BUSINESS RESEARCH METHODS

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WELCOME TO BUSINESS
RESEARCH METHODS
EMGT 416
Zin-Eddine Dadach
Fall 2007-2008

THE RESEARCH
PROCESS

WHAT IS MANAGEMENT?
 Process of getting activities completed
efficiently with and through other people
( Robins, 1994)
 Set of activities directed at the efficient and
effective utilization of resources in the pursuit of
one or more goals ( Van fleet, 1991)
 THE PRIMARY ACTIVITY OF A MANAGER INVOLVES
COORDINATING AND FACILITATING THE
MANAGEMENT OF PEOPLE AND RESOURCES IN AN
ORGANIZATION

TODAY’S MANAGER’S CHALLENGES
 During the last two decades, we have
witnessed a dramatic changes in the business.
 From the historic economic role, the business
has now evolved in response to social and
political changes, explosive technology growth,
innovations in global communication
 These dramatic changes have created new
knowledge needs for the MANAGER and new
publics to consider when evaluating any
DECISION

MANAGER NEEDS MORE AND
BETTER INFORMATION
BECAUSE:
 More variables to consider
 More knowledge exist in any field of
management
 Global and local competition is more vigorous
 Quality of theories and models to make
decisions is improving
 More concerns from the governments about
public protection
 Public more informed wants to be included in
company decision making

THE IMPACT OF COMPUTERS
AND INTERNET ON THE
INFORMATION
 Data mining is becoming important: Extract
meaningful knowledge from volumes of data
 Easier to analyze study data stored in computer
 Techniques of quantitative analysis become
more important with new powerful computers
 The number and power of the tools used to
conduct research ( INTERNET) has increased
fitting the complexity of the new business
environment

INFORMED DECISIONS
 GOOD INFORMATION LEAD TO GOOD
DECISION
 In this very complex and competitive new
business environment, managers should
understand how to identify quality information
and to recognize the solid, reliable research on
which their high-risk decisions can be based
 Managers need also to know how to conduct
such research to get only the valuable
information
 These skills need understanding of the scientific
methods used for decision making

TO GET VALUABLE INFORMATION YOU
NEED GOOD BUSINESS RESEARCH
METHODS
 The study of business research methods
provides us the knowledge and skills to
solve problems and meet the challenges
of a fast-paced decision-making
environment

OBJECTIVES OF
THIS COURSE

THEORY PART OF THE
COURSE
 WHY RESEARCH IS IMPORTANT?
 WHAT IS QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH?
 WHAT IS QUALITATIVE RESEARCH?
 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS DURING THE
RESEARCH PROCESS
 ETHICAL BEHAVIOR OF THE RESEARCHER
AND THE RESPONDENT
 DISCUSS THE ROLE OF LITERATURE
REVIEW AND THE CONCEPTS OF
REFERENCING

STATISTICAL PART OF THE
COURSE ( SPSS PROGRAM)
 EXPLAIN THE CONCEPT OF HYPOTHESIS
TESTING
 THE ROLE AND NEED OF CAREFUL
RESEARCH
 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CAUSAL AND CO
RELATIONAL ANALYSIS
 RESEARCH VARIABLES AND SURVEY
RESEARCH TOOLS
 DISCUSS MEASUREMENT TECHNIQUES,
VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY AND DATA
COLLECTION METHODS
 ANALYSIS OF DATA BY SPSS

FINAL PROJECT
 AT THE END OF THE COURSE, YOU WILL
HAVE A CASE STUDY AND SUBMIT A
COMPLETE REPORT
 REPORT INCLUDE RESEARCH DESIGN,
PROCEDURES, DATA ANALYSIS AND
INTERPRETATION OF RESULTS IN LIGHT
OF THEORY
 IDENTIFY THE SIGNIFICANT COMPONENTS
OF THE DATA ANALYSIS FOR
ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT DECISION
MAKING

MANAGER IN BUSINESS
RESEARCH
A CRITICAL CONSUMER OF INFORMATION

THE RESEARCH PROCESS
 Manager should be able to conduct business
research
 Manager should find out the research process
of the information he wants to analyze
 The kind of research and its outcome depend
mainly on the research process:
 WHY RESEARCH IS DONE?
 WHO PAID FOR THE RESEARCH?
 WHO DID THE RESEARCH?

WHO DOES RESEARCH ?

ACADEMIC RESEARCH
 Every university has a scientific lab with
full time professors and graduated
students
 They are mainly two kinds of research
 basic research
 Practical research

WHAT IS BASIC RESEARCH?
 A typical basic research is usually has a
theoretical background and is done in a
lab for theory building
 Basic research is done mainly by
graduate students and supervised by a
professor or a group of professors
 Basic research is financed by a
professor or an academic department or
the university

OUTCOME OF BASIC RESEARCH
 The results of any basis research are to
be published in a journal, magazine,
newspaper, book
 In order to accept paper for publication,
scholars reviewing of the journal ensure
the level of quality of the research and
the theory and methods used.
 All the researchers in science and
engineering dream to publish in the
journals NATURE or SCIENCE

APPLIED RESEARCH
 A typical basic research has a little
theoretical background and is practically
oriented
 The practical research is done mainly by
researchers in a lab and/or plant for
practical results to be used in industries
or agencies
 Practical research is financed by
industries or agencies to solve a
practical problem or a particular issue

OUTCOMES OF APPLIED RESEARCH
 The results of any practical research are
not for publication.
 All the results should be submitted to the
industry or agency who financed the
research
 A contract including non-divulgation
between the industry and the professor
who supervise the research is signed in
the beginning of the research process

GOVERNMENTAL RESEARCH
ORGANIZATIONS
 In GENERAL, Government organizations
have their “in house” research agencies
 The objective of governmental research
agencies is to use statistical research to
find solutions related to social, economic
and market issues .

EXAMPLE OF UAE GOVERNMENT
RESEARCH AGENCIES
 The Economic & Policy Research of the
government of UAE
 This unit was developed to provide
applied research aimed at supporting the
UAE's growth and development.

WHAT RESEARCH DOES EPRU
UNDERTAKE?
 The quality and reliability of UAE economic
statistics and their use for forecasting purposes.
 The international competitiveness, efficiency
and productivity of the UAE economy, including
the public and private sectors.
 Diversification of the UAE economy.
 International trade, including customs reform
and trade relations with GCC members.
 UAE labor market dynamics, including the issue
of Emiratization of the labor market.

EXAMPLES OF CURRENT
RESEARCH PROJECTS OF EPRU
 An evaluation of the quality of UAE Economic
Statistics & Indicators.
 Trade Facilitation between GCC Member
States.
 The International Competitiveness of the
Countries of the MENA Region.
 The Efficiency of the Abu Dhabi Securities
Market and the Dubai Financial Market.
 The Efficiency and Productivity of UAE Banks.

ECONOMIC RESEARCH
METHODS USED BY EPRU
 Economic models for time-series cross-
section and panel data.
 Non-parametric models including Data
Envelope Analysis and Structural
Equation Modeling.
 Computable General Equilibrium (CGE)
Modeling.

The CGE MODEL IS USED TO
HELP ANSWER QUESTIONS
SUCH AS:
 How important are the contributions of the different emirates to
the UAE economy?
 What will happen to the economy if trade barriers are removed
between GCC countries?
 How well placed is the UAE economy to cope with the end of oil
exports?
 What can the UAE government do to increase the labor market
participation rates and employment rates for Emiratis?
 What can the UAE government do to keep the economy
growing and diversifying?

CONSULTANTS RESEARCH
 Provide research & advisory services to
industry and government and
government
 Some consultant agencies are
multinational companies involved in
accountancy, finance, management and
business consultancy in general
 Examples of consultant agencies are
Price Water house Coopers and Ernest
& Young

CONSULTANT RESEARCH FOR
OIL INDUSTRIES PLANNING
 The oil and gas industry is driven by the
development and delivery of natural
resources of unknown quality, quantity,
and origin.
 In this environment, it’s vital that industry
participants conduct risk management
planning.

ERNST & YOUNG CONSULTANT
RESEARCH AGENCY
 To help the oil companies kick off their own scenario
planning exercises, the Ernst & Young Global Oil & Gas
Center brings the oil companies through nine scenarios
and possible outcomes.
 From evaluating hydrocarbon reserves to assessing
limited supplies within specific countries and states, we
provide food for thought on several “what ifs,” including:
 What if the global economy experienced a recession?
 What if alternatives became a major part of the energy
mix?
 What if there was no longer a secure supply of oil and
gas?

MANAGERS RESEARCH
 Managers should see research as part of their
job
 Successful management depends on high
quality information
 A great deal of information like sales figures is
routinely available to the manager and does not
need research
 However, THE CREATIVE UTILIZATION of
such data ( like establishing market trends) can
be a research project

EXAMPLES OF RESEARCH
FOR MANAGERS
 Clients
 Potential clients
 Staffing
 Performance
 Competitors
 Legal issues
 Sales
 Information technology
 Organizational
environment
 Organization
development
 Products
 Culture
 Productivity
 Strategy
 Quality
 Policy
 Finance
 Training & Staff
development
 Managerial effectiveness
 communication

MANAGERS AND RESEARCH
RESULTS EVALUATION
 Managers need to conduct or
commission research if they require
information and understanding to aid in
their decision-making
 Managers who are familiar with research
process will be able to commission
research and evaluate results

WHY STUDY RESEARCH
GOOD BUSINESS RESEARCH
REDUCES THE RISK IN DECISION-
MAKING

DECISION MAKING CASE #1
 You are a new head of a machinery
manufacturer.
 Some of the old and well trained sales and
services staff left the company.
 Complaints from customers regarding poor
after sales services are on the increase
 HOW DO YOU BEGIN TO THINK ABOUT
HOW TO SOLVE THIS PROBLEM?

DECISION MAKING CASE #2
 The head of the department chairs the
committee that is responsible to buy the
textbook for EMGT 316
 HOW IS HE GOING TO BEGIN TO
EVALUATE THE COMMITTEE
OPTIONS?

CASE #3 : HOW DO YOU SET UP A
RESEARCH PROJECT?
 How will you come with a problem
statement ( problem & questions) ?
 How are you going to answer these
problem question?

Why do managers study
research?
 The manager’s DECISIONS need more
and better information
 The availability of improved techniques
and tools to meet this need
 The resulting information overload if
discipline is not employed in process

MANAGER NEEDS MORE AND
BETTER INFORMATION
BECAUSE:
 More variables to consider
 More knowledge exist in any field of
management
 Global and local competition is more vigorous
 Quality of theories and models to make
decisions is improving
 More concerns from the governments about
public protection
 Public more informed wants to be included in
company decision making

GOOD INFORMATION LEAD
TO GOOD DECISION
 In this very complex and competitive new
business environment, managers should
understand how to identify quality information
and to recognize the solid, reliable research on
which their high-risk decisions can be based
 Managers need also to know how to conduct
such research to get only the valuable
information
 These skills need understanding of the scientific
methods used for decision making

EFFECTS OF CONSUMERS
MAGAZINES ON BUSINESS
 Consumer magazines are independent and public
satisfaction oriented ( quality, durability, ease to use,
safety and price)
 Therefore, Consumer magazine (ex: “WHICH” in UK)
have a significant impact on consumer’s buying behavior
AND AFFECT THE SALES OF ANY COMPANY
 Companies whose products receive unsatisfactory marks
in consumer magazine will withdraw their products from
the market
 POSITIVE MARKS MAKES THE COMPANY INVEST
MORE ON ADVERTISEMENT

WHAT IS BUSINESS
RESEARCH
THE FIRST STEP FOR ANY
DECISION MAKING : GETTING
INFORMATION

DEFINITION
 A systematic inquiry whose objective is
to provide information to solve
managerial problems

CASE #1: WHICH BUSINESS
PARTNERS?
 AIR SWISS IS LOOKING FOR
INTERNATIONAL PARTNERS
 YOU ARE ASKED TO INVESTIGATE
SIX POTENTIAL COMPANIES

YOUR RESEARCH TEAM
INVESTIGATION
 PERTINENT DATA ARE COLLECTED FROM
PUBLIC SOURCES
 YOU WILL EXAMINE
 ANNUAL REPORTS,
 ARTICLES IN BUSINESS JOURNALS,
 TRADE MAGAZINES
 NEWSPAPERS
 FINANCIAL ANALYST’S ASSESSMENTS
 COMPANY ADVERTISEMENTS

FINAL RESEARCH REPORT
 YOUR RESEARCH TEAM DEVELOP
SUMMARY PROFILE OF EACH
COMPANY
 THE FINAL REPORT HIGHLIGHTS THE
OPPORTUNITIES AND PROBLEMS
THAT THE ACQUISITION OF THE
TARGET COMPANY WILL BRING TO
ALL AREAS OF THE BUSINESS

THE MANAGER DILEMMA
 THE SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF
SWISS AIR WILL READ YOUR
REPORT AND MUST MAKE A FINAL
PROPOSAL ABOUT WHICH IS THE
PREFERRED PARTNER WITH WHICH
TO JOIN FORCES

CASE #2: BUYING A NEW
EQUIPMENT?
 A prominent manufacturer of medical
equipment contacts you to buy a new-
generation MRI scanner.
 The doctor committee is waiting for your
recommendations to decide either to buy
it or not

YOUR INVESTIGATION
 Mining data from patients files from other
hospitals which are using the equipment
to find :
 How the new equipment is used
 For what kind of diagnosis it can be used
 Your try to confirm your data with
professional and associations journals

FINAL RESEARCH REPORT
 Develop a profile that details the number
of patients that could be treated
 Estimate the overheads after buying the
equipment
 Estimate potential revenue that would be
realized after buying the equipment

THE MANAGER DILEMMA
 AFTER READING THE REPORT, THE
DOCTORS COMMITTEE MUST
DECIDE WHETHER TO BUY A NEW
MRI SCANNER

CASE #3 : CHECKING
DEPARTMENT EFFICIENCY
 A color manufacturer can not maintain
good profit level.
 The owner believes the inventory
management is weak area of the
company
 You are asked to make some
recommendations

GET THE FIRST IMPRESSION
 You look at the present warehousing and
shipping operations and find excessive
sales loss and delivery delays because
of out-stock conditions
 An informal poll of customers confirm
your impression

TRAINING NEEDED
 Based on this impression, you familiarize
yourself with the latest inventory
management techniques in a local
college library

COLLECTING DATA
 You ask the warehouse manager to take
an accurate inventory
 You review the incoming orders of the
last year
 The owner shows you the production run
of last year and the method he uses to
assess the need for a particular color
paint

SELECTING THE BEST
TECHNIQUE
 Modeling the last year business using
production, order and inventory
management technique, you select the
method that give you, in theory, the best
profit
 After two months, the new technique
used show a much lower inventory and a
higher order fulfillment
 Your recommend the new technique to
the owner

THE MANAGER DILEMMA
 The owner must decide whether to
implement a new inventory management
system

WHAT MUST A
RESEARCHER
ACCOMPLISH
DIFFERENT OBJECTIVES OF
BUSINESS RESEARCH

RESEARCH STUDY
OBJECTIVES
 REPORTING
 DESCRIPTIVE
 EXPLANATORY
 EVALUATIVE

OBJECTIVE #1 : REPORTING
 At the elementary level, a reporting study may
be produced simply to provide an account or
summation of some data or to generate some
statistics
 Reporting study call for knowledge and skills in
using information sources and dealing with their
gatekeepers
 Reporting research calls for little in the way of
inference or conclusion drawing

REPORTING=GETTING
INFORMATION
 Sometimes the task might be quite
simple and the data readily available
 Sometimes the information are difficult to
get

CASE STUDY : SWISS AIR
 The researcher needs to know which
information should be assessed in order
to value the company
 Knowing the type of information needed,
the researcher identifies possible
sources of information, like trade press
articles and annual reports

THE VALUABLE SOURCES
 The public takes airplanes: the public
feedback is the most important source of
information
 Because of the evaluation of the
potential partners on the company
stock’s prices, only public sources are
used
 Other less sensitive reporting studies
could be interviewing the gatekeepers

OBJECTIVE #2: DESCRIPTIVE
 A Descriptive study seeks to find out and
describe but not necessarily to explain
 A descriptive study try the answer the
following questions:
 Who?
 What?
 When?
 Where?
 How?

WHO CAN DO DESCRIPTIVE
STUDY?
 This is the nature of much research produced
by governmental statistical agencies
 Examples are: collecting information regarding
the population, Households, Medical care
expenditure,…
 Such descriptive research is conducted on a
regular basis to monitor social and economic
changes
 GOVERNMENT AGENCIES COLLECT THESE
DATA AND OTHERS CAN USE IT FOR
POLICY, ACADEMIC OR POLITICAL
PURPOSES

DESCRIPTIVE STUDY IS
STATISTICAL
 Descriptive studies may involve the
collection of data and an examination of
the distribution and the number of times
the researcher observes a single event
or characteristic (research variable)
 Descriptive studies may also involve an
assessment (study) of the interaction of
two or more variables

CASE STUDY: BUYING A NEW
EQUIPMENT IS A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY
 The researcher must present data that reveal:
 Who is affiliated with the insurer
 Who uses managed healthcare programs ( both
doctors and patients)
 General trends (TENDENCY) in the use of MRI
in diagnosis illness and relationship with patient
characteristics
 Doctor referrals
 Technology use patterns

DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH
DEFICIENCY
 Descriptive research may or may not
have the potential for drawing powerful
inferences ( link between data and the
decision to make)
 Some organizations that have databases
of their employees , customers, suppliers
do not mine them regularly to take
advantage of the decision-making insight
they may provide

DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH FOR
NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS
 Descriptive research can not explain why
an event has occur and why some
variables interact in the research
 Descriptive research is popular in
business research because of its
versatility across disciplines
 For non-profit organizations, descriptive
research has broad appeal to
administrators and policy analysts for
planning, monitoring, and evaluating

OBJECTIVE #3
:EXPLANATORY RESEARCH
 Explanatory research moves beyond
description to seek to explain the
patterns, relationships and trends
observed or discovered
 intend to describe why and how
something work or to make something
easier to understand

EXPLANATORY RESEARCH
NEEDS CAUSALITY
 Why a particular product is so popular?
 How staff bonuses bring about increases in
efficiency?
 Such questions raise the difficult issue of
causality ( NOTHING CAN NOT HAPPEN
WITHOUT A CAUSE)
 To establish causality ( link between two
events) requires the researcher to be rigorous
in the collection, analysis and interpretation of
data

OBJECTIVE #4: EVALUATIVE
RESEARCH
 Aims to make judgment on the success
or effectiveness of policies, practices,
strategies or programs
 Example #1: if an advertising campaign
has been cost effective
 Example #2: if a particular program is
meeting required performance standards
 In the private sectors, this research
could be done for profitability purposes

BUSINESS RESEARCH:
APPROACHES OR
PARADIGM

WHAT IS PARADIGM ?
 One that serves as a pattern or model.
 Since the 1960s, paradigm has been used in
science to refer to a theoretical framework, as
when Nobel Laureate David Baltimore cited the
work of two colleagues that "really established a
new paradigm for our understanding of the
causation of cancer."
 Thereafter, researchers in many different fields,
including sociology and literary criticism, often
saw themselves as working in or trying to break
out of paradigms.

PARADIGM IN BUSINESS
RESEARCH
 PARADIGM provides guidelines and
principles concerning the way business
research is conducted
 The two most important paradigms in
social science research are
 The positivist approach
 The critical/ interpretive approach

POSITIVIST RESEARCH
 The researcher is independent on the research
and the objective is to describe and explain.
 Behavior of individuals, groups or organizations
under study is explained on the basis of the
facts and observations.
 Quantitative data are gathered using theories
and models
 It consists of the empirical part of the study
 It is also known as scientific, empiricist,
quantitative, deductive
 Mostly used in natural sciences

CRITICAL/INTERPRETIVE
RESEARCH
 Human phenomena can not be studied
as non-human phenomena
 The social world is socially constructed
and subjective
 The “reality” to be studied is the
perceptions of the actors involved in a
given social milieu and not a social
model imposed by the researcher

CRITICAL/INTERPRETIVE
RESEARCH
 The researchers are part of the research
process
 The researcher gets inside the mind of
the his/her subjects to see the world
from their point of view
 Provide their own explanations of their
situations and behavior

POSITIVIST OR CRITICAL
APPROACH
 Both approaches make assumptions that
need to be weighted before selecting a
research methodology
 Researchers are free to choose one or
another approach however a mix of the
two approaches is recommended
because the findings provide a broader
insight or understanding the issues being
investigated

QUANTITATIVE &
QUALITATIVE
APPROACH

DEFINITIONS
 Quality is the essential character or nature of
something while Quantity is the amount
 Quality is the “WHAT” while Quatity is the
“HOW MUCH”
 Qualitative refers to the meaning or model or
analogy or metaphor characterizing something
 Quantitative assumes the meaning and refers
to a measure of it

INTRODUCTION
 Most business research involves the collection,
analysis and interpretation of statistical
information
 Sometimes the research is quantitative :
number of sick days by employees during one
year or the level of sales of a product
 Sometimes the research is qualitative in nature
like level of satisfaction of clients , but it is
represented in a quantitative manner ( scores
between 0 and 5)

QUANTITATIVE APPROACH
 Collection of numerical data and their analysis
 DATA MAY DERIVE FROM
QUESTIONNAIRE-BASED SURVEYS, FROM
OBSERVATION OR FROM SECONDARY
SOURCES SUCH AS SALES DATA
 It relies on numerical evidence to draw
conclusions or to test hypotheses
 The reliability of the results requires a study of a
large number of people or organizations
 Computers are used for this kind of study

SAMPLE  LARGE
POPULATION
 The aim of such study is to link the
observations in one sample to a more general
population
 Example : Testing a new drug for a sample of
people ( paid by the company but their health
history should be known by the pharmaceutical
company)
 The conclusions of the research are made for
the general public

QUALITATIVE APPROACH
 Not concerned by statistical analysis
 Collecting a great number of data for a
relatively small number of subjects and
not a limited amount of information for a
large number of subjects
 The information collected is not in
numerical form and conclusions are not
based on numerical analysis

 The objective of the research is to fully
understand the experiences and
situations of few people
 The methods used for gathering
qualitative information include:
observation
 informal and unstructured and in-
depth interviewing
 participants observation

QUANTITATIVE VS
 Some researchers use only one
approach
 When both are used, Quantitative
approach should be based on initial ,
exploratory qualitative approach
 However, the two approaches could be
used together as computers are
increasingly used to analyze qualitative
data

INDUCTION AND
DEDUCTION
APPROACH

INDUCTION APPROACH
 RESEARCH
PROCESS AS
FOLLOWS
 A= OBSERVATION,
DESCRIPTION
DATA COLLECTION
 B = ANALYSIS
 C= EXPLANATION
HYPOTHESIS
THEORY
B
C
A

CONCLUSION EXPLAINS
THE FACTS
 FIRST YOU COLLECT DATA
 SECOND YOU ANALYZE
 THIRD YOU EXPLAIN

EXAMPLE OF INDUCTION
 SUPPOSE YOUR FIRM SPENDS $ 1 MILLION ON
REGIONAL PROMOTIONAL CAMPAIGN HOWEVER
SALES DID NOT INCREASE : WHY?
 CONCLUSION : PROMOTION POORLY EXECUTED.
 THIS CONCLUSION IS INDUCTIVE SINCE
SALES SHOULD INCREASE AFTER
PROMOTIONAL CAMPAIGN
 ALSO WE KNOW BY LOGIC IF THE
PROMOTION IS POORLY EXECUTED ,
SALES WILL NOT INCREASE

HYPOTHESIS FOR THE
POOR PROMOTION
 REGIONAL RETAILERS HAVE NOT
ENOUGH STOCK TO FILL CUSTOMER
REQUESTS
 A STRIKE BY THE TRUCKING FIRM
EMPLOYEES PREVENTED STOCKS
TON ARRIVE ON TIME
 A HURRICANE CLOSED ALL RETAIL
LOCATIONS

DEDUCTION APPROACH
 RESEARCH
PROCESS AS
FOLLOWS
 C= EXPLANATION
HYPOTHESIS
THEORY
 A= OBSERVATION,
DESCRIPTION
DATA COLLECTION
 B = ANALYSIS
B
C
A

DATA CONFRONT PRIOR
REASONING: TRUE OR FALSE
 FIRST A PRIOR REASONING IS
ASSUMED
 SECOND DATA ARE COLLECTED
 THIRD COLLECTED DATA WILL
CONFIRM OR NEGATE THE
REASONING

CASE FOR STUDY
 All regular employees are trusted not to
steal ( assuming theory)
 John is a regular employee ( collecting
data)
 John can be trusted ( conclusion)

EXPERIMENTAL &
NON-EXPERIMENTAL
RESEARCH

EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH
 DONE IN LABORATORY BY
SCIENTISTS IN FIELD LIKE BIOLOGY
AND ENGINEERING
 RESEARCHER HAS CONTROL ON
SOME VARIABLES

NON-EXPERIMENTAL
RESEARCH
 REAL WORLD
 PEOPLE
 NO CONTROL ON THE VARIABLES
 EX: TWO PEOPLE WITH SAME
INCOME CAN DIFFER MARKEDLY IN
PERSONALITIES, FAMILY
SITUATIONS, HEALTH

PLANNING & DESIGNING
RESEARCH
THE PROCESS INVOLVED

THE ELEMENTS OF THE PROCESS
 THE RESEARCH PROCESS CAN BE
DIVIDED INTO EIGHT MAIN ELEMENTS
(FIGURE 3.1 PAGE 46)
 SELECT TOPIC
 REVIEW LITERATURE
 INVENT NEW FRAMEWORK
 DECIDE RESEARCH QUESTIONS
 LIST INFORMATION NEEDS AND ORGANIZE
 DECIDE RESEARCH STRATEGY
 CONDUCT RESEARCH
 REPORT FINDINGS

INTERACTION IN THE FOUR
FIRST ELEMENTS
 THE VARIETY OF APPROACHES TO
RESEARCH SUGGESTS THAT NOT
ALL THE RESEARCH PROJECTS WILL
FOLLOW PRECISELY THE SAME
SEQUENCE
 THERE IS A GREAT DEAL OF
INTERACTION BETWEEN THE FOUR
ELEMENTS OF THE PROCESS (
FIGURE 3.1)

ELEMENT # 1:
SELECTING A TOPIC FROM
DIFFERENT SOURCES

I) FROM PERSONAL INTEREST:
IF THE RESEARCHER
 RESPONSIBLE FOR A PARTICULAR
FUNCTION IN AN ORGANIZATION
 MEMBER OF A SOCIAL GROUP
BASED ON GENDER, ETHNICITY OR
OCCUPATION
 LIVE IN A PARTICULAR LOCATION
HAVING SPECIFIC PROBLEMS

ADVANTAGES AND
DISADVANTAGES
 ADVANTAGES:
 KNOWLEDGE OF
PHENOMENA
 EASY ACCESS TO
INFORMATION
FROM INDIVIDUALS
 HIGH LEVEL OF
MOTIVATION
 DISADVANTAGES:
 NON-OBJECTIVE (
PART OF THE
SITUATION)

II) FROM LITERATURE
 MOST COMMON SOURCE OF IDEAS FOR
ACADEMIC RESEARCH
 THERE ARE A VARIETY OF FORMS:
 THEORY TESTED IN USA ONLY
( YOU CAN TRY TO STUDY THE THEORY
SOMEWHERE ELSE)
 A THEORY DEVELOPED IN RELATION TO
MANUFACTURING ( YOU CAN STUDY THE
SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS)
 WIDELY ACCEPTED THEORY BASED ON
MEN ( YOU CAN STUDY IT ON WOMEN)

 A THEORY TESTED LONG TIME AGO
AND NEW TESTING TECHNIQUES
ARE NOW AVAILABLE

ACADEMIC RESEARCH : MY
MASTER THESIS
 A NEW AMINE DEVELOPED BY
MOBILE WAS TESTED AND
COMPARED WITH THE WELL KNOWN
AMINE ( MEA) FOR A SPECIFIC
THERMODYNAMIC BEHAVIOR
 I COMPARED THE SAME AMINES BUT
THE COMPARISON WAS DONE FOR
THE ABSORPTION RATE PROPERTY
OF BOTH AMINES

CRITICAL REVIEWING NEEDED
IN LITERATURE SOURCE
 IN THE CASE, SELECTING A TOPIC AND
REVIEWING THE LITERATURE ARE
COMBINED
 A GOOD RESEARCHER SHOULD IDENTIFY
NOT ONLY WHAT THE LITERATURE SAYS
BUT ESPECIALLY WHAT IT DOES NOT SAY
 MOST RESEARCHERS DO NOT TELL YOU
EVERYTHING ABOUT THEIR WORK : YOU
NEED TO READ CAREFULLY, IMAGINE AND
GUESS

III) POLICY OR MANAGEMENT
 CAN BE SPONSORED BY PRIVATE OR
INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATIONS OR DONE BY
ACADEMICS
 ACADEMICS : RESEARCH RESULTS MADE
PUBLIC AND OBJECTIVE IS METHODOLOGY
FOR WIDE AND GENERAL APPLICATIONS
(PARADIGM)
 PRIVATE ORGANIZATIONS: RESEARCH
FOR A PARTICULAR APPLICATION AND
RESULTS REMAIN CONFIDENTIAL
 GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS: LIES
BETWEEN THE TWO APPROACHES

EXAMPLES OF RESEARCH
TOPICS ( FIGURE 3.2 PAGE 47)
 PERSONAL INTEREST
 THE LITERATURE
 POLICY AND MANAGEMENT
 SOCIAL
 POPULAR ISSUES

ELEMENT #2:
REVIEWING THE LITERATURE

OBJECTIVE OF REVIEWING
LITERATURE
 IDENTIFYING AND ENGAGING WITH
PREVIOUS WORK RELEVANT TO THE
TOPIC OF INTEREST

THE ROLE OF THE
LITERATURE REVIEW
 THE ENTIRE BASIS OF THE RESEARCH
 A SOURCE OF IDEAS ON TOPICS FOR
RESEARCH
 A SOURCE OF INFORMATION ON
RESEARCH DONE BY OTHERS
 SOURCE OF METHODOLOGY OR
THEORETICAL IDEAS
 SOURCE OF COMPARISON BETWEEN
YOUR RESEARCH AND OTHERS
 SOURCE OF DATA SUPPORTING YOUR
RESEARCH ( EX: DATA ON LOCAL MARKET)

STEPS OF REVIEWING
LITERATURE
 THE REVIEWING LITERATURE IN THE
BEGINNING OF THE PROJECT IS
TEMPORARY (JUST TO START THE
PROJECT)
 TIME DOES NOT ALWAYS ALLOW
COMPLETE LITERATURE REVIEW
 PROCEED WITH THE PROPOSED
RESEARCH IN THE HOPE THAT ALL THE
RELEVANT ELEMENTS HAVE BEEN
IDENTIFIED
 EXPLORATION OF LITERATURE WILL
CONTINUE DURING THE PROJECT

RISK OF INCOMPLETE
LITERATURE REVIEW
 DURING THE PROJECT PROCESS, THE
RESEARCHER MAY FIND A PUBLICATION (
OLD OR NEW ) WHICH COMPLETELY
NEGATES OR UPSTAGES ( DIMINISH THE
VALUE) HIS WORK JUST BEFORE
FINISHING
 THIS RISK IS VERY HIGH IN NATURAL
SCIENCES
 BUT MINIMAL IN SOCIAL SCIENCES
BECAUSE IN TWO DIFFERENT PLACES,
SAME RESEARCH PROJECT GIVES
DIFFERENT FINDINGS ( SUBJECTIVE)

HOW TO GET NEW
LITERATURE SOURCES
 FOR FASHIONABLE PROJECTS,
LITERATURE REVIEW SHOULD
INCLUDE UNPUBLISHED
LITERATURE AND ONGOING
RESEARCH
 KNOWING THE PROJECT, FIND THE
CENTERS INVOLVED AND GET
INFORMATION THROUGH DIRECT
APPROACHES, ANNUAL REPORTS,
NEWSLETTERS, WEB SITES,

FASHIONABLE PROJECTS:
 COMMUNICATION NETWORKS ARE
VERY ACTIVE
 SEARCH FOR SEMINARS AND
CONFERENCES RELATED TO THE
PROJECT, GET THE MOST RECENT
PAPERS, CONTACTS OTHERS
RESEARCHERS,
 POSSIBLE COLLABORATION

CONCLUSION OF THE
LITERATURE REVIEW
 ACADEMIC PROJECTS: COMPARE
METHODOLOGIES AND DISCUSSING
MERITS AND DEFICIENCIES AND
EXPLAIN HOW CONCLUSIONS ARE
RELATED TO YOUR PROJECT
 MANAGERIAL PROJECTS: SHORTER
CONCLUSION RELATED TO
RELEVANT AND USEFUL FINDINGS
INSTEAD OF METHODOLOGY USED

ELEMENT #3
DEVISING A CONCEPTUAL
FRAMEWORK

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
 The development of a conceptual
framework is the most important and the
most difficult element of the project
 It is sometimes also the weakest
element in research proposals
 Conceptual framework involves concepts

CONCEPTS
 To understand and communicate information
about objects and events, there must be a
common ground on which to do it.
 CONCEPT SERVE THIS PURPOSE
 Concepts are generally accepted collection of
meanings or characteristics associated with
certain events, objects, situations and
behaviors

EXAMPLE OF CONCEPTS
 IF WE SEE A MAN PASSING, WE
IDENTIFY THAT HE IS
 WALKING
 SKIPPING ( JUMPING)
 CRAWLING ( ON THE KNEE)
 HOPPING ( SHORT JUMP)
 RUNNING
 THIS IS A CONCEPT

SOURCES OF CONCEPTS
 SOME CONCEPTS ARE ACQUIRED
FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCES
AND IF WE CHANGE SOCIETY, WE
WILL HAVE THE SAME CONCEPTS
BUT IN A DIFFERENT LANGUAGE
 SOME CONCEPTS ARE UNIQUE TO A
PARTICULAR CULTURE AND CAN
NOT BE TRANSLATED INTO
ANOTHER LANGUAGE

BORROWING CONCEPTS
 GRAVITATION BORROWED FROM PHYSICS
AND USED IN MARKETING TO EXPLAIN
WHY PEOPLE SHOP WHERE THEY DO
 DISTANCE IS USED IN ATTITUDE
MEASUREMENT TO DESCRIBE THE
DEGREE OF VARIABILITY BETWEEN
ATTITUDES OF PEOPLE
 VELOCITY IS USED IN ECONOMY
 FLAVOR BORROWED FROM FOOD
SCIENCE TO ENGINEERING ( HE DOES NOT
HAVE THE FLAVOR OF SCIENCE)

CONCEPTS IN BUSINESS
RESEARCH
 WE DESIGN HYPOTHESES USING
CONCEPTS
( FOR EXAMPLE : WHAT IS A GOOD
COMPANY?)
 TWO PEOPLE MAY HAVE TWO
DIFFERENT OPINIONS OR
CONCEPTS

THE IMPORTANCE OF
CONCEPTS
 WE DEVISE MEASUREMENT
CONCEPTS BY WHICH TO TEST OUR
HYPOTHETICAL STATEMENTS
 WE GATHER DATA USING THESE
MEASUREMENTS CONCEPTS
 SOME PEOPLE INVENT CONCEPTS
TO EXPRESS THEIR IDEAS

COMMUNICATING OUR
CONCEPTS: THE ART
 THE SUCCESS OF RESEARCH
DEPENDS ON HOW CLEARLY WE
CONCEPTUALIZE ( FORM AN IDEA)
 THIS IS THE ART PART OF BUSINESS
RESEARCH.
 YOUR CONCEPTS ARE THE RESULT OF
YOUR OWN EXPERIENCES.
 YOUR OWN ART WILL HELP YOU CHOOSE
THE RIGHT QUESTIONS RELATED TO YOUR
CONCEPTS USED FOR THE RESEARCH

WE NEED CLEAR
CONCEPTS
 HOW OTHERS UNDERSTAND THE
CONCEPTS WE USE
 WHEN WE NEED TO MEASURE
ATTITUDE OR SATISFACTION OF
PEOPLE WHICH ARE ABSTRACT
 EXAMPLE: SOME PEOPLE DO NOT
CONCEPTUALIZE THAT HUNTING IS
A CRIME

EXAMPLE #1 THAT NEEDS
CONCEPT
 If you want to know: what will be the employee
reaction to the new flexible work schedule ?
 You may ask :
 Which employees?
 What reaction?
 THESE QUESTIONS REQUIRE THE USE OF
CONCEPTS, CONSTRUCTS AND
DEFINITIONS

CHALLENGE: CONCEPTS THAT OTHER
CLEARLY UNDERSTAND
 EXAMPLE : IN YOUR
QUESTIONNAIRE, YOU ARE ASKING
RESPONDENTS : “ FAMILY TOTAL
INCOME”
 SEEMS AN EASY QUESTION BUT
YOU WILL HAVE CONFUSING
ANSWERS AND YOU CAN NOT
QUANTIFY THEM

WE NEED TO BE MORE PRECISE
ABOUT
 TIME PERIOD : WEEKLY, MONTHLY,
ANNUALLY
 BEFORE OR AFTER INCOME TAXES
 FOR HEAD OF FAMILY ONLY OR ALL THE
FAMILY MEMBERS
 FOR SALARY AND WAGES ONLY OR FOR
DIVIDENDS, INTEREST, AND CAPITAL GAIN
 INCOME IN KIND SUCH AS FREE RENT,
EMPLOYEE DISCOUNT, OR FOOD STAMP

EXAMPLE THAT NEED
CONCEPT
 Why did the stock market price surge
higher when all the normal indicators
suggested it will go down
 You may ask:
 What are the normal indicators
 THIS QUESTION ALSO REQUIRE THE
USE OF CONCEPTS, CONSTRUCTS
AND DEFINITIONS

FIGURE 3.3 PAGE 50
 Examples of concepts encountered in
management research, their definition
and they might be operationalised or
communicated in a qualitatively or
quantitatively assessable or measurable
form

CONCEPTUAL
FRAMEWORK

IMPORTANCE OF
 A conceptual framework of a researcher
indicates how he views the concepts
involved in his study and also the
relation between concepts.
 The conceptual framework is original to
each researcher. It depends on the
researcher CONCEPTS based on his
experiences, education and know-how

COURSE OF THE STUDY = CONCEPTS
+ CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
 THE CONCEPTS IDENTIFIED,
 THE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
 DETERMINE ALL THE COURSE OF
STUDY

AND TYPES OF RESEARCH
 IT IS NECESSARY TO DECIDE FIRST
UPON THE KINDS OF RESEARCH
BEING CONDUCTED IN ORDER TO
ELABORATE ITS CONCEPTUAL
FRAMEWORK.
 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK ARE
DIFFERENT IF THE RESEARCH IS
DESCRIPTIVE, EXPLANATORY OR
EVALUATIVE

DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH
 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH RARELY
REQUIRES ELABORATE
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK BUT
CLEAR DEFINITIONS OF CONCEPTS
INVOLVED ARE REQUIRED

EXPLANATORY/
EVALUATIVE RESEARCH
 NEED WELL DEVELOPED
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK THAT
FORMS THE BASIS FOR THE
EXPLANATION AND THE
EXAMINATION REQUIRED FOR THE
RESEARCH

EXPLANATORY/
EVALUATIVE RESEARCH
 EXPLANATION INVOLVES IDEA OF
CAUSE EFFECT
 RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN INPUTS
AND OUTPUTS
 ACTIONS AND OUTCOMES

DEVELOPMENT OF
FRAMEWORK (FIGURE 3.4 P.51)
 The development of a framework
involves four elements:
 Identification of concepts
 Definition of concepts
 Exploration of relationships between
concepts
 Operationalisation

The process of devising a
conceptual framework

Concepts – examples (a)

Concepts – examples (b)

APPLIED RESEARCH
 IN APPLIED RESEARCH SUCH AS
PLANNING AND MARKETING IN AN
ORGANIZATION  READY MADE
IDEAS CAN BE FOUND IN PLANNING
OR MARKETING LITERATURE

ACADEMIC RESEARCH
 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK CALLED MODEL IS
NEEDED
 EXAMPLE : THE LEVEL OF STAFF TURNOVER ( T) IN
A COMPANY IS DIRECTLY RELATED TO THE SIZE OF
THE COMPANY ( E) COULD BE EXPRESSED AS :
 T= a + B.e
 THE RESEARCHER IS ASKED TO FIND THE VALUES
OF a AND b
 Turnover, in a human resources context refers to the
characteristic of a given company or industry, relative to
rate at which an employer gains and loses staff.

FOR THE SAME EXAMPLE:
TURNOVER IN A COMPANY
 IMAGINE NOW THAT YOU RELATE THE LEVEL OF
STAFF TURNOVER ( T) IN A COMPANY TO :
 STAFF EXPECTATIONS
 STAFF CHARACTERISTICS
 JOB CHARACTERISTICS
 ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT


CONCEPT MAPPING A
A Expectations
Turnover
Job
characteristics
Personal
characteristics

CONCEPT MAPPING A AND B
A
Personal
characteristics
Expectations
Job
characteristics
Turnover
B Expectations
Job
characteristics
Personal
characteristics
Job satisfaction
Organisational commitment
Turnover

DECIDING
RESEARCH
QUESTIONS

THE LINK BETWEEN
CONCEPTS AND RESEARCH
 DECIDING ON THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS
IS ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT TASKS IN
THE WHOLE PROCESS
 The scope/scale of the resultant project should
be manageable within the time/resources
available.
 Questions should be answerable
 Questions may be grouped into primary and
subsidiary

EXAMPLE #1 OF RESEARCH
QUESTIONS
 Research question : What is the relationship
between advertising expenditure and revenue?
 Research objective – eg. The aim of the study
is to discover the relationship between
advertising expenditure and revenue.
 Hypothesis – eg. There is a positive relationship
between advertising expenditure and revenue
 THE RESEARCH RESULTS WILL TELL YOU :
TRUE OR FALSE

EXAMPLE #2 : STAFF
TURNOVER
 WHAT ARE THE RELATIVE
INFLUENCES OF “PERSONAL
CHARACTERISTICS”, PRE-
EMPLOYMENT EXPECTATIONS” AND
“JOB CHARACTERISTICS” ON “JOB
SATISFACTION”

EXAMPLE #2 : STAFF
TURNOVER
 TO WHAT EXTENT DOES “JOB
SATISFACTION” AFFECT “
ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT”
 TO WHAT EXPECT DOES
“ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT”
INFLUENCE THE LEVEL OF “STAFF
TURNOVER”

STAFF TURNOVER
CONCEPT MAPPING

Listing information needs &
operationalisation
Self-esteem Existing scale eg. CSE Questionnaire
Concept/variable Operationalisation Data source
Gender M/F Questionnaire or
records
Job expectations Likert scales Questionnaire
Personal Characteristics
Age Age last birthday Questionnaire or
records
Education Highest degree. Questionnaire or records
Experience # years in employment Questionnaire
Marital status Married, de facto etc. Questionnaire

Listing information needs &
operationalisation Contd
Type of industry* Suitable classification Secondary
Concept/variable Operationalisation Data source
Job level Suitable classification Questionnaire/records
Job Characteristics
Salary level Age last birthday Questionnaire/records
Involved in decisions Scale or ad hoc measure Questionnaire/records
Size of org.* # of employees Questionnaire
Job satisfaction Existing scale (eg. JDI) Questionnaire
Org. commitment Existing scale (eg. BOCS) Questionnaire
* Not relevant if only one organisation

HOME WORK FOR
OCTOBER 4TH 2007
 ANALYZE THE BUSINESS RESEARCH WORK DONE
FOR THE RADIO STATION WKLM AND
 WHAT WAS THE PROBLEM?
 HOW WKLM WANTS TO SOLVE THIS PROBLEM?
 HOW DID THEY SELECT THE SAMPLE?
 WHY PHONE SURVEY WAS USED?
 WHAT IS THE PROBLEM FACED DURING THIS
SURVEY?
 SUMMARIZE THE FINDINGS
 HOW THE FINDINGS ARE RELATED TO THE
OBJECTIVE OF THE RESEARCH?
 CAN YOU THINK ABOUT ANOTHER METHODOLOGY?
EXPLAIN

DEVELOPING
RESEARCH
STRATEGY

STEPS OF RESEARCH
STRATEGY
 Decide information ( DATA ) -gathering
methods – See Chs. 5-11
 Decide data analysis methods – See
Chs. 12-15
 Budget and timetable – See this chapter
Section II

THURSDAY OCTOBER 4TH : RESEARCH
PROJECT PROPOSAL
THE REPORT SHOULD INCLUDE:
 SITUATION AND STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
 TYPE OF STUDY
 HYPOTHESES ( IF ANY)
 HOW ARE YOU GOING TO SELECT YOUR SAMPLE
AND WHY?
 WHICH DATA ARE YOU GOING TO COLLECT?
 WHICH SECONDARY DATA ?
 SOME QUESTIONS YOU ARE GOING TO ASK

SOURCE OF
INFORMATION #1
GATHERING DATA

GATHERING DATA
 As you explore your problem or topic,
you may consider many different types
of information sources, some much
valuable than others
 Information sources are generally
characterized into:
 Primary sources
 Secondary sources
 Tertiary sources

WHAT ARE DATA?
 Data are facts presented to the
researcher from the study environment
 Data can be characterized by their
 Abstractness
 Verifiability
 Elusiveness
 Closeness to the phenomena

Data as Abstractness
 Metaphorical ( related to metaphor)
 Example of Metaphor : he has a heart of stone (
not real )
 Example of Abstractions: the growth of GNP (
Gross National Product) can not be observed
directly, only the effects of it can be recorded
 GDP measures all production within the
country, by whoever happens to be working
here;
 GNP measures the production of all the
nationals, wherever they happen to be working.

VERIFIABILITY OF DATA
 Our data are processed by our senses and can
be limited to the senses of other people
 Everything we know about the world and
ourselves has come through our senses.
 All our knowledge therefore is the product of
what we have seen, heard, smelt, etc.
 When sensory experiences consistently
produce the same results, our data are said
trustworthy because they may be verified

ELUSIVE DATA
 Capturing data is elusive, complicated by
the speed at which events occur and
time-bound nature of observations
 Opinions, preferences or attitudes are
not the same from the 80’s to now

CLOSENESS TO THE
PHENOMENA
 Data reflect their truthfulness by
closeness to the phenomena

PRIMARY VS SECONDARY
DATA
 Much of business research involves the
collection and analysis of new data.
 Primary data:
 new data specifically collected in
current research project
 researcher is the primary user.

KEY TERMS –DEFINITIONS
 However, research can also be done by the
analysis of existing data that was collected for
some other purpose, and the ability to locate
such secondary data is an important research
skill.
 Secondary data:
 data already exist - collected for some other
(primary) purpose
 researcher is the secondary user.

SECONDARY DATA
USES AND ROLES

USES/ROLES OF
SECONDARY DATA
 Background/preparation
 Complementary –
comparison/validation of primary data
collected
 Whole basis of project – re-analysis
of data
 Context setting (in report)

SOURCES OF SECONDARY
DATA
 COMPANY INFORMATION
 GOVERNMENT AGENCIES
 EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS
 PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
 MANAGEMENT RELATED FIELDS
 ARCHIVES
 INTERNET

SOURCE OF SECONDARY DATA
#1 : COMPANY INFORMATION
 This can be from internal or external sources.
 Internal sources comprise the internal records of a
company, and include financial accounts and sales
information, human resources records , customer
complaints, etc.
 External sources for public companies are available from
their annual reports and other reports on their finances
and structure that they are required by law to disclose.
 For private companies, newspapers, the financial press
and trade journals need to be searched for information.
 A number of electronic databases can be searched for
company information.

SOURCE OF SECONDARY DATA
#2 “:GOVERNMENT AGENCIES.
 GOVERNMENT Bureau of Statistics,
 the GOVERNMENT Trade Commission,
 THE Government Index of Publications.
Information from these sources is
available via the Internet.

SECONDARY DATA FROM UAE
GOVERNMENT STATISTIC
AGENCIES
 UAE STATISTICS

SOURCE #3 OF SECONDARY
DATA: Educational institutions
and specialist centres
 Many universities have web pages where
information on conferences and publications
can be obtained.
 Specialist centres, often associated with
universities, provide a similar source of
information in their specialist areas.
 Academic researchers may be contacted for
information.
 These may be located from their being authors
of published papers, or from a number of
existing databases

DATA :PROFESSIONAL
ORGANIZATIONS
 These include business and professional
associations, societies, and not-for-profit
organisations, and can be located
through the telephone directories.
 Databases also exist that contain many
such associations and societies

DATA: Management-related fields
 Business research will often require the
seeking of information related to other
disciplines, such as law, psychology,
education, sociology, etc.
 Databases and other sources of
information are available for each of
these disciplines.

DATA :Archival material
 Archival material available via the
Internet is developing, and is accessed
through some newspaper and university
websites.

DATA : Internet-based resources
 .A number of websites are available that
give wide coverage and a large number
of links to other sources.

SECONDARY DATA
FROM COMPANY
INFORMATION
CASE STUDY

COMPANY SECONDARY
DATA AVAILABLE
 SECONDARY DATA COULD DE
 INTERNAL DATA
 EXTERNAL DATA

SECONDARY INTERNAL DATA
FOR A COMPANY OR AN
ORGANIZATION
 Financial accounts
 Sales data
 Prices
 Product development
 Advertising expenditure
 Purchase of supplies
 Human resources records
 Customer complaint logs

CASE STUDY FOR INTERNAL DATA :
Employee Turnover & Company
Performance
 Data from 100 branches of a Dutch company, for years
1995-98 on:
 Employee turnover
 Branch performance – sales, profits, etc.
 Other – absenteeism, average age of staff, regional
location
 Regression equation:
 Y = c + 0.38X1 + 0.32X2 – 0.14X3 – 0.07X4 + 0.44X5 –
0.56X6
 Y = Change in performance, 1995-98
 X1 = Performance ’95 X2 = Emp. Turnover
 X3 = Absenteeism X4 = Age
 X5 = Region X6 = Employee turnover squared

SECONDARY EXTERNAL DATA
FOR A COMPANY OR AN
ORGANIZATION
 Company information is available from a
variety of sources, eg.:
 Biz@advantage
 www.whowhere.com
 www.hoovers.com – 12,000 companies, USA &
others
 Australian Stock Exchange (www.asx.com.au)
 AGSM Annual reports
 Dun & Bradstreet (www.dnb.com)
 Kompass directories
 Fortune 500

CLASS WORK
 Identify as many internal secondary sources of
information relevant to business research that
are available in:
 the organisation in which you are employed;
 a trade, professional or union organisation with
which you are familiar;
 an educational organisation.
 Describe each of the sources you identify and
their potential use in a business research study.

COMPANY’S SECONDARY
DATA AND RESEARCH
 DATA : Annual sales (value and volume)
 Research Market trends
 DATA: Product sales vs costs
 Research Product profitability
 DATA :Weekly/monthly sales (value and
volume)
 Research Seasonality
 DATA :Customer information
 Research: Catchment area/market analysis

COMPANY’S SECONDARY
DATA AND RESEARCH
 DATA: Advertising expenditures
 Research: Advertising effectiveness (with sales data)
 DATA: Staff turnover
 Research: Personnel policies
 DATA: Staff absenteeism
 Research: Personnel policies
 DATA : Inventory data
 Research: Inventory costs
 DATA: Customer complaints
 Research :Quality issue
 DATA: Wastage, returns
 Research :Quality, efficiency

TRADE, PROFESSIONAL,
UNION BODY SECONDARY
DATA AND RESEARCH
 DATA: Membership data (e.g. turnover,
gender, location, skill/trade)
 Research: Membership trends,
recruitment policies
 DATA: Awards/agreements
 Research Industrial environment, trends

Educational Institution
secondary data and research
 DATA : Applications for places
 Research: Demand trends
 DATA: Attrition rates
 Research: Quality
 DATA: Student evaluations
 Research: Teaching quality
 DATA: Employment rates
 Research: Industry relevance, quality
 DATA: Student data
 Research: Gender distribution, geographical catchment
 DATA: Student grades
 Research :Quality

CLASS WORK: USE THE
INTERNET
 identify sources of information which
would assist you to you to prepare a
report on:
 the productivity of auto workers in the
USA, Australia, Japan, Canada and
Great Britain over the past decade
 Companies that offer training programs
for middle managers in USA AND
EUROPE.

GROUP WORK
SESSION

SOURCE OF
INFORMATION #2
OBSERVATION

THE IMPORTANCE OF
OBSERVATION METHOD
 Observation is a generally neglected
technique in business research.
 But, it is useful to understand that
systematic observation can be a reliable
and efficient research tool in many
situations.
 The observational method has been
used in several areas of management
research.

WHAT TO OBSERVE?
 Time and motion studies are early examples of
research that use this method.
 Other forms of workplace behaviour, such as
the amount of work completed, or the times that
people arrive and leave the workplace, can be
studied by observation.
 Also, the observation of social behaviours of
employees, or the behaviour of customers in a
store can form a source of data for research.

Example of time study
 In Quebec post-office, when you take the
ticket, the time appears in the ticket
automatically .
 This is the time you started to queue and
when you are front of the agent, he will
take the time and record how much you
stayed on-line
 Their project could be : how to decrease
the queuing time of costumers

OBSERVATION TECHNIQUES
 Observation can be done by simply ‘looking’ or
with the use of still or time-lapse photography,
or video recording.
 In these above examples, it is possible that
questioning the subjects might not yield the
same information as might be gained from
direct observation.
 This could be because the subjects are not
aware of the patterns of behaviour that might be
observed, or because subjects might tend to
under-report negative behaviours, such as
lateness or laziness, and over-report positive
behaviours.

OBSERVATION CONTEXTS
Spatial use of sites
Workplace behaviour
Consumer testing
Complementary research
Social behaviour

CONTEXT: WORKPLACE
BEHAVIOR
 What might be observed?
 Physical actions
 Non-verbal behaviour (eg. Level of
voice, body language
 Time taken to complete tasks
 Distances between people
 Deviant behaviour –
 Employee relations, privacy & ethics
issues

CONTEXT: CONSUMER
TESTING
 Sometimes called ‘mystery shopping’
 Can be seen as a form of participant
observation
 Researcher plays the incognito role of
shopper/user/observer
 Examples of what might be observed:
 Cleanliness of premises
 Information availability
 Product availability
 Staff availability, courtesy, knowledge

CONTEXT:
COMPLEMENTARY
 For example:
 In a sample interview survey at a
site: may be necessary to count
(by observation) the total number
of users of the site and temporal
pattern of use of the site – to
weight the sample

CONTEXT : SOCIAL
BEHAVIOR
 Example: an industrial dispute
(especially if there are strikes,
picketing, lockouts, violence

ELEMENTS OF
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
 Who/what is to be observed?
 Steps in setting up/implementing a
project

Who/what is to be
observed?
 The participants
 Who are they?
 What are their interrelationships?
 How many are there?
 The setting
 Appearance?
 Behaviours that the setting might encourage, discourage
or permit.
 The purpose
 What is the purpose that has brought the participants
together?
 What is the official purpose?
 Are the goals of all the participants compatible? Contd

Who/what is to be observed? Contd
 Social behaviour
 What do participants actually do?
 How do they do it?
 Stimulus for the behaviour
 Objective of the behaviour
 Toward what is the behaviour directed?
 Qualities of behaviour (intensity,
appropriateness, etc.)


 Effects of behaviour (others, responses,
etc.)
 Frequency and duration
 When did the event occur?
 How long did it last?
 Does it recur? How frequently does it
recur?

Case study : Steps in an
observation project
1. Choose site
2. Choose observation point
3. Choose study time period
4. Decide on continuous observation or
sampling
5. Decide on number and length of
sampling periods
6. Decide what to observe

Case study
7 Divide into zones
8 Design a recording sheet
9 Conduct study
10 Analyse data

Step 1: Choice of site
Sites may be fixed by project
brief
If choice is possible, consider:
 Appropriate workplace/customer
behaviour
 Suitable conditions for
observation

Step 2: Choice of observation
points
Some site can be observed from
one spot
Other required selection of
observation points to cover the
whole site

Step 3: Choice of time period
 Need to take account of patterns of use by:
 Year
 Day of the week
 Time of day
 Weather conditions, season
 Public/school holidays
 Sampling of time-periods may be necessary
(see Step 4)

Step 4: Continuous observation or
sampling?
 When counting:
 Continuous counts – of all people
entering site?
 Spot counts – of numbers present at
particular times
 Dependent on number of entrances,
resources available, technology available
 Qualitative – continuous observation (in
specified periods) more likely.

Step 5: Determine count
frequency

Step 6: Decide what to observe
Record visitor numbers?
Also record characteristics?
(male, female, adult, children …)
Behaviour?
Possible to observe people’s
movement through a site
Use site map to record
information – see Figure 6.3

Step 7: Division of site into
zones

Step 8: Design a recording
sheet

Step 9: Conduct the
observation
 Avoid boredom by circulating staff
between tasks/locations

Step 10. Analysis

Step 10. Analysis - contd

Step 10. Analysis - contd
 Using count data:
 From Fig. 6.5: Average number present: 83.5
 Number of visitor-hours in the day = 83.5 x 10 = 835
 If average length of stay* = 0.5 hours:
 No. of visitors = 835/0.5 = 1670
 If average length of stay* = 2 hours:
 No. of visitors = 835/2 = 417
 * average length of stay from interview survey

Technical aids to observation
 Aerial photography
 Still photography
 Video
 Time-lapse photography
 Automatic counters
 Vehicles
 Pedestrians

Just looking
Whatever type of research project is involved,
careful observation of the site, people, behaviour,
environment, etc. often pays dividends

HOMEWORK FOR THE GROUP
:TRY YOUR OBSERVATION
CAPACITIES OUTSIDE:
 Select a work site (an office block foyer ,a
shopping centre) and position yourself in an
unobtrusive location where you can see what is
going on.
 Over a period of four hours, record what
happens.
 Conduct interviews with four visitors each hour
and ask them how long they have stayed, or
expect to stay, at the site.
 Establish the average length of stay and, use
this information as data and estimate the
number of persons visiting the site in the course
of the day..

WRITING A REPORT
 Write a report on how the site is used,
who it is used by, how many people use
it, what conflicts there are - if any -
between different groups of users and
how the design aids or hinders the
activity which people engage in on the
site

HELPFUL IDEAS
 Draw a map, as in Figure 6.3, and to construct a data
recording sheet, as in Figure 6.4.
 Quantitative and qualitative methods might be used.
 Suggested report headings:
 1. The nature and layout of the site
 2. The use of the site:
 a. Activities and numbers (quantitative)
 b. Observations on the use and mis-use of the site
(qualitative)
 3. Implications for design, layout and management.
 4 Comments on the research experience.

QUALITATIVE
METHODS

OBJECTIVE OF THE
CHAPTER
 The nature of qualitative research
methods and discussed and some of the
advantages that they might have over
quantitative methods are listed.
 A number of qualitative methods are
outlined, and examples of their use in
business research are given.

THE NATURE OF QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH METHODS
 Use of qualitative rather than quantitative
information:
 a large amount of ‘rich’ information about
a small number of subjects
 Assumes that reality is socially and
subjectively constructed
 Researcher’s task is to uncover meanings
rather than test pre-established hypotheses:
usually inductive rather than deductive
 Assumes people are best able to describe
their own situation, beliefs, motivations etc.

INDUCTION APPROACH
 RESEARCH
PROCESS AS
FOLLOWS
 A= OBSERVATION,
DESCRIPTION
DATA COLLECTION
 B = ANALYSIS
 C= EXPLANATION
HYPOTHESIS
THEORY
B
C
A

DEDUCTION APPROACH
 RESEARCH
PROCESS AS
FOLLOWS
 C= EXPLANATION
HYPOTHESIS
THEORY
 A= OBSERVATION,
DESCRIPTION
DATA COLLECTION
 B = ANALYSIS
B
C
A

DEFINITION OF
QUALITATIVE METHOD
 The term qualitative is used to describe
research methods that use and result in
data that is qualitative, rather than
numerical or statistical in nature.
 Qualitative research methods are more
likely to be employed when it is the
perceptions, meanings and
understanding of people that the
research seeks to uncover.

SAMPLE FOR QUALITATIVE
METHOD
 Qualitative research studies tend to
obtain a large amount of ‘rich’
information from a relatively few number
of people or organisations, in contrast to
quantitative methods that usually collect
more limited information from a greater
number of cases.

PROCESS OF QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH
 The process of doing qualitative research tends
to be less rigidly structured than for quantitative
research.
 In qualitative research a recursive rather than
sequential approach is common.
 Here the various components of the research
process, such as hypothesis formation, the
recording and analysis of data and writing, can
overlap and take place simultaneously,
rather than in a fixed non-overlapping order.

ADVANTAGES OF
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
 The researcher’s feelings as well as reasoning,
can help shape the research;
 Qualitative research focuses on people’s
understandings and interpretations, rather than
the finding of external causes or ‘laws’ for
behaviour;
 The results of qualitative studies are usually
presented in a narrative form, which makes
them more interesting and understandable for
those managers not trained in statistics;
 Qualitative methods can use a combination of
techniques to provide a broad understanding of
the social situation.

Four qualitative methods used
in business research are
 In-depth interviews
 Group interviews or Focus groups,
 Participant observation,
 Ethnography ( scientific description).

IN DEPTH INTERVIEW

What is an interview?
 Interviewing is a skill that needs practice
to develop.
 Part of this is the ability to guide the
conversation so that it does not deviate
too far from the purposes of the
research, while not influencing the
interviewee’s responses and maintaining
a friendly atmosphere.
 .

ANALYZING DATA OF
INTERVIEW?
 The analysis of interview data can vary, but this
should be guided by the conceptual framework
and research questions of the research project.
 The content of the interviews can be analysed
in a fairly holistic and informal manner.
 Alternatively, a more systematic approach can
be used where sections of the typed transcript
are ‘flagged’ with key words, and indexes
formed of the locations where certain ideas
arise.


THE USE OF COMPUTER
 Specialised computer programs have
been designed to assist in the analysis
of data in this form, and graphical
representations of the results are
possible

In-depth interviews time and
format
 In-depth interviews tend to be much longer than
questionnaire-based interviews and vary in
length from about half and hour to several
hours, with repeat interviews sometimes being
carried out.
 The in-depth interview is relatively unstructured,
with the interviewer asking unplanned
supplementary questions and encouraging the
respondent to explain the reasons for their
answers.

Cases need In-depth interviews
 In-depth interviews, rather than
questionnaire-based ones, are more
appropriate when the information sought
is likely to be different for each subject
and vary in complex ways, and when it is
described in the form of narratives,
rather than statistical statements.
 They can also be used as a preliminary
to a larger questionnaire-based
quantitative study.

 Interviews are commonly taped and
sometimes verbatim typed transcripts
produced.
 If taping is not possible, then notes must
be taken
 Check list

Example of formal
questionnaire
 You want to know from the subject about
the training and educational activities he
took during the last ten years
 Answers will be ticking boxes

In depth interview check list
 Topic : training & education
 Interviewer will shape the question
according to the particular subject
 Ex: if the interviewer is interested in the
influence of the training on current
attitudes in the workplace:
 A specific question could be: what useful
skills did you obtain ? or how satisfied
are you now with your job?

Example of checklist

Techniques interviewer could use
to encourage the subject to talk
 Non verbal response : Uh-huh
 That’s interesting invite to keep talking
 Reflection  take the last response as a new
question ( ex: so you think you do not need
further training)
 Probe  ( ex” why don’t you think you do not
need further training?)
 Backtracking  let’s go back to ….
 New topic  Can we talk about other kinds of
training?

CLASS WORK
 Interview each other, using a similar
checklist and, if available, tape-
recorders.
 Suitable topics might be: career
aspirations; education experiences and
plans; purchasing behaviour in relation
to, say, holidays or computers or
food/drink.

GROUP INTERVIEWS
OR FOCUS GROUP

METHOD OF FOCUS GROUP
 This method is similar to the in-depth interview
except that groups of people are interviewed
rather than individuals separately.
 The number of people in each group is usually
between five and twelve.
 The interviewer, or facilitator, not only has the
role of guiding the discussion to ensure that all
topics are covered, but needs to ensure that all
members contribute to the discussion so that it
is not dominated by a small number of
participants.

RECORDING/ANALYSIS OF
DATA
 The recording and analysis of data is similar to
that for in-depth interviews, although the
production of typed transcripts is less common
for focus groups.
 Focus groups are often used as an alternative
to in-depth interviews, especially when the
interaction between people is of interest in
itself, and where this interaction is more likely to
produce ideas than with individual interviews

CLASS WORK
 Focus groups study: Five students + one
interviewer
 Select a topic
 Topics likely to be of common interest -
eg. films, music, the local environment,
transport.

PARTICIPANT
OBSERVATION

TECHNIQUE USED
 Here the researcher becomes a participant in
the social processes being studied.
 For example, researchers have become
members of work teams in order to gain
insights into the motives and behaviours of
other employees.
 This method can be used when complex and
detailed information is required on group
dynamics and interpersonal relationships, and
becoming a member of the group is an effective
way of achieving this.

ETHICAL ISSUES
 Ethical issues can arise if deception is
involved by the researcher not informing
the group or others of the research
project, or if a ‘disguise’ of a journalist or
writer is adopted.

CLASS WORK
 Observe certain features of your
workplace or in the educational
institution or at leisure - examples could
be power relationships, perhaps in
relation to gender; or communication
practices.

QUESTIONNAIRE
SURVEYS

INTRODUCTION
 This part of the course describes the
different types of questionnaire surveys
that are used in business research, as
well as their relative advantages and
disadvantages.
 Issues related to the design of
questionnaires, and the processing of
subjects’ responses for statistical
analysis, are also discussed.

OBJECTIVE OF THIS
CHAPTER
 Questionnaire surveys involve the
gathering of information from individuals
using a standard set of questions, called
a questionnaire, or interview schedule.
 Surveys use only a part of the population
that the researcher is concerned with,
and the way that such samples can be
chosen to represent populations is the
focus of this chapter.

THE IMPORTANCE OF ASKING
THE RIGHT QUESTIONS
 Questionnaire-based studies rely on
individuals’ answers to the researcher’s
questions, and the information obtained
therefore depends on their ability to
recall information, to correctly interpret
meaning of the questions, and their
honesty.
 Samples used in questionnaire surveys
typically vary from about 50 to several
thousand subjects.LISTEN...LEARN...THINK....GROW 260

QUESTIONNAIRE ARE
QUANTITATIVE
 Questionnaire surveys are generally
regarded as a quantitative, rather than
qualitative, research methodology.
Individuals’ responses to the
questionnaires are usually transformed,
or coded, into some standard numerical
form that is suitable for later statistical
analysis.

QUESTIONAIRE FROM
SAMPLE TO POPULATION
 Thus, questionnaire surveys are
appropriate in business research where
there is a need for relatively structured
data, and where conclusions need to be
drawn for a large population.

BEFORE ASKING:
 When designing the questions in a
questionnaire a number of basic
principles should apply, including:
 avoid jargon
 use simple language
 avoid ambiguity
 avoid leading questions
 ask only one question at a time

The Nature of Questionnaire
Surveys
 Data collected via a printed questionnaire or
interview schedule
 Usually based on a sample selected from a
population
 Reliance on information from individuals –
self-reported data
 Often large samples require computer-aided
analysis

Merits of the Questionnaire
Survey Method
 Quantified data for decision making
 Ideal for providing quantified information for organisations which need
quantified information for decision-making.
 Transparency
 Provide a 'transparent' set of research procedures.
 Procedures clear for all to see.
 Data can be re-analysed for alternative interpretation.
 Succinct presentation
 Quantification can provide complex information in a succinct form.
 Comparability
 Longitudinal and annual surveys enable the study of change over
time.
 Capturing complexity
 An effective means of gathering a wide range of complex information
on individuals or organisations.

Interviewer-completion vs
Respondent-completion
 Interviewer-completion:
 Interviewer reads out the questions and writes down answers
 Respondent-completion
 Respondent reads the questionnaire and writes down the answers

Interviewer-completion vs Respondent-completion:
Advantages & Disadvantages
Figure 8.1 Interviewer Respondent
Advantages -More accuracy
-Higher response rates
-Fuller, more complete answers
-Design can be less ‘user-
friendly’
-Cheaper
-Quicker
-Relatively anonymous
Disadvantages -Higher cost
-Less anonymity
-Exaggerated desire to please
interviewer
-Patchy response
-Incomplete response
-Risk of frivolous response
More care needed in
layout/presentation

Types of questionnaire survey
 Household surveys – respondents selected on the basis of where
they live and interviewed in their home;
 Street/quota/intercept surveys - respondents selected by stopping
in street, shopping malls, etc;
 Telephone surveys - interviews are conducted by telephone;
 Mail surveys - questionnaires sent and returned by mail;
 E-surveys - questionnaires sent and returned by email/Internet;
 Customer/visitor on-site intercept surveys – users/customers
surveyed on site;
 Captive group surveys - members of groups are surveyed
 Organisation surveys - members of an organisation/ organisations
are surveyed

Types of questionnaire survey:
characteristics

HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS
 In household surveys, people are
selected on the basis of where they live
and are interviewed face-to-face in their
homes.
.

Household questionnaire
survey
 Face-to-face interview – interviewer completion
 Variations:
1. Drop-off and collect (eg. national census)
2. Partial interview and partial drop-off & collect
 Representative of a defined community – eg. suburb,
local govt area, city
 Interview can be quite lengthy – eg. 30 minutes +
 Relatively expensive
 Omnibus surveys:
 Different clients buy different questions in a
composite questionnaire

Street/quota intercept surveys
 Respondents intercepted in shopping streets/malls etc.
 Face-to-face interview – interviewer completion
 Interview short
 Aim: a sample representative of community, but:
 Some groups under-represented
 ‘Quota sampling’ = specified number of interviews in
particular gender/age groups (based on census)
 Failure to achieve quotas can be corrected by
weighting.
 Relatively cheap

STREET SURVEYS
 Street surveys use face-to-face
questioning of a fairly short duration, and
respondents are approached on the
street, in shopping malls, and other
public places. Apart from the short time
available for questioning, the other main
disadvantage is that the sample in not
likely to be representative of the larger
population

STREETS SURVEYS
 .To reduce this effect, quota sampling,
may be used where the interviewer is
given quotas of different types of people
to interview, usually based on obvious
characteristics such as age, sex, etc.

Telephone survey
 Common for political/opinion polls
 Sampling based on ‘White Pages’
 Excludes non-telephone subscribers
 Emerging problem of mobile phones
 Problem of non-response
 Automatic Computer-aided Telephone Interviewing (CATI)
 Automatic sampling and dialling
 Answers keyed directly into computer (quick, cost-effective)
 Interviews typically short – 15-20 mins max.
 Respondents cannot be shown lists
 Not being face-to-face is an advantage and a disadvantage

TELEPHONE SURVEY
 Telephone surveys are becoming
increasingly popular for political polling
and other areas because of the relatively
low cost for a wide coverage, and the
speed at which the data can be collected
and analysed. The interviewer usually
types the responses directly into a
computer so they can be immediately
converted to a form ready for statistical
analysis.

CALL TIMING
 To obtain more representative samples,
calls need to be made in the evenings
when employed people are more likely to
be home.

Mail surveys
 Questionnaire is mailed to respondents
 Sometimes the only practical method – eg.
geographically scattered sample
 Respondent-completion
 Problem of response rates:
 70% non-response often reported

MAIL SURVEY
CHARACTERISTICS
 With mail surveys, questionnaires are
distributed and returned by mail, usually
in a reply-paid envelope. Their main
advantage is that a large and widely
distributed population can be sampled at
a relatively low cost. However, the major
problem is the typically low response
rate, which can be around 30% for a
reasonably large questionnaire.

RESPONSE RATE
 The response rate is influenced by a
number of factors, including the
respondents’ level of interest in the topic,
the length and complexity of the
questionnaire, the presence of an
accompanying letter by a known and
respected person, rewards for
responding, and the use of reminders
and follow-up mailings.

EMAIL SURVEY
 E-surveys are conducted via email
and/or the Internet and may involved
downloading a questionnaire for
completion or fully on-line completion
and return.

E-Surveys
 A mail survey sent via email
 Variations:
 Download a questionnaire for completion and
return
 Direct completion and submission via the internet
 Automatic analysis software
 Structured filters etc. (see ‘Questionnaire Design’)

CUSTOMER SURVEYS
 Customer (or visitor, on-site, or user)
surveys are ones where the customers
or users of a facility are surveyed at the
site of the facility.
 The questionnaire can be either interviewer-completed or
respondent-completed, but when respondent-completed
there are generally staff available to assist in the
distribution and collection of questionnaires, to encourage
people to complete them and to answer questions

Customer/visitor on-site intercept
survey
 Various names:
 Customer survey; Visitor survey; On-site survey;
User survey; Intercept survey
 Interviews take place on-site
 Mostly interviewer-completed but respondent-
completion possible
 By definition, excludes non-customers

CAPTIVE GROUP SURVEY
 Captive group surveys are ones where
members of a group, such as a club, a
professional organisation, or a class at
an educational institution is surveyed
together, often when all are present in a
room. Usually, questionnaires are
respondent-completed, but response
rates are typically much higher than
when this method is used with mail
surveys.

Captive group survey
 Survey in an organised setting – participants
may have little choice
 But research ethics requires voluntary
participation …
 Respondent completion
 Very cheap and quick

ORGANIZATION SURVEY
 Organisation surveys are often used to
obtain employee perceptions and
attitudes, and can take any of the forms
mentioned above.


Organization surveys
 The organisation or organisational unit is the
unit of analysis
 Any of the above survey formats may be used
 Issue of target informants: CEO or more
specialised, lower level employees?

DESIGN OF
QUESTIONNAIRE
 The careful design of a questionnaire is vital to
the success of the research project, and should
be carried out with the conceptual framework,
aims and hypotheses of the research being
kept firmly in mind.
 It is desirable that a draft questionnaire be first
produced and a pilot study carried out to allow
improvements to be made on the design or
wording of the questionnaire.

Questionnaire design
 Topics:
 Research problems and information requirements
 Types of information
 Open-ended and pre-coded questions
 Wording of questions
 Measuring attitudes and opinions
 Ordering of questions
 Layout
 Filters
 Introductory remarks

Research problems & information
requirements
 Questionnaire design/content should
arise from the research problem and
its information needs – see Figure 8.4

Type of information
 Respondent characteristics Who?
 Activities and behaviour What?
 Attitudes and motivations Why?

WHO ?
 Characteristics of the respondent and, if
needed, those of the organisation.
 These might include the respondent’s
age, gender, profession and position in
the organisation, and the organisation’s
number of employees, industry sector,
annual profit, etc.

ACTIVITIES & BEHAVIOR
 Information of a factual nature on the
activities and behaviour of the
respondent, or of other persons or
groups that can be assumed to be
known to the respondent.
 For example, a questionnaire might ask
employees to give information on what
training courses they had attended in the
previous year.

ATTITUDES & MOTIVATIONS
 A variety of attitudes and motivations are
commonly measured, such as how
satisfied a customer is with various
aspects of the service provided, and
what reasons they have for choosing
certain products

SUMMARY OF TYPES OF INFORMATION IN
QUESTIONNAIRE
 Questionnaires used in business research generally seek three types of
information, as follows.
A) Characteristics of the respondent and, if needed, those of the
organisation. These might include the respondent’s age, gender,
profession and position in the organisation, and the organisation’s
number of employees, industry sector, annual profit, etc.
B) Information of a factual nature on the activities and behaviour of the
respondent, or of other persons or groups that can be assumed to be
known to the respondent. For example, a questionnaire might ask
employees to give information on what training courses they had
attended in the previous year.
C) A variety of attitudes and motivations are commonly measured,
such as how satisfied a customer is with various aspects of the service
provided, and what reasons they have for choosing certain products.

TYPES OF QUESTIONS
 There are two broad types of questions that are
used in questionnaires, open-ended and pre-
coded questions.
 For an pre-coded question, the respondent has
to chose from a list of alternative responses.
 With an open-ended question, no such list is provided
and the respondent tells the interviewer, or writes down
on the questionnaire, their answer to the question.
 Open-ended have the disadvantage that they are more
difficult to code, and especially for respondent-completed
questionnaires, frequently not much effort is given to
providing an adequate response.

EXAMPLE OF Open-ended
and pre-coded questions

Wording of questions
 avoid jargon
 simplify wherever possible
 avoid ambiguity
 avoid leading questions
 ask only one question at a time (avoid
multi-purpose questions)

Wording of questions: CHOOSE
THE CORRECT LANGUAGE

MEASURING ATTITUDES
 The measurement of attitudes and
opinions can be done using a variety of
question formats, including open-ended
and pre-coded questions as described
above, items requiring ranking, and a
number of types of rating scales.

RANKING
 Ranking. Here respondents rank a
number of options in order of some
property, such as its importance, or their
level of preference.

RANKING SCALES
 Rating scales. For these items, respondents
indicate their opinions on the degree to which
some object or person has some particular
property, or the extent to which they have some
specified attitude towards some idea, person or
object.
 Respondents indicate their opinions or attitudes
by giving a rating on a numerical scale, usually
with between 4 and 10 steps, with larger (or
smaller) numbers indicating a greater level of
whatever opinion or attitude is being measured.

LIKERT SCALE
 Likert scale. A type of rating scale,
where a statement is presented and the
subject indicates the extent to which they
agree with the statement.

SEMANTIC DIFFERENTIAL
 Semantic differential. Another type of
rating scale where pairs of contrasting
descriptors are presented, and the
subject indicates how appropriate each
is to whatever concept or object being
studied by giving a response on a scale.

Fig. 8.7a/b:
Attitude/opinion question formats
a. OPEN-ENDED/DIRECT: What attracted you to apply for this course?
________________________________
b. CHECKLIST: Of the items on the card, which was the most
important to you in applying for this training course?
A. Good reputation
B. Easy access
C. Curriculum
D. Management pays fees
E. Easy parking

Fig. 8.7c:
c. Ranking: Please rank the items on the card in terms of their
importance to you in choosing a course. Please
rank them 1 for the most important to 5 for the
least important.
Rank
A. Good reputation ___
B. Easy access ___
C. Curriculum ___
D. Management pays fees ___
E. Easy parking ___

Fig.8.7d:
d. Likert scales: How important each of the following items in your
decision to choose this training course?
Very Quite Not very Not at all
important important important important
Good reputation □1 □2 □3 □4
Easy Access □1 □2 □3 □4
Curriculum □1 □2 □3 □4
Level of fees □1 □2 □3 □4
Easy parking □1 □2 □3 □4

Fig. 8.7e:
e. Attitude Statements: Please read the statements below and
indicate your level of agreement or
disagreement with them by ticking the
appropriate box.
Agree Agree No Disagree Disagree
Strongly opinion strongly
The learning experience □1 □2 □3 □4 □5
is more important than
the qualification in education
Graduate course fees are □1 □2 □3 □4 □5
too high

Fig. 8.7f:
e. Semantic differential: Please look at the list below and tick
the line to indicate where you think
this course falls in relation to each
factor listed.
Difficult |_______|________|________|________| Easy
Irrelevant |_______|________|________|________| Relevant
Professional |_______|________|________|________| Unprofessional
Dull |_______|________|________|________| Interesting

Questionnaire layout
 Be aware of reader/user – interviewer or
respondent?
 Special care with mail survey
questionnaires
 Compactness (eg. single page) = ease of
handling
 Two-column layout often helps

HOMEWORK
 PART #1
 Prepare a questionnaire concerning one
typical situation creating difficulties in
your company.
 The questionnaire should be designed
for mailing to employees by internal
company mail. It should contain six
different question types, similar to those
shown in Figure 8.7.
 LISTEN...LEARN...THINK....GROW 316

HOMEWORK
 PART #2
 Test the questionnaire on five people
and observe any difficulties or
misunderstandings they experience
when completing the questionnaire.
 Modify the questionnaire in light of these
difficulties.


HOMEWORK
 PART #3
 Prepare a covering letter for the questionnaire providing:
 a the reason for conducting the survey
 b a request for assistance in completing the survey
 c a statement concerning the confidentiality of survey
responses and results
 d details of where further information concerning the
background to the survey can be obtained.
 You should give attention to the quality of your covering letter in
relation to presentational style and grammar.

HOMEWORK
 PART#4:
 Provide ten people with the covering
letter and the modified questionnaire.
 Collect the completed questionnaires.
After developing a coding system, code
the responses on a data sheet similar to
the one shown in Figure 8.11.

INTRODUCE YOURSELF
 Eg. ‘Hallo, my name is _____ : we are conducting a
survey of _______: would you mind answering a few
questions?
 Different content/formats for different survey types
 Interviewer-completion: include in interviewer
instructions – additional information available if
required
 Respondent-completion – printed on questionnaire
 Mail survey: this is dealt with in covering letter

EXAMPLE OF COVER
LETTER
 Dear member of staff of ______,
 I would be grateful for your assistance with this survey of employees'
journey to work patterns. The management team tries to make every
aspect of working for the company as trouble-free as possible - and that
includes getting here and home again at the end of the day! Accurate
information from you will help us in this process, including our dealings
with the local council, the Roads and Traffic Authority, the Bus
Company and State Rail. The questionnaire is entirely anonymous, so
you should feel free to express yourself fully. So please complete the
questionnaire as soon as possible and place in the special box at the
works entrance. I or my assistant, JJ, would be happy to answer any
queries you may have about the survey (on extension 5566). We will
circulate to all staff a summary of the overall findings of the survey
when complete.
 Many thanks for your assistance in this important survey.
 Regards
 Jo Smith
 Personnel Manager

ORDER OF QUESTIONS
 Start with easy questions
 Start with 'relevant' questions
 Leave sensitive questions until later

Conducting a pilot survey
 Purposes of a pilot survey:
1. Testing questionnaire wording
2. Testing question sequencing
3. Testing questionnaire layout
4. Gaining familiarity with respondents
5. Testing fieldwork arrangements (if required)
6. Training and testing fieldworkers (if required)
7. Estimating response rate
8. Estimating interview or questionnaire completion time
9. Testing analysis procedures

Validity of questionnaire surveys
 Validity: the extent to which the data truly reflect what they
are thought to reflect
 Validity may be affected by:
 Exaggeration or under-statement (to give good
impression)
 Inaccuracy of recall
 Desire to please the interviewer
 Some checks:
 Include ‘dummy’ categories in some questions– eg.
books that do not exist, events that have not happened
 As the same question twice – in different way
 Repeat interviews – some time later

Questionnaire-based
interviewing
 Ideally interviewer should stick strictly to
the wording on the questionnaire
 … especially opinion/attitude questions

Coding of questionnaire responses
 Pre-coded vs Open-ended questions
 See Figure 8.5
 Pre-coded – codes already exist
 Open-ended – coding system must be
devised
 See Figure 8.9

6. Do you have any suggestions for improving the training course? |
|
| 1 sug1
________Less theory_________________________________ | __ sug2
| __ sug3
_________________________________________________ |
OPEN-ENDED (CODING SEE Fig. 8.9) – UP TO THREE ANSWERS RECORDED =
THREE VARIABLES

Data from completed
questionnaires
Data in Figure 8.11: ready for computer analysis – see Ch. 13

Summary
 Questionnaire surveys concern the gathering of information from
individuals using a formally designed schedule of questions called a
questionnaire or interview schedule.
 Surveys are useful when:
 the research questions indicate the need for relatively structured
data
 data are required from samples representative of a defined wider
population.
 Questionnaire surveys may be:
 interviewer-completed or respondent-completed.
 household surveys; street/quota surveys; telephone surveys; mail
surveys;
e-surveys; customer surveys; captive group surveys, organisation
surveys,

 Questionnaire design:
 starting point is the project’s management/theoretical
research questions
 A pilot survey be conducted to:
 test questionnaire wording, sequencing and layout
 test fieldwork arrangements, including training field
workers
 estimate response rate and interview or questionnaire
completion time.
 Validity of questionnaire surveys can be tested by
inclusion of dummy categories, repeat questions and
repeated interviews
 Coding is necessary for analysis by computer.

INTRODUCTION
 In many questionnaire-based and
observational studies, measures are not
taken from all members of the population
of interest but from only a portion of the
population.
 In other words, a sample of the
population is obtained to represent the
population.

SOME DEFINITIONS
 Population: The total collection of objects,
organisations people about which a survey
researcher wishes to draw conclusions and
from which a sample might be drawn for study.
 Sample: A part of a population, as used in
survey research.
 Representative Sample: A sample whose
characteristics are the same as, or at least very
similar to, the population from which the sample
was drawn.

SOME DEFINITIONS
 Random Sampling: A process of selection
where every member of the population has an
equal change of inclusion in the sample.
 Lottery and gambling are random games
 Random Sample: A sample that is made up
of elements, each of which is randomly selected
from some population

SOME DEFINITIONS
 Quota Sampling: A form of sampling in
which the numbers (ie. quotas) of
different types of people to be included
in the sample are specified. This is done
so that the proportion of these types of
people in the sample match those in the
population relevant to the study.

EXAMPLE OF QUOTA
SAMPLING
 IF YOUR RESEARCH IS TO STUDY A GIVEN
POPULATION WITH DIFFERENT AGE
RANGES OF PEOPLE ( QUOTAS FOR EACH
TYPE OF AGE)
 < 20 YEARS OLD
 20-30 YEARS OLD
 30-40 YEARS OLD
 40-50 YEARS OLD
 >50 YEARS OLD

EXAMPLE OF QUOTA
SAMPLING
 THE SAMPLE SHOULD CONTAIN THE
SAME PERCENTAGE OF EACH
RANGE IN THE POPULATION
 EX: IF THE POPULATION HAS 30% OF
PEOPLE IN THE RANGE 20-30 YEARS
 YOUR SAMPLE SHOULD RESPECT
THE POPULATION QUOTA 30%

REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLE
 A representative sample is one whose
properties accurately match the properties of
the population from which it was drawn.
 A sample that is not representative is called a
biased sample.
 Random selection of elements from a
population ensures that the sample drawn is
representative.
 However, for practical and other reasons,
different sampling methods are commonly used
for different types of surveys.

THE CONCEPT OF A
SAMPLE
 We will define the concept of a
representative sample.
 For various types of surveys, the
commonly used methods of sampling will
be described, as well as procedures that
can be followed to increase the
likelihood that a representative sample is
obtained.
 Also, ways of estimating the sample size
required for a study will be outlined.

TWO MAIN KEY
 What procedures must be followed to
ensure that the sample is representative
of the population from which it is drawn?
 How large should the sample be?

RANDOM SAMPLING IN
HOUSEHOLD SURVEY
 For household surveys, a random selection of
people in a large population over a large area,
(as in a national survey) would be very
inconvenient and costly.
 It would require a full list of all people in the
population, and the people selected would be
scattered throughout the whole region, making
travel to interview them expensive.
 Instead, multi-stage, or cluster sampling is often
used.

CLUSTER SAMPLING IN
HOUSEHOLD SURVEY
 Cluster Sampling: Also termed multi-stage
sampling.
 A sampling procedure in which the population is
divided into sub-populations (or clusters) and a
sample of these is first taken.
 This procedure may be applied to each of these
sub-populations one or more times to obtain a
selection of even smaller sub-populations.
 Samples are then taken from each of the final
sub-populations and combined to form the final
sample.

EXAMPLE
 For example, a list of different regions
might be first made and a selection of
regions made.
 Then, from each of the selected regions
households might be selected at random
using electoral rolls.
 In this way, interviewers need only visit
the selected regions, with a significant
saving in the cost of travel and other
expenses.

 Ideally ( NOT PRACTICAL)
 Eg. 10 million population – sample of
1000: all 10 m. names put in a drum and
1000 drawn. ( lottery is random)
 In practice:
 For national/regional surveys – multi-
stage sampling used – see next Figure.

SITE OR USERS SURVEY
 With site or user surveys, conditions vary
considerably, and so do therefore
sampling methods.
 Site interviews can operate in two ways,
but with both ways, some strict rule
about who to interview is necessary to
avoid obtaining a biased sample.

FIRST ALTERNATIVE OF
SITE SURVEY
 Firstly, the interviewer can be stationary
and the respondents mobile.
 For example, the interviewer may stand
at the entrance to a workplace and
interview people as they leave, using the
rule: when one interview is complete and
checked, the next person passing
through the door should be interviewed.

SECOND ALTERNATIVE FOR
SITE SURVEY
 Alternatively, the respondents may be
stationary, and the interviewer mobile.
Here, a sample of respondents might be
chosen at random from a list of
employees, or else, following a set route
through the workplace, every nth person
should be interviewed.


THIRD ALTENATIVE FOR
SITE SURVEY
 Site surveys can also be done using self-
completion questionnaires.
 However, response rates for these can
be low, leading to a biased sample,
unless participants are strongly
motivated or encouraged to complete
them.

QUOTA SURVEY
 Can be used when data are available on
key characteristics of population:
 Eg. - age/sex/grade structure of workforce
– from records
 - age/sex structure of a community – from
Census
 Interviewing target numbers determined
by population characteristics

STREET SURVEYS
 Street surveys often use the technique of
quota sampling to increase the
representativeness of the sample that is
obtained.
 With quota sampling, interviewers are
given ‘quotas’ of different types of people
to interview, with the quotas being
determined from background information
on the demographics of the population.

STREET SAMPLING
 For example, if it is known that 12% of
the population are retired, then the
interviewer would be required to
interview 12 retired persons for every
100 persons interviewed.
 In organisational research, quotas based
on the numbers of people in the different
management levels or professional
groups may be used.

SIZE OF SAMPLE
ACCURACY
DETAIL
BUDGET
TIME

APPROPRIATE SIZE
 A major element in the design of a survey is the
determination of the size of the sample that is
required.
 The appropriate sample size depends on the
following factors.
 The level of accuracy required
 The level of detail
 The budget and the time available for the
project
GOOD PROJECT MANAGEMENT:
 ON TIME AND IN THE BUDGET BY
AVOIDING ABNORMAL SITUATIONS

POPULATIONS AND
SAMPLES
 The basic idea of statistics is simple: you
want to extrapolate from the data you
have collected to make general
conclusions.
 Statistical analyses are based on a
simple model : There is a large
population of data out there, and you
have randomly sampled parts of it.
 You analyze your sample to make
inferences about the population.

DIFFERENT SAMPLES
 Quality control
 Sample: The items you tested.
 Population: The entire batch of items produced.
 Political polls
 Sample: The ones you polled.
 Population: All voters.
 Clinical studies
 Sample: Subset of patients who attended Tuesday
morning clinic in August
 Population: All similar patients.
 Laboratory research
 Sample: The data you actually collected
 Population: All the data you could have collected if you
had repeated the experiment many times the same way

EXAMPLE: OPINION POLLS
 Required sample size is not related to
population size (except for small
populations)
 EXAMPLE :Political opinion polls
 Samples for USA (voting population 156
million) and Australia (voting population
13 million) are of similar size

SAMPLE SIZE AND LEVEL OF
ACCURACY
Voting intentions Confidence
intervals
USA – Sept ’04 –NBC/WSJ - Voters 156 m. Sample size 1006
Bush/Cheney 48% +3.1%
Kerry/Edwards 45% +3.1%
Nader/Camejo 2% +0.9%

SAMPLE SIZE AND LEVEL OF
ACCURACY
Voting intentions Confidence
intervals
USA – Sept ’04 - Registered voters 156 m. – Sample size 1006
Bush/Cheney 48% +3.1%
Kerry/Edwards 45% +3.1%
Nader/Camejo 2% +0.9%
Australia – Aug ’04 –Newspoll -Voters 13 m. –Sample size 1047
Liberal/national 39% +3.0%
Labor 42% +3.0%
Greens 6% +1.4%

LEVEL OF ACCURACY : Why
statistical calculations?
 When analyzing data, your goal is
simple: You wish to make the strongest
possible conclusion from limited
amounts of data.
 To do this, you need to overcome two
problems:

PROBLEM #1
 Important differences can be obscured
by POPULATION variability and
SAMPLE imprecision.
 This makes it hard to distinguish real
differences from random variability

PROBLEM #2 2
 The human brain excels at finding
patterns, even from random data.
 Our natural inclination (especially with
our own data) is to conclude that
differences are real, and to minimize the
contribution of random variability.
 Statistical rigor prevents you from
making this mistake.

SIZE OF SAMPLE AND
CONFIDENCE INTERVAL

SITUATION TO STUDY
 Get a random sample of smokers and
nonsmokers, measure their vitamin C
levels, and see how they compare.
 In a sample of 40 male smokers, vitamin
C levels had a mean of 0.60 mg/dl while
in a sample of 40 male nonsmokers, the
levels had a mean of 0.90 mg/dl.
 The difference in means between
nonsmokers and smokers is 0.30 mg/dl.
which is impressive

ANOTHER RANDOM
SAMPLE
 But if we were to take another random
sample, the difference wouldn't be
exactly the same.
 It might be greater, it might be less.

QUESTIONS TO BE ASKED
 How much larger or smaller might the difference in
population means be if we could measure all smokers
and nonsmokers?
 What kind of population difference is consistent with this
observed value of 0.30 mg/dl?
 In particular, is 0.30 mg/dl the sort of sample difference
that might be observed if there were no difference in the
population mean vitamin C levels?
 SO WHAT DOES O,30 MG/DL MEANS TO THE
RESEARCHER?
 THIS IS WHERE STATISTICAL THEORY COMES

STATISTICS AND
CONFIDENCE INTERVAL (CI)
 In statistics, a confidence interval (CI) is an
interval estimate of a population parameter.
 Instead of estimating the parameter by a single
value, an interval of likely estimates is given.
 How likely the estimates are is determined by
the confidence interval (CI).
 The wider is the interval (CI) will be, the more
likely it is for the interval to contain the
parameter.

RELIABILITY OF THE SURVEY
DEPEND ON THE C.I
 Confidence interval (CI) is a statistical
tool used to indicate the reliability of an
estimate.
 For example, a CI can be used to
describe how reliable survey results are.
 All other things being equal, a survey
result with a small CI is more reliable
than a result with a large CI.

RELIABILITY OF THE SURVEY
DEPEND ON THE C.I
 The width of the confidence interval
gives us some idea about how uncertain
we are about the unknown parameter.
 A very wide confidence interval (CI) may
indicate that more data should be
collected before anything very definite
can be said about the parameter.

FOR OUR EXAMPLE
 How much are we confident with the difference
in means between nonsmokers and smokers of
0.30 mg/dl.
 One way to answer these questions is by
reporting a 95% confidence interval.
 Here, the 95% confidence interval for the
difference in mean vitamin C levels between
nonsmokers and smokers is 0.15 to 0.45 mg/dl.
 Thus, not only do we estimate the difference to
be 0.30 mg/dl, but we are 95% confident it is no
less than 0.15 mg/dl or greater than 0.45 mg/dl.

CONFIDENCE INTERVAL OF
95%
 The shorter the confidence interval, the less
likely it is to contain the quantity being
estimated.
 The longer the interval, the more likely to
contain the quantity being estimated.
 Ninety-five percent (95%) has been found to be
a convenient level for conducting scientific
research, so it is used almost universally.
 Intervals of lesser confidence would lead to too
many misstatements. Greater confidence would
require more data to generate intervals of
usable lengths.

Normal distribution and
confidence intervals

WHY 95 % OF CONFIDENCE
 There is nothing special about 95%. It is just
convention that confidence intervals are
usually calculated for 95% confidence.
 In theory, confidence intervals can be computed
for any degree of confidence.
 If you want more confidence, the intervals will
be wider.
 If you are willing to accept less confidence, the
intervals will be narrower.

LEVEL OF ACCURACY IN
OPINION POLLS
 This is usually specified in terms of the required
confidence interval for the particular variable of
interest.
 This is the range of values around the
measured value, within which there is, say, a
95% chance that the ‘true’ population value is
located.
 Statistical formulae or tables allow estimates of
the confidence interval for different sample
sizes ( DONE BY SPECIALISTS).
 Larger samples are needed for smaller

Fig. 11.4a
Confidence intervals & sample size
Sample
size
(N)
Percentages found from sample (‘results’)
50% 40/60
%
30/70
%
20/80% 10/90
%
5/95% 2/98
%
1/99
%
Confidence intervals + %
1000 +3.1 +3.0 +2.8 +2.5 +1.9 +1.3 +0.9 +0.6
NB. CI for p = CI for 100-p
CI for 50% is the largest in absolute terms
This table refers to 95% CIs – other can be calculated – eg. 99%

Fig. 11.4b
Sample
size
(N)
50% 40/60
%
30/70
%
20/80% 10/90
%
5/95% 2/98
%
1/99
%
1000 +3.1 +3.0 +2.8 +2.5 +1.9 +1.3 +0.9 +0.6
4000 +1.5 +1.5 +1.4 +1.2 +0.9 +0.7 +0.4 +0.3
NB. To Reduce the CI by half – sample size must be increased x 4

Fig. 11.4c
Sample
size
(N)
50% 40/60
%
30/70
%
20/80% 10/90
%
5/95% 2/98
%
1/99
%
50 +13.
9
+ 13.6 +12.7 +11.1 +8.3 * * *
100 +9.8 +9.6 +9.0 +7.8 +5.9 +4.3 * *
200 +6.9 +6.8 +6.3 +5.5 +4.2 +3.0 +1.9 *
250 +6.2 +6.1 +5.7 +5.0 +3.7 +2.7 +1.7 *
1000 +3.1 +3.0 +2.8 +2.5 +1.9 +1.3 +0.9 +0.6
4000 +1.5 +1.5 +1.4 +1.2 +0.9 +0.7 +0.4 +0.3

Fig. 11.5
Conf.
Interval
50% 40/60
%
30/70
%
20/80
%
10/90
%
5/95% 1/99%
Necessary sample sizes
+1 9600 9216 8064 6144 3456 1824 380
+2 2400 2304 2016 1536 864 456 *
+4 600 576 504 384 216 114 *
+8 150 144 126 96 53 * *
FROM THE PERCENTAGE AND THE CONF INTERVAL 
SAMPLE SIZE

CLASS WORK
 PROBLEM #1 :
Go back to the political polls and find out
the confidence intervals
 PROBLEM #2 :
In the example comparing PC users and
Mac users given in this chapter, what
would the confidence intervals be if the
sample size was 4000?

THE LEVEL OF DETAIL
 The level of detail of information needed
from the statistical analysis.
 More detailed information needs
responses for sub-samples to be
obtained for comparisons.
 If the same level of accuracy is required
for the sub-samples, a larger total
sample is therefore needed

Sample size –
level of detail of analysis
Sample
size
% CI Range, % Comment
200 PC
users
20 +5.5 14.5 – 25.5 Ranges
overlap
Mac
users
30 +6.3 23.7 – 36.3

Sample size –
level of detail of analysis
Sample
size
% CI Range, % Comment
200 PC users 20 +5.5 14.5 –
25.5
Ranges
overlap
Mac users 30 +6.3 23.7 –
36.3
500 PC users 20 +3.5 16.5 –
23.5
Ranges
do not
overlapMac users 30 +4.0 26.0 –
34.0

BUDGET FOR RESEARCH
 Given that a particular method for the
distribution and collection of data has
been determined, the amount of money
able to be spent will put an upper limit
to the sample size.
 Money can be wasted by using a too
large a sample than is needed.

EXAMPLE OF SAMPE
SIZING
 For example, a survey of 40,000 respondent
that could cost as much as $1,200,000 to
conduct would give a confidence interval of plus
or minus 0.5%.
 However, if a confidence interval of plus or
minus 1%, percent is sufficient, only 10,000
subjects would be required, with the cost
reduced to $400,000.
 Alternatively, money can be wasted on a study
whose sample size does not allow a sufficiently
accurate or detailed data analysis to be done

 Generally, the criteria for deciding on a
sample size do not include consideration
of population size.
 However, if the population fall below
about 50,000 this affect the required
sample size, as indicated in the next
Figure.

Fig. 11.6
Sample size – small populations
Population size Minimum sample size to achieve CI of
+5% or +1% on a sample finding of
50%
+5% +1%
Infinite 384 9602
5 million 384 9584
1 million 384 9511
500,000 384 9422
100,000 383 8761
50,000 381 8056
10,000 370 4899
5000 357 3288
1000 278 906
100 80 99

SOLUTION OF CLASS WORK
 The percentages of PC and Mac users in the
sample are 20% and 30%, respectively, and the
sample size is 4,000, then (reading from the
table in Figure 8.3), the half-widths of the two
confidence intervals are 1.2% and 1.4%
respectively. Thus the 95% confidence interval
for each group is:
 - PC users: 20% + 1.2 , ie. from 18.8% to
21.2%
 - Mac users: 30% + 1.4, ie. from 28.6% to
31.4%.

CLASS WORK #1
 For sample size of 500 objects, what are
the intervals of finding 30% of the
population having the same
characteristics ( with 95% confidence)
 If the size increased to 2000, what will
be the new intervals

CLASS WORK #2
 What size of sample is necessary to find a 50%
of the sample having the same characteristics
with an interval of ± 3%
 What is the size of the sample to find 30% of
the population having the same characteristics
with the same confidence interval
 What is size of the sample to find 70% of the
population having the confidence interval

CLASS WORK #3
 For a population of 25,000, what is the
sample size to find 5% confidence
interval of 50% of population of same
characteristics?
 What will the size for 1% confidence
interval for the same 50% population of
the sample?
 What will the size for 1% confidence
interval for the same 20% population of
the sample?

CLASS WORK #4
 Consider 20% of a certain population plays
tennis. That means 80% do not play tennis.
 What will be the accuracy for this population for
a total sample size of 200
 What will be the accuracy of the population not
playing tennis for a total sample of 400
 What will be the size if we want an accuracy of
± 2%

CLASS WORK #5
 We have a sample size of 500 . In this
sample 20% of the population have
same characteristics.
 What will be the confidence interval?
 Which size of the sample will give you
2% interval for the same popultion?

CLASS WORK #6
 A survey on 200 people shows that 20%
use PC and 30% use Macintosh
 What will be the confidence intervals for
both users?

CLASS WORK #7
 For a survey of 500 employees, 50% had a
leave sick last year.
 If the true value of population who had leave
sick is 50%, what will be the chances of
drawing a random sample in which no one had
a sick leave?
 What will be the chances of drawing a random
sample of 48-52% which no one had a sick
leave
 What will be the chances of drawing a random
sample of 30%or 70% which no one had a sick
leave

CLASS WORK #8
 For your survey, study the size of
sample with the corresponding
 According to timing, choose your sample
size and give the corresponding
confidence interval

THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS
CHAPTER
 Help you think and act creatively to identify
ways in which secondary data might be
identified and analysed to purse research in
management contexts;
 We will study 'data mining' and 'meta-analysis'
 Do some applications:
 undertake simple secondary data analysis
exercises, including:
 trend analysis
 catchment/market area analysis using internal and
external (census) data
 demographic projections of demand

WHAT ARE SECONDARY DATA ?
 Reminder: Secondary data are the data
that already exist and need to be
collected to complete the primary data of
the researcher.
 The researcher is the secondary user
 Analysis pf secondary data is called
secondary analysis

SECONDARY DATA OF
COMPANIES
 Sources of information about company
or corporate organizations can be :
 Internal sources
 External sources

INTERNAL SOURCES OF
COMPANIES
 The internal record-keeping of a company can
be a significant source of secondary data.
 The internal data recorded are usually:
 Financial accounts
 Sales data
 Prices
 Product development
 Advertising expenditure
 Purchase of supplies
 Human resources
 Costumer complaints

EXTERNAL DATA OF
COMPANIES
 We should distinct Public from Private
companies
 Public companies are required by law to
disclose detailed information concerning their
finances and structure. Annual reports and
other company data are lodged annually at
stock exchanges.
 Private companies are not obliged to disclose
data. As a result, information on private
companies can be difficult to locate.

EXTERNAL DATA FOR
PRIVATE COMPANIES
 Sometimes you pay a fee to have
access to the information.
 Search in periodical literature, including
newspapers, the financial press and
trade journals are the next best option.
 Three websites that can be used:
www.bizadvantage.com
www.whowhere.com
www.hoovers.com

EXAMPLES OF USE OF
INTERNAL DATA
 A) Trend analysis
 B) Catchment area analysis
 C) Employee data
 D) Data mining

A) TREND ANALYSIS – 1-
Fig. 12.1a: Quarterly sales & moving average
Year Quarter A sales revenue, $million
1999 99Q1 1.1
99Q2 2.5
99Q3 4.5
99Q4 3.3
2000 00Q1 1.3
00Q2 2.8
00Q3 4.9
00Q4 3.9
Etc

A) TREND ANALYSIS -2-
Fig. 12.1b: Quarterly sales & moving average
Year Quarter A sales
revenue,
$million
B. Moving
average
1999 99Q1 1.1 -
99Q2 2.5 -
99Q3 4.5 -
99Q4 3.3 2.9 = (99Q1+99Q2+99Q3+99Q4)/4
2000 00Q1 1.3 2.9 = (99Q2+99Q3+99Q4+00Q1)/4
00Q2 2.8 3.0 = (99Q3+99Q4+00Q1+00Q2)/4
00Q3 4.9 3.1 = (99Q4+00Q1+00Q2+
00Q3)/4
00Q4 3.9 3.2 = (00Q1+00Q2+
00Q3+00Q4)/4

A) TREND ANALYSIS -3-
Fig. 12.1c: Quarterly sales & moving average
Year Quarter A sales revenue, $million B. Moving average
1999 99Q1 1.1 -
99Q2 2.5 -
99Q3 4.5 -
99Q4 3.3 2.9
2000 00Q1 1.3 2.9
00Q2 2.8 3.0
00Q3 4.9 3.1
00Q4 3.9 3.2
Etc.
2003 03Q1 1.7 3.3
03Q2 2.8 3.2
03Q3 4.8 3.1

A) TREND ANALYSIS/
MOVING AVERAGE

B) CATCHMENT AREA
ANALYSIS
 DEFINITION: A catchment area is the
geographical area from which most (eg.
75%) of customers are drawn
 Catchment area analysis is the use of
customer information to establish the
catchment or market area of a service
outlet;

B) CATCHMENT AREA
ANALYSIS
Information on the catchment area of a
business/ service can be used for:
 Analysis of potential customer
characteristics (from census data – see
External Data Sources later)
 Make decisions on choice of local
advertising media
 Make decisions on new outlets
Customer address data obtained from
customer records ( Next figure)

C) EMPLOYEE DATA
 Employee data  Use of employee
records to study staff turnover and
performance.

D) DATA MINING
 Data-mining:
The process by which organisations
analyse computerised data-base
information held on customers for such
purposes as marketing, customer risk
analysis and fraud detection

USES OF EXTERNAL DATA
A) Catchment area analysis
B) Demographic projection
C) Company advertising and press
coverage

A) Catchment area analysis
 Use of census data to study catchment/market
area population characteristics:
 The whole country
 Individual states
 Statistical Divisions
 Statistical Subdivisions
 Statistical Local Areas
 Census Collection Districts
 Local government areas
 Individual postcodes
 Suburbs
 State and Federal Parliamentary electorates

A) Catchments Area Analysis:
Census data available in Australia

B) DEMOGRAPHIC
PROJECTION
 Population projections for Australia and States/
Territories are available from ABS
 These can be used to project demand based
on changing future demographic structure
 EXAMPLE: Taking account of the aging of the
population

EXAMPLE OF DEMOGRAPHIC
PROJECTION

C) Company Advertising/Press
coverage
 Use of data on advertising/press
coverage can be seen as analysis of
secondary data

Meta-Analysis
 Meta-Analysis is the re-analysis of the findings
of comparatively large numbers of research
projects on the same topic. Findings from a
large number of studies on a single topic area
compared
 Falls between literature review and secondary
data analysis
 Typically quantified measures are compare –
eg. correlation coefficients
 Example: Thorsteinson (2003) analysed 38
studies on part-time vs full-time employees’ job
attitudes

HOMEWORK
 EXERCICE 1: search in a UAE Statistics
Bureau and find Data similar to that in
column A in Figure 12.1. download the
data and replicate column B of Figure
12.1 and the diagram in Figure 12.2.

HOMEWORK
 EXERCISE 2 Assume that you have been
asked to compare two areas for the siting of a
new retail outlet aimed mainly at young people
aged 18-29.
 The areas are two postcodes in contrasting
parts of the city/area where you live.
 You should select the two areas for this
exercise. Download data on the age-structure
of the two areas from the Australian Bureau of
Statistics web-site (www.abs.gov.au) or similar
in another country and indicate which will be the
best location for the outlet.

HOMEWORK
 EXERCISE 3 Figure 12.7 presents a
projection of cinema attendance for
Australia in 2021.
 Using the same population projection
data produce a similar projection for one
of the activities presented in the book's
web-site.

WRITING A BUSINESS RESEARCH REPORT

Chapter Topics
 The importance of the report
 Actually getting started
 Beginnings and Endings
 Main body of the report – technical
aspects
 Main body of the report – content
 Other media

The importance of the report
 Written reports of research are a key
element in the world of business and
academe
 Eg. feasibility studies, marketing plans,
research studies, development
proposals, environmental impact
assessments + articles and theses

The importance of the report
 The ability to write a research report
is therefore a key management skill
 ‘Report’ is used to refer to all
research report formats

Actually getting started
 Many researchers leave too little time for
report-writing – resulting in ‘last minute
rush’
 Many parts of a research report can be
written/ organised well in advance, eg.:
 introduction;
 statement of objectives;
 outline of the theoretical or evaluative
framework;

Actually getting started
 literature review;
 description of the methodology;
 production of diagrams, figures, tables
and cover design

Beginnings and endings
Topics
 Cover and title page
 Table of contents
 Executive
summary/synopsis/abstract
 Preface/Foreword
 Acknowledgements
 Appendices

Cover and title page
 Cover:
 Title of report
 Author
 Institution/publishers (on back cover + spine in
the case of books)

Cover and title page
 Title page:
 Title of report
 Author
 Institution or publisher, including
address and phone numbers*
 Sponsoring body (for example, ‘Report
to the Board of Directors’)
 Date of publication*
 * these items sometimes on the reverse of
title page

Table of contents – example – Fig.
16.1
Contents
page
Executive Summary (i)
Preface (ii)
Acknowledgements (iv)
1 INTRODUCTION 1
2 LITERATURE REVIEW 5
3 METHODOLOGY 13
4 FINDINGS: CULTURE IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY 22
5 FINDINGS: LEADERSHIP IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY 25
6 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 40
REFERENCES 44
APPENDICES
LIST OF TABLES
LIST OF FIGURES/DIAGRAMS/ILLUSTRATIONS
More detail – see Fig. 16.1
NB. More than one ‘Findings’
section in this example

Executive summary
 Article: ‘abstract’; Thesis: ‘synopsis’
 Content
 The background, context or objectives
 Methods and data sources
 Main findings
 Conclusions

Executive summary
 Recommendations where appropriate
 NB. The Exec. Summary is not the
introduction – it is a summary of the
whole report
 Should be written last!

Executive summary - size
 Suggested length guidelines:
 Report length Executive
summary length
 Up to 20 pages 1-2 pages
 Over 100 pages 5-6 pages

Preface/Foreword/Acknowledgemen
ts
 Preface/Foreword includes:
 Origins/context of study
 Personal motivation/involvement of the author
 Acknowledgements may thank:
 funding organisations;
 liaison officers of funding organisations;
 members of steering committees;
 Organisations/individuals providing access to
information/resources;

Preface/Foreword/Acknowledg
ements
 staff employed: interviewers, coders,
computer programmers, word
processors, secretarial support, etc.;
 individuals (including academic
supervisors) who have given advice,
commented on report drafts, etc.; and
 individuals who responded to
questionnaires etc. (collectively)

Appendices
 Include:
 Material too detailed/cumbersome for main
body of the report
 See discussion of ‘report as record’

Main Body of Report – Technical - 1
 Section numbering
 Need to establish a section numbering system
for professional reports, less so for theses, less
for articles – see Fig. 16.1
 Word processor ‘styles’ may be used
 Heading hierarchy
 Be aware of ‘heading hierarchy’ – Chapter
headings, section headings, sub-section
headings
 Paragraph numbering
 Used in some official reports

Main Body of Report –
Technical - 2
 Page numbering
 Can be helpful to use chapter/section-specific numbering
when multiple authors involved – eg. Chapter/section 1 has
page nos. : 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 etc.
 Typing layout/spacing
 I professional reports, paragraphs separated by blank line …
no indenting of first line
 Tables, graphics and text
 Consider the balance between text, tables and graphics and
their respective roles
 Presentation of graphics
 Graphics/tables should be complete in themselves –
numbered, titled, fully labelled and sourced.

Main Body of Report - Content
 Topics
 Structure
 Functions of a report
 Audiences and style
 The narrative structure
 The report as ‘record’

Main Body of Report - Structure
 Structure should be shaped by the
research questions/issues
 not necessarily by the sequence of data
collection processes – see Fig. 16.2
 Structure should be stressed at the
beginning, in the middle and at the
end of the report
 All research questions should be
answered – even if inconclusively!

Fig. 16.2
Main Body of Report –
Structure

Audiences and style
 Consider the readership and
appropriate report style:
 General public
 Decision-makers –
professional/technical/democratic
 Experts – professionals, academics

Functions of the report
 Report as narrative
 Need to tell a story – see Fig. 16.3
 Therefore some detailed material goes
to appendix
 Report as record
 Some users will want to look up
specific items - not read the whole
report
 Role of appendices in providing details

Report as Narrative – Fig. 16.3

Other media
 Oral presentations, often involving
one or more of:
 Handouts;
 Posters;
 Overhead transparencies;
 Slides;
 Video clips; or
 Computer-based presentations, such as
Microsoft PowerPoint.

Oral presentations
 Different media play different roles
 Generally cannot reproduce the whole
report
 Necessary to be selective
 Selected key findings – of relevance to
the audience
 Visuals must be readable from the back of the room!
 … so report graphics may need to be modified
 Practice delivery and timing
 Study others’ good and bad presentations

BUSINESS RESEARCH METHODS

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BUSINESS RESEARCH METHODS