Investigation into the Absence of Kuwaiti Young Leaders within the Internet Service Providers Sector in Kuwait

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Table of Contents

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY1

Research Philosophy1

Research Methodology2

Research Plan and Design3

The Qualitative Research3

Research Participants4

Methods of Data Collection5

Methods of Data Analysis5

The Quantitative Research5

Structure of the Questionnaire6

The Research Function7

Data Collection Validity and Reliability8

Research Process Ethics and Confidentiality9

Conclusion10

REFERENCES11

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

This chapter aims at discussing the methodology of thesis, which includes the comprehensive methods that are applied to complete the thesis. The methodology will describe, in detail, that how the research will be conducted and what instrument will be used in the research. It will also address issues that guide and influence a research study. The methodology will discuss primary and secondary data collection.

Research Philosophy

There are three types of research methodologies, i.e., positivism, realism, & interpretivism. The three types of methodologies are distinct from each other and based largely upon the structural development of information methods (Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2007).

Whilst providing the extensive analysis or assessment of each methodology mentioned above is outside the scope of this thesis, the central idea of each approach is briefly discussed below.

Positivism favours the application of conventional research methods. These methods are generally used to study the natural world. Some social scientists also advocate their application in the study of social world. Supporters of positivism argue that scientific research can be undertaken in a value-free and objective manner since a neutral research process is capable of discovering the single 'truth'.

Realism, on the other hand, emerges from a position that implies that there exists a reality that can be known objectively, irrespective of the way we describe or understand it. The approach shares some common grounds with positivism as it also incorporates the same approach for conducting research into the areas of social and natural worlds and is generally aimed at discovering the truths or rules about the social and natural world.

In contrast to positivism and realism, interpretivism incorporates a different approach for the study of the social and natural world. Interpretivists attempt to understand human behaviour in relation to the social world, whereas the positivists advocate explaining the situation (Bryman, 2004, p. 13). Subjectivity and bias, therefore, find enough appreciation in interpretivist school of thought. Moreover, individual actors in the society are considered capable of affecting and causing change in the social structures. Hence, a study of social structures alone, irrespective of human interpretation is not applicable for the interpretivists. Instead, how individuals interpret a particular situation and what meanings they assign to social structures, are significant for the research process. However, the gap between each paradigm is not necessarily unbridgeable, and there may well exist a blurring between the aforementioned approaches.

In light of the study question and the scope of this thesis, the intention of the author is to interpret the subject of study involving a positivist and interpretive methods. The thesis is aimed at investigating the reasons for the absence of Kuwaiti young leaders within the internet service provider sector in Kuwait.

Research Methodology

The current study carries out investigation ...