Quantitative Analysis

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Table of Contents

TOC o “1-3” h z u CHAPTER FIVE PAGEREF _Toc301444496 h 3QUANTITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS: RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS PAGEREF _Toc301444497 h 3Chapter Overview PAGEREF _Toc301444498 h 3Methodology PAGEREF _Toc301444499 h 3Qualitative Collection of Data PAGEREF _Toc301444500 h 5NVivo for the Coding and Analysis of Data PAGEREF _Toc301444501 h 5Qualitative Data Background Information PAGEREF _Toc301444502 h 6Discussion and Analysis of Data PAGEREF _Toc301444503 h 7Leadership Concepts PAGEREF _Toc301444504 h 8The Role of Leadership PAGEREF _Toc301444505 h 9Leadership Education and Training PAGEREF _Toc301444506 h 14Leadership According to Islam PAGEREF _Toc301444507 h 16The Role Within leadership PAGEREF _Toc301444508 h 16Conclusion PAGEREF _Toc301444509 h 17References PAGEREF _Toc301444510 h 18Figure 1 PAGEREF _Toc301444511 h 20Figure 2 PAGEREF _Toc301444512 h 21

CHAPTER FIVEQUANTITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS: RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONSChapter Overview This section of the study will provide the audience with the results derived from the qualitative data analysis conducted in the study. To achieve this adequately, the section will be separated into three major segments. The first section of the results part will be used to explain the rationale for carrying out the study, followed by the explanation of the kind of instruments and qualitative research methods used in the study. The second part of the section will be used to show the background information of the participants utilised in the study’s interviews, and the reasons for choosing these particular participants. The third part, on the other hand, will be used show the results of the study and will also show the discussions that the study conducts based on the major questions of the study.

Methodology

Melhem in 2002 argued that interviews are the most essential tools in any form f scientific research, and, therefore, features as an indispensable tool in numerous fields (Melhem, 2002). Studies have found out that research interviews are carried out purposely for seeking to explain or describe the main themes in the world, or life of the individuals being interviewed. As it follows, the main purpose of carrying out an interview is to understand the meaning of the expressions, and opinions of the interviewee. Further, research in the area points out that a qualitative research interview seeks to understand both a meaning and a factual level, though it is usually challenging to carry out an interview on a meaning level. Interviews, therefore, are especially useful for getting the story and understanding it from the experiences of the interviewee. The interviewer usually has the option of carrying out an in- depth inquiry to collect information and data related to an area of concern. Interviews can also be effective methods of pursuing certain responses to interview questions (Kvale, 1996).

Appleton defines interviews as a useful tool that can be used to gather information or data, and that which involves more than two parties, including the respondent, and the interviewer. It is carried out either over the telephone or face to face, or through electronic mails (Appleton, 1995). Furthermore, an interview can be taken as a powerful tool that can be utilised in a research to collect data and information in human resource departments, as it usually is a conversation between the interviewee and the interviewer. The interviewer in this case, must prepare a set of questions which the respondent must answer. Because of this, interviews have been known to be the best strategies for obtaining data and information about a certain issue (McMillan, 2008).

Therefore, in addition to being a powerful tool to collect information, data and facts about the attitudes, lives, experiences, and opinions of individuals, the interview can also be an essential tool for gathering information about a phenomena’s meaning that the participants in an interview live in; as it follows, interviews are the most meaningful ways of gathering information and shaping and creating opinions and views about different issues (Hannan, 2007).

It has also been argued that interviews are useful in explaining specific phenomenon of experiences people have witnessed, (Al Enzi, 2005) and the participant’s opinions, in addition to, their views and feelings about the subject (Hannan, 2007). This can be achieved by carrying out a verbal interaction between the respondent and the interviewer so as to explore the behaviours in leadership that occur in Taibah University. Figure 2 summarises the process that the study is going to adapt in the analysis of the obtained qualitative data. Generally, the figure indicates that data analysis should follow a certain flow which, moves from the collection of data to the presentation and interpretation of the data. The figure includes six basic steps that must be followed for the qualitative analysis of the collected data to be comprehensive. These six steps include; the qualitative collection of information and data, the translation and transaction of data, scanning and skimming of the collected data, categorising the data, and the interpretation and the presentation of the data. These steps will be analysed in detail in the following paragraphs.

Qualitative Collection of Data First, based on the semi- structured schedule of the interview, the data were collected from specific interviewees who were treated as the sample representatives. The study conducted a total of 14 interviews with the deans of college of the university. The interviewees were selected from different faculties and departments in the university. The interviews were then translated into the English language by an experienced English teacher before they were brought into the N- Vivo software for analytical and topics coding analysis. The data codes used for analysing the data were formulated from the questions of the research as well as the underlined topics in the presented and interpreted interview guide.

NVivo for the Coding and Analysis of Data The study used the NVivo software to code and analyse the collected data for a number of reasons. One of the reasons was that it was quick and easy to identify the collected data through the software. Second, the software also allows the researcher to come up with an analysis that is precise, in addition to, aiding him link up the quantitative data with the qualitative data. This linking of data is an efficient method of indicating that the analysis of data started as soon as the data was fed into the software. NVivo has been indicated to be among some of the best qualitative software tools used in qualitative studies to analyse semi- structured, structured, or unstructured data derived from interview transcripts of either individuals or groups. The software can also be used to analyse literature reviews, video and audio recording, diaries, and reports, among others.

The utilization of this software has numerous advantages. For example, it has been shown that the software provides researchers with in- depth understanding of the data derived from a study. The software also is an efficient way for a researcher to explore issues, comprehend trends, and answer several questions about an issue. The software is also advantageous especially when a researcher is interested in gaining some insight into the attitudes, values, behaviours, motivations, concerns, and aspirations of individuals. The software is also useful in aiding individual’s inform their decisions in business, communication in policy- making, and research.

The software is also easy to use. It is possible to transport documents or data from a processing package for word and code the data on screen. Stripes for coding can also be made visible in the document margins so that the researcher can easily see which codes have been utilised where (Morrison, Moya & Moir, 1998). One way the data can be imported into the program is through the use of nodes, which can be defined as the positions were the categories of data and coding are kept for giving the researcher a reliable and valid qualitative study (Richards, 2005; International, 2006).Qualitative Data Background Information Qualitative information and data can be collected by the use of semi- structured interviews. It has been argued that these kinds of interviews are best suited for small samples and for analysing certain situations or for adding and validating data collected from other research methods. Also, since this kind of research gives one insights into what the opinions and concerns of the people are, it can be highly effective for giving one a better insight into issues that cannot be recognized immediately but those that are nonetheless essential in particular areas or segments of the population.

Semi- structured interviews have several common traits. These include; the fact that the interviews are formal, the interviews follows a previously developed guide, and the fact that the interviewer can stray from the interview plan slightly, so long as they deem it appropriate. Lindlof and Taylor in 2002 argued that semi- structured interviews are best used when an interview is almost sure that they not get another chance to interview the interviewee. The guide or the plan of the interviews provides the interviewer with a clear set of instructions that helps him collect data that is reliable, and comparable. Before carrying out a semi- structured interview, it is best if an interviewer precedes this activity with observation, and interviews that are informal and unstructured so that he understands the issue at hand better (Lindlof & Taylor, 2002). Hence, the interviews used in this study were carried out with a number of college deans from the university. Figure 1 will give a better overview of the sample distribution.

Discussion and Analysis of Data The focus of this section will be to present the interviews of the study. The conducted interviews will be shown in a group basis and according to categories into which the respondents were assigned. Since this section is about the interviews and the analysis and discussion of the interviews, it should be noted that a substantial amount of material will be quoted from the interviews. However, the identities of the participants will be protected because of a number of constraints presented by the official positions of the deans. Each corresponded was issued with a letter showing them to what group or category they belonged to, and there views are presented in between single quotation marks in italics. For example, if an interviewee belonged to group A, or B, then they were given a name that coincided with their group like B1, B2 and so forth.

Leadership Concepts It is in this section were the different views of the respondents will be presented. It should be noted that the participants had acknowledged that leadership is a means that is interactive between a number of working groups towards addressing an issue, as well as, addressing the challenges and problems faced during work. In addition to this, they agreed that leadership is a method of easing conflicts or disagreements between employees, as well as, a guideline for work relations for the purposes of coming up with the best decisions and creating communication means that are effective at work.

Moreover, the respondents agreed with the fact that leadership is a social influence process in which an individual can require the others to support and aid them achieve a certain goal. It was noted that most participants believed in the social aspect of leadership. This aspect is based on a number of factors; motivation, voluntary attitude, and enthusiasm. As it follows, leaders who are trustworthy, those who have vision and values must comply with these social aspects. Different participants had different definitions of leadership. B1, for example, defined leadership as the activity conducted by a leader or the responsibility that has the main focus to bring together several efforts for achieving objectives and goals, and as an expression that defines an association between power, authority and ability.

On the other hand, B9 defined leadership as a social process that is whose foundations are built on fostering desire, motivation, and enthusiasm to work. B10 indicated that leadership was supposed to be the responsibility of the boss. He thought that its nature is based on the authority given to him by the institution; the authority, according to him, was the main driving force behind leaders. B14 agreed with this claim by arguing that leadership is the ability of an individual to influence one’s co-workers regardless of the place or the nature of work.

It was noted that most of the understandings, expressed by the participants, of leadership was in consistent much of the definitions found in the literature, as leadership is a social process that is based on making an impact on other individuals (Maher, 2003). Leadership is also the behaviour expressed by an individual for the purposes of guiding the efforts of other individuals (Moursi, 2002). Leadership has also been defined as the social process or behaviour an individual expresses so as to influence others to volunteer (Graham, 2004). With the above definitions, it was obvious that leadership is based on three main elements; a leader who has the ability to lead others, a group of people who can follow such guidance, and a goal to be attained by following utilizing such coordinated efforts. As it follows, the three elements, that are followers, leader, and situation, must be present for one to appropriately comprehend the behaviours of leadership.

The Role of Leadership To come up with the appropriate answers for this section, the responses of the interviewees had to be read numerous times. It was clear from the responses that the role of leaders emerged from the relationship that results from the behaviours and influences of the influence and the receiver of the influence. For one to comprehend this influence correctly, they must be able to create some kind of relationship with their followers. Respondents B13 and B9 argued that the roles of leaders resulted from the needs and interests of individuals and from the motivation of these individuals to practice their responsibilities, and coordinate their relations and efforts for the purposes of achieving a goal. Furthermore, they argued that the leadership was practiced or was expressed when the positive impact of the behaviour of the leaders benefited their followers, by influencing their social associations towards better and improved corporation in work, as well as productivity.

B1, on the other hand, said that practicing leadership can be achieved through practicing and achieving its sub missions, found in coordinating and administrating work to enable workers to work efficiently. B7 was quick to add that practising leadership must branch from imagination, intelligence and thinking ability, confidence, tolerance, and reflection. In addition to this, a leader who is considered effective must be able to act well, and lead through example, unless they want to become irrelevant, or to be ignored by their followers. Good leaders, according to B7, are those leaders who are able to withstand criticism and tolerate others in case their followers commit errors that are tolerable. In this way, the leader can guide and shape the kind of behaviour expressed by his followers and turn it from a direction that is negative to a more positive and profitable direction.

B11, agreed and, pointed out that the only purpose for one to practise leadership is to obtain certain goals. He said that achieving the goals that are desired was the only reason why he practiced leadership in his work. He further argued that a leader could only be considered competent if he was able to inspire and motivate others for the purposes of making sure that their cooperation and respect for authority leads to desirable and profitable outcomes. B14 added that leadership is a social process that can only be practised through the creation of the followers, and the influence. As it follows, a leader can only practice leadership if they exercise it through specific roles. For one to effectively practice leadership, B14 argues that they must first establish a relationship that is stable and continuous, between those who exercise the leadership influence and those that receive this influence. According to B14, a leader is an individual who is able to retain his leadership position and one who is able to exercise and display the kind of behaviour that is usually associated with the same position he holds.

With regards to the roles and responsibilities of a leader, it was found that leaders had the following duties; to motivate followers, to manage work flow, to control his followers, to achieve goals that have been priory planned, to establish a balance between stakeholder, followers, and interested parties, to solve problems, and to coordinate and manage individuals and groups for the purposes of achieving goals. As already seen, all of the participants seemed to think that leaders must possess certain skills and competencies. From the related literature, it was clear that leaders do need several skills and competencies to carry out their duties. Though no trait has been found wanting in individuals who are not leaders when compared to leaders, it has been indicated that leaders possess more drive and determination, and in most cases more a higher level of positive qualities that individuals who are not leaders (Meredith, 2001).

Though certain qualities might differ in different kinds of leaders, studies have shown that the basic characteristics of leaders do not change. Some of these qualities include; appropriate communication skills, honesty, visionary, and ability to identify and select a good team, being able to lead by example, ability to motivate their followers, consistency, and ability to withstand criticism (Sinnema & Robinson, 2007; Robinson, 2006). Moreover, a leader must be able to utilise a number of motivation styles with his followers. They must be unpredictable, effective and inspiring (Luthans, 1995).

Good Communication Skills

Since time in memorial, good communication skills have been termed as some of the most essential traits of a great leader. There are numerous reasons why a good leader has to possess good skills of communication. It has been argued that even if a leader possesses all the other traits of a good leader but fails to have fine communication skills, then he cannot be termed as a great leader. This is because without excellent communcationskills, a leader cannot express to his followers what new ideas can further and enhance the productivity and profitability of the company. Generally, good communication skills are essential for developing successful business or work relationships.

Honesty

Honesty is considered to be the most valuable asset a leader can ever possess. A leader must be honest with both his workers and higher authorities. Integrity is also another feature closely associated with honesty that a leader must possess. A leader must, therefore, protect and maintain his integrity.

Visionary Outlook

Qualities of leadership differ from leader to leader. However, all leaders must be able to think ahead for the purposes of obtaining answers to stabilise the current business as well as the future business. Therefore, a leader must be able to see and look behold today, and analyse were the business is headed. The same vision can be used to improve the business.

Selecting a Good Team

A good leader must also possess the ability to select a team that is skilful, and efficient to back up and provide for some of the skills they lack. The ability to identify and work hand in hand with these people is a skill that all leaders must possess.

Leading by Example

Leaders must first and foremost be good listeners. Their workers must always think that their leaders are listening and understanding what they are saying. The leader, through their listening skills can understand what the concerns their workers have; however, identifying and understanding what these concerns and needs are is not enough. Leaders must find a way to act upon the new knowledge they obtained to try and make their worker comfortable by addressing their concerns and needs.

Ability to Motivate Workers

An excellent leader is the one who has the ability to motivate and inspire his co- workers and provide a working- environment that is healthy and conducive for work. An excellent leader must also make it his priority to ensure that his workers are safe and happy. He must also ensure that his workers are not being overworked by his superiors.

Consistency

This is also another characteristic that defines a great leader. It is impossible for a leader to lead effectively when they are not consistent. As it is, most leaders have their own unique approaches to management and leadership. They should, therefore, not constantly change their unique leadership styles as this can indicate that they are inconsistent. One can improve some areas without necessarily appearing inconsistent

Ability to deal with Critics

Criticism is a constant occurrence when one is successful. Leaders who are effective must, therefore, possess the ability to withstand this criticism. An excellent leader is the one who knows that there will always be a group of people who will never agree with their style or way of doing things.

Additionally, Luthans indicated that for one to be able to utilise leadership for achieving desirable results, one has to use a particular style of interaction, or motivate his workers towards achieving their goals. He argued that leaders had to possess numerous leadership styles so as not to become boring or monotonous. For a leader to be effective, unpredictable and inspiring, they have to possess a number of leadership styles. The study carried out a survey to find out how leaders were managing to be effective, motivating, and inspiring, without getting monotonous or predictable. The participants indicated that they had to possess a number of characteristics so as to be effective. Such examples include; being participative, guiding and directing workers, caring about their employees, and letting their workers accomplish their work without interfering.

Leadership Education and Training This section focused on the issue of the role education and training plays in developing and enhancing leadership skills. After reviewing the answers provided by the respondents, it became clear that most interviews had a number of similarities in their opinions and views about the kind of education they had obtained. Most of them agreed that they had received education and training from university programs, professional development programs, conferences, discussions and peers by peers, and personal reading. It was also noted that most participants indicated that the education they had received had helped in a large way in shaping them as leaders. It was, however, noted that most interviewees expressed regret that most university programs were useless in grooming individuals to be effective leaders.

B3 affirmed that university education was not enough to train individuals about being leaders, and so did interviewees B9 and B11. B3 argued that there is no official education or training program in universities for leadership, and, as a result, he did not benefit from any of it in his job as a leader. B9 felt that most universities and colleges focused more of the visions of the administration more than the innovative visions of the students. B11 lamented that the only education and training he got of leadership was from his own readings and from colleagues other than from the university, as the university did not offer any good training programs in leadership.

B6, however, indicated that training was not as important as accumulated experience in grooming one to be an effective leader. He argued that most programs provided by the universities focus more on increasing and enhancing leadership skills than in developing and establishing leadership behaviour. The essentiality of training in developing good leaders has long been valued. Leadership in the education area has been considered essential, and, therefore, training should not be considered to be less significant in fostering leaders with the essential goals (Debaja, 2001). With the current climate in business, and the increased growth and development in technology, the need to train leaders has become critical (Austin, 2001). Training is a term used to refer to the activity that alters the behaviour of individuals. The driving force behind most training programs is arguably to increase productivity. Training can also increase motivation, and inspiration. Training has several advantages; it increases motivation, morale, satisfaction, efficiency, capacity to work with emerging technology, innovation, and reduces the turnover of workers (Training Magazine, 2001).

Leadership According to Islam From the answers provided by the interviewees, it was found that Taibah University displays a number of Islamic leadership behaviours and tendencies. These behaviours included; trust or Ammaneh, justice or Adalah, integrity or Nazaha, consultation or Shura, commitment and excellent example, and observation of Islamic principles and rules. These definitions of leadership were further confirmed by the interviewees. For example, interviewee B1 thought that an excellent leader had to have Nazaha and Ammaneh. By this he meant that a leader had to be trustworthy and of high integrity. B3 thought that a leader had to practice consultation and authorization for them to be considered good leaders. B2 indicated that a leader had to be of high integrity for them to be considered excellent leaders. B7 said that an effective leader is the one who exercise Ammaneh and justice.

Leadership is supposed to be a coaching and inspiring voluntary process that aims at guiding followers to fulfil a shared and a clear objective (Chowdburry, 2001; Altalib, 1991). According to Islam, a leader cannot act as he feels like, he must also not act according to the wishes of others; he can only act in a manner that fosters the wishes of Allah (Beekun & Badawi, 1999). In Islam, a good leader is the one who does good deeds for the sake of his community, humankind, and Allah (Kader, 1973).

The Role Within leadership Most of the participants indicated that the role of an educational leader in the university is to keep work in the university flowing as required. B3 described the role of a leader as carrying out tasks as assigned and required by the administrative system of the institute, and according to the functions hierarchy, to give and provide control, direction, make decisions, and provide coordination.B4 affirmed this by indicating that he was an employee of a higher entity, and, as a result, he had the role to act as an example, and to ensure the flow of work, and to motivate the rest of the staff to work for the good of the whole. B5 explained his responsibility by indicating that discussion, persuasion or the expression of attention and facts was one of his roles, in addition to, playing an active role in coming up with new ideas, as a member of the whole group, and to explain and clarify things that are not clear to the others. He argued that there was no way the desirable objectives could be attained if the personnel was not enlighten and aware of the certain matters. The publication of the university affirms that indeed the role of leaders in the institute is to draw and foster the general policies of education, as well as, those of the university (Taibah University, 2001).

Conclusion The previous chapter has put a lot of its focus on the views and opinions of the respondents on the behaviour of leadership common in Taibah University. The correspondents were divided into different groups that were composed of several representatives of college deans in the institution. The views and opinions of these representatives indicated different concepts leadership and responsibilities of leaders. Furthermore, the participants also expressed their opinions of the characteristics of leadership that is based on Islam as practised in the Taibah University. From the above chapter, several things were realised. For example, it was realised that for a leader to be effective he has to possess a number of characteristics. It was also found that leadership has numerous roles, and that leadership in the Islam context is significantly different from the leadership models in other contexts. Leadership was also found to be depended largely on training and education. Based on the above findings, the paper has come up with a number of recommendations that can be essential for aspiring leaders, and especially in the Arab world. One recommendation concerns schools, universities and colleges. It was found that most educational institutes do not offer sufficient education and training to foster effective leadership skills to students. As it follows, schools and other educational institutes must find a way to incorporate programs that offer better training for future managers.

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