EVALUACIÓN DE CONTROL INTERNO COMPONENTE: Departamento de Rentas.

Validity, generalisability and reliability are basic principles in social research (Bryman, 2001). Validity means the ability to produce accurate results and to accurately measure what the research questions seek to understand or explain. In other words, it refers to the question of whether the findings are ‘really’ what they claim to be about (Sarantakos, 1998). Generalisability relates to the question of whether the findings can be applied to other situations and populations (Bryman, 2001).

As seen, this research used multiple sources of evidence by establishing a rich and thick description of evidence and by presenting negative or discrepant information that is controversial to the themes (Creswell, 2003). This helps to increase the validity and generalisability of the research study (Tashakkori and Teddlie, 1998). However, this research cannot claim generalisability, as it looked at a particular phenomenon (ethnic minority social enterprise activities) in a particular place (East London Olympic Boroughs); making the case ‘unique’ and difficult to generalise to other situations such as other boroughs in London or other locations both within or outside the UK (Ward-Schofield, 2000).

External reliability is concerned with the fact that the results are the same if the study is repeated. One of the requisites for allowing other researchers to repeat a case study research is the need to explain in detail the procedures that were followed (Yin, 1994).

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In this study, the use of case study protocol with detailed explanations of the procedures which have been followed during the research will aid other researchers to repeat the study in other settings so provide methodological consistency.

Furthermore, there is a need to explain internal reliability within the methods of data collection. It must be remembered that documentary sources such as literature and policy documents are important evidence when used to complement other sources such as interviews or observations (Robson, 1993). In terms of ensuring internal reliability, a technique for systematic evaluation for documentary analysis was used (Manning and Cullum-Swan, 1994). Within the telephone survey, a prior pilot test was carried out to find out whether the data that was collected enabled the research questions to be answered (Bryman and Bell, 2011).

With semi-structured interviews, an interview schedule which lists the sequencing of questions and the wording were considered as well as a pilot study being conducted prior to carry out the interviews (Gomm et al., 2000). The interviews were recorded and a copy of the transcribed text was given to the participants to ensure an accurate portrayal of the proceedings and that what the participants actually said was reflected in the transcription. This method is essential for checking the quality of the study, as well as helping to sustain a good relationship with the participants (Bryman, 2001). None of the participants mentioned took issue with the transcription.

Within the holistic case study method, techniques such as cross-case and within-case examination helped to ensure validity within the case study examples (Silverman, 1993; Eisenhardt, 1989; Miles and Huberman, 1994). First, within-case study analysis, detailed write-ups were completed starting with the first level which consisted of describing the proceedings, whilst the second level explained or justified the actions.

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Second, within the cross-case analysis, a matrix comparing several categories and cases was created to ensure the validity of the study (see Tables 6.1, 6.2, 7.1 and 7.2 in Chapters 6 and 7).

Furthermore, there were other relevant issues which needed to be considered such as the fact that the researcher and most participants were not native English speakers. Some participants, mainly service users, did not speak English well or did not understand the questions asked by the researcher. Therefore, the researcher re-phrased some questions and used clear and simple language to communicate effectively with the participants with the purpose of obtaining valid data (Robson, 1993). The discrepancy in language and culture between participants and the researcher may have influenced the research results (Bryman, 2001). Participants might have misunderstood the questions and, consequently, not have communicated their feelings appropriately. This might have affected the quality of the data collected. Nevertheless, successful responses increased surprisingly after a few interviews as the researcher became more confident.

Another aspect that has to be taken into consideration is the positionality of the researcher within the partner organisation. This study was a Collaborative Doctoral Studentship conducted with a non-academic organisation, the Ethnic Minority Foundation (EMF) (see Section 1.1 for further details). It has been claimed that Collaborative Doctoral Studentships provide an insight into practice for doctoral students to gain first hand experience of work outside an academic environment providing access to resources and materials, knowledge and expertise that may not otherwise have been available (Arts and Humanities Research Council, 2012). Within this study, the researcher had a direct involvement in the EMF, as the researcher was working as a research assistant for this charitable organisation that supports ethnic minority organisations in Britain during the completion of the thesis (Ethnic Minority Foundation, 2012). It can be claimed that this association with the Ethnic Minority Foundation helped to provide access to knowledge, resources and materials.

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The fact that the Ethnic Minority Foundation is located in the Five Olympic Boroughs provided the researcher with a better grounding in the study context due to the opportunity of meeting local organisations and also getting involved in several local events that were related to ethnic minorities and the third sector (Bryman and Bell, 2003). The researcher also used the Ethnic Minority Foundation national database of 11,450 ethnic minority third sector organisations to identify 1,200 organisations within the East London Olympic Boroughs (see Section 4.4.2).

However, the limitations of working in a research project with other bodies and organisations should be highlighted such as the fact that the researcher can focus on a particular issue that the partner organisation/body is interested in and this can reduce the researcher’s capacity to be an independent researcher, or the researcher can be identified within a body/organisation and there can be resistance by some organisations to divulge information (Arts and Humanities Research Council, 2012). Within this study, it can be claimed that the researcher had the freedom to focus on the issues she was more interested in based on the literature related to this study. However, it should be pointed out that as the researcher mentioned the involvement of the partner organisation, the Ethnic Minority Foundation, as well as the sponsor, the Economic and Social Research Council within the project, some organisations resisted divulging sensitive information related to their ‘profit’ and ’income generation activities’ (Song and Parker, 1995).