I scheduled consultation #2 with each participant to occur between 6th October and 17th October 2023, after considering the correlation between variables and impact. Any limit or constant in a research project is referred to as a controlled variable. Though unrelated to the research objectives, it is controllable since it has the potential to affect the results (Bhandari, 2022). Since the urgency of daily tasks would have subsided by this point, I felt that afternoon appointments (controlled variable) would be more relevant, so I booked all the participant’s consultation #2s online, via MS Teams between 3:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
“By three p.m., employees have completed most of their tasks, had a meal, and regained their energy.” (Calendar, 2022)
My analysis and justification of the previously mentioned controlled variable are related to my concepts around the PERMA model. The PERMA Model was created by psychologist and educator Martin Seligman from the USA. As a psychologist, Seligman recognises that people naturally look for happiness in all aspects of their lives, regardless of their age, sexual orientation, or social standing. (CFI Team, 2022).
Positive emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Achievement are the five components that make up the acronym PERMA. This concept centres on five fundamental components, all of which are related to well-being. Based on his studies, Seligman’s research implies that people can attain a healthy feeling of well-being, fulfilment and life satisfaction by implementing the five basic parts of the PERMA Model (PERMA Model of Wellness, n.d.). I, therefore made the strategic decision to collect my research data at a particular time of day, when the participants should be less busy, happier, and thus more willing to expand on their responses and provide quality data. My thoughts were based on my experience working with industry, within my practice and my considerations for this model.
“Qualitative data is non-numeric information, such as in-depth interview transcripts, diaries, anthropological field notes, answers to open-ended survey questions, audio-visual recordings and images.” (UK Data Service, 2017).
As intended, I collected responses (qualitative data) during a conversational questionnaire as my methodology. This mode is process-driven, so was the most appropriate and valuable in this study as it gives a voice to reality and provides an understanding of the experiences of the participants, in a manner that quantitative data cannot. Qualitative data is descriptive information and can serve as a comprehension of numerical data (quantitative data), as it does not rely on exact numbers.
The questions posed during the conversations were as detailed within my Ethics Enquire Form: Ethics Michele Palmer v2 post feedback. I recorded the results in note form, in my notebook and had considerations towards the PERMA model, as I led the conversation and posed the scripted questions: all participants seemed quite happy to provide feedback.
As stated previously, Professionals A and D completed the modules EDI module, as they had not undertaken any EDI training within the past 2 years. Whilst Professionals B, C and E who had been advised to complete the Anti Racism model did not complete the activity at all. Despite not undertaking the module I still held consultation #2 with all five of the professionals, as they all consented to contribute to the research, so all their feedback was included in my findings.
Owing to the varied industries that they were employed, professionals A and D provided varying responses. Having never participated in this kind of training before, they both enjoyed it and valued the experience. The same reaction they both had to their experiences was that they felt the 45-minute exercise was too lengthy.
Professionals B, C, and E would not have been able to respond to the intended bank of questions, therefore I did not ask them during our conversations. However, when questioned about why they had given their permission to contribute but hadn’t done so, each of them gave an explanation centred on the 45-minute notice that the training had given them at the start of the module.
References:
Bhandari, Pritha (2022). What Are Control Variables | Definition & Examples. [online] Scribbr. Available at: https://www.scribbr.co.uk/research-methods/control-variables/#:~:text=A%20control%20variable%20is%20anything
UK Data Service (2017). Qualitative data. [online] UK Data Service. Available at: https://ukdataservice.ac.uk/learning-hub/qualitative-data/
Calendar. (2022). Is There an Ideal Meeting Time? [online] Available at: https://www.calendar.com/blog/is-there-an-ideal-meeting-time/#:~:text=The%20general%20consensus%20is%20that [Accessed 12/12. 2023].
CFI Team (2022). PERMA Model. [online] Corporate Finance Institute. Available at: https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/management/perma-model/.
Forman, N. and Yanofsky, S. (2013). Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. Free Press, 2011. 2. Zwack J, Schweitzer J. If Every Fifth Physician Is Affected by Burnout, What About the Other Four? Resilience Strategies of Experienced Physicians. Academic Medicine, [online] 88(3). Available at: https://pedsanesthesia.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/How-to-Appply-PERMA-Model.pdf.
PERMA Model of Wellness. (n.d.). Available at: https://www.gvhealth.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/PERMA-Model-Karen-Cline-070223.pdf