Learn statistics in English. Учебно-практическое пособие

УДК 811.111

ББК 81.2Англ К 695

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Введение

Учебное пособие и контрольные задания предназначены для студентов экономических вузов, изучающих английский язык по специальности “Статистика” на первоначальном эта- пе. Целью пособия является развитие навыков устной речи в результате овладения терминологической лексикой данной области знаний, обработка навыков чтения, перевода и пони- мания специальной литературы.

Учебное пособие состоит из двух разделов. Первый раз- дел включает 7 тем (themes), второй – практикум “Reading Comprehension Practice”. Каждая theme содержит оригиналь-

ные тексты по статистике для ознакомления студентов с раз- личными разделами данной области знаний, список терминов к тексту, ряд упражнений, которые студент выполняет с целью усвоения лексических и речевых навыков профессионально- ориентированной направленности. После каждой theme пред- лагается тест для контроля знаний и навыков студентов.

Тексты первого раздела следует читать и переводить со словарем для получения точной информации и проверки на- выка чтения и перевода специального текста. Студенту реко- мендуются следующие задания:

понять общее содержание прочитанного;

прочитать текст и понять основную идею текста;

передать содержание текста на английском языке, вы- сказать свое мнение о нем;

задать вопросы к тексту;

ответить на вопросы преподавателя по тексту

составить план содержания текста;

подготовить сообщение по содержанию текста на анг- лийском языке.

Задания используются выборочно с учетом специфиче- ского характера того или иного текста.

Практикум “Reading Comprehension” введен для закрепле- ния полученных знаний и навыков в процессе работы над учеб- ным материалом. Чтение текстов раздела осуществляется парал- лельно изучению уроков. Тексты предназначены для перевода без словаряна понимание общегосодержанияпрочитанного.

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Theme I.

Qualitative data collection methods

Read the text, translate it with the help of the vocabulary and be ready to speak about the main idea of each part.

Qualitative researchers are required to collect and analyze data in order to describe routine and problematic moments and meanings in individuals and their organizational lives. Several general data collection methods are available:

Interviews (individual and group).

Questionnaires (open-ended).

Observation.

Organization records.

Qualitative researchers require first-hand information about

organizations, processes, and the individuals involved. They must delve into the organization and its workplace issues to get accurate information. Each of the four methods has its appropriate uses, and each demands competence in searching for valid information.

Interviews (individual and group)

An in-depth interview method enables analysts to gather information from people in the workplace or people who connect in various ways to the organization and its processes: in person, in groups, and also by telephone. Such interviewing demands a high level of competence and commitment from the analyst. Interviews may be unstructured, such as informal conversation format, or structured, where a predetermined set of questions is used. Questions asked may be open-ended, such as when, defining issues and themes, or more focused when researching specific issues. Interviewing people in the workplace is a time-consuming but useful technique for discovering what happens at the organization, process, and/or individual levels. The skillful interviewer anticipates the need to establish a rapport with the interviewee or

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Theme I. Qualitative data collection methods

group of interviewees – not an easy task when questions of adequacy or efficiency of performance are involved. The interviewer is obliged to ask questions of people, using their language, to listen with respect, and to record accurate notes.

Focus groups are a popular form of group interview. Krueger defines focus groups in six parts: (1) people (2) assembled in a series of groups (3) possess certain characteristics and (4) provide data (5) of qualitative nature (6) in a focused discussion. Thus, focus groups are different than other groups such as advisory groups or planning groups, which may have some but not all of these characteristics. The critical value of focus groups is that they enable the researcher to interview people more efficiently and that they capitalize on the group interaction around a topic. Focus groups are not appropriate in situations where the group interaction would inhibit discussion. For example, senior managers are often reluctant to discuss their units’ weaknesses in front of other senior managers, who might use the information against them. Similarly, employees will usually not criticize their bosses when the boss is in the group. Thus, the design of the focus group is a critical consideration.

The following focus group moderating skills presented by Krueger capture the uniqueness of this technique: (1) mental preparation, (2) purposeful small talk and presentation strategy, (3) recording the group discussion, (4) the pause and the probe, (5) selecting the focus group location, and (6) being ready for the unexpected. It is important to realize that the skills of the moderator in executing these steps are crucial to the research outcomes. Focus groups require a higher level of facilitation skill than interviews, which can bias the data collected if the researcher is not a strong facilitator. For example, a facilitator who does not design the focus group to control for power dynamics in the organization might not find any serious discussed and falsely conclude that issues do not exist.

Questionnaires (open-ended)

Deceptively simple, the open-ended survey questionnaire is often used as a prime qualitative data collection tool. Although often thought of as only a quantitative tool, surveys can also be used to collect qualitative data. For example, open-ended ques-

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tions yield qualitative data that is analyzed the same as interview data. Good questionnaires of all types are difficult to develop, and getting sufficient numbers of responses from the target population is even more difficult. But done correctly, there is no tool more efficient for getting data from a large, dispersed population. Qualitative researchers often interview as a first step for discovering the most useful content for a questionnaire. The questionnaire also then offers a way to accurately evaluate the extent and the credibility of the facts and opinions gathered by interviews.

By keeping questionnaires as short as possible, you will ensure the good will of the respondents, and you will simplify the data analysis. Pilot-testing a questionnaire with a few respondents, and if necessary rewriting questions can save you from gathering useless data.

Unless you are trained in content and/or statistical analysis, you would do well to acquire expert guidance in handling all phases of the questionnaire process. Too often the result of an inept questionnaire is garbled information that is useless to the analyst and ultimately to all the people who have spent their time and energy filling out the instrument.

The questionnaire process must begin with the questions: What do I want to know? and If I get it, how will I use this information? The process ends with, Did I discover what I wanted to know? and How can I use this information? These same questions are asked for every item on the questionnaire.

Assuming you have not let talk of data analysis discourage you from sending out a questionnaire, ask yourself the following: Did I receive a sufficient number of returned questionnaires? What did I find out? Are these data useful? Did I discover something that I should verify through a review of performance records or through observations or interviews? Do these data confirm or contradict what I have learned through other means?

Organization culture questionnaires, or culture surveys, are an important tool for human resource practitioners and scholars. They provide an effective and efficient method of gathering information from employees.

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Theme I. Qualitative data collection methods

Surveys must be organized around clear purposes and managed in a simple and effective manner (while maintaining the reliability and validity of the data). Employee perceptions are seen as a valid source of information as to the health of the organization. McLean has proposed thirteen culture categories, including organizational mission and goals, corporate management leadership, department management leadership, supervisory effectiveness, working conditions, productivity and accountability, communications, interpersonal and interdepartmental relationships, job satisfaction, employee compensation, employee career development, training and development, and training options. The critical features of such survey questionnaires are ensuring anonymity, the presence of an objective third party, and constructive feedback to the organization. Baseline data can be used to compare results to later surveys. The open-ended responses can be solicited and content analyzed and used for base line comparisons.

Observation

Thinking, planning, imaging, and estimating are abstract human behaviors and, one would think, difficult to study. People express the results of their work performances through observable actions, however, and the qualities of their actions can be observed. When practiced systematically, observing people at work will yield a great deal of qualitative information about the work, the people, and the environment. Observing people at work requires considerable skill: great sensitivity and the ability to be unobtrusive are essential. To avoid altering the process or setting, the researcher must become part of the flow. The unobtrusive observer is more likely to perceive errors, problems, and creative solutions than is the intrusive observer.

Some activities happen more or less frequently than others, some take a longer or shorter time to complete, and some happen only at the beginning or the end of the month. Therefore, judging the length of required observation time can be difficult. One thing is certain: the longer you observe in a setting, the more you see. Before beginning to collect data, plan to observe long enough to be able to discriminate between events and behaviors.

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Patton identifies five dimensions of observational designs that should be considered by qualitative researchers. Each of these dimensions, which are really continuous rather than discrete choices, affects the research process, analysis, and outcomes. Qualitative researchers have an obligation to carefully consider the impact of these choices on the data collected and interpretation of the results. The five dimensions are as follows:

1.Role of the observer – may range from a full participant in the process, observing as an insider, to an onlooker observing as an outsider.

2.Portrayal of the observer role to others – observers may make it known that they are observing (overt) or choose to remain anonymous to the group (covert).

3.Portrayed of the purpose of the evaluation to others – choices range from giving a full explanation of the purpose to everyone, to giving only partial explanations, to giving false explanations to hide the purpose of the evaluation so as not to change behavior.

4.Duration of the observations – observations may be one-time or long-term multiple observations.

5.Focus of the observations – observations may be made for one single or specific purpose (e.g., communication patterns in a group) or have a broad holistic focus (factors that affect group processes and effectiveness).

Be cautious when interpreting data derived from observation. Consider that your presence can change the situation and affect the data collected. Were you sufficiently prepared for the observation to understand what you were observing? How accurate are your data? Were you unable to record what you saw because of a lack of time or recording skill? Is that important? Does the observed behavior fall into phases or stages? Is it cyclical?

The popular truism that a picture is worth a thousand words applies equally to analysis work. The picture in the realm of most human resource development inquiry is the actual organization, the functioning processes, and the individuals working in them. Firsthand observation provides a tier of information that cannot be obtained through the talk and paper of interviews and questionnaires.

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