My First APR and the Review Boards Recommendations
Some of you will be aware that in February of this year, I attended my first Annual Progression Review (APR).
I have to admit, I was nervous going into the meeting, as like all things, where you do not know what to expect, the idea can be a little daunting.
The meeting lasted an hour, it was a stimulating discussion that explored the Locus-of-Control and Job Insecurity, the Five-Factor Model, behaviours and perception literature I have examined, over the past year.
Other topics of discussion also explored the methodology I could use for the next stage or year two.
Although the methodology, (How and where I will collect the data required to form the basis of any analysis), was not part of the original scope of the discussion, the panel considered it important, as they asked me to consider some of the issues that I may face.
Where will I collect the data, how will I collect the data, will it be Quantitative (Normally collected through Surveys), Qualitative (Normally collected through interviews or open-ended questions), or mixed methods, where both methods of data collection are used, who will be the people I ask, what industries will they be in etc.
All valid questions.
However, the most important question I was asked was how will I operationalise the research?
What the hell is operationalise you may ask? Well, put simply, it is how I can and will measure job insecurity, perceptions, and personality.
How can personality traits and or job insecurity be measured? This question is the core of my research and why the statement raised within the APR is so important.
Multiple academics have investigated job insecurity and personality, and multiple conceptual models have been created to explain how job insecurity may occur within a person, and what the possible outcome can be.
The same applies to personality traits, with many scholars investigating how personality or the traits we all have can alter the way we respond to a given situation.
Some of this research has become common knowledge, with people having a greater understanding of why introverts are quiet, why high achievers are driven, or why after a point in time job insecurity can lead to a sense of apathy within the workplace, or why underutilisation can also lead to a sense of job unsatisfaction and boredom.
Much research has investigated job insecurity and personality traits, and during these investigations, scholars have identified multiple scales and measurement techniques, and so this year, I will be identifying and critiquing those measurement scales, how the original data was collected and how it was analysed.
Drawing up my own measurement scales, but also making sure they can correlate with previous studies. This may seem a little odd, but without that correlation, my research cannot be reproduced or compared to previous or future research and used with those to form a comprehensive understanding of a specific subject, which is what most researchers are trying to do.
(Being able to re-produce research is a key component of the new knowledge label. For example to say that you have found an antibiotic that could save millions of lives is wonderful, but like Alexander Fleming with penicillin, the experiment needs to be reproduced, therefore enabling the mass production of an anti-biotic, or Albert Einstein who as we all know offered the theories of relativity.
I look forward to putting some articles up for debate in the forthcoming months, and I am aware that this blog has been quiet, but preparing for the APR was a big thing, We all have annual reviews as part of our working careers, or exams, to indicate to ourselves and others that we are progressing.
