dissertation

Figure 3.1: Research onion (Saunders et al, 2019).

Saunders et al (2019), illustrates the research onion in understanding research philosophy. The outer layer consists of the five philosophies positivism, critical realism, interpretivism and pragmatism (Saunders et al, 2019). The next layer is the approach to theory development such as deduction, abduction and induction this then leads to choices of methods and strategies and the inner layer is data procedure. (Saunders et al, 2019).

3.6 Application to this Study

Based on the information, the applicable philosophy for this study is positivism as this study involves measurement of data through quantitative approach by using online survey, analysis of findings will be based on participants unbiased responses. Inductive approach is also applicable as theories were identified before data collection followed by analysis of findings.

3.7 Research Design for this Project

Descriptive research design is employed for this project as the study is focusing on Game of Thrones phenomena and the impact on people’s travel motivations. To help find answers to research questions, a detailed description is necessary by data collection using an online questionnaire with structured questions. Responses from participants will be described which contributes to the aim of this research and questions.

3.8 Types of Research Design

Hair et al (2011), discussed the three types of research design such as exploratory, descriptive and casual research. The authors further explain that exploratory research is used when researchers have no knowledge about a certain problem, it is used to develop and gain understanding on a problem and opportunity which is useful for innovative industries. (Hair et al, 2011 p.148).

While descriptive research focuses on description of events and phenomena, it is used to identify information on the characteristics of a particular problem. It offers a detailed description of a particular event through interviews, observations and document reviews. (Habib et al, 2014, p.8).

According to Hair et al (2011), casual research is more complex as it examines whether an event affects another event which causes another problem. The cause and effect relationship of casual research has four conditions these are time sequence, covariance, nonspurious association and theoretical support.

3.9 Primary Research vs Secondary Research

According to Dawson (2009), primary research is a study of a particular subject using first-hand observations and your own data collection. Walliman (2017), stated that methods in primary research are, questionnaire, interviews, observations and experiments. Primary research is the chosen method for data collection, direct responses from participants will be collected and will be applied for this project.

While secondary research is the collection of information conducted by other researchers which can be collected through books and online sources. (Dawson, 2009, p.46). According to Smith (2008), secondary research is a collection of data already gathered by another researcher. For this project, no secondary data will be collected as the project is focused on primary research.

3.10 Quantitative and Qualitative Research

Quantitative research is empirical which consists of large-scale sets of data presented as gathering of factual data. (Blaxter et al, 2010, p.65). Quantitative involves data collection which can then be converted into numerical form to calculate statistics and draw conclusion. The authors further stated that quantitative determines whether predictions of theories are accurate by testing, measuring with numbers and analysing statistics. (Habib et al,2014, p.9).

Qualitative research collects and analyse data in non-numeric forms which involves in depth exploration. (Blaxter et al, 2010. P.65). Qualitative focuses on individual’s experiences, by analysing and interpreting data from observation and exploration based on people’s actions and statements.

3.10.1 Difference of Quantitative and Qualitative Research

Figure 3.2: The differences of Quantitative and Qualitative study according to (Habib et al, 2014).

3.10.2 Justification for Quantitative

Quantitative research is employed for the research project because this is the most applicable approach to help achieve the aim and answer the research questions. This type of study, a quantitative research is needed to achieve reliable and valid responses as this study requires answers from a high number of participants. Responses from a qualitative or interviews are not suitable for this kind of topic as qualitative relies on face to face interviews this process is impossible to achieve as the study requires at least 30 participants. Utilising quantitative approach will provide the most efficient and convenient way to obtain responses from participants. Therefore, an online survey has been created which is easily accessible through Facebook and can be self-completed by respondents. Quantitative will also provide statistical data needed for the study.

3.11 Research Strategy

This research will undertake quantitative research through online questionnaire. A questionnaire is important in methodology as it is used to extract data from respondents. A questionnaire also provides consistency and records answers for data analysis. (Hague et al 2013, p.107) Questionnaires are written instrument which presents questions to respondents to which they are to react by selecting or writing answers. (Dornyei and Tacguchi, 2009, p.3-5).

A structured questionnaire has been created which consist of closed ended questions. According to Dillman et al (2014) closed ended questions provides participants a list of options to choose from and ask respondents to choose the most applicable answer. The researcher employed closed ended questions in the survey because they are time efficient which will keep the respondents engaged and are more likely to continue and complete the full questionnaire.

The questionnaire is designed with a combination of behavioural and attitudinal questions based on the research topic focusing on people’s travel motivation and experiences. According to Hague et al (2013) behavioural questions are used to understand and determine people’s actions and decisions. On the other hand, Attitudinal questions are used to understand people’s perceptions, opinions and beliefs as emotions have a high influence on consumer’s behaviour. (Hague et al, 2013, p.111)

For this study, the survey was created online in Google Forms as this is the one of most cost effective compared to other survey tools available online. According to Fogli and Herkenhoff (2017) a survey is a systematic data collection to describe, compare or explain the knowledge, attitudes and behaviour of a particular group. Fogli and Herkenhoff (2017) added that surveys are used to uncover useful information by asking questions about their feelings, motivations, plans, beliefs and personal backgrounds. The online questionnaire is to be circulated online through social media platform Facebook, so that respondents can easily access and complete it. It also reaches a high number of potential participants globally. The introduction of the survey stated the purpose of the study, the length to complete it and who is conducting the research.

3.12 Pilot Testing

According to Stopher (2012), Pilot trial is useful to test the aspects of the questionnaire ensuring that everything works as planned. Piloting the questionnaire has many purposes such as assessing response rates, completion rates and a base to improve a survey. Brace (2008), stated that the two key tests when piloting a questionnaire are reliability and validity. A questionnaire can be considered as reliable if it provides distribution of responses consistently on the other hand validity measures the intended data. (Brace, 2008, p. 175).

The online questionnaire was initially created for trial to five participants, this is to ensure that everything worked accordingly such as functions, correctness and direction. Some of the participants highlighted that the survey tittle got them interested to participate, while others highlighted that the options needed amendments, such as adding a not applicable option for those who have not participated in GoT Tourism, allowing respondents to select multiple choices about Croatia’s image, types of sources when selecting a destination and changing the age category from 18. The pilot study was very helpful for the researcher to improve the questionnaire before circulation.

3.13 Sampling

According to Vanderstoep and Johnston (2009), sampling is the selection of best suited participants for the study to help achieve the research objectives. The authors added that a sample is the set of participants who will participate in the study. The chosen sampling strategy for this research is snowball sampling as a small group of people were invited to participate during the pilot study. (Vanderstoep and Johnston, 2009, p. 27). Convenience sampling is the selection of participants based on their accessibility and availability (Vanderstoep and Johnston 2009, p. 27). This strategy is also being employed in the study as participants are invited through Facebook initially with friends, colleagues and GoT Facebook groups using the researcher’s personal Facebook account this is also helpful in achieving unbiased results as the survey is open to both non-fans and fans of GoT. The potential problem which may occur by employing the chosen strategies is that the survey may not reach many suitable respondents which may have an impact on the result.

3.14 Distribution and Access to Participants

After improvement of the online questionnaire the researcher circulated the survey link through Facebook initially with friends, distribution of the survey was solely on Facebook, no other social media or communication tools were used. The researcher also requested to join Game of Thrones Facebook groups as well as travel and film location groups which were all accepted. The researcher also contacted the group administrators for permission of posting, 9 out of 10 GoT groups accepted and agreed for the online survey to be posted and shared. 4 travel Facebook groups and 3 film location groups also agreed on the survey to be posted and share the survey on their personal Facebook accounts.

Figure 3.3: Questionnaire Distribution to Facebook Groups

3.15 Survey Questions and Justification

Figure 3.4: Justification of Survey Questions

3.16 Data Analysis

According to Punch (2003), the data can be prepared before analysis by data cleaning and data entry which refers to tidying up sets of data. Answers need to be proofread by the researcher before data processing. (Punch, 2003 p.48). In quantitative study there are three main types of analysis which can be employed such as summarising and reducing data, descriptive level analysis and relationships analysis. (Punch, 2003, p.48).

Google Forms is used for the questionnaire which summarises the results in percentage and provides charts to show responses. It also shows individual responses through an excel document. The document for individual responses will be useful if data tidying is needed.

3.17 Reliability

Reliability is the consistency of measured data, if results are the same every time, then reliability is assessed. (Abbott and McKinney, 2012, p.45). The term reliability is described by Cohen et al (2017) as dependability, consistency and replicability over time, over instruments and over groups of participants.

Primary quantitative research is used to increase the reliability of this study. As quantitative gathers statistic data directly from respondents. Also, the online questionnaire is open to everyone aged 18 and over therefore the data collected will be based on all respondents and not just those fans of Game of Thrones. Descriptive approach is the chosen method to provide reliable data gathered from respondents which will contribute to data being reliable.

3.18 Validity

According to Punch (2003), validity means that data collected represents accuracy and depends on the respondents’ state of mind and attitude. It also involves whether the participants are qualified to answer the questions. (Punch, 2003, p.46). Piloting the questionnaire helped to assess the questionnaire’s validity. By testing the questionnaire, the researcher gathered comments from the small group of participants to improve and correct mistakes. The online survey was tested before circulation to improve and ensure validity. Feedback collected from the small sample was utilised to improve the survey and increase validity.

3.19 Ethical Considerations

According to Vanderstoep and Jonston (2009) research ethics is concerned on how the participants are treated during the study and how data are handled after collection. Vogt et al (2012) highlighted that respondents’ privacy are important and this should be respected by keeping data anonymous and confidential. The survey introduction states that all responses from participants will be kept anonymous and confidential.

The survey is only open to participants at age 18 and over, the participation of the survey is voluntary therefore it is up to participants whether they would like to participate or not, they can withdraw from the survey anytime. Each questions of the survey have been carefully generated to avoid issues during the study. An ethics form has been submitted before the questionnaire has been circulated and collection of data. (Appendix 2)

3.20 Conclusion

In conclusion, research is important in finding answers to certain issues as it provides a systematic process to establish factual and accurate information. When searching for the right research approach it is crucial to select the appropriate research design whether exploratory, descriptive and casual research. Quantitative and qualitative methods are both useful in research, however they have different approaches. Quantitative can be utilised in a large-scale research as it provides statistical analysis and help measure and predict accuracies. While qualitative method is useful for a small-scale sample and involves in depth investigation through observation, interpretation of people’s actions and statements. The chosen research strategy for this project is quantitative by employing online questionnaire as an instrument. An online survey is a fast and efficient way to collect data from respondents, it offers accessibility and convenience reaching respondents worldwide. It is an advantage that the survey will require little time and self-completed by respondents. The survey is created with close ended questions which is time efficient as respondents are provided with a list of answers rather than stating their responses. The survey also consists of behavioural and attitudinal questions which relates to literature review as the topic is travel motivation. Behavioural and attitudinal questions help understand people’s decisions, perceptions, opinions and beliefs. Pilot testing was beneficial for improvement and identify mistakes before circulation. Snowball and convenience sampling were employed as strategy during the research. Social media specifically Facebook was utilised to distribute the survey, the researcher approached Game of Thrones Facebook groups as well as Croatian travel and film location groups to invite potential participants. Each question is justified explaining why those questions are being used and how they relate to literature review. Most questions ask about people’s awareness of GoT and if the show have influenced them to travel and participate in tourism activities. Some questions are also used to measure people’s motivation by rating travel motivation push and pull factors. It is also useful during data analysis to summarise, clean and proofread the data collected. Reliability can be assessed by its consistency overtime, as quantitative method is employed, data collected will be reliable as responses are gathered directly from participants. Validity is important in collecting data to ensure accuracy, the pilot testing ensured the survey was functional and allowed improvement of the questionnaire which also contributes to data being valid. As the survey is open to everyone all responses are from people who are tourists, fans of GoT and non-fans this helps achieve unbiased results. It is crucial to consider ethical issues to ensure all participants are treated fairly, data collected will be kept confidential and anonymous.