ations should be made with caution.
The study is retrospective. Participants were
asked to reflect and recall situations and decisions
that occurred in the past. Although most of the
questions refer to the recent past, the problem of
accurate recollection must be considered. On the other
hand, the time lapse may have served to gain a more
objective description of factors affecting choice in
that the responses were less "coloured" by an
emotionalism which may have initially surrounded the
choice. Individuals participating may also have felt a
need to justify their choice; this tendency must be
considered a possible limitation. As well,
participation in the study was voluntary; volunteer
subjects are likely to be a biased sample of the target 8
population (Borg & Gall, 1983). Consideration was
given to the degree to which the characteristics of the
volunteer sample might affect research results. Those
characteristics are addressed individually in the
conclusions of the study.