The purposive sampling procedure has been used in order to identify participants in the study (Strauss and
Corbin, 1998). Based on a minimum of two years’ work experience criterion, 146 employees were selected from
Brasov, an industrialized and touristic county located in the center of Romania. Ninety-three interviews were
conducted and the initial number of interviews has been supplemented up until the saturation point for each category
was reached (Strauss and Corbin, 1998). Recruitment of the participants was performed by students enrolled in
social science courses, using their personal networks (friends, parents, relatives). Semi-structured interviews were
conducted by researcher and trained students, all interviews being recorded and fully transcribed. The interviewers
followed an interview protocol; whenever necessary, during the interview, respondents were encouraged to
elaborate and develop on their answers. The data analysis was performed by the author using the NVIVo software.
Thus, in the first stage each interview was divided according to the three subjects: qualities and flaws of Romanian
employees, and distinctive features of the working style when compared with others. Second, the text was examined
in order to discover meanings, differences and similarities. Third, using open and axial coding procedures, textdriven
categories and subcategories describing the inquiries under study were identified. A category was considered
saturated when no new information seemed to emerge during coding (Strauss and Corbin, 1998). A test of inter-
198 Carmen Buzea / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 187 ( 2015 ) 196 – 200
coder reliability was conducted for 20% of interviews (29 interviews were re-coded by a second coder), resulting in
87% inter-coder reliability (Miles and Huberman, 1994).