Qualitative and quantitative methods in sustainable development

PREFACE

PART I

PRIMARY DATA COLLECTION

Iwona Olejnik, Atanaska Reshetkova

1. QUALITATIVE METHODS

1.1. Methodology of qualitative research—the basics

1.1.1. Qualitative research—theoretical background

1.1.2. Qualitative research methods

1.2. Designing a focus group interview

1.2.1. The essence and main stages of focus group interview

1.2.2. Sampling

1.2.3. Ecological culture of Bulgarians: case study (Part 1)

1.2.4. Projection techniques

1.2.5. The script

1.2.6. Ecological culture of Bulgarians: case study (Part 2)

1.3. Conducting a focus group interview

1.3.1. The organizational aspects of FGI

1.3.2. FGI moderation

1.4. Analysis of qualitative data using the CAQDAS programs

1.4.1. Fundamentals of qualitative data analysis

1.4.2. Common steps in qualitative data analysis

1.4.3. Analysing qualitative data with a CAQDAS software

1.4.4. Example of CAQDAS software—Atlas.ti

Sylwester Białowąs, Blaženka Knežević, Iwona Olejnik, Magdalena Stefańska

2. QUANTITATIVE METHODS

2.1. Levels of measurement

2.1.1. Introduction

2.1.2. Nominal, ordinal, interval and ratio levels of measurement

2.1.3. Measurement levels and data analysis methods

2.2. Questionnaire design

2.2.1. Stages in creating a questionnaire

2.2.2. Types of questions in the questionnaire

2.2.3. Organic food as a form of sustainable consumption: case study

2.3. Population and sample

2.3.1. Difference between population and sample

2.3.2. Determining sample size

2.3.3. Sampling method

2.4. Variables—first view

2.4.1. Introduction

2.4.2. Box and Whiskers chart

2.4.3. Crosstabs: percentage

2.5. Visualization—Likert scale and some chosen charts

2.5.1. Visualisation of the Likert scale

2.5.2. Other examples of data visualization schemes

PART II

SELECTED METHODS OF DATA ANALYSIS

Iwona Olejnik, Blaženka Knežević, Magdalena Stefańska

3. FACTOR ANALYSIS IN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH

3.1. Theoretical background

3.2. Factor analysis—research steps

3.3. Sustainable consumption behaviour—an example of application of factor analysis using the IBM SPSS Statistics version 26.0

3.3.1. Model assumptions and selection of variables

3.3.2. Model estimation and analysis

3.4. Testing managers’ ethics in retail industry: case study no. 1

3.5. Local government representatives about retailers—from the CSR perspective: case study no. 2

3.6. Testing attitude of Socially Responsible Employee: case study no. 3

Todor Krastevich, Atanaska Reshetkova

4. STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELLING IN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH

4.1. What is Structural Equation Modelling (SEM)?

4.1.1. SEM in a nutshell: basic concepts

4.1.2. The model estimation

4.1.2.1. Model estimation using CB-SEM approach

4.1.2.2. Model estimation using PLS-SEM approach

4.1.2.3. Choosing the right approach

4.1.3. Identification issues and model adequacy

4.1.3.1. Local criteria for model evaluation

4.1.3.2. Global criteria for model evaluation

4.2. Comparing the performance of SEM approaches with simulated data

4.2.1. CB-SEM approach

4.2.1.1. Fit a model to data using `lavaan` package in R/RStudio

4.2.1.2. Fit a model to data using IBM SPSS AMOS

4.2.1.3. Comparing and interpreting the results

4.2.2. PLS-SEM approach

4.2.2.1. Fit a model to data using `semPLS` package in R/RStudio

4.2.2.2. Fit a model to data using SmartPLS

4.3. Solving sustainability research problems with SEM

4.3.1. Sustainable development as a concept and strategy

4.3.2. Supply chain management

4.3.3. Corporate social responsibility

4.3.4. Innovations linked to sustainability

4.3.5. Consumer behaviour and sustainable consumption

4.3.6. Human resource management

Katarzyna Smędzik-Ambroży, Agnieszka Sapa

5. DATA ENVELOPMENT ANALYSIS METHODS IN SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH

5.1. DEA—theoretical background

5.2. DEA procedure: main steps

5.2.1. Aims of research and data (inputs and outputs) selection

5.2.2. Model calibration and calculation

5.2.3. Results interpretation

5.3. Comparison of farms’ efficiency in the European Union: case study no. 1

5.3.1. Aims of research and data selection from FADN

5.3.2. Model calibration and calculation

5.3.3. Results interpretation

5.4. Comparison of crops farm efficiency in the European Union: case study no. 2

5.4.1. Aims of research and data selection from FADN

5.4.2. Model calibration and calculation

5.4.3. Results interpretation

Systematic research and comprehensive analyses allow to monitor the implementation of the sustainable development goals. Obviously, when you are interested in the selected issue of sustainable development, it is worth using data from the secondary sources in the first place.

This e-book presents a few selected methods that will allow you to answer the questions: how to gather data and how to analyse them? Among the data collection methods presented in this book, we have chosen both: qualitative, in particular focus group interview, and quantitative—based on a questionnaire. In terms of data analysis methods, we present three methods: factor analysis, structural equation modelling and data envelopment analysis. The examples presented in this book relate to sustainable development, for example: sustainable consumption, ecological culture, better nutrition, agricultural development and many more.

The book consists of five chapters. Chapter 1 “Qualitative methods” presents the issues concerning the methodology of qualitative research, designing a focus group interview, conducting a focus group interview and analysis of qualitative data using the CAQDAS programs. The main goal of Chapter 2 titled “Quantitative methods” is to exhibit the basics of survey research that can be used in analyses of sustainable development. In particular, this part presents the measurement levels, questionnaire design, population and sample, and the ways of presenting the results of quantitative research. Chapter 3 “Factor analysis in sustainable development research” describes the basic theoretical aspects of factor analysis. The second part of this chapter presents an example of the use of this method in research on sustainable consumption. The last part of this chapter presents case study of the use of factor analysis in  research on managers’ ethics in retail industry. Chapter 4 titled “Structural equation modelling in sustainable development research” is dedicated to the structural equation modeling methods applied to solve sustainable development research problems. A structural equation model is an abstraction of reality, and the researcher's job is to build a model that approximates that reality as closely as possible. And the aim of Chapter 5 “Data envelopment analysis methods in sustainable agricultural development research” is to determine the relative technical efficiency of representative agricultural farms from the individual European Union countries.

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