CHAPTER – III

METHODOLOGY

3.1 INTRODUCTION

According to Bernanrd S.Philip a research design constitutes the blue

print for the collection, measurement and analysis of Data. And according to

Fred.N.karlingar, ‘Research Design’ is the plan, structure and strategy of

investigation conceived so as to obtain answers to research questions and

control variance. Research design can be divided into fixed and flexible

research designs (Robson, 1993)1. Others have referred to this distinction as

‘quantitative research designs’ and ‘qualitative research designs,’

respectively. Fixed designs or quantitative designs are normally theory

driven. Also, it is impossible to know in advance which variables need to be

controlled and measured. Often, these variables are measured

quantitatively. The research design of the study is handled under the

following sub heads.

3.2 RESEARCH DESIGN OF THE STUDY

The researcher has adopted Quantitative research design and

conducted a systematic process for obtaining quantifiable information about

the Quality of work life of the Bank Employees of Private Sector and Public

sector Banks. The collected information is presented in numerical form and

analyzed through the use of statistics by which the cause and effect of

relationships and factors are examined. The researcher has espoused

1
Robson, C. (1993). “Real world Research: A Resource for Social Scientists and Practitioner –
Researchers”. Malden : Blackwell Publishing.

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Quantitative research design as it is well suited for quantitative description

and comparative analysis on the Quality of work life of the employees of

private sector and public sector Bank employees.

The study is mainly based on the primary data. In that, a detailed

review of literature is being done. From the review of literature, the initial

research is started by defining the various aspects of Quality of Work Life.

Further a descriptive research is designed to describe the characteristics of

banking sector with regard to Quality of work Life. Descriptive research

describes what exists and helps to uncover new facts and meaning.

3.2.1 UNIVERSE OF THE STUDY

The universe of the study included all the employees who are working

in various Private Sector and Public Sector banks in Tirunelveli District. The

criteria for selection of respondents for the study were Branch Managers,

Probationary Officers, Clerks and Cashiers.

The study employed the survey method that allows for broad

coverage, flexibility and convenience with inputs on matters related to

Quality of Work life.

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PUBLIC SECTOR AND PRIVATE SECTOR BANKS IN TIRUNELVELI DT

PUBLIC SECTOR BANKS

Indian Overseas Bank - 57 branches

Canara Bank - 27 branches

State Bank Of India - 23 branches

Indian Bank - 20 branches

Central Bank Of India - 12 branches

State Bank Of Travancore - 5 branches

Union Bank Of India - 4 branches

Punjab National Bank - 4 branches

Bank Of India - 4 branches

Bank Of Baroda - 4 branches

Corporation Bank - 3 branches

PRIVATE SECTOR BANKS

Tamilnad Mercantile Bank Ltd - 17 branches

ICICI Bank Ltd - 10 branches

Karur Vysya Bank - 4 branches

Axis Bank - 4 branches

Syndicate Bank - 3 branches

City Union Bank Ltd - 2 branches

HDFC Bank Ltd - 2 branches

The Lakshmi Vilas Bank Ltd - 2 branches

The Federal Bank Ltd - 3 branches

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3.2.2 SAMPLE DESIGN OF THE STUDY

The study employed the Survey Exploratory method using a

structured questionnaire which is said to be the most appropriate method

for drawing responses when the geographical dispersion is large. (Sekharan

2003) 2. Ten Branches from each sector was selected using convenient

sampling method. The employees of the selected Private sector and public

sector Banks in Tirunelveli District is observed to be around 2638.In order to

make every element of the population experience equal chance of being

selected, Random or probability sampling technique is adopted by the

researcher. Out of 2638 employees 373 samples were chosen using Lottery

method. A set of 20 questionnaires were equally distributed to the selected

branches. The response rate was 80%.

3.2.3 SAMPLE SIZE

For a survey design based on a simple random sample, the sample

size required can be calculated according to the following formula.

Formula:

Description:

n = required sample size

t = confidence level at 95% (standard value of 1.96)

p = estimated level

m = margin of error at 5% (standard value of 0.05)

2
Sekaran, U. (2003). “Research Methods for Business (4th Edition). Hoboken, N.J. : John Wiley &
Sons.

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 The researcher could collect 179 questionnaires from the employees of

Private sector Banks and 194 from the employees of Public sector Banks.

Out of the 373 Questionnaires 17 questionnaires were not considered for the

study due to inappropriate data filling.

The researcher observed that 5 Questionnaires from Private sector

Banks and 12 from Public sector Banks are invalid. Finally, a sample size of

356 which includes 174 from Private sector Banks and 182 from Public

sector Banks was taken for the study.

By surveying a sample of the population, the researcher could find

that there's a 95% chance that he’s within the margin of error of the correct

answer.

After trying repeated change in the sample size and watching to the

alternate scenarios, the researcher could conclude the relationship between

Margin of Error and the confidence level of 95% is related.

3.2.4 CONSTRUCTION OF RESEARCH INSTRUMENT

The purpose of descriptive research is to observe, describe and

document, aspects of a situation as it naturally occurs (Polit & Hungler

1999)3. This involves the collection of data that will provide description of

individuals, groups or situations. One of the instruments researcher uses to

obtain data for descriptive studies include questionnaires. The researcher

has utilized the instrument ‘Questionnaire’ for Collection of Data.

3
Polit, D.F., Hungler, B.P. (1999). “Nursing Research : Principles and Methods (6th Edition).
Philadelphia : Lippincott, J.B.

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 According to Loscocco and Roschelle (1991)4 the most common

assessment of Quality of work life is the individual attitudes. This is because

individual work attitudes are important indicators of Quality of Work Life.

The literature review pertaining to Quality of Work life was considered to

pool up the ‘Quality of work life constructs’ for the construction of

Questionnaire. In addition, some items were collected from other related

variables semantically similar to the factors of Quality of Work life. With the

probable factors being decided upon and item pool of 52 items was

constructed constituting the various factors of Quality of Work Life. Thus a

structured questionnaire was designed based on the literature review for

achieving the objectives of the study as questionnaire survey is arguably the

most common technique in management research (Veal 2005) 5 .

The responses are obtained on a 5 point Likert type scale from

strongly agree to strongly disagree. The sampling frame included the Branch

Managers, Officers, clerical assistants, tellers and cashiers. The instrument

was compiled to include three sections. The first section gathered

information about the personal profile of the respondents which included

their designation, age, gender, education, marital status, descendents,

salary, tenure and organisation. The second section of the survey consisted

of statements which measures the perception of Bank employees on Quality

of work life issues. The respondents are made to rank certain elements,

which provide the Quality of Work life in the third part of the instrument.

This part enables the researcher to observe the relativity to the previous

questions.

4
Loscocco, K.A. & Roschelle, A.N. (1991). “Influences on the Quality of work and Non work life :
Two Decades in Review”. Journal of Vocational Behaviour, 39, pg 182 – 225.
5
Veal, (2005). “Business Research Methods: A Managerial Approach”. Pearson Addison Wesley,
2005 (2nd Edition), pg 362.

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3.2.5 PILOT STUDY AND PRE-TESTING

A pilot testing was conducted initially by administering the

questionnaire on around 50 numbers of respondents. 75 items which were

pooled were pre tested for its clarity and relevance of the items. The

information was collected from the bank employees at all the levels.

Interviews were conducted with the employees of private sector and public

sector Bank employees for gathering information on their perception about

their quality of work life.

The respondents were questioned on the issues relating with their

demographic profile, regular working hours, remuneration and impact of

family pressures on their work, expectations from their roles to which extent

they are satisfied by evaluating the individual initiatives and organizational

initiatives.

3.2.6 SCALE RELIABILITY

From the factors which are presumed to influence Quality of

Work Life, factors such as age, salary, Fair Compensation, good

reputation, Compensation are identified for the Scale Reliability Test.

It will be premature to claim that the underlying items of these factors

make up the scale for measuring these factors. But for the purpose of

illustration, we assume this to be correct. So we measure the

reliability of these scales.

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 Table 3.1.1 RELIABILITY STATISTICS

Cronbach’s
N of items
Alpha
0.962 5
Source: Primary Data

The reliability statistics gives the value of the Cronbach alpha co-

efficient and the number of items selected for the scale. From the analysis of

Quality of which work life is influenced by significant factors, we find the

Cronbach’s alpha value to be 0.96 which indicate that the extracted

variables are good fit.

3.2.7 FINALISATION OF RESEARCH INSTRUMENT

The questionnaire was intricately designed to tap the perception of the

bank employees on Quality of Work Life. Corrections were carried out,

wherever there was a need to restate the items for clarity. The questionnaire

was peer reviewed twice by experts.

The final questionnaire which could tow out necessary information

related to our research study was framed with valuable inputs from the peer

reviewers. The final Version having 52 items is used for the research study.

3.2.8 PERIOD OF STUDY

The data collection spanned the period from January 2011 to January

2012. The population of this study comprised of employees working in

private sector and public sector banks in Tirunelveli District.

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3.2.9 DATA COLLECTION

Primary Data was collected by visiting the private sector and public

sector banks. Collection of data was self administered to determine the level

of Quality of work life. Simple Random sampling method was adopted for

selection of respondents for the study. The sample had almost equal number

of respondents from private sector banks and public sector banks in

Tirunelveli District.

Data Collection was carried out with prior permission of the Bank

Manager. The Data Collection work was carried out during lunch time and

off Banking hours. Each organization was visited at least twice by the

researcher to establish rapport and reinforce contacts with the top

management and related personnel, to ensure smooth implementation of the

questionnaire distribution and collection. A third visit was made to ensure a

degree of interest and commitment on the part of the respondents to collect

the questionnaire. The Bank employees were instructed very clearly about

the pattern of answering the questionnaire and also they spared enough

time to answer all the statements. The respondents were also assured that

their participation in the study was voluntary and their responses would

remain confidential and used for research purpose only.

3.2.10 DATA ANALYSIS

In this study, the researcher has adopted Quantitative Data Analysis.

Quantitative Data Analysis is the process of presenting and interpreting

numerical data. Quantitative method of data analysis can be of great value

to the researcher who is attempting to draw meaningful results from a large

body of qualitative data.

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 Qualitative data are forms of information gathered in a nonnumeric

form. Qualitative Data analysis is usually based on an interpretative

philosophy. The idea is to examine the meaningful and symbolic content of

qualitative data.

Quantitative procedures in analyzing qualitative information can also

lend greater credibility to the research findings by providing the means to

quantify the degree of confidence in the research results. Hence the

researcher has carried out Qualitative data analysis with following frame

work of analysis.

3.3 FRAME WORK OF ANALYSIS

The researcher adopts the following statistical tools to analyze the

collected data and achieve with the objectives of the research.

3.3.1 PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS

Percentage analysis is a method to represent raw streams of data as a

percentage for better analysis of the data. A ratio or percentage expresses the

proportionate relationship between two or more different data, allowing for

easy comparisons.

The researcher adopts the percentage analysis to measure the Socio-

Economic factors of the sample respondents. Socio Economic factors of the

respondents namely, designations, gender, age, qualification, marital status,

descendents, income, years of experience and organizations they work for

are analyzed using Percentage analysis.

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3.3.2 FACTOR ANALYSIS

Factor analysis is a statistical method used to

describe variability among observed, correlated variables in terms of a

potentially lower number of unobserved variables called factors.

Factor analysis searches for such joint variations in response to

unobserved latent variables. The observed variables are modeled as linear

combinations of the potential factors, plus "error" terms. The information

gained about the interdependencies between observed variables can be used

later to reduce the set of variables in a dataset.

Communality: The sum of the squared factor loadings for all factors

for a given variable (row) is the variance in that variable accounted for, by all

the factors, and this is called the communality. It is the proportion of each

variable's variance that can be explained by the principal components. It is

also noted as h2 and can be defined as the sum of squared factor loadings.

The communality measures the percent of variance in a given variable

explained by all the factors jointly and may be interpreted as the reliability of

the indicator. The communalities for the ith variable are computed by taking

the sum of the squared loadings for that variable which is expressed as

below:

Initial - By definition, the initial value of the communality in a

principal components analysis is 1.

Extraction - The proportion of each variable's variance that can be

explained by the principal components. Variables with high values are well

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represented in the common factor space, while variables with low values are

not well represented.

Eigenvalues: The eigenvalue for a given factor measures the variance

in all the variables which is accounted for by that factor. The ratio of

eigenvalues is the ratio of explanatory importance of the factors with respect

to the variables. If a factor has a low eigenvalue, then it is contributing little

to the explanation of variances in the variables and may be ignored as

redundant with more important factors. Eigenvalues measure the amount of

variation in the total sample accounted for by each factor.

Extraction sums of squared loadings: Eigenvalues after extraction

will be lower than their initial counterparts. SPSS also prints "Rotation Sums

of Squared Loadings" and even for PCA, these eigenvalues will differ from

initial and extraction eigenvalues, though their total will be the same.

The protocol adopted here for factor analysis is to use default settings

initially (Principal Axis Factor - PAF) and to rotate the matrix of loadings to

obtain orthogonal (independent) factors (Varimax rotation). A principal Axis

factor (PAF) with a Varimax rotation of 40 Likert scale questions from this

quality of work life questionnaire was conducted on data gathered from 356

respondents. An examination of the Kaiser-Meyer Olkin measure of sampling

adequacy suggested that the sample was factorable (KMO = .698). The

factors identified in this fashion correspond to the primary topics or latent

variables to which correspondents seem to be responding in terms of various

related items.

In this study, the researcher attempts to analyze the forty variables

determining the quality of work life of the employees in private sector and

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public sector banks. For the purpose of convenience of analysis, the

variables of quality of work life have been grouped using factor analysis.

Using factor analysis, the researcher has identified fourteen factors

which influence the quality of work life of employees in private sector and

public sector banks in Tirunelveli District. Each of the narrated fourteen

dimensions namely Job security, Leadership, Recognition, Career

Development, Interpersonal relationship at formal level, Training and

Development, Remuneration, Health and Safety, Job satisfaction,

Interpersonal relationship at informal level, Team work, Work life balance,

Performance and Communication are associated with the number of

variables. This is identified and analyzed using factor analysis.

3.3.3 NON PARAMETRIC T-TEST

As the data are ordinal in nature, the researcher used Nonparametric

test, which is equivalent to a t-test. It is used when certain assumptions

about the underlying population are questionable. For example, when

comparing two independent samples, the Mann-Whitney U test does not

assume that the difference between the samples is normally distributed.

The Mann-Whitney U Test is one of the most powerful of the

nonparametric tests for comparing two populations. It is used to test

the null hypothesis that two populations have identical distribution

functions against the alternative hypothesis that the two distribution

functions differ only with respect to location (median), if at all.

Mann-Whitney U Test is used in place of the two sample t-test when the

normality assumption is questionable.

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To calculate the value of Mann-Whitney U test, we use the following formula:

Where:

U=Mann-Whitney U test
N1 = sample size one
N2= Sample size two
Ri = Rank of the sample size

The researcher applies Non- parametric T-test to compare the factors

influencing Quality of Work Life of employees belonging to Private Sector

Banks with that of the factors influencing career Quality of Work Life of

employees belonging to Public Sector Banks.

3.3.4 GARRETT RANKING METHOD

This technique is used to evaluate the motivational insights of the

Bank Employees. In this method, the Bank Employees were asked to rank

the given insights according to the magnitude of preferences. The orders of

merit given by the respondents were converted into ranks by using the

following formula.

Per cent Position = 100 (Rij – 0.5)

Nj

Where,

Rij – Rank given by the jth individual for the ith elements and

Nj – Number of elements ranked by the jth individual.

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 The percentage position of each rank thus obtained was converted

into scores by referring to the table given by Henry Garrett. Then for each

element the scores of individual respondents were added together and

divided by the total number of respondents for whom the scores were added.

These mean scores for all the elements in the motivational insights were

arranged in the order of their ranks and inferences were drawn.

3.4 CONCLUSION

By using the above mentioned statistical tools, the researcher carries

out a detailed analysis of the data collected with an intension to obtain a

prolific solution to his objectives in the following chapter.

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