Ravalier PhD Theis.pdf - Anglia Ruskin Research Online

290
However, problem-focussed and emotion-focussed coping mechanisms (see Chapter II, section 1a.3.1) are
difficult to take into account with primary organisational change processes. Strategies to improve emotionfocussed
coping equate to secondary and tertiary approaches in which efforts are made to improve individual
coping mechanisms or recovery following a negative reaction to stress. However problem-focussed coping, in
which the employee makes attempts to change the working situation in their favour in order to improve workplace
stressors, would equate ideally to primary methodologies. For example, the presented study asked individuals for
methods by which they could feasibly change their own working situation in their favour, with these experiences
taken into account throughout the AI process. Despite this, the work could not be explained as specifically related
to problem-focussed coping because the individual does not actively make attempts to change the stressor for
themselves, rather any changes were designed as a group and implementation assisted by management.
A further limitation of the study can be assumed with regard to the use of quantitative surveys. The first
such issue regards utilising traditional ‘deficit-based’ questionnaires alongside an Appreciative Inquiry
methodology. AI techniques involve positive discourse, seeking to find out what is working well in an organisation
(see Chapter VI, Section 1b.2 for the assumptions of AI), whereas the survey tools utilised attempt to find out
the problems within an organisation. However, in response it is clear that the results of the survey were utilised in
a manner appropriate with the AI process, with positive results being fed back only. Therefore where results
needed to be disseminated to staff or the organisation as a whole they were reported in an affirmative manner,
looking at what is working well, as opposed to the areas of the workplace that need improvement.
While the general arguments for the use of qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods are analysed
previously there are also a number of potential issues with regard to the use of the qualitative approaches utilised.