RM8-PP
Kaybee
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Scholarly Activity II
Efrem Williams
Columbia Southern University
MBA 5652-18P Research Methods FA22L-S2
Thanasak Ruankaew
10/05/2021
Research Objectives, Research Questions, and Hypotheses
As the new director for Safety and Health of Sun Coast, I have the assignment of developing research questions and hypotheses. These will assist in implementing measures that will meet strategic business goals, such as reducing the costs associated with long-term litigation from injuries and illness related to employment and the nature of our services.
The following are the business problems identified by the Sun Coast leadership: Particulate Matter, Safety Training Effectiveness, Sound Level Exposure, New Employee Training, Lead Exposure, and Return on Investment. These problems are the priority of Sun Coast and will require the use of quantitative research data available to determine the best course of action recommendations (Creswell & Creswell, 2018, p. 133).
Particulate Matter (PM)
There is growing concern over job site particle m pollution and the potential adverse impact on employee health. While respirators are required in some areas/environments, Particulate matter (PM) can vary in size depending on the project and job site
Some larger PM can float in the air for a few minutes to hours, while other smaller types of PM can float in the air for weeks. Due to the smaller size of some PM, it can be potentially more harmful since the conditions for inhalation are more suitable. Understanding if there is a relationship between pm size and employee health could be extremely helpful ("Particle Matter Basics," 2018).
Safety Training Effectiveness
According to an article I found, training may not translate into fewer injuries.” The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) released reviews of training effectiveness research in 1998 and 2010” ("Gauging the effectiveness of safety training: Research and best practices," 2020). The organization has conducted many randomized studies on the effectiveness of training and found strong evidence that training affects workers outlook on safety and on the behavior of workers. Some might argue that being trained or at least shown the proper way to complete a task goes a long way in improving workers moral("Gauging the effectiveness of safety training: Research and best practices," 2020).
Sound-Level Exposure
Since sun coasts contracts typically involve working environments that are particularly noisy due to the machines and equipment, Standard earplugs are adequate for protecting employees when the noise level/decibel levels are less than 120 decibels (DB). For environments where the noise level exceeds 120 DB, more advanced hearing equipment, like earmuffs, would be required. The equipment also tends to be more expensive. Data collected from the primary variables that have been identified as things that cause excessive noise is essential, because it can be used to predict the DB levels of each work environment before placing employees on the work site (CDC, 2020).
New Employee Training
New Sun Coast employees for example, are required to participate in the general health and safety program, which has been revamped and implemented six months ago. Since it is important to know if the changes in the training program are more effective, data has been collected from two groups.
Group A: Employees who participated in the previous trainings and
group B: employees who completed the revised training program.
Lead Exposure
When employees work on job sites to remediate lead, they must be monitored regularly.
A baseline lead level check is completed pre-exposure, then another post – exposure at regular intervals, then at the conclusion of the remediation. Data collected from 49 employees after completion of a 2-year long remediation, to determine if blood levels increased. This is a typical test to find the blood levels before and after. The results are calculated to determine the likelihood of exposure within the employees working in an area ("Health effects of lead exposure," 2020).
Return on Investment
Return on investment (ROI) is a tool used to calculate the benefit an investor will receive in relation to their investment cost. It is most commonly measured as the cost of doing business divided by the equipment cost, like people to hold classes, computers to do training, etc. of the investment. Return on investment data is available for air monitoring, water reclamation, health and safety training and soil remediation. If ROI is not the same across the board, it would be helpful to have the ability to pinpoint the areas that hold differences (Corporate Finance Institute, 2020).
Research Objectives
Identifying the appropriate research objectives is an important component, it is needed to develop implementation measures that Sun Coast will be able to successfully achieve a level of occupational safety and health for all employees. To achieve this, it is important the correct research questions are asked in determining the best course of action. The following are research objectives identified based on information available and complex assessment of the overall situation (Corporate Finance Institute, 2020).
RQ1: Is there a relationship between the size of particulate matter (PM) and impact on employees’ health (measured in annual sick leave days)?
Ho1: There is no statistically significant relationship between PM size and annual sick leave days.
Ha1: There is a statistically significant relationship between PM size and annual sick leave days
RO2: Determination of the reduction of lost hours (time) as a direct successful result from adequate safety training.
RQ2: Is there a relationship in the success of the safety training and reduction of lost time?
Ho2: There is no statistically significant relationship between safety training and reduction of lost time.
Ha2: There is statistically significant relationship between safety training and reduction of lost time.
RO3: Determination of direct correlation of noise-level data collected (decibels-dB) and prediction of work-site potential noise-levels.
RQ3: Is there a relationship between the noise-level data collected and prediction of potential noise-level in worksites?
Ho3: There is no statically significant relationship between noise-level data collected and prediction of potential noise-level in worksites.
Ha3: There is statically significant relationship between noise-level data collected and prediction of potential noise-level in worksites.
RO4: Determination of effectiveness of revised training program (curriculum) over previous training program.
RQ4: Is the revised training curriculum more effective than the previous curriculum used?
Ho4: There is no statistically significant difference in effectiveness between the revised and previously used trainings.
Ha4: There is statistically significant difference in effectiveness between the revised and previously used trainings.
RO5: Determination of change between the before and after lead exposure-levels.
RQ5: Is there a change in blood lead-levels between pre and post-exposure data?
Ho5: There is no statistically significant change in blood lead-levels between pre and postexposure data.
Ha5: There is statistically significant change in blood lead-levels between pre and post-exposure data.
RO6: Determination of differences in return on investment among the four lines of service.
RQ6: Is there any difference in return-on-investment data among the four lines of services (air monitoring, soil remediation, water reclamation and health and safety training)?
Ho6: There is no statistically significant difference in return-on-investment data among the four lines of service.
Ha6: There is statistically significant difference in return-on-investment data among the four lines of service.
References
Corporate Finance Institute. (2020, February 28). ROI formula, calculation, and examples of return on investment. https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/knowledge/finance/return-on-investment-roi-formula/
Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2018). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (5th ed.). SAGE Publications. https://online.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781506386690
Gauging the effectiveness of safety training: Research and best practices. (2020, May 21). EHS Daily Advisor. https://ehsdailyadvisor.blr.com/2020/05/gauging-the-effectiveness-of-safety-training-research-and-best-practices/
Health effects of lead exposure. (2020, January 7). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/prevention/health-effects.htm
Noise and hearing loss prevention | NIOSH | CDC. (2020, June 22). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/noise/
Particle Matter Basics. (2018). EPA.gov. https://www.epa.gov/pm-pollution/particulate-matter-pm-basic
