Research Methods for Service Sector: Health and Safety Portfolio

This project is a comprehensive portfolio on health and safety implications within the service sector, utilizing qualitative research methods. It begins with an interview checklist designed to gather insights on employee experiences and the role of management in health and safety practices. The project incorporates participant observation, including observation checklists and research diary extracts, to analyze health and safety environments in various companies. Visual methodologies are employed, analyzing images related to workplace safety instructions and emergency procedures. A coded interview transcript is presented, offering a detailed analysis of a VW campervan ownership interview. Finally, the project concludes with a major project proposal outlining the research aims, methodology, and analysis plan for a deeper investigation into health and safety practices.

Research Methods for
the Service Sector

Contents
Assessment 1: Portfolio: Qualitative - Health and safety implications........................................................3
An Interview Checklist.................................................................................................................................3
Participant Observation...............................................................................................................................4
Observation checklist..............................................................................................................................4
Research diary extract.............................................................................................................................4
Commentary............................................................................................................................................4
A Visual Methodologies Practical................................................................................................................5
Background.............................................................................................................................................6
The images..............................................................................................................................................6
Analysis/Interpretation............................................................................................................................7
A Coded Interview Transcript......................................................................................................................7
Transcript key..........................................................................................................................................7
Coded Interview Transcript.....................................................................................................................7
Major Project Proposal..............................................................................................................................20
Title of the proposal...............................................................................................................................20
Introduction and Rationale....................................................................................................................20
Research Aims and Objectives..............................................................................................................20
Research Methodology..........................................................................................................................20
Research Analysis.................................................................................................................................22
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................................23

Assessment 1: Portfolio: Qualitative - Health and safety implications
An Interview Checklist
Theme (Main
Question)
(Specific Topics and
Issues)
Follow up questions
Experience  Less than 1 year
 1 year to 3 years
 3 years to 5 years
 More than 5 years
 Did you face any incident related to
inappropriate health and safe condition
at the workplace, explain?
Job role  Restaurant manager
 Computer software
developer
 Tradesman ship
 Bank manager
 Which is the main job role which
required following health and safety
practices?
 Role of management in implementing
health and safety practices?
Practices for
implementatio
n of health and
safety
 Provide training to
staffs
 Ensure proper
functioning of
machine
 Develop policies and
rules
 What are the legislations developed by
government for health and safety
implementation?
 What must be duration of ensuring
proper functioning of machine or any
equipment?
Benefits  Reduce sickness
absence
 Decrease injuries rate
 Lower insurance cost
 Increase productivity
 It is responsibility of both employer and
employee to follow health and safety
regulation?
 Is an employee refuse to work in
unhealthy as well as unsafe
environment?
Participant Observation
Observation checklist
 To conduct observation of different companies and their record of health and safety

practices and accident.
 Try to communicate with their old staffs to gather authenticate information.
 To determine companies policies and rules for the health and safety practices.
 To evaluate rules and regulation that is followed by different companies for maintaining
health and safety at workplace.
Research diary extract
The respective observation is conducted in order to analyze environment and situation of
different companies in respect of the health and safety practices. In respect of this observation is
conducted of different famous companies like holiday inn, John Lewis partnership and many
others. The main of selecting these firm is to determine whether the big companies follow the
rules and regulations related to the health as well as safety or not. The observation of these
companies conducted for 4 days so that more and more authenticate as well as reliable
information can be gathered by the companies successfully.
Through the observation it is determined that companies management are giving their
best or focus in proper manner so that each and every members will follow the rules and
regulation for maintaining health and safety at the workplace. moreover, it is also determined
that several companies like TESCO, Holiday Inn, HILTON, John Lewis Partnership and so on
provide proper training and development activities to their staffs so that they know how to
handle situation as well as conduct work so that no health and safety will impacted. In addition to
this, they also provide proper equipments and tool which is essential at the time of any accident
as through that employees safe themselves as well as other form the situation successfully.
Commentary
Through conducting observation of different companies I analyze that almost every big
companies adopt practices for maintaining health and safety environment for their staffs. It is so
because that will also motivated as well as encourage employees to conduct their work in
effective manner which deals to the attainment of desire goal in successful manner. In addition to
this, while the observation I analyze that at every companies there are some people or employees
who not value the rules, regulation and policies developed by management for marinating the
health and safety of the employees. Due to these types of employees there will be occurrence of
the miss happening or accident which leads to loss of resources as well as manpower.

A Visual Methodologies Practical
Background
The above shown images are related to instructions which are display at the workplace so
that employees will understand those instructions and follow it in proper manner. These
instructions are easy to understand by each and every members as well as it through it is also
determined that at the workplace there is emergency department who handle cases related to

emergency accidents take place at workplace while functioning. In addition to this, at several
workplaces there are several equipments which are necessary to wear by employees who are
going to work at the particular place. It is so because; if they not do so then it may leads to huge
accident which leads to loss for company as well as workplace.
The images
According to the image mentioned above it is determined that in each and every large
companies there is safety instruction are mentioned which provide guidance to all the staffs that
how they can perform their allotted work in best as well as safety manner with minimum errors.
In respect of the first image which display different types of sign which have different meanings
such as head with cross sigh means it is dangerous areas as well as it is essential to take proper
permission before going to that or respective place. Similarly other signs have different means
which need to understand by employees so that they conduct work effectively. Moreover,
according to the nest image which show at a particular place these types of incidents may take
place so take care of that which help in avoiding errors or mistakes. In respect of the third image
at the workplace it is essential for both employer and employees to follow the safety practices,
rules and regulation as that will help in ensuring the healthy as well as safety environment at the
workplace. According to the forth image employees must obey the instruction which are
mentioned at the particular place. Along with this there are several equipments which are
essential to adopt at the workplace while working particular restricted areas or department as that
may leads to issues relate to health and safety practices. moreover according to the another image
at big companies there is emergency department who provide health and social care services to
the customers because that will leads to development of feeling that employees are safe at
workplace.
Analysis/Interpretation
As per the analysis of above mentioned image it is determined that at the workplace
management adopt numbers of practices through which they want to aware employees that how
they adopt as well as maintain health and safety practices in effective manner. In addition to this
management provide written document as well as how it with the different poster or image so
that it can be determined by any individual easily that specific place is danger area or in order to

enter specific uniform is needed. By adopting all these all companies management want aware
employees so that rate of incidents get decrease at their workplace successfully.
A Coded Interview Transcript
Transcript key
A: VW campervan
A1 – effectiveness of VW campervan
A2 – limitations of VW campervan
B: Amanda
B1 - Judgment of Amanda for VW campervan as well as camping
C: Experiences in VW campervan
C1 – Good experiences
C2 – Experiences which are not good
Coded Interview Transcript
***********Original Transcript*******************
NOTES: Michael Archer- 45minute Interview discussing VW Campervan ownership.
Researcher (Bold) Respondent (Regular)
What attracted you to the idea of owning a VW campervan?
Michael: Well for me it was more like a holiday home, a portable camp and chill with the
family. The VW aspect was more to talk Amanda into it. My partner just for the record.
(Laughs) Basically she thought it was cool and they are cool and all of those things, but it
was more a vehicle to go on holiday in so like looking at caravans well didn’t appeal, and I
could see it as a second vehicle.

So what you’re saying is you wouldn’t have liked a different type of vehicle?
No it would have to be something that could be used as a car as well.
So not the big American retirement van?
No well the VW’s my mate had one and it’s a car and a van and its cool and exciting isn’t it. It’s
that whole thing, there’s a buzz about it. People talk about it, so that would be the initial
reason.
Does the idea come from research, or just off the top of your head to get it?
Well we went on a caravan holiday and we sat in this caravan and we thought this is cool; we
will just have barbeques and just drink beer. Just chill out George (Their son) was only 7
weeks old and everything was dead easy going and slow the pace reminded us of when we
went travelling to Asia and this was the life, but on the doorstep. Somewhere we could go
on a weekend, every weekend just to get away from the city. Then Amanda wanted
something mobile and then the VW was a compromise.
Did you give it a name?
It didn’t have a name when we got it. Our initial idea in the July 2009 and we didn’t get it for 10
months of waiting, painstaking waiting and it didn’t have a name we thought Ulysses or,
the registration was UCU34l. It was a TV program, Ulysses (Pronounced dramatically).
Most of them are girls names so we decided in the end to call it Jenny because that’s what
Forrest Gump (the movie) calls his boat.
Does that represent travelling or something?
Just liked the name.

Did giving it a name help with attachment to it?
Well they are mostly girls and it’s like naming a ship. I thought there was a slight cultural
difference of the people who got them; the Dubbers who had names were different from
those who hadn’t.
In what way?
I don’t know.
You’re allowed to say what you think?
It seems that if you really knew VW then you didn’t name it. So at first we didn’t name it, we
haven’t had anything and called it a name. Even George’s teddies, his rabbit are rabbit.
Not a sentimental old fool then? (researcher laughs)
So where you brought up with camping?
Yes well we had definitely camped, with cubs and stuff like that and school camp at the lakes
which was cool. Err then with the lads trying to get in campsites when we were 16, sleeping
in fields. Walking through fields of bulls and swampland and stuff and waking up in the
morning with this guy on his quad going get off my field and we were like oh no. We went
camping then, we went walking then. We had a break then returned to it with mates and
realised that you could just sit and eat and drink as much as you wanted and it was great,
you could just get as drunk as you wanted and that was fine. We didn’t really go camping
me and Amanda but then when we had a kid; it really seemed to make sense and still does.
That is the lifestyle that I want my family to have.
Do you think that’s more a boy thing or just general?

What with camping, I guess stereotypically yes. Like its roughing it and Amanda doesn’t want
to rough it, whereas maybe when she was younger she would of, but she’s 30. I liked
mucking in, getting wet, getting dirty whereas Amanda didn’t like that about the camping.
There will be girls that don’t enjoy it and girls who do, but as a general rule boys like
getting in a mess and most girls don’t. The idea of getting wet and sitting in a leaky tent
brings out survival instincts in me. My cousin and his wife goes camping, well glam ping
actually they put a carpet in their tent. I suppose you’re forced to make you own
entertainment in a way. You’re forced as a couple to be together, well not forced but you’re
on a campsite and it’s a relaxed ‘holiday’ atmosphere.
So do you think it’s a relaxing experience?
Relaxing?
Well it’s an idea that you go camping to relax and people do.
Yes but it’s full of tasks to get to the relaxing bit. Like relaxing is over there but you have to do
a lot to get to it. Like the whole alphabet. To get to the z. Then when you sit down it’s like
right what do I do now. So everything’s done, all you need to do is just do the dishes. But
there’s actually nothing to do. Not like at home.
Is it trying to get away from that?
Yes for me it is actually. That’s still why I would like a static caravan as well. Somewhere to
go, to chill out and get drunk (laughs)
In terms of feelings about the van, can you describe that?
Over the massive and ridiculous 10 months it took to procure the van and we even got a loan to
get it. Then when it did arrive we were like this is a mistake because we had been so long

waiting and we had to find extra money too. At first I was a bit negative about it, although
Manda was excited and I was oh I don’t know what this is going to be like. That was my
feeling all the way up to getting it, but then when I got it I did fall in love with it. Very
much fell in love with it. It only took sitting in it, driving in it and having a glass of wine in
it to think this is brilliant. This is cool you know it belonged to us and I had never owned
anything quite like it, that was worth that much. I don’t own a house I just have a mortgage.
Yeah it was mine and I fell in love with it. We would obsess about buying things for it. It
was like a person. Strange that. But it had its own character which is probably why people
name them. If a name had come to us we probably would have named it but it was like
what does it need? George our son had a lot of needs and so did it. Things you could get for
it like accessories. We bought everything, the curtains, the pans and the electrics. I thought
about it, went and looked at it on the street when I woke up in the morning. Go and just sit
in it, it’s yours you can be possessive over it.
Is ownership part of it or could you have just hired one?
No, when it’s yours you look in other peoples vans and go how practical is it, where would you
sleep all of these questions. As soon as you had your own it was like this is brilliant, I don’t
care where I am going to sleep. It was more look at this I am in my van. There’s an
excitement and something I really enjoyed.
Did this feeling stay with you for the duration of having the van?
Yeah definitely, just very attached to it.
Do you think it’s an aesthetic thing? I mean I know there’s more to it than that but....
Yes it’s the age of it, that its original, it’s got a history and it looks nice but it’s quite simple. It’s
got eyes on the front, a face. Whoever designed it thought I want to live in this I will put a
sink there, I will put the beds there etc, it’s clever and a lot of thought has gone into it. It’s
like you feel like you have got something special and whether it’s done through the

perception of it. People say they fall in love with them and that’s what happens. I suppose if
I had a Ferrari I would fall in love with that but not necessarily in the same way.
Are you in love with your car?
No. I don’t really like it. When I first got it I thought oh its okay, I have a new car. Now I
dislike it. I wouldn’t be bothered if it was nicked, albeit for financial reasons. The van
(whoa) I left it somewhere and thought I hadn’t locked the door and just panicked about it
and couldn’t think about anything else until I got back to the van and the door was locked.
Then I love my bike at the minute so maybe I am a bit like that. The campervan did stay
with me.
When you say history, do you mean cultural history or its own history?
It hadn’t any improvements really so, so it’s original so you imagine what people were like who
used to live in it and there is that whole community. You don’t go anywhere without
someone speaking about it. That makes the cycle of you enjoying it, being part of
something the reason you think it is special is because you drive along the road and kids
smile at it and people look at it and wave at you. You drive past everyone in their normal
cars and it doesn’t matter that its costing a fortune to drive or goes really slow (Laughs0
or really noisy or stinks of oil, when your sat at the lights and someone else in their car
that’s probably cost 20 grand and you just go HA!
Do you attribute the features of the van to yourself, your personality?
I think the van is the van itself and it’s just that you, like I was the driver of that van. You do
personalise them over time. But we didn’t have ours long enough. Eight ball gear stick or
whatever. Got a little fire extinguisher. We didn’t want to put flowers on it or change the
look as it was a recent resprays so it looked lush. I felt like a bus driver. It is strange but
you do feel on show when you drive them