DEVELOPMENT OF MUSLIM WOMEN Career Development of Muslim Women of the of the Career Development of Muslim Women Research Proposal Research Philosophy The research philosophy is intended with the investigation of interpretive epistemology as the topic will depend on conducting research among people thoughts, opinions and experiences which will be shown through the questionnaires that will be distributed among a sample of Muslim female employees, plus interaction with people by having an interview with a female leader. The purpose of this study is to understand the point of view of the selected target people regarding the research topic and to have a complete idea about the main obstacles that prevent them to develop their career. Also, to get more information from an existing leader which will add valuable information to the research objectives and guide the target people to some techniques that can be used to overstep the barriers. Hence; they will be having a real tool to develop themselves and they might achieve a successful career progression to reach a higher position in the existing workforce. Research Approach The Inductive approach will be used in this research which is part of the Subjectivism research approach as the investigations will depend on building theory through small sample of people perceptions regarding the situation that will be discussed to understand the reality of the study and to get their feelings about what is going on in order to identify better the nature of the problem and analysing those data. The results will give some solutions for the study along with evidences that will provide a clear picture for the target people to accomplish their goals. Research Design The research design that is selected for the study is an exploratory research design, in order to understanding the things deeply. As explained by Zechmeister et al., (1997) survey research represents a general approach to be used when the research design is implemented. Survey research is the method of gathering data from respondents thought to be representative of some population using an instrument composed of close structure or open-ended items (questions). It is one of the most dominant forms of data collection in the social sciences gives for proficient collection of data over broad populations, agreeable to self-administration, administration in person, by telephone, via mail and on the internet. The primary data is to be collected by conducting field research that involves face to face interviews, surveys, questionnaires and focused group interviews. Primary research involves the usage of primary data for the collection of data. Primary data are that information that is collected for the first time. The primary research will be especially useful since it will provide a guideline to the most current data available on this topic from Muslim women who are about to reach either supervisory or managerial positions and also from female who are about to enter the workforce. This will help to give an idea about what challenges they face and how they feel they will compare themselves with foreigners in the workplace. There are many advantages that have been identified in the use of the survey method. According to Babbie (2001), these advantages include: 1. One can collect a large amount of adapt in a fairly short time. 2. Surveys are easier and less expensive than other forms of data collection. 3. Questionnaire can be used to research almost any aspect of human perceptions regarding the variables under study. 4. They can be easily used on field settings. The secondary research method will include gathering data on the subject from different newspapers, magazines, online articles, press releases, academic journals, textbooks and other library books. Combining the knowledge gained from all these sources and both research methods will provide a lot of detail about the topic that can be used to develop suitable conclusions and recommendations for the future. This data will help to provide a formal structure to the paper so that it relates to a real research project with past researchers’ input for offering future strategies that the government can develop for helping muslim women obtain jobs. The study will follow all of the journalistic ethical guidelines and confidentiality agreements for its research methods and let the participants know their participation will be kept anonymous, which will enable them to give honest answers. Participants and Instrument The population of interest for this study includes selected muslim female employees of different organizations in UK. It is projected that the sample consisted of 150 participants. For the purpose of study a form of non-probability sampling used. As explained by Trochim (2001), in purposive sampling, the researcher samples with a purpose in mind from one or more specific and predefined groups, believed to be representative of the larger population of interest. Saunders (2007) noted that one of the benefits of purposive sampling is that it can be very useful for situations in which the researcher wants to reach a targeted group that otherwise might not be readily available. In accordance with the research philosophy, the study will refer to a research design using a primary research method of questionnaire which will be developed with questions to be given to a sample group of 150 Muslim female employees, which includes people who are holding managerial positions in different organizations. Questionnaires it is an inexpensive way to obtain responses from large population. It is the easiest way to get responses to do statistical analysis and find a conclusion. A well design questionnaire is critical for achieving the purposes of survey research. Additionally, concerns with validity (i.e. the degree to which an instrument measures what it was intended to measure) and reliability (i.e. the degree to which an instrument provides measurements that are consistent and accurate) must always be at the forefront of the questionnaire selection/construction process. A five point Likert scale for measure will be used in the questions, Likert scale is widely used in questionnaires, and it is most used in survey research. If there are Likert questionnaire item in the questionnaires, then the respondents state their level of agreement with the statement. In this study for few questions, the Likert scale having ranking 1 = not at all important to 5 = very important. For some questions the five point Likert scale was used in which 1 = Strongly Disagree to 5 = Strongly Agree. By far interviewing is the most commonly use as a selection tool. There are two structured interview techniques are behavioral and situational interview. During interview, the candidate can demonstrate their ability and present their expertise to the interviewers. The interviewers can make assessment by comparing the performance of each interviewee and hire the suitable candidate for particular position. Personal interview are helpful to measure the attitudinal behavior of the respondents, from this type of survey we can get very good response rate from the respondents, and the participants can tolerate even the longer interviews as compare to other surveys where respondents doesn’t take interest in long one (Babbie, 1990). There may also be interview of a Muslim female leader who is already in the workforce, in order to discuss her career progression and the obstacles that had affected her development. The interviews will be taped and transcribed for analysis. Researchers, working independently, categorized the statements derived from the interviews. Data Collection The main data collection methods are significant incident procedure, diaries, focus groups, interviews, observation, questionnaires, and documents (Collis, 2009). The survey method will be used as the means by which data is collecting within the study. Prior to initiating the data collection phase of the study, permission to conduct the survey, will be obtained from appropriate managerial people. Data collection will commence once approval granted. Questionnaires and the cover letter explaining the purpose of the survey and anonymity associated with participation in the survey will be distributed to participants and collected from them upon completion of the questionnaire. The data collection will involve gathering the information from both interview and questionnaires and then analyzing the results to find out what insight can be gained from them. Data Analysis Qualitative data will be analyzed to identify theories and trends and in order to process and organize the quantitative data; a database will be created by using a computer data base software program, (i.e., SPSS). The questionnaire selected may have a scale response format, which will allow for a number to be assigned for which response given for each item. For each respondent, the numerical response provided for each item as well as descriptive data obtained during survey, then entered into the database during the data-coding phase of the study. Within the study following the recommendations of Torchim (2001) statistical analysis are conducted through a progression or series of analysis using the SPSS. During the initial phase descriptive statistics is use to describe and summarize the data obtain within the study. The second phase of analysis is focused on the use of multivariate analysis to determine the relationship between specific items. This is conducted through the use of cross tabulation of nominal data between selected variables in the study. The Chi-square statistics is used to examine the significant effect of one variable on another. Statistical significance is to be set at an alpha level of 0.05. Limitations There might be few limitations when we will find the result of this study, firstly as we are going to analyse the leaders and Professional career development in female of particular group, so there may be change in outcomes if we will analyse women of different communities. Ethical Considerations While conducting research there will be some ethical considerations. Before conducting the research the permission will be taken from the appropriate management. Researcher’s personal biases and opinions should not get in the way of the research. Research should be conducted under the assumption that researchers will keep research findings anonymous in any case. During research process, it should be made sure that researchers will not take advantage of participants who are easily accessible; participants should be chosen according to their availability. Participants can be with draw any time if they want to quit. The results of the experiment will be kept confidential and researchers will use results with participants’ permission for research purposes. Participants should feel free to ask any question about the research and they will be provided with the outcome of the research. Timescale Tasks Weeks 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Research on Internet for journals and library for books                     Take notes on articles and books, work on how to format research data                     Start writing the Literature Review & ask for teachers feedback                     Final Modification for the Literature Review                     Actual Submission "Literature Review Report"   26 Mar                 Make questions for questionnairs and interview                     Get the teachers feedback on the questions                     Submit Final Form of questionnairs and Interview questions         26 Apr           Distribute 150 questionnairs across RTA, DPW and EK                     Conduct the Interview                     Collect the questionnairs and put together statistical results for analysis                     Analyze results using SPSS                     Writing final draft of study and seek the teachers comments                     Perform all editing and complete the "Final Chapter of Research Project"                   21 May Questionnaire This questionnaire is about Women leaders and Professional career development in Muslim World. Your Identity will remain anonymous and data from this questionnaire will be treated as confidential. You do not have to complete all the questions if you do not wish to. If you require further information or are affected by any issues arising due to this questionnaire please contact me using the e-mail address at the end of the Questionnaire. Your help is greatly appreciated in the completion of this questionnaire. Which age group do you fall into? (please circle) 20-30 30-40 40+ Marital Status? (please circle): Married Single Divorced Other (please specify): _______________ How important would you rate the following points on a scale of 1 to 5, Where 1 indicates Not at all important, 3 Moderately important and 5 Very important, please encircle. Women participation in organization Not at all important 1 2 3 4 5 Very important Leadership position in organizations for women Not at all important 1 2 3 4 5 Very important Acceptance of women role in organization. Not at all important 1 2 3 4 5 Very important Higher education in women. Not at all important 1 2 3 4 5 Very important Understanding of supportive leadership strategies among women. Not at all important 1 2 3 4 5 Very important Trustworthiness on women in organization. Not at all important 1 2 3 4 5 Very important The following questions are about the degree of satisfaction. Answer each item as accurately as you can by encircling the appropriate number for you. 1. Strongly Disagree 2. Disagree 3. Neither Agree Nor Disagree (Neutral) 4. Agree 5. Strongly Agree There is an equal employment opportunities for male and female in Muslim world. Strongly Disagree 1 2 3 4 5 Strongly Agree Female can prove themselves in leadership position as well. Strongly Disagree 1 2 3 4 5 Strongly Agree Intellectual ability in woman is less than a man. Strongly Disagree 1 2 3 4 5 Strongly Agree It’s not easy for women to do full time job. Strongly Disagree 1 2 3 4 5 Strongly Agree There is no difference in promotion rate of men and women in Muslim world. Strongly Disagree 1 2 3 4 5 Strongly Agree Women have become a good supporter of family in Muslim world. Strongly Disagree 1 2 3 4 5 Strongly Agree Leadership qualities in women are less than men. Strongly Disagree 1 2 3 4 5 Strongly Agree Women facing barriers in reaching higher positions in organizations. Strongly Disagree 1 2 3 4 5 Strongly Agree People have become broad minded in Muslim world than before. Strongly Disagree 1 2 3 4 5 Strongly Agree Please use the box below to include statement/comments about any further thoughts on Women leaders and Professional career development in MuslimWorld you may have. Thank you very much for your participation. Interview Questions The following questions will be asked to the working Muslim women. 1. What are the barriers that women face in doing job in Muslim world? 2. What strategies women should adopt in order to be on higher position in organization? 3. What are the differences present in leadership qualities of men and women? 4. What characteristics must be present among women for becoming effective leaders? 5. What is the role of education in getting senior position in an organization? 6. What strategies organizations should be adopted to become equal opportunity employer? 7. Do you feel that there is male dominancy in organizations? 8. Share any of your experience about male dominancy. References Babbie, E. R. (1990). Survey Research Methods. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Pub. Co., 11-16 Saunders, Mark et al. (2007). Research methods for business students, 4th ed. Financial Times Prentice Hall Collis, J., and Hussey, R. (2009) Business Research: A practical guide for undergraduate and postgraduate students, 3rd edition, Palgrave Macmillan Trochim, W. (2001). The research methods knowledge base, 1st edition. OH: Atomic Dog Publishing, 23-25. Zechmeister, E. B. (1997). A practical introduction to research methods in psychology (3rd Ed.) NY: Mc Graw Hill, 18-20. Read More