The Sampling Conundrum in Qualitative Research: Can Saturation Help Alleviate the Controversy and Alleged Subjectivity in Sampling?

Sampling is one of the most controversial matters in qualitative research. Qualitative researchers have often been denounced for not giving adequate rationalisations for their sample size resolutions. This study aimed to provide an extensive review of sampling methods used in qualitative research and discuss the extent to which saturation might help alleviate the issues concerning these methods, sample size sufficiency and when to sample. The study specifically honed on the sampling adequacy (how big or how small should a sample be), the sampling techniques used and whether sample sizes should be delineated a priori, posteriori or during analysis. Having highlighted, the paradoxically nature of these aspects, through an overview of the sampling process, the researcher explored saturation as a tool to alleviate the challenges and the lack of objectivity in sampling in qualitative research. The overall findings were that, saturation does provide same degree of transparency and quality in sampling, but the concept is not immune to controversy, guidelines on how to apply it or achieve it remain foggy and contestable among researchers. Discussions are in most cases oversimplified and comparatively unknowledgeable. The answer to the research question, was that, what really constitutes an adequate sample size is only answerable within the context of the study, scientific paradigm, epistemological stance, ontological and methodological assumptions of the research conducted. Contextualisation of the mode of saturation adopted, clear articulation of the research methodology and transparent reporting of the whole process is key to enhance the role of saturation in alleviating subjectivity in sampling. This paper sought to make a contribution to the on-going methodological discourse on how qualitative researchers can justify their sampling decisions

Enhancing local community’s involvement and empowerment through practicing Cittaslow: experiences from Goolwa, South Australia

This study attempted to investigate how and the extent to which Cittaslow philosophy and practice enhanced local community’s involvement and empowerment in relation to tourism development from the sustainability’s perspective. As an empirical study, a series of in-depth interviews with key stakeholders including local government, local business, and local community’s members were conducted in Goolwa, the first Australian accredited Cittaslow town since 2007, located in South Australia. The results indicated that to a greater extent the accreditation and practice of Cittaslow philosophy in Goolwa increased a stronger and more effective collaboration amongst local community, business and residents as an essential element for achieving sustainability in tourism development. Not only did it encourage the local community’s participation in decision making process from the beginning of tourism development, but also revitalised the locality and sense of place of Goolwa through promoting local specialities and produces, in particular food and wine products. The results also suggested that psychological and social aspects of local community’s empowerment have been significantly enhanced after the establishment of Cittaslow. Yet, the economic empowerment of the local community was less experienced

Factors influencing the timing of breeding in a range expanding raptor at two spatial scales

Includes abstract.Includes bibliographical references.Range shifts and expansions have been recorded in a number of species and it is expected that as climate change proceeds it will result in more species joining this trend. A major concern with these shifts is the suitability of the receiving novel environments, for example, if these areas experience different climatic conditions or prey phenology. One way to evaluate how expanding populations adapt to the environment is through evaluating their breeding patterns. In southern Africa, the Black sparrowhawk (Accipiter melanoleucus) originally existed in Botswana, Mozambique, North Eastern and South Eastern South Africa and Zimbabwe

The social impacts of community-based tourism: A case study of Khama rhino sanctuary trust in the central district of Botswana

Student Number: 9601911P - MA research report - School of Arts - Faculty of HumanitiesThe purpose of this study was to find out the social impact of community-based tourism on host communities, using a case study of Khama Rhino Sanctuary Trust. Community-based tourism is the new buzzword for tourism development nowadays, with its proponents promoting its potential to increase local benefits and to empower local communities in economic, social, environmental and cultural terms. This research sought to address closely the benefits and problems associated with community-based tourism in one community in Botswana. The research also attempted to find out how involved the community is in decision making processes involving the running of the Khama Rhino Sanctuary, a community-based initiative which is not only involved in tourism, but also in environmental education. The research findings indicate that there is no sense of ownership amongst the community and benefits have not been forthcoming. Although job opportunities have been created, these have not been increasing since the inception of the Sanctuary. Above all, the Sanctuary still relies heavily on foreign donors. In order to address the research questions, qualitative methods of data collection and analysis were employed

A comparative study on high-risk sexual behaviour of male student elite athletes, male student non-athletes, and male student recreational sports participants at the University of Botswana

Magister Artium (Sport, Recreation and Exercise Science) - MA(SRES)This study aims to compare the sexual behaviour patterns of male elite student athletes, male student recreational sports (RSP) and male student non-athletes at the University of Botswana in relation to high-risk sexual behaviours. High-risk behaviors in the domain of sexual behaviour were investigated in relation to the determinants of risk behaviour such as multiple partnerships, condom use, and history of sexually transmitted infections, the partners past sex life, current sexual life, casual sexual partners and age of first exual experience. The purpose was to establish which group of the male students is more at risk of HIV infection due to its engagement in high-risk sexual behaviour. Data was collected by means of an anonymous self-report questionnaire. Participants included 235 male students (94 non-athletes, 92 athletes and 50 elite athletes) at the University of Botswana. Selfreport questionnaires were administered, which included items from the 2005 Youth Risk Surveillance System (YRBSS), Student Life Style questionnaire, as well as items from a questionnaire assessing knowledge and practice of safe sex amongst Rhodes University students (Simpson, 1996).South Afric

The perspective of top management towards human capital measurement and disclosure in the Zimbabwean mining sector

PURPOSE: This study is set out to establish the perceptions of the Zimbabwean top management concerning the measurement and disclosure of human capital in the financial statements of listed mining companies. This study has been prompted by the fact that despite companies considering human capital as an important resource that drives value, and competitiveness and contributes to a company’s economic growth, its value remains not properly accounted for in the financial statements. This implies that human capital is not being accorded the importance it deserves in the financial statements.METHODOLOGY: This study adopted a qualitative research approach. Qualitative data were collected using semi-structured interview guides from the six largest Zimbabwean-based mining companies. The collected qualitative data was analysed through the thematic analysis process and the results established four main themes.FINDINGS: Obtained results reveal that top management agreed that top management is of the view that human capital has a strong relationship with the value of a company and its financial performance. They also indicated that the value of a company, its competitiveness, and economic growth is largely dependent on employee competencies (skills and expertise).RECOMMENDATIONS: After a synthesis of results, this study suggests a context-based framework offering human capital metrics for enhancing its measurement and disclosure practices. This will help to provide a better valuation of human capital in the financial statements and also various stakeholders will be able to derive useful information for decision-making.MANAGERIAL IMPLICATIONS: The study gives more insight into the major roles played by the phenomenon in the achievement of companies’ strategic objectives which include value creation among others. Furthermore, it provides a better internal understanding from top management on how the companies gain competitive advantage and economic growth in the era of the fourth industrial revolution through utilisation of human capital. From the aforementioned, chances are high that the human capital reporting by the mining companies in Zimbabwe will be enhanced forthwith.peer-reviewe

Conceptualising a human capital measurement and reporting framework

PURPOSE: This paper proposes a context-based framework for measuring and disclosing human capital in the financial statements of the Zimbabwean mining companies. The study was prompted by the lack of universal standardised framework that can be adopted by companies for use and existing of varied models with conflicting measurement metrics. The developed model is meant to bring harmony within the industry and across other sectors, particularly in developing countries such as Zimbabwe.METHODOLOGY: This paper adopted an integrative literature review approach also known as the critical review approach in the development of the human capital measurement and disclosure framework. Corporate annual reports, existing related literature, and various human capital models were critically and systematically reviewed to conceptualise different views from various authors concerning human capital measurement and disclosure framework. A thematic analysis approach was adopted to analyse the qualitative findings. The analysis was conducted until a point of saturation was reached.FINDINGS: The paper proposed a context-based human capital measurement and disclosure framework with six key primary factors. Furthermore, the paper proposed the measurement criteria and the disclosure requirements of the six primary factors established. The framework also acts as a starting point for human capital reporting since there is a lack of an established and generally accepted reporting framework in Zimbabwe. The benefit of this framework is that it is flexible, and it allows companies to develop human capital reporting guidelines based on key features specific to an individual company's human capital and can be applied to other similar contexts in the SADC region. This paper recommends the adoption of the human capital measurement and disclosure framework as to increase companies’ value, financial performance as well as economic growth at large.ORIGINALITY/VALUE: The proposed framework is envisaged to reduce information asymmetry and improve corporate governance practices for both practice and policy formulation.peer-reviewe

My living-educational-theory of place-based learning as a means to move towards a more socially just pedagogy in teacher education

I researched my practice as a lecturer in a teacher education college in Zimbabwe as I was concerned that my teaching was not assisting students to realise their potential for independent thinking and knowledge creation and preparing them with appropriate skills and knowledge for life and work in the 21stcentury. I believe both aspects of education are essential in teacher preparation. There are injustices in the way the curriculum is enacted. I therefore focussed this research on improving learning to integrate social justice values into my practice and how to liberate my students and myself from traditional didactic pedagogy. I opted for Place-Based Learning as a teaching strategy since it has been shown to promote student engagement, critical thinking, innovation and reflexivity by embedding the learning in the social reality of the students. I collected and analysed data in the form of interviews, reflective diaries, and student assignments to enhance my learning to improve my practice and as evidence to support my knowledge claims that I had enabled students to become producers rather than just consumers of knowledge; fostered inclusion; and enabled transformative learning, all of which heightened student awareness of the need to make their future teaching more socially relevant and just. I conclude by proposing guidelines for professional practitioners in any educational context using Place-Based Learning to facilitate learning intended to promote students’ inclusion, democratic knowledge generation, and active participation

Scoping Study on Existing CIS and CSA Relevant Units and Engagements in Selected RUFORUM-member Zimbabwean Universities

RUFORUM conducted a scoping study to identify areas of CSA and CIS convergence for selected Zimbabwean member universities from 20th November to March 2022. Consultations were made with the Deans of the Faculties of Agriculture and related disciplines of member universities through zoom and then individual questionnaires to identify the focal persons who are involved in Climate Smart Agriculture teaching and research. Two staff members from Zimbabwe representing Africa-wide countries participated in a three-day workshop in Benin as a side event during the RUFORUM Triennial Conference and Annual General Meeting (https://www.ruforum.org/Triennial2021/ https://www.ruforum.org/AGM2022) from 11th to 13 December 2021. The two members participated in a meeting together with CSA and CIS experts representing 9 countries: Kenya, Zambia, Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Benin, Burundi, Uganda, Ghana and Zimbabwe. The experts analyzed the causes of low adoption and utilization of CSA practices & CIS tools and identified the different interventions needed to enhance this shortcoming. Seven priorities were identified, and it was agreed that the proposed priority CSA be subjected to national wide consultations in the respective countries. This report was compiled to meet the following objectives: i) review and compile information about CSA and conduct an inventory of existing programmes and courses related to CSA and potential resource persons in Zimbabwean universities, and ii) conduct country-specific consultations and consensus building on the priority CSA. The report showed that in the 4 Universities sampled, various courses and course units with aspects of CSA and CIS are taught. These courses cover a wide range of the proposed clustered priority areas and are course units offered for undergraduate programmes. Furthermore, the national consultations revealed that the Zimbabwean government has a high level of commitment to CSA/CIS mainstreaming adaptation and mitigation goals into agricultural planning processes and has developed several climate policy & legislative frameworks. These policies were identified and prioritized for CSA intervention

Heterogeneity of water physico-chemical characteristics in artificially pumped waterholes: do African herbivores drink at the same locations and does it lead to interference competition?

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