AP Research Academic Paper Sample Student Responses and Scoring Commentary

2017

AP Research

Academic Paper

Sample Student Responses

and Scoring Commentary

Inside:

• Sample A

• Scoring Guideline

•

Student Samples

•

Scoring Commentary

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RESEARCH 2017 SCORING GUIDELINES

Performance Task Rubric: Academic Paper

Content Area Performance Levels

1 Understand

and Analyze

Context

The paper identifies a broad topic of inquiry

and/or a purpose.

The paper identifies a focused topic of inquiry and

describes the purpose.

The paper explains the topic, purpose, and focus of the

inquiry and why further investigation of the topic is

needed by connecting it to the larger discipline, field,

and/or scholarly community.

2 Understand

and Analyze

Argument

The paper identifies or cites previous scholarly

works and/or summarizes a single perspective on

the student’s topic of inquiry.

The paper summarizes, individually, previous

scholarly works representing multiple perspectives

about the student’s topic of inquiry.

The paper explains the relationships among multiple

scholarly works representing multiple perspectives,

describing the connection to the student’s topic of

inquiry. 6

3 Evaluate

Sources and

Evidence

The paper uses sources/evidence that are

unsubstantiated as relevant and/or credible for

the purpose of the inquiry.

The paper uses credible and relevant

sources/evidence suited to the purpose of the

inquiry.

The paper explains the relevance and significance of

the used sources/cited evidence by connecting them to

the student’s topic of inquiry.

4 Research

Design

The paper presents a summary of the approach,

method, or process, but the summary is

oversimplified.

The paper describes in detail a replicable

approach, method, or process.

The paper provides a logical rationale for the research

design by explaining the alignment between the

chosen approach, method, or process and the research

question/project goal. 7

5 Establish

Argument

The paper presents an understanding, argument,

or conclusion, but it is simplistic or inconsistent,

and/or it provides unsupported or illogical links

between the evidence and the claim(s).

The paper presents a new understanding,

argument, or conclusion that the paper justifies by

explaining the links between evidence and claims

derived from the student’s research.

The paper presents a new understanding, argument, or

conclusion that acknowledges and explains the

limitations and implications in context.

6 Select and

Use Evidence

Evidence is presented, but it is insufficient or

sometimes inconsistent in supporting the paper’s

conclusion or understanding.

The paper supports its conclusion by compiling

relevant and sufficient evidence generated by the

student’s research.

The paper demonstrates an effective argument

through interpretation and synthesis of the evidence

generated by the student’s research, while describing

its relevance and significance.

7 Engage

Audience

Organizational and design elements are present,

but sometimes distract from communication or

are superfluous.

Organizational and design elements convey the

paper’s message.

Organizational and design elements engage the

audience, effectively emphasize the paper’s message

and demonstrate the credibility of the writer.

8 Apply

Conventions

The paper cites and attributes the work of

others, but does so inconsistently and/or

incorrectly.

The paper consistently and accurately cites and

attributes the work of others.

The paper effectively integrates the knowledge and

ideas of others and consistently distinguishes between

the student’s voice and that of others.

9 Apply

Conventions

The paper’s use of grammar, style and mechanics

convey the student’s ideas; however, errors

interfere with communication.

The paper’s word choice and syntax adheres to

established conventions of grammar, usage and

mechanics. There may be some errors, but they do

not interfere with the author’s meaning.

The paper’s word choice and syntax enhances

communication through variety, emphasis, and

precision.

Page 1 of 2

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RESEARCH 2017 SCORING GUIDELINES

Performance Task Rubric: Academic Paper

NOTE: To receive the highest performance level presumes that the student also achieved the preceding performance levels in that row.

ADDITIONAL SCORES: In addition to the scores represented on the rubric, readers can also assign scores of 0 (zero).

- A score of 0 is assigned to a single row of the rubric when the paper displays a below-minimum level of quality as identified in that row of the rubric.

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Page 2 of 2

RESEARCH

2017 SCORING COMMENTARY

Academic Paper

Overview

This performance task was intended to assess students’ ability to conduct scholarly and responsible

research and articulate an evidence-based argument that clearly communicates the conclusion,

solution, or answer to their stated research question. More specifically, this performance task was

intended to assess students’ ability to:

• Generate a focused research question that is situated within or connected to a larger

scholarly context or community;

• Explore relationships between and among multiple works representing multiple perspectives

within the scholarly literature related to the topic of inquiry;

• Articulate what approach, method, or process they have chosen to use to address their

research question, why they have chosen that approach to answering their question, and

how they employed it;

• Develop and present their own argument, conclusion, or new understanding while

acknowledging its limitations and discussing implications;

• Support their conclusion through the compilation, use, and synthesis of relevant and

significant evidence generated by their research;

• Use organizational and design elements to effectively convey the paper’s message;

• Consistently and accurately cite, attribute, and integrate the knowledge and work of others,

ile distinguishing between the student’s voice and that of others;

• Generate a paper in which word choice and syntax enhance communication by adhering to

established conventions of grammar, usage, and mechanics.

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Sample A

GROWTH FOR GOOD: HOW PAST EXPERIENCES MOTIVATE EXECUTIVES TO JOIN

DOUBLE BOTTOM LINE ORGANIZATIONS IN THE INDIAN CONSTRUCTION

INDUSTRY

WordCount:5183

Abstract

ResearcherAnthonyBiscontidefinestheunorthodoxcompaniescalleddoublebottomline(DBL)

organizationsasbusinesseswhichdogoodforsocietywhileearningprofit(Bisconti,2009).Since2001,the

amountoftheseorganizationshasstartedtoincreaseintheIndianconstructionindustry.Bythematically

analyzingthenarrativesofeightexecutivesworkinginIndianconstructionDBLorganizations,Iseekto

understandthereasonforthisgrowth.Specifically,thisstudylooksatimportanteventsinanexecutive’slife

inordertounderstandhowexperiencesmotivateexecutivestojoinIndianDBLorganizationswithinthe

constructionindustry.Throughinterviewswitheightexecutivesworkinginthissector,Icollectedmultiple

narrativesdetailinghowpastexperiencesinfluencedthedecisiontoworkwiththedoublebottomline.Witha

thematicanalysis,Idrewconnectionsbetweencommonthemesarisingfromthenarrativesinordertofind

thetypesofexperienceswhichfunctionedasmotivatorstojoinaDBLorganization.Thispaperwaswritten

withtheinitialassumptionthatexperiencesandeventsrelatingtopovertywouldmakepeoplemoreproneto

joiningaDBLorganization.Throughtheresearchprocess,however,itwasinsteadrevealedthatexperiences

basedoffaneedtoselfactualize-definedasthedesiretouseone’sskillsforsocialimpactratherthanprofit-

catalyzedthedesiretoworkwithaDBLorganization.Therefore,thisstudyconcludesthatexperiences

relatedtodoinggoodforsocietyengenderthemotivationtojoinaDBLorganization.Thisresearchindicates

thatcertainexperiencesdo,infact,playaroleinmotivatingexecutivestojoinDBLorganizations.Therefore,

itcanbeusedinordertounderstandhowtobestaugmentthegrowthofDBLorganizationsintheIndian

constructionindustry.

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Sample A 2 of 15

Introduction

AlthoughIndiahasthesecondlargestconstructionindustryintheworld,only20%ofitstotal

workforceareapartoftheorganizedsector(Nihas,2013).Theorganizedsectoriscomprisedofbusinesses

whicharepubliclylisted,andthereforecanberegulatedbythegovernment(Nihas,2013).Theother25

millionworkersoperateintheunorganizedsector,meaningtheyarehiredbyunincorporatedbusinesses

(Nihas,2013).Thisfragmentationoflaborhasmaderegulationoftheindustrydifficult,asgovernment

institutionshavenowayofofficiallycataloguingthecompaniesintheunorganizedsector(Tiwaryetal,2012).

Moreover,thelackofbothfederalmonitoringandefficientlaborlawshasmadeiteasyforthe

aforementionedcompaniestoabuseworkers(Tiwary,2011).Overtime,thishascausedanepidemicof

humanrightsviolationswhichdirectlyimpactsthelivesofmanyimpoverishedIndians.Asofnow,thereis

littleanyonecandotoprotecttherightsofIndianlaborers.Thegovernment,duetorampantcorruption,is

inefficientinregulatingtheunorganisedsector(Betancourtetal,2013).Nongovernmentalorganizations

(NGOs)havehadsomesuccessinbringinghumanrightstotheindustry,buttypicallywithdrawbecauseof

theirdependenceondonationsandthirdpartyfunding(Chung,2008).Althoughboththesepartieshavehad

limitedsuccess,businessesknowndoublebottomlineorganizationshavebeeninstrumentalincausingsocial

changewithinthemarket(Afsharipour,2013).

Itiswidelybelievedthatdoublebottomlinebusinessescanbringaboutsocietalchangewithinan

industry(Jue,2015).Doublebottomline(DBL)organizationsareessentiallycompanieswhichearnprofit

whiledoinggoodforsociety.Indeed,Biscontidefinesthedoublebottomlineas“awaytodescribeasocial

enterprise'sbalanceoffinancialviabilityandsocialimpact.”(Bisconti,2009). Therearemanyexamplesof

suchcompaniescurrentlydoingsocialworkwhileearningprofitinIndia.Intheconstructionindustry,for

example,someDBLorganizationseducatetheirlaborersonworkplacesecurity.Othersmayprovidethem

withvocationaltraining(Char,2011).

InIndia,DBLorganizationshavestartedtogrowinnumber(Bos,2015).Whiletheriseofthese

businessesiswelcomeinsociety,itisalsopuzzling.Thisisbecauseconventionally,socialenterprisesofall

formspaylessthanconventionalbusinessesduetotheirneedtosacrificeprofitforsocialimpact(Char,

2011).DBLorganizationsarenoexceptiontothisrule.Asaresult,theyofferlowercompensationpackages

toexecutiveswhojointhem,andaremoredifficulttosustainthanafor-profitorganization(Afsharipour,

2013).However,despitetheobviousdisadvantagestojoiningthem,trainedprofessionalsareforgoingwork

atconventionalbusinessesforajobwithaDBLorganization(Sodhietal,2011).Thisgrowthindicatesthat

somethingotherthanprofitmotivatesentrepreneurstojoinDBLorganizations-perhapssomethingsuchas

anexecutive’spastexperiences.Therefore,itisinourbestintereststoinvestigatehowpastexperiences

motivateexecutivestojoinbusinessesadoptingthedoublebottomlinemetric.

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Sample A 3 of 15

LiteratureReview

Inordertounderstandwhythisstudyanalyzesthepastexperiencesofexecutivesandhowthey

influenceaDBLorganization’sgrowth,itisimportanttolookattheexistingbodyofresearchonthesubject.

Therearecurrentlyfewstudieslookingathowtheseexperiencesfunctionasmotivators,however,some

studiessuggestthattheybuildapositivereputationforthemselvesinordertobecomemorepopularand

thereforegrowmore(Douglas,2010;Lee,2015).ThesestudieslookathowDBLorganizationsbuilda

publicimageforthemselvesinordertogainsupport.AsconcludedbyLee,“thegrowthofsocialenterprises

inSouthKoreaisattributedtothecountry'scharacteristicallystrongcentralgovernmentanditscreationof

relevantinstitutionsandprovisionofsupportservices”.ThisstudysuggeststhatDBLorganizationsareable

togrowbydevelopingastrongpublicimaginewhich,inturn,allowsthemtoaccessresourcesthataidtheir

development.Similarly,Douglasassertedintheirresearchthat“institutionalidentityproblems”foraDBL

organization“reduceexternalappreciation”.JustlikeLee,Douglas’workshowshowaDBLorganization’s

publicimageiscriticaltowardsitsgrowthandsuccess.Inessence,boththesestudiesconcludethatDBL

organizationsexperiencegrowthbypromotingapositivepublicimagine.Thestudies,however,arelimitedas

theydonotexaminewhatmotivatesexecutivesthemselvestojoinaDBLorganization.Rather,Leeand

DouglasprovideexplanationsforhowDBLorganizationsmaygrowbygarneringmorefundsorapproval.

UnlikethestudiesconductedbyLeeandDouglas,researchexaminingwhyexecutivesthemselves

leavethe

irjobsforworkataDBLorganization-andthereforeengendergrowth-doesexist.(Pulasinghe,

2010;Alfaroetal,2012,).ThesestudiescollectasampleofentrepreneursworkinginNGOsorDBL

organizationsandthengroupthembasedontheircommontraits.Theythenconductanalysisontheir

subject’straitsinordertodeterminetheirmotivationtojoinasocialcause.Forexample,Pulasinghe

concludesinherstudyonemployeemotivationinSriLankanNGOsthatexecutivesjoinsocialcauses“since

theyreceivemoreempowermentandrecognitionbyworkingthere”,andduetoa“desiretochangethe

world”(Pulasinghe,2010).Inasimilarvein,Alfaro’sresearchsuggeststhatexecutivesjoinsocial

organizationsbecausetheywanttomakeapositiveimpactonsociety.Inshort,bothoftheseresearchers

analyzehowcommonpersonalitytraitsamongagroupofentrepreneursindicatethetypesofpeoplewhoare

morelikelytojoinasocialcause.Theyassertthatpersonalityplaysalargeroleinanexecutive’sdecisionto

joinasocialcause(suchassocialenterpriseoraNGO).Theyarelimited,however,sincetheydonottake

intoaccounthowexperiencesinanexecutive’spastcouldhaveinfluencedtheirdecisiontojoinaDBL

organization,andsolelyfocusontheirpersonality.Pastexperiences-whichcanhaveamassiveimpactonan

executive’sdecisions-areintegraltoanyentrepreneursmotivation(Simmons,2016).Thus,bynotanalyzing

themthesestudiesdonotfullyrepresenthowexecutivesaremotivatedtojoinsocialcauses.Additionally,the

studiesarefurtherlimitedastheydonotinterviewentrepreneursfromsimilarindustriesandbusinesses.Each

studyaimstoinvestigatethemotivationtojoinasocialcause,andthereforelooksatwhypeoplejoinNGOs,

charities,andeventheUnitedNations.Theirdatathereforerepresentswhyentrepreneursjoinalltypesof

socialorganizationsratherthanjustspecificallyDBLorganizations.

Therefore,whilesomestudiesassertthatthepublicimageofDBLorganizationsiswhatcausesthem

togrow,andothe

rsarguethatpersonalityisintegralinmotivatinganentrepreneurtojoinasocialcause,few

studiestesthowthepastexperiencesofentrepreneursinfluencestheirmotivationtojoinaDBL

organizations.Moreover,giventhelimitationsofpreviousstudies,anyresearchonmotivationsfor

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Sample A 4 of 15

entrepreneursinthefuturemustfocusonaspecificindustry.SeeingasstudieshavenotlookedattheIndian

constructionindustrybefore,futureresearchshouldaimtoexamineDBLorganizationsinthissectorinorder

tobridgethegapinknowledge.Moreover,researchneedstobecenteredaroundentrepreneursratherthan

organizationsasawhole.Altogether,thesefactorsillustrateouragapinourknowledgeofwhypeoplejoin

DBLorganizations,asfewstudiesexaminehowpastexperiencesmotivateexecutivestojoinDBL

organizations,andthegrowthofDBLorganizationintheIndianconstructionindustry.Thisstudywill

attempttobridgethisgapbyaskingthequestion:throughacasestudyonorganizationsintheIndian

constructionindustry,howdopastexperiencesmotivateprofessionalstojoinbusinessesadoptingthe

double-bottomlinemetric?

Myresearchwillthereforebeuniqueasitwillexaminehow pastexperiencesmotivateprofessionalsto

joinDBLorganizations.Asstatedearlier,itwillbelimitedtoDBLbusinessesintheIndianconstruction

industrytotryandprovideanexplanationforthegrowthofDBLorganizationsinthesector.Additionally,

becausepreviousstudieshavenotbeencenteredaroundthisindustryitwillfillthegapinknowledgeonthe

subject.Undertheaboveparameters,thestudywillgatherqualitativedatathroughasetofrecorded

interviewsinordertotestitshypothesis.Specifically,itwillobtainthenarrativesofaroundeightexecutives

fromthreedifferentDBLorganizations.Moreover,theinquirywillnotmentionthenamesandorganizations

ofanyparticipantsinordertoprotectuseranonymity.

Thisstudy’scontributionstoresearchonthetopicwillbesignificantasitwillhighlightthetypesof

experienc

eswhichmakepeoplemorepronetoenterDBLorganizations.Itwillresearchhowthese

experiencescanserveasmotivations,therebycontributingtothepre-existingknowledgebaseonwhypeople

joinsocialcauses.Withthisknowledge,itmaybepossibletotryandencouragemoreprofessionalstojoin

DBLorganizationsintheIndianconstructionindustry.Thiswouldbeinstrumentalincausingsocialchange,

andwouldletusasasocietyknowthetypesofpeoplewhowouldbepronetojoiningsocialenterprise,

allowingtheIndiangovernmenttousethisinformationtoincreasethegrowthofDBLorganizations.Itcould

alsohelptheorganizationsthemselveslaunchcampaignstoattractinterestedprofessionals-further

augmentingtheirgrowth.Altogether,theresultsofthisstudycancontributetoincreasingtheamountof

DBLorganizationsintheIndianconstructionindustryformoresocialbenefitinthefuture.

Hypothesis

Iinitiallyhypothesizedthatexperienceswithexposuresincechildhoodtothestrugglesofthelower

lasswouldmotivat

eexecutivestojoinDBLorganizationsintheIndianconstructionindustry.This

hypothesiswasdevelopedbasedonconclusionsofstudiesexaminingtheexecutive’sdecisiontojoinNGOs.

Thesestudiesshowedapositivecorrelationbetweenexposuretopovertyandthemotivationtoworkforan

NGO-thatistosay,theydiscoveredthatpeoplewithexperienceswithpovertyweremorelikelytojoin

NGOs(Young,2013). DuetothesimilaritiesbetweenNGOsandDBLorganizations,Ibelievethat

motivationsofexecutivestojoineithertypeofbusinesswillbeextremelyalike.

Method

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Sample A 5 of 15

Inordertotestthehypothesis,acasestudymethodcontainingnarrativeinterviewsandthena

thematicanalysiswasemployed.Casestudiesarecloseexaminationsoranalysesofpeople,organizations,or

phenomenon(Zucker,2009).Thisresearchfocusedonacasestudyofeightexecutivesrepresentingthree

DBLorganizationsintheIndianconstructionindustry.Thecasestudymethodwasusedtobetteranalyzethe

phenomenonofhowexperiencesinfluencedanexecutive’sdecisiontojoinaDBLorganization.Thepointof

thistypeofmethodwastoanalyzehowexperiencesinfluencedthemotivationtojoinaDBLorganization,so

lookingatthephenomenonthroughthecloseexaminationofferedbyacasestudywastheeasiestwayto

analyzethedata.Furthermore,thecasestudymethodallowedforinformationtobecollected(through

narrativeinterviews)andthenexaminedwithathematicanalysis.

NarrativeInterviews

Inordertocollectdataonthepersonalexperiencesofexecutivesandtotestmyhypothesis,I

conducte

dnarrativeinterviewsasthefirstpartofthecasestudy.Forreference,narrativeinterviewsare

interviewswhichseektoreconstructexperiencesandeventsfromaninterviewee'slife(Jovchelovitch,2007).

TheyfollowaframeworkproposedbytheLondonSchoolofEconomics,andthereforehaveafewspecific

guidelineswhichinterviewersmustadhereto(Jovchelovitch,2007).Primarily,narrativeinterviewsmustask

questionsinchronologicalorder.Thatistosay,theyneedtoaskquestionsabouteventswhich

chronologicallyoccurredfirstbeforemovingontoexploreeventswhichoccurredatlaterdates.Theymust

alsohavenoquestionswhichcanbeansweredbyayesorno,andmustallowanintervieweeampleroomto

elaborateontheirstory.Narrativeinterviewswereselectedtotheprimarymethodofacquiringdataasthey

areabletoeffectivelyextrapolatenarrativesfrominterviewees.Sincemyfinalgoalwastoexaminehowpast

experiencesinfluencedthemotivationofexecutives,Ineededtocollectaccountsoftheseeventsinan

anecdotalform.Therefore,narrativeinterviewswereemployedastheyarespecificallydesignedtohave

intervieweesrecallstoriesorpastevents.

Beforetheinterviews,however,itwasnecessarytofirstselectatargetgroup.Asstatedearlier,eight

execut

ivesworkinginthreedifferentDBLorganizationswereexaminedforthestudy.Organizationsto

requestinterviewsfromwereselectedonlyiftheyfollowedthedoublebottomlinemetricofsuccess-thatis

tosay,iftheyfocusedonbothearningprofitandhavingasocialimpact.TheyalsohadtobeintheIndian

constructionindustryinordertobridgethegapinknowledgeonDBLorganizationsinthatparticularsector.

Moreover,theyhadtoconsiderthemselvesDBLorganizations,andexplicitlystateintheirmissionstatement

thedesiretodogoodforsocietywhileearningaprofit.ThethreeDBLorganizationschosenforthisstudy

all,therefore,fittheaboveparameters.Additionally,eachorganizationwastakenfromalistofDBL

organizationsrecognizedbytheIndiangovernment,andgenerallyhadthesamebusinessmodel.Inessence,

allthreeprovidedlivelihoodsforruralyouthbyequippingthemwithconstructionskills,andwouldearn

profitbycontractingtheseyouth-turned-workerstobuildsites.Aftertheidentificationprocesswascomplete,

interviewswithexecutivesrepresentingthesecompanieswereorganized.Around2-3executiveswere

selectedfromeachbusiness-andintotal,thismeantthat8executivesfrom3differentorganizationswere

interviewedaspartofthestudy.

Thegoalofeachinterviewwastodeterminewhichexperiencesinanexecutive’slifecontributedto

theirdec

isiontojoinaDBLorganization.Assuch,allinterviewsfeaturedthesame15questionsonan

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Sample A 6 of 15

executive’spastexperiences,andwereallconductedthroughaphonecall.Thequestionswereallopened

endedsothatintervieweeshadopportunitytoelaborateontheiranswers,andweredesignedwiththehelpof

theLondonSchoolofEconomics’narrativeinterviewguidelines(Jovchelovitch,2007). Theywerealso

categorizedintothreegroups-earlylife(5questions),Universityyears(4questions),andadulthood(6

questions).Theearlylifecategoryaskedintervieweesaboutexperiencesfromwhentheywerebornupuntil

age16,theuniversitycategorynaturallydealtwitheventsoccurringduringtheircollegeyears,andthe

adulthoodsegmentquestionedexecutivesabouteventsoccurringbetweenafterUniversityandbeforethey

joinedtheirrepresentativeorganization.Ididthisinordertogainawidespectrumofthetypesofevents

whichcouldhavemotivatedanintervieweetojoinaDBLorganization.

ThematicAnalysis

Afterthenarrativeinterviewswereconducted,theresearchmovedontothesecondstepofthecase

study-qualit

ativethematicanalysis. Thematicanalysisisamethodofanalysiswhichdeterminesa

relationshipbetweencommonthemesinasampleofcollecteddata(Thomas,2007).Forthepurposesofthe

study,thismethodwasusedtoanalyzetheexperiencespresentedbytheexecutivesintheirinterviews.Itdid

thisbyidentifyinghowcommonthemesacrosstheinterviewee’sdifferingnarrativescontributedtoan

interestinDBLorganizations.

Thethematicanalysiswassplitintotwosections.Firstly,similarexperienceswereidentifiedamong

theinte

rviewedexecutives.Thesesimilarexperiencesindicatedthetypesofcommoneventswhichoccurred

toexecutiveswhodecidedtopursuecareersinaDBLorganization.Theoverallgoalofthisprocesswasto

determinethetypesofeventswhichmotivatedexecutivestojoinaDBLorganization.Intheinterviews,

however,executivessometimescitedeventswhichwereimportanttothembutnottotheirdecisiontojoina

DBLorganization-likemarriage,orsportstournaments.Theseeventswereomittedfromanalysis,asonly

experienceswhichdirectlycontributedtoanexecutive’sdecisiontojoinaDBLorganizationweresignificant

forthepurposesofmyresearch.Afterthisinitialstageofidentifyingrelevantcommonexperienceswas

complete,Imovedontothenextpartofthequalitativethematicanalysis.Forthissecondsegmentofthe

research,thecommonexperienceswereanalyzedforhowtheycouldcontributetoanexecutive’smotivation

tojoinsocialenterprise.Inthisstep,similarexperienceswerecategorizedintogroups.Eachgroupwasthen

labeledwithanoverarchingtheme,whichIusedinmyanalysisofhoweventsinfluencedanexecutive’s

motivation.Hence,thisresearchmethodwasusedtoidentifycommonthemesamongstthenarrativesof

executives,whichwereanalyzedtodeterminehowtheycontributedtoanemployee’smotivation.

Thematicanalysiswasthesecondstageofthiscasestudyasitwasthebestwaytoanalyzethedata

presente

dfromthenarrativeinterviews.Sincethisstudy’sobjectivewastofindouthowexperiences

motivatedexecutivestojoinIndianDBLorganizations,analyzingthecommonthemeswouldindicatethe

types ofexperienceswhichwouldmakeprofessionalsmorepronetojoiningaDBLorganization.Athematic

analysisdoesthisbyidentifyingthecommonthemeswithinasamplesize-henceitwasemployedforthe

research.

Findings

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Sample A 7 of 15

Beforemovingontodiscusstheimportanceofcodingthedataintosuchatable,weneedtofirst

clarifywhateachthememeans.Fromalleightnarratives,atotaloffivethemesemerged.Thesethemesand

theirdefinitionshavebeencodedintothetablebelow.

Table1:DefinitionsofThemes

Theme

Definition

Service

Communityservicerelatedexperiences,suchas

donatingtothecharitiesordoingsocialwork.

Education

Experienceswithworkinginthefieldofeducation.

Examplesofthisincludeworkingasateacher,or

havingajobinaschool.

Travel

Experienceswithtravelingawayfromhome.

Selfactualization

Experiencesinwhichanexecutiverealizedthatthey

wantedtoselfactualize.Selfactualizationisdefined

asthedesiretouseone’stalentsandabilitiestothe

fullestextent.Inthiscase,experienceswhenan

executiverealizedthattheywantedtodousetheir

skillsetformorethanjustearningmoney.

Poverty

Experiencesinwhichanexecutivehadtosurvive

poverty.Examplesofthiswouldincludegrowing

upinalowerclassfamily,orhavingtoskipschool

inordertoearnmoneyforfood.

Theresultsfromthenarrativeinterviewswerecompiledintothetablebelow.

Table2:ASummaryoftheEightInterviews

Executive#

KeyEventsfromtheExecutive’sPast

CorrespondingThemes

Listeningtotheirfathertalkaboutthestrugglesofcommon

workers,andhowthepoorhadtobehelped.

TriptoruralIndia,whereheobservedextremepoverty

Workingformicrofinancebusiness

Service

Travel

Whentheirparents’businessfailed,theybecame

impoverishedupuntilHighSchool.

Importanceofeducationwasstressedthroughoutlife,tothe

pointwheretheybecameateacher

Poverty

Education

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DecidedtojoinDBLbecausewantedtousetheirteaching

skilltoempowerthedisadvantaged.

Selfactualization

Waspushedbytheirparentstostudyhardandsucceed,and

becameateachingassistantattheirUniversity.

RealizationthattheydidnotwanttoworkasanEngineer,

andwantedtousetheirskillforsocialgood.

Education

Selfactualization

TravelingtoruralareasinIndiaandEuropeasateen,and

beinginspiredtodosocialgood.

StartingaventureinIndiawhichwouldbringsanitationto

girls’schools.

Travel

Service

Importanceofeducationwasstressedsincechildhood,

whichinspiredthemtobecomeaVicePrincipalofaschool.

Realizationthattheywantedtousetheirskillsinorderto

empowerthepoor,notsimplyearnmoney.

Education

Selfactualization

TraveledtoIndonesiaasanemployeeofamultinational

organization,wheretheytrainedfactoryworkers.

Realizationthattheydidnotwanttobeaschoolteacher,

andinsteadwantedtohelpthepoor.

Education

Travel

Selfactualization

BeginningaventureinIndiawhichwillseektogiveworkers

properrights.

Growingupinalower-classfamily.

Service

Poverty

Asateen,attendedmultiplehumanrightsprotestswith

theirsibling,andcampaignedforequalitybetweengenders.

Realizationthattheirtalentswerenotappreciatedby

anybodyintheircompany,andthattheywantedtomakea

differenceintheworldthroughcommunityservice.

Service

Self-actualization

Asstatedbefore,8executivesfrom3differentcompanieswereinterviewedonimportanteventsin

theirpastwhichledtotheirdesiretojoinaDBLorganization.Theirnamesandthebusinessestheyrepresent

havenotbeenincludedinthisstudy,hencethefirstcolumnsimplyliststheorderinwhichtheywere

interviewed.Thismeansthateveryrowinthetablerepresentsasingleexecutive’sinterviewandby

extension,theirnarrative.

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Sample A 9 of 15

Thesecondcolumncontainsashortsummaryof2-3importanteventswhichemergedfromeach

interview,andthereforedescribesthemostimportantpartsfromanexecutive’snarrative.Theywereincluded

inthetableasexecutivescitedtheexperiencesarisingfromtheseeventsascontributorstotheirdecisionto

joinaDBLorganization.Finally,thethirdcolumninthetablelistseachexperience’stheme.Thesethemes

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whicharelistedanddefinedintable1-wereassignedbasedonhowaneventaffectedtheirrespective

executive’smindset,andcorrespondtoasingleeventfromanexecutive’sinterview.Theyaresignificant,as

theyshowthetypesofexperiencesandeventswhichcauseprofessionalstobeinclinedtojoinaDBL

organization.Forexample,ininterviewnumber7animportanteventlistedincolumn2is“growingupina

extremelylowerclassfamily”.Thecorrespondingthemeistherefore“poverty”,asthiseventallowedthe

executivetobeabletounderstandthestrugglesofbeingpoor.

Inesse

nce,thistablecondensesthenarrativesofeachexecutiveintoafewimportanteventswhich

motivatedt

hemtojoinaDBLorganization.Throughthetable,itispossibletoidentify recurringthemeswithin

thedataset.Thesethemes,whenthematicallyanalyzedcanhelpidentifyhowexperiencesmotivate

professionalstojoinDBLorganizations.

Results

Thenarrativescollectedthroughinterviewsoutlinedthetypesofexperienceswhichmotivated

executivestojoinDBLorganizations.Theseexperienceswerecategorizedbytheme,andthenexamined

throughathematicanalysis.Therawexperiencesandcorrespondingthemes,forreference,canbefoundon

table1,whileeachtheme’sdefinitionislistedontable2.Thissectionwilldiscusstheresultsofthethematic

analysisaswellastheconclusionthatmydatasuggests.Firstly,itisimportanttoseewhichthemesare

repeatedamongstalleightnarratives.Byidentifyingrecurringthemes,itwillbepossibletoobservethetypes

ofexperienceswhichmakeexecutivespronetojoinaDBLorganization.Althoughtherewereatotalofsix

themesappearingintheexecutive’snarratives,onlythreewererepeatedconsistently.Thesethreerecurring

themes,therefore,shedlightonhowpastexperiencesinfluenceanexecutive’sdecisiontojoinaDBL

organization.

RecurringTheme1:SelfActualization

Outofallfiveofthethemes,theonewhichwasmostprevalentineachoftheeightnarrativeswas

lfactualizat

ion.Fiveoutoftheeightexecutives-numbers2,3,5,6,and8-citedexperiencesfalling

underthisthemeasbeingsignificantfactorsintheirdecisiontojoinaDBLorganization.Asdefinedbytable

two,selfactualizationreferstothedesiretouseone’sskillsforsomethingotherthanearningmoney.Usually,

theyinvolvedanexecutiverealizingthatratherthanbeemployedbyafor-profitorganizationandworkfor

money,theywantedtousetheirskillstohelpthedisadvantagedandcreaterealsocialchange..Forexample,

executive6statedintheirinterviewthat,

IstartedtorealizethatwhileIwasworkingforthisengineeringcompany,thatmyprojectwasnot

kickingoff.Ididnotfee

lliketherewasmuchsuccess,andtherewasnochangethatwashappening

fromme,becausesee,althoughIwastheheadoftheteam,Ididn’thavemuchaccomplishment,you

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Sample A 10 of 15

know?Iwasjustworkingforthiscompany,buttherewasnothingreallysignificantthatIfeltwas

happening.Sothenwhen[CEOoftheircurrentDBLorganization]approachedme,Ireallyleaptat

thechancetomakeadifference.

Executive2essentiallyfeltthattheyweren’tmakingmuchofachangeintheworld,andtheirwork

wasnotrecognized.Thus,theyhadtherevelationthattheywantedtodosomethingservice-oriented,like

joinaDBLorganization,andcreatetangiblechange.Ratherthandotheirregularjobs,eachexecutiveinstead

believedintheimportanceofhavinganimpactintheworld.Executive5statedthat“IwasnotfeelinglikeI

accomplishedmuchwithmyfinancejob.Iwoulddoworkforthecompany,andtherewasnochangeIwas

making.SothenwhenIstartedtorealizethat,Ibegantowanttodosomethingdifferentwithmylife,and

changecareer,”Infact,executives3,5,and8allhadsimilarsentiment,andspecificallyusetheword

“impact”whendescribingtheirdesiretoselfactualize.Althoughthenarrativeswereslightlydifferent,the

underlyingthemeofeachexperiencewasthesame:selfactualization.Seeingasthesefiveareamajorityout

oftheeight,itcanbeconcludedthatexperiencescreatingadesireforself-actualizationareapartofthe

reasonthatexecutivesjoinDBLorganizationsintheIndianconstructionindustry.Moreover,thedesireto

selfactualizecanbeseentostemfromaneedtocausesocialchange,oranimpact,intheworld.This,

therefore,suggeststhatexperiencesinwhichanexecutivefeltaneedtoselfactualizemakepeoplemorelikely

tojoinDBLorganizations.

RecurringTheme2:Service

Asstatedintable2,hallmarksofexperiencesundertheservicethemeincludeworkdonetofurthera

soc

ialcause,orsome

formofcharity.Fouroutoftheeightexecutivescitedthesetypesofexperiencesand

eventsasimportantinmotivatingthemtojoinaDBLorganization.Specifically,executives1,4,7,and8

statedintheirinterviewsthattheirpreviousworkwithdoingservicehadgiventhemaninterestforit.Inturn,

theirinterestinserviceleadthemtobemoreinclinedtoworkataDBLorganization.ThisisbecauseDBL

organizations,especiallyintheIndianconstructionindustry,arebuiltarounddoinggoodforsocietythrough

servicewhileearningmoney(Afsharipour,2013).Asseenfromexecutive8’snarrative,pastexperiencewith

doingservicemakeonemoreinterestedindoingservicethroughaDBLorganization.Theexecutivestated,

Mysister,shewasveryinvolvedinprotestsforhumanrights.Igrewupinasmallfamily,sooften

timesmysist

erandI,sinceweweretheonlychildren,wouldhavealotoftimetoourselves.She

wouldoftentalktomeabouthumanrights,andasIgrewolderIwouldgoattendtheseprotests.It

washerewhenIreallyfirststartedtobeinvolvedinthe,youknow,communityserviceaspectofmy

work,andIhadalotofsatisfactionknowingIwasstandingupforthepeoplewhowerenot

fortunate.

Executives1,4,and7hadsimilarnarratives,inwhichtheyelaboratedonhowservice-relatedevents

madethemappre

ciatethepowerofsocialwork,andinturnmadetheminterestedinworkingwithDBL

organizations.Theseexecutives,however,generallysharedthesameinsightonexperiencesinvolvedservice.

Theystatedthatitwas“thesenseofaccomplishmentandchange“whichtheyfeltfromaservice-related

experiencethatgavethemaninterestforsocialwork.Thisissimilartohowexecutiveslisting

self-actualizationrelatedexperiencesfelttheneedtomakeanimpactintheworldwiththeirskillset.

Thereforewemayobservethat,onceagain,adesiretohaveatangibleimpactontheworldleadsexecutives

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tojoinDBLorganizations.Inthisscenario,executiveswhohadexperiencewithservicefelttheneedtohave

animpactontheworld,andextendtheirinteractionswithservicetotheirprofessionallife.Hence,these

recurrenceoftheseservice-relatedexperiencessuggestasenseoffulfillmentandimpactachievedthrough

doingsocialgoodinspiredexecutivestojoinDBLorganizations.

RecurringTheme3:Education

Fouroutoftheeightexecutives-numbers2,3,5,and6-statedthateducation-relatedexperiences

were

criticalinmotivatingthemtojoinaDBLorganizationintheconstructionindustry.Asseenintable2,

educationrelatedexperiencesincludeteachingothersorworkingforschools.Thefourexecutiveswhocited

thesetypesofexperiencesasbeingimportantmotivatorstojointheirDBLorganizationallheldteaching

positionswithinanacademicinstitution.Numbers2and6asteachers,number5wasateachingassistant,

andnumber3wasaVicePrincipal.

Initially,arelationshipbetweeneducationrelatedjobsandDBLorganizationswasnotclear.A

connec

tionbetweentheseexperiencesandtheIndianconstructionindustry,however,appearedduring

thematicanalysis.Inordertounderstandtheimplicationsofthis,wemustreemphasizetheroleoftheDBL

organizationintheconstructionindustry.AsseenearlierfromCharandAfsharipourresearch,DBL

organizationsintheconstructionindustryprimarilyfocusontrainingworkersandteachingthemabouttheir

rights(Char2011,Afsharipour2013).Indeed,eachofthethreeorganizationsthesefourexecutives

representedfocusedheavilyonworkertraining.Therefore,experiencesinteachingwouldmeanthatitwould

beeasierforexecutivestoworkforDBLorganizationsintheconstructionindustry,astheseorganizations

focusheavilyoneducation.Asstatedbyexecutivenumber2,“Ihadajobteaching,butthenIrealizedI

wantedtodosomeworkforIndia,forthenation.SoIdecidedthatinsteadofteachingthechildren,Iwould

goandteachthepoor[constructionworkers].”Infact,executives2,5and6allstateditwas“easier”or

“convenient”tomovefromteachingtheirstudentstoeducatingconstructionworkers,ratherthangointo

anotherpartofthenonprofitsector.Therefore,therecurrenceofthisthemedoesnotexplainwhyexecutives

joinDBLorganizationsasawhole.Rather,showswhatmakesprofessionalsmoreinclinedtoenterthe

constructionindustrygiventhefactthatanexecutiveisinterestedinjoiningaDBLorganization.

Limitations

Beforemovingontodiscusstheresultsofthestudy,itisnecessarytoidentifypotentiallimitations

whichc

ouldhavehinderedtheeffectivenessofthedata.Thebiggestofthesewassamplesize.Uponcontact,

eachDBLorganizationonlyletmeinterviewaround3executives.Sinceeachexecutiveheldanimportant

positionintheircompany,thislimitationmadesense.Nonetheless,havingmoreexecutivestointerview

wouldhavemadethefindingsmorerobust,andperhapsproducedamoreaccurateconclusion.Another

limitationinthisstudywasinhumanerror.Asstatedearlier,eachinterviewlastedaround15minutes.During

thistime,intervieweeswereaskedtorememberimportanteventsfromtheirpast-whichcouldhaveoccurred

decadesago.Itispossiblethatsomeoftheexecutiveswereunabletoreporteventswhichdrovethemtojoin

aDBLorganization,duetothefactthattheywerebeingmadetodosooffthetopoftheirheadandinavery

limitedtimeframe.Becauseofthis,someeventswhichcouldhaveledexecutivestojoinDBLorganizations

maynothavebeenmentionedinthestudy,simplybecauseatthetimeoftheinterview,theexecutiveswere

unabletorecallthesespecificevents.Granted,eventsofsuchmagnitudewouldlikelybeeasilyremembered

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duetotheirimportancetoanexecutive-butnevertheless,theexistenceofthishumanerrorisstillprobable.

Additionally,asaresearcheritispossiblethathumanerroroccuredduringtheanalysissection.Imaynot

havestudiedatranscriptioncarefullyenough,andpotentiallymissedlistinganimportantexperience.This

wouldalsohaveleadtoalessaccuratedataset,whichcould,inturn,haveslightlyskewedtheresults.

DiscussionofResults

Therefore,theresultsofthisstudysuggestthattheinitialhypothesiswaswrong:ratherthan

experience

swithpoverty,itisexperienceswithserviceandselfactualizationthatmotivateexecutivestojoin

DBLorganizationsbygivingthemadesiretohaveanimpactontheworld.Additionally,experienceswith

educationarewhatdriveexecutivestoenterorganizationsspecificallyintheconstructionindustrybecause

theybetterprepareexecutivestotrainworkers.Thismeansthatexecutiveswiththesetypesofexperiencesare

morepronetojoinDBLbusinesseswithintheIndianconstructionindustry,especiallyiftheirexperiences

leavethemwithadrivetochangeorimpacttheworld.

ThisconclusionhasmultipleimplicationsforthefutureofIndianDBLorganizations.Firstly,these

resultsshowusthat

experienceswhichmakeexecutivesfeeltheneedtohaveanimpactintheworldcan

functionasmotivatorstojoinDBLorganizations.Secondly,thedisparitybetweentheinitialhypothesisand

finalconclusionsuggestthatexecutiveshavedifferentmotivationstojoinNGOsandDBLorganizations.

Theinitialhypothesis,whichstatedthatexperienceswithpovertymotivatedexecutivestojoinDBL

organizations,wascreatedbasedontheresultsofpreviousstudiesexaminingthemotivationtojoinanNGO

(Pulasinghe2013).Seeingas,however,thishypothesiswasdisproved,itcanbeconcludedthatexecutives

havedifferentreasonsforjoiningNGOsthantheyhaveforjoiningDBLorganizations.Althoughthetwoare

similarinthesensethattheybothdogoodforsociety,thisresearchshowsthatprofessionalshavediffering

motivationstoworkineithertypeofcompany.

Throughtheresultsofthestudy,itispossibleforentitiesliketheIndiangovernmenttocreate

programsdesignedtogarnerint

erestforDBLorganizations.Sinceitisevidentthatspecifictypesof

experiencesmakeprofessionalslikelytoenterthem,PSAs,workshops,orothermethodstargetedatthose

withtheseexperiencescanbeusedtofurtheraugmentthegrowthofIndianDBLorganizationswithinthe

constructionindustry.Furtherresearch,however,onfindingadditionalmechanismsthroughwhichthe

Indiangovernmentcouldusethedatafromthisstudyinordertoattractinterestforsocialenterprisesis

requiredinordertomostefficientlyusetheresults.Moreover,futureresearchcouldbecenteredonfinding

whethertheconclusionsmadebythisstudycanbeapplicabletootherindustriesinIndia-orpotentiallythe

globe.

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Sample A 13 of 15

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.1.Retrievedfrom:

http://scholarworks.gsu.edu/facbooks2013/1

Zucker,M.(2009).HowtodoCaseStudyResearch.ScholarWorksatUniversityofMichigan,Amherst.



1(1).

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Sample A 14 of 15

Retrievedfrom:

http://scholarworks.umass.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=nursing_faculty_pubs

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Sample A 15 of 15

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RESEARCH

2017 SCORING COMMENTARY

Academic Paper

Sample: A

1 Understand and Analyze Context Score: 6

2 Understand and Analyze Argument Score: 6

3 Evaluate Sources and Evidence Score: 6

4 Research Design Score: 7

5 Establish Argument Score: 7

6 Select and Use Evidence Score: 6

7 Engage Audience Score: 3

8 Apply Conventions Score: 6

9 Apply Conventions Score: 3

HIGH SAMPLE RESPONSE

Growth For Good: How Past Experiences Motivate Executives to Join Double Bottom Line

Organizations in the Indian Construction Industry

Content Area: Understand and Analyze Context — Row 1

The response earned 6 points for this row because there is a clear purpose and focus on page 4,

paragraph 2: "My research will therefore be unique as it will examine how past experiences

motivate professionals to join DBL organizations. As stated earlier, it will be limited to DBL

businesses in the Indian construction industry to try and provide an explanation for the growth of

DBL organizations in the sector". The paper goes on to demonstrate a gap and rationale for the

topic of inquiry pursued: "Additionally because previous studies have not been centered around

this industry it will fill the gap in knowledge on the subject".

Content Area: Understand and Analyze Argument — Row 2

The response earned 6 points for this row because the paper puts sources with multiple

perspectives in conversation with each other on page 3 in the first two paragraphs: "Unlike the

studies conducted by Lee and Douglas, research examining why executives themselves

leave their jobs for work at a DBL organization - and therefore engender growth - does exist.

(Pulasinghe, 2010; Alfaro et al, 2012)". This allows the student's inquiry to demonstrate

engagement with the literature in the field. The arguments in the sources are also well-integrated

with the student's topic of inquiry.

Content Area: Evaluate Sources and Evidence — Row 3

The response earned 6 points for this row because the paper clearly states how the literature

sources point in the direction of the student's research - see, for example, page 4, paragraphs 1 and

2: "This study will attempt to bridge the gap..." and "My research will therefore be unique...". The

student then explains how these sources are limited, requiring more work to be done: see page 3,

paragraph 1 ("They are limited, however, since they do not take into account how experiences in

an executive's past could have influenced their decision...") and page 3, paragraph 2 ("Additionally,

the studies are further limited as they do not interview entrepreneurs").

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RESEARCH

2017 SCORING COMMENTARY

Academic Paper

Content Area: Research Design — Row 4

The response earned 7 points for this row because the case study approach is outlined and justified

on pages 5 and 6. This study can be replicated and the rationale is solid, based on the limitations of

previous studies, and addresses the student's choice on how to bridge this gap. Narrative

interviews are rationalized on page 5, paragraph 2 and 3, which fits well with the desire to know

about the executive's past experiences. Rationale for Thematic Analysis are also well-supported on

page 6, paragraph 2.

Content Area: Establish Argument — Row 5

The response earned 7 points for this row because the limitations are clearly described on the

bottom of page 11 and the implications of the conclusion are clearly set forth on page 12, in the

second paragraph under "Discussion of Results": "This conclusion has multiple implications for the

future of Indian DBL organizations. Firstly, these results show us.... Secondly, the disparity

between the initial hypothesis and final conclusion suggest that...".

Content Area: Select and Use Evidence — Row 6

The response earned 6 points for this row because the coding of the evidence collected from the

narrative interviews into themes on pages 7 and 8 (see Tables 1 and 2) clearly demonstrates a

synthesis of the findings and is a suitable analytic tool for the purposes of this study. The paper

also clearly describes initial and concluding assumptions that are changed by data.

Content Area: Engage Audience — Row 7

The response earned 3 points for this row because the paper overall is well-written and engaging.

Tables clearly present the data (despite a minor mix-up of the Table numbers on page 9, under

"Results" - "The raw experiences and corresponding themes, for reference, can be found on Table

1, while each theme's definition is listed on Table 2") and the use of subheadings and discussion of

evidence clearly adds to the credibility of the student's findings.

Content Area: Apply Conventions — Row 8

The response earned 6 points for this row because the citations overall are well done. While there is

one missing use of a listed citation (Reiser, 2013, is not used in the paper) and the date of the

Thomas paper is confusing (is it the 2007 in paper or the 2010 in "Reference" list?), for the most

part the student's voice is very clearly separate from the sources. See for example page 2, last

paragraph: "...trained professionals are forgoing work at conventional businesses for a job with a

DBL organization (Sodhi, et al, 2011). This growth indicates that something other than profit

motivates entrepreneurs to join DBL organizations - perhaps something such as an executive's

past experiences".

Content Area: Apply Conventions — Row 9

The response earned 3 points for this row because the paper is well written, with a good

introduction to draw the reader in, moving nicely into the student's complex argument and clear

descriptions of how the study was conducted and interpreted. Minor punctuation errors do not

detract from the overall message.

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