Action Research Project: Review Data and Develop Hypothesis

Action Research Project: Review Data and Develop Hypothesis

Introduction

Marks and Spencer are a chosen company for testing six different hypotheses for employees and managers in the company. M&S is the foundation of middle-class and middle-aged Britons. M&S has worked over a century against odds of the economic downturn, online shopping, and fast fashion rivals. It has started off as a small booth under the leadership of Michael Marks in the year 1884 and soon turned into one of the leading private labelled retailer houses. The partnership with Tom Spencer in the year 1939 brings its dominance in financial services, clothing, and home ware foods (Zikmund et al., 2012).

This assignment is an action research project, and its objective is to develop hypothesis and review data. Six hypotheses are created for the selected organization. The hypotheses are related to the organizational culture of the business unit. Three hypotheses are for employees and remaining three hypotheses are for managers. The major element of hypotheses includes the identification of relationship between two or more than two variables. The classification of hypothesis includes null hypothesis, directional hypothesis, and non-directional hypothesis (Fatt et al., 2010).

Improving performance and commitment in the workplace

Job satisfaction aids in identifying the degree of contentment that an individual has with its job. Job satisfaction is an employee's or an incumbent's definition of sense of achievement along with his definition of success. It is termed as an individual's state of mind as well as the perception and the feelings associated with the nature of the work. Job Satisfaction is impacted by numerous factors, and few of them are the degree of quality relationship that exists amidst the employee and the boss, the quality of the tangible environment, degree of job security etc (Spector, 2006, p. 49).

The Harvard group of professionals conducted a study in the year 1998 which stated that job satisfaction is a vital ingredient that eventually leads to higher recognition, increments along with accomplishment of goals in an effective and efficient manner, and superior job performance. All this will inevitably lead to a feeling of self actualization along with other factors being fulfilled. Job Satisfaction can be linked with motivation or the concept of aptitude in that two factors have an impact on Job satisfaction.

Types of Hypotheses

Directional Hypotheses

All three types of hypothesis are commonly used in business. The application for the use of thesis hypothesis varies from business performance, management objectives, strategic employee relationship, or the assessment of internal-external environmental analysis. The directional hypothesis shows the direction of the relationship between two variables in the form of positive or negative relationship. The examples include first hypothesis for managers that states “Higher stress level experienced in the job can reduce the job satisfaction level of employees”. This can also be written as “The greater the stress experienced in the job, the lower the job satisfaction of employees”. This shows the nature of difference between two groups of variables through terms such as than, positive, less ...