Assignment task:
The Object: To plan and carry out an unstructured observation for 30-60 minutes, in order to develop a hypothesis about leadership behavior that could be studied in the future by yourself or another researcher. This assignment is designed to give you some preliminary scholarly experience in conducting qualitative research in an organizational context. Need Assignment Help?
The Process: Your task is to train yourself to see and record as many concrete behaviors as you can without filtering them through any interpretive process. You will discover that this is very difficult to do.
1. Select a leader and time to observe for a total of 30-60 minutes.
2. Your task is to force yourself to see the concrete details of the individual's actual behavior and interactions with his/her team, not your interpretations of them. Watch what people actually do; suppress the normal instinct to evaluate people or to presume motives. Look at behavioral details and verbal cues. This includes the reactions of others to the behaviors of the leader. As you observe, take brief "jotted notes" of specific behaviors worth observing.
3. When the time is up, stop and write down what you can recall of the behaviors you saw. Your jotted notes may remind you of things, and there may be others that did not make it into your notes.
4. Then write an explanation of the process by which you conducted your research. It should be so complete that another person could use only your written instructions and conduct a similar observation the same way you would.
5. At this point you will describe your findings including where and when you observed your subject (the leader) and who else was involved (the team members- describe them generally, do not list names) and attach it with your observation notes.
6. Discuss the ethical implications of your research. Do you feel that your work invaded anyone's privacy?
7. List 1 possible hypothesis that arose from this observation of a leader that you are recommending for future study. What are the larger issues your research raises, do you feel that your findings are likely to be more generally true, and what research, if any, you would like to see pursued by yourself or others as a consequence of your research?
Format & Additional Information:
1. While I do not expect this to look like a dissertation, it should look like an academic paper with good grammar and spelling, double-spaced, and you must cite any references you utilize in your report using APA format (e.g. if you specifically describe a temperament, you should cite Keirsey).
2. A hypothesis is defined as "an assumption or concession made for the sake of argument, an interpretation of a practical situation or condition taken as the ground for action, or a tentative made in order to draw out and test its logical or empirical consequences" (n.d., Hypothesis, Merriam-Webster Dictionary