QUALITATIVE EVALUATION FRAMEWORK

Qualitative Evaluation Framework



Qualitative Evaluation Framework

Introduction

This paper explores a kind of qualitative research out of three in a holistic context: Case Study, Phenomenological study, and Grounded Theory. The paper addresses the key aspects of Phenomenological study in this paper using journal articles. Specifically, the data collection techniques, sampling approach, data treatment and analysis approaches are discussed for the article used. The amount of truthfulness, credibility and reliability of each research is also evaluated.

Phenomenological Study

The focus of a phenomenological study is to explore the meaning of lived experiences. A lived experience is a term that emphasizes the different and individual lives humans lead. The goal of a phenomenological study is to search for, understand, and explain the essential structure or essence of the phenomenon in question. The experiences are reduced to a description of what all the participants in the study experience. Phenomenologist tends to use unstructured interviews as their main source of data. The first step in data analysis is setting the preconceived experiences about the phenomenon of interest. Bracketing is also referred to as epoch.

The phenomenological researcher wants to understand the phenomenon from each participant's point of view (Denzin 2005). The second step in data analysis is horizonal, in which all significant statements related to the topic are listed and given equal value (Nuttall 2011). In the third step of analysis, the researcher clusters statements into themes and searches for meaning. Synthesis of themes results in a general description of the essence of the phenomenon.

Research Article

In a phenomenological study titled Servant Leadership: A Phenomenological Study Of Practices, Experiences, Organizational Effectiveness, And Barriers, authors attempt to ascertain the characteristics, styles, attributes, and the like that explain the phenomenon of leadership. Literature suggests that historically leadership theory and the empirical supporting research have been regarded as a fractured and confusing set of contradictory findings, at times making assertions without coherence or interoperability (Savage 2011).

The subject of leadership is complex, and one of the principal issues facing organizational leaders today is how to motivate and how to gain buying so that employees actively participate in the efforts that lead to accomplishing organizational goals. According to Kotler & Keller (2008), leadership is a phenomenon that results in the need to pursue desired outcomes by desired stakeholder within an organization. Several existing theories and models (for example, transformational, transactional, charismatic, authentic, and others) sufficiently support the rationale for the way leaders approach the task of leading.

Comparatively, most leadership theories and leadership models highlight the leader's role in getting followers to serve and support the organization willingly and participate actively in goal attainment activities (Kotler & Keller 2008). Yet none of these models illuminate the need for leaders to serve the followers. Nor do these theories and models address how leadership should work collectively with followers to achieve desired organizational results.

The servant leadership philosophy addresses both the leader's and the followers' roles, suggesting that meeting the needs of followers and encouraging the input of followers in the decision-making process will allow leaders to ...