Business research methods_unit-1

Dr.Shriram S.Dawkhar.
M.Sc.(B.I.) ,MBA (Mktg.), M.Com (B.A.),Ph.D.
FDPM (IIM Ahmedabad)
Sinhgad Institute of Management ,Pune.
@Shriram Dawkhar
Business Research Methods………
Unit -1 (As per SPPU – MBA 19-20 syllabus)

Unit-1. Foundations of Research:
 Definition of Research, Need of business research, Characteristics
of scientific research method, Typical Research applications in business
and management.
 Questions in Research: Formulation of Research Problem –
Management Question – Research Question – Investigation Question.
 The process of business research: Literature review - Concepts
and theories - Research questions - Sampling - Data collection -
Data analysis - Writing up - The iterative nature of business research
process, Elements of a Research Proposal.
 Practical considerations: Values – researcher & organization.
Ethical principles - Harm to participants, Lack of informed consent,
Invasion of privacy, Deception, Reciprocity and trust, Affiliation and
conflicts of interest. Legal considerations - Data management,
Copyright. (6+1) 4/5/2021
Shriram Dawkhar, Sinhgad Institute of Management.

Research
 Re ---------------- Search
 Re means (once more, afresh, anew) OR
(back; with return to a previous state)
 Search means (look thorough or go over thoroughly
to look something) OR (examine to find anything
concealed)
 Research is a careful and detailed study into a
specific problem, concern, or issue using the
scientific method.
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Definitions of Research
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.Kerlinger (1873). Research is a systematic controlled,
empirical and critical investigation of hypothetical
propositions about the presumed relations among natural
phenomena.
According to Payton (1979). Research is the process of
looking for a specific question in an organized, objective,
reliable way.
According to Waltz and Bansell (1981). Research is a
systematic, formal, rigorous and precise process
employed to gain solutions to problems or to discover
and interpret new facts and relationships.

Definitions of Research
 According to theWebster International Dictionary,
“research as careful inquiry or examination in seeking facts or
principles; diligent investigation in order to ascertain something”.
 According to Best, “research is a more systematic activity directed
towards discovery and development of an organized body of
knowledge. It is based on critical analysis of hypothetical
propositions for the purpose of establishing cause-effect-relationship,
which must be tested against objective reality”.
 According to British Medical Dictionary research as
“Establishment of facts and their significance by experiment, scientific
and analysis of data”.
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Why to study Business Research?
 1. Information Explosion :
 2. Stakeholders Demand:
 3. Cut throat competition:
 4. Greater government intervention :
 5. Complex Decisions:
 6. Advancement in the field of Management:
 7. Greater Computational power & speed:
 8. New perspectives on traditional research
methodologies:
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What are the advantages of Business
Research?
• Business research helps to identify opportunities and
threats.
• It helps identify problems and using this information,
wise decisions can be made to tackle the issue
appropriately.
• It helps to understand customers better and hence can
be useful to communicate better with the customers or
stakeholders.
• Risks and uncertainties can be minimized by conducting
business research in advance.
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What are the advantages of Business
Research?
• Financial outcomes and investments that will be needed
can be planned effectively using business research.
• Such research can help track competition in the business
sector.
• Business research can enable a company to make wise
decisions as to where to spend and how much.
• Business research can enable a company to stay up-to-date
with the market and its trends and appropriate innovations
can be made to stay ahead in the game.
• It helps you build a better market position.
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What is good research?
 1. Purpose clearly defined
 2. Research process detailed.
 3. Research design thoroughly planned:
 4. Researcher’s experience reflected:
 5. Limitations frankly revealed.
 6. Adequate analysis for decision maker’s needs:
 7. Findings presented unambiguously:
 8. Conclusions justified:
 9. High ethical standards applied :
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QUALITIES OF A GOOD RESEARCH
➢Systematic
➢Logical
➢Empirical
➢Replicable
➢Creative
➢Use of multiple methods
Shriram Dawkhar, Sinhgad Institute of Management. 4/5/2021

Research & Scientific Methods
The two terms Research & Scientific method
are closely related.
 Research as we already stated, can be termed
as, An inquiry into the nature of, the
reason for, and the consequences of any
particular set of circumstances, whether
these circumstances are experimentally
controlled or recorded just as they occur.
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Overview of the Scientific Method:
 The scientific method is a process for
experimentation that is used to explore observations
and answer questions.
 Scientists use the scientific method to search
for cause and effect relationships in nature.
 In other words, they design an experiment so that
changes to one item cause something else to vary in a
predictable way.
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Important Characteristics of
Scientific Method
 1. Empirical:
 2.Verifiable:
 3. Objectivity:
 4. Cumulative:
 5. Deterministic
 6. Ethical and Ideological Neutrality
 7. Generalization:
 8. Rationalism
 9. Systematic:
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Research Applications in Functional
Areas of Management
 Research in HRM
• HR policies
• Job and Manpower requirements
• Job Evaluation
• Recruitment, Selection, Placement, Training and
Development
• Promotion and Transfer
• Wage and Salary Administration
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Research in HRM
•Labour Relations
•Employee Engagement
•Industrial Disputes
•Job Enrichment Programmes
•Health, Safety and Working Conditions etc…
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Research in Marketing
•Marketing Policies – pricing, advertising,
inventory, customer relations, service, channels
of distribution etc.
•New Product Development – new product
ideas, improvements, packaging, brand name,
customer preferences etc.
•Market Forecasting – economic forecasts,
industry forecasts, sales forecasts, technology
forecasts etc.
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Research in Marketing
•Sales management
•Channels of Distribution
•Advertising and sales – media selection, copy
testing, sales promotion etc.
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Research in Production
•Equipment Purchase and Replacement
•Performance Improvement
•Work simplification
•Inventory Control
•Product Design
•Process Improvement
•Quality Control etc.
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Research in Finance
•Capital Structure Decisions
•Acquisition, Mergers, Liquidation
•Sources of funds
•Opportunities for Profit
•Management of Funds
•Management of Assets
•Financial Markets and its regulations etc.
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Formulating the Research Question
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Formulating the Research Question-1
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Formulating the Research Question -2
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The management-research question
hierarchy
 Management question is the most critical part of the research
process.
 Regardless of the type of research, a thorough understanding
of the original question is fundamental to success.
 The management-research question hierarchy
process of sequential question formulation leads a
manager or researcher from management dilemma to
investigative questions.
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Management-Research Question Hierarchy
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Management-research question hierarchy process :
1) management dilemma
 The process begins with the management dilemma—the
problem or opportunity that requires a business decision.
 The management dilemma is usually a symptom of an actual
problem, such as:
 Rising costs,
 the discovery of an expensive chemical compound that would increase
the efficacy of a drug,
 increasing tenant move-outs from an apartment complex,
 declining sales,
 a larger number of product defects during the manufacture of an
automobile and an increasing number of letters and phone complaints
about post purchase service.
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2) Management Question
The Management Question restates the
dilemma in question form:
 What should be done to reduce employeeturnover ?
 What should be done to increase tenant residency and
reduce move-outs ?
 What should be done to reduce cost ?
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2) Management Question
Management Question Categories :
Choice of purposes or objective
“what do we want to achieve ?”
Generation and evaluation of solutions
“how can we achieve the ends we seek ?”
Troubleshooting or control situation
“monitoring or diagnosing”, such as “how well is our
marketing program meeting its goals ?” 4/5/2021

Management-research question hierarchy
process : 2) Management Question
Importance of management question:
❑ The definition of the management
question sets the research task.
❑ So, a poorly defined management question
will misdirect research efforts”
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The Nature of Management Question
 To subdivide a broadly stated management question,
look for the underlying causes of the management
dilemma.
 Q1:“How can we improve our profit picture ?”
is refined to become :
Q1a:“How can we improve deposits ?”
Q1b:“How can we reduce costs ?”
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process : 3)Research Question
 A research question is the hypothesis of choice that
best states the objective of the research study.
 the answer to this question would provide the
manager with the desired information necessary to
make a decision with respect to the management
dilemma.
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process : 3)Research Question
 At this stage, a clear picture of the management and
research questions begins to emerge
 Fine tune the research question
Examine concepts and constructs
Break research questions into specific second-and-third-
level questions
Verify hypotheses with quality tests
Determine what evidence answers the various questions
and hypothesis
Set the scope of your study by stating what is not a part
of the research question. This will establish a boundary to
separate contiguous problems from the primary objective
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The Research Question
Determine
necessary
evidence
Set
scope of
study
Examine
variables
Break
questions
down
Evaluate
hypotheses
Fine-Tuning
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process :4) Investigative Questions
 Investigative Questions
Questions the researcher must answer to satisfactorily
arrive at a conclusion about the research question
Investigative questions should be included in the
research proposal, for they guide the development of
the research design
They are the foundation for creating the research data
collection instrument.
The investigative questions stage may involves several
levels of questioning before it is possible to develop
satisfactory measurement questions. 4/5/2021

Performance Considerations
Investigative Questions
Attitudinal Issues
Behavioral Issues
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process :5) Measurement Questions
Measurement Questions
The questions we actually ask or extract from
respondents
the questions asked of the respondents or the
observations that must be recorded.
2 types : predesigned (pretest) questions and
custom-designed questions.
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SalePro’s Hierarchy
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Steps in Research process
 Formulating the research problem
 Literature survey (use of Library)
 Formulation of hypothesis
 Preparing the research design
 Determining sample design
 Collecting the data.(The evidence collected by research process)
 Analysis of data
 HypothesisTesting
 Generalization and interpretation &
 Preparation of the report or presentation of the result. (i.e. formal
write up or conclusions.)
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➢ Research process consists of series of actions or steps
necessary to effectively carry out research and the desired
sequencing of these steps.
➢ One should remember that,
1. Researchers, who are attempting to answer a research
question employee the research process.
2. The various steps involved in a research process are not
mutually exclusive nor they are separate and distinct.

➢ The following order concerning various steps
provides a useful procedural guideline regarding
the research process.
1. Formulating the research problem
2. Literature survey (use of Library)
3. Formulation of hypothesis
4. Preparing the research design
5. Determining sample design

6. Collecting the data.(The evidence collected by
research process)
7. Analysis of data
8. Hypothesis Testing
9. Generalization and interpretation &
10. Preparation of the report or presentation of the result.
(i.e. formal write up or conclusions.)

“The greatest challenge to any thinker is stating the problem in a
way that will allow a solution. “ Rerirand Russell”
➢ What is the Research Problem?
The term ‘problem’ means a question or issue to be examined.
▪ A research problem in general refers to some difficulty
which a researcher experiences in the context of
either a theoretical or practical situation and wants to obtain
a solution for the same.

-The researcher has to decide the general area or
aspect of a subject matter he would like to inquire into.
(Broad and not very precise)
-Then he has to formulate specific research problem.
-Essential two steps are involved in formulating the
research problem viz.
- Understanding the problem thoroughly &
- Rephrasing the same into meaningful terms
from analytical point of view.

CRITERIA OF SELECTION
The selection of one appropriate researchable problem
out of the identified problems requires evaluation of
those alternatives against certain criteria. They are:
 Internal / Personal criteria – Researcher’s Interest,
Researcher’s Competence, Researcher’s own Resource:
finance and time.
 External Criteria or Factors – Researchability of the
problem, Importance and Urgency, Novelty of the
Problem, Feasibility, Facilities, Usefulness and Social
Relevance, Research Personnel.
Shriram Dawkhar, Sinhgad Institute of
Management.
4/5/2021

 There are two ways of stating a problem:
1) Posting question / questions
2) Making declarative statement / statements
Management.
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SOURCES OF PROBLEMS
 Reading
 Academic Experience
 Daily Experience
 Exposure to Field Situations
 Consultations
 Brainstorming
 Research
 Intuition

CRITERIA OF A GOOD RESEARCH PROBLEM
 Clear and Unambiguous
 Empirical
 Verifiable
 Interesting
 Novel and Original
 Availability of Guidance
Management.
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Formulating the Research
Problem
– Importance of statement of problem /
objective:
– It determines the data which are to be collected
– An exact definition of the problem is imperative in order
to obtain accurate data about it. It is extremely difficult to
gather data without a clear definition of the problem.
– The characteristics of the data which are relevant
– Relation/s which are to be explored
– The choice of techniques to be used in and
– The form of final report
Management.
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STEPS IN FORMULATION OF RESEARCH
PROBLEM
Step I : Selection of Broad Area : Organisational Behaviour
Step II: Selection of Specific Area : Organisational Culture
Step III: Selection of Research Topic : Effects of Organisational Culture
Step IV : Defining the Research Topic :
A Study of Organisational Culture and its Effect on
Leadership, Productivity and
Organisational Effectiveness in Selected Industries
of Pune.
Management.
4/5/2021

FORMULATION OF RESEARCH
PROBLEM………
Industrial Psychology
Employees Morale
Factors Affecting Employees Morale
Factors affecting Employees Morale :A Study of
selected industries in Pune.
Management.
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FORMULATION OF RESEARCH
PROBLEM………
Marketing
Consumer Behaviour
Consumer behaviour at malls
Study of consumer behaviour in
selected retail mall in Pune city.
@ Shriram Dawkhar, Sinhgad Institute
of Management.
4/5/2021

REVIEW
OF
LITERATURE
STEP-2
Management.
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Review of Literature
– Once the problem of research is fixed, the
next steps, is to collect the relevant
information from library/ literature.
– What is Literature?
• The body of writing on a particular subject.
Management.
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Review of Literature
– What is a literature review?
• It is a compilation of every work written about a
topic
• It is not simply a list of sources reviewed
separately for their own merit
• It is survey or overview of the literature found to be
signification to a topic
• It is a collection of scholarly works a researcher
found to have relevance to a guiding topic (e.g., your
thesis statement or research question)
Management.
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Literature Survey
–What is the purpose of a literature
review?
• It can help to…
– Increase your knowledge of your topic
– Identify important authors and works in your
area of research
– Identify opposing points of view
– Identify gaps in the literature
– Identify new research , theories, and/or
methodology in your area of research
Management.
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Literature Survey
– To determine if there is already a solution to the
problem.
• Existing solution do not always explain new
observations.
• The existing solution might require some revision
or even be discarded.
• On the other hand, if the literature review turns
up nothing , then additional research activities
are justified.
Management.
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Literature Survey
– Your literature review, either as a “stand alone”
document or as a part of a larger research
project should:
• Include an introduction defining your topic and the
purpose of your review of the literature
• Be organized by common themes or categories
contain your summary and analysis of categories
• Contain your summary and analysis of each work
including its importance to the overall topic as well
as its relationship to the other referenced works
• Conclude with insights you’ve gained regarding
your topic
Management.
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Literature Survey
– Literature Review Pitfalls
• Be very careful to check your sources when
doing your literature review.
• Many trade magazines are not peer reviewed.
– Professional conferences and journals often have each
article reviewed by multiple before it is recommended for
publication.
• The Internet can be a good source of
information. It is also full of pseudo-science and
poor research.
Management.
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Literature Survey
• Make sure you verify the claims of any
documentation that has not been peer reviewed by
other professionals.
•
• It is possible that the literature review has yielded a
solution to the proposed problem.
– This means that you haven’t really done research.
Management.
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Literature Survey
– Researcher may review two types of literature.
• The conceptual literature – concerning the concepts and
theories and
• The empirical literature consisting of studies made
earlier, which are similar to the one proposed.
•
– For this purpose, the abstracting and indexing
journals and published and unpublished
Bibliographies are the first place to go academic
journals, conference proceedings and government
reports, books etc. must be tapped depending on
the nature of the problem.
Management.
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How to conduct the Literature
Survey?
Identify the relevant sources.
Extract and Record relevant information.
Write-up the Literature Review.
Management.
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SOURCES OF LITERATURE
 Books and Journals
 Electronic Databases
➢Bibliographic Databases
➢Abstract Databases
➢Full-Text Databases
 Govt. and Industry Reports
 Internet
 Research Dissertations / Thesis
Management.
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How to write the review?
 There are several ways of presenting the ideas of
others within the body of the paper.
 For Example; If you are referring the major
influencing factors in the Sheth’s model of Industrial
Buying Behaviour, it can be written as,
1) Sheth (1973, p-50) has suggested that, there are a
number of influencing factors ……..
2) According to Sheth (1973) model of industrial
buying behaviour, there are a number of influencing
factors……..
Management.
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How to write the review?
3) In some models of industrial buying behaviour, there
are a number of influencing factors (Sheth, 1973).
4) In some models of industrial buying behaviour, there
are a number of influencing factors1.
1. Sheth J.N (1973), A Model of Industrial Buying Behaviour,
Journal of Marketing, 37(4), 50-56.

Points to be kept in mind while
reviewing literature..
❖Read relevant literature.
❖Refer original works.
❖Read with comprehension.
❖Read in time.
❖Index the literature.
Management.
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SAMPLE DESIGN
STEP-5
Management.
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Sampling Procedure
Universe
Sample
Probability
Samples
Non-Probability
Samples
Management.
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Determine Sample Design
• Universe or Population
– All the items under consideration in any field
of inquiry constitute a ‘Universe’ or
‘Population’.
• Census
• A complete enumeration / counting of all the items
in to population is known as a census inquiry.
• Census inquiry is not possible in practice because
of quite often researcher select only a few items
from the universe for the study purposes. This
items so selected constitute what is technically
called a ‘sample’.
Management.
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• Population:
• refers to entire group of people, events
or things of interest that the researchers
wishes to investigate.
• Sampling:
Sampling is the process of selecting a sufficient number
of elements from the population, so that the study of the
sample & understanding of its properties or
characteristics would make it possible for us to
generalize such properties or characteristics to the
population
Management.
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• Sample :
• A sample is a group of units / element selected
from a larger group – the population.
• Sampling frame:
The listing of all accessible population
from which you will draw your sample is
called sampling frame.
Management.
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• Sample Design
– A sample design is a definite plan determined
before any data are actually collected for
obtaining a sample from a given population.
• Sampling frame:
The listing of all accessible population
from which you will draw your sample is
called sampling frame.
Management.
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Management.
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The Sampling Design Process
Define the Population
Determine the Sampling Frame
Select Sampling Technique(s)
Determine the Sample Size
Execute the Sampling Process
Management.
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Classification of Sampling
Techniques
Sampling Techniques
Nonprobability
Sampling Techniques
Probability
Sampling Techniques
Convenience
Sampling
Judgmental
Sampling
Quota
Sampling
Snowball
Sampling
Systematic
Sampling
Stratified
Sampling
Cluster
Sampling
Other Sampling
Techniques
Simple Random
Sampling
4/5/2021 Shriram Dawkhar, Sinhgad Institute of Management.

COLLECTION OF DATA
STEP-6
Management.
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DATA COLLECTION
➢The task of data collection begins after the research problem has
been defined and research design has been developed.
➢Data is a collection of facts from which conclusions may be
drawn.
➢While deciding the method of data collection to be used for the
study, the researcher should keep in mind two types of data viz.,
primary and secondary.
➢The primary data are those which are collected afresh and for
the first time and thus happen to be original in character.
➢The secondary data are those which have already been collected
by someone else and which have already been passed through
the statistical process.
Management.
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METHODS OF COLLECTING
PRIMARY DATA
 Observation
 Interview
 Questionnaire
 Schedule
Other methods include:
 Warranty cards
 Distributor audits
 Pantry audits
 Consumer panels
 Using mechanical devices
 Projective techniques
 Depth interviews and
 Content analysis
Management.
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SECONDARY DATA
Sources of unpublished data
 Diaries
 Letters
 Unpublished biographies
 Autobiographies
 Secondary data may either be published or
unpublished data.
Management.
4/5/2021

SECONDARY DATA
Sources of published data
 Publications of central, state and local govt.
 Publications of foreign govt. or international bodies and their
subsidiary organizations.
 Technical and trade journals
 Books, magazines and newspapers
 Reports and publications of various associations connected with
business and industry, banks, stock exchanges etc.
 Reports prepared by research scholars, universities, economists
etc.
 Public records and statistics
 Historical documents
Management.
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ANALYSIS OF DATA
STEP-7
Management.
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Analysis of Data
• Data analysis: involves entering
data into computer files,
inspecting data for errors (data
cleaning), running tabulations
(frequencies), and conducting
various statistical tests
Management.
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Analysis of Data
– After the data have collected, the researcher’s
task is to analyze them.
– For interpretation and to draw some valid
conclusions from the data. research needs to
calculate number. Etc. calculating such
numbers is called analysis of data.
Management.
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Analysis of Data
– Before analyzing data there are a few
preliminary task to be completed. These task
include editing, coding , classification and
tabulation.
•
– Editing is the procedure that improves the
quality of the data for coding. Here researcher
look for inconsistencies, incompleteness of
data and such data is discarded for lack or
utility for interpretation and analysis.
Management.
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Analysis of Data
– Coding involves assigning suitable codes or
symbols to categories of responses so as to
aid further human or computer analysis.
•
– Next stage is classification where data having
common Characteristic are placed in one
class.
Management.
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Analysis of Data
– Classification according to attributes:
• It can be.
• - Descriptive e.g. literacy, gender etc. or
• - Numerical e.g. weight, height, income etc.
• Classification according to class intervals
• – Data relating to income, production, age,
weight etc. come under this category.
•
– Tabulation: here classified data are put in the
form of tables.
Management.
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Analysis of Data
– Count (frequencies)
– Percentage
– Mean
– Mode
– Median
– Range
– Standard deviation
– Variance
– Ranking
– Cross tabulation
– Correlation & Regression
See the booklet, Analyzing
Quantitative Data for help with
how to do each of these
calculations
Management.
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Analysis of Data
Which calculation do I use? It depends upon what you want to
know.
Do you want to know how many individuals checked
each answer?
Frequency
Do you want the proportion of people who answered in
a certain way?
Percentage
Do you want the average number or average score? Mean
Do you want the middle value in a range of values or
scores?
Median
Do you want to show the range in answers or scores? Range
Do you want to compare one group to another? Cross tab
Do you want to report changes from pre to post? Change score
Do you want to show the degree to which a response
varies from the mean?
Standard deviation

Iterative Nature of Research Process
4/5/2021
Research
Problem /
Idea
Literature
Review
Research
Design
Sample
Design
Data
Collection
Data
Analysis &
Interpretat
ion
Report /
Publication

Iterative Nature of Research
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WHAT IS A PROPOSAL
 A proposal is a work plan, prospectus,
outline, statement of intent or draft plan
 It is essentially a road map showing the
location from which a journey begins, the
destination to be reached and the method of
getting there
RESEARCH PROPOSALS
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Purpose of Proposal
 To present the problem to be researched and its
importance
 To discuss the research efforts of others who have
worked on related problems
 To suggest the data necessary for solving the
problem and how the data will be gathered,
treated and interpreted
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Purpose of Proposal (cont)
 A proposal is also known as an work plan that
tells:
 What will be done
 Why it will be done
 How it will be done
 Where it will be done
 To whom it will be done
 What is the benefit of doing it
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PROPOSAL DEVELOPMENT
MANAGER DESCRIBES
PROBLEM & STATES
MGMT QUESTION
RESEARCHER
TRANSLATES MGMT
QUESTION
INTO RESEARCH QN
RESEARCHER ELABORATES
RESEARCH QN INTO
INVESTIGATIVE QUESTIONS
RESEARCHER
EXPLORES
ALTERNATIVE
APPROACHES
RESEARCHER
REFINES RESEARCH
QUESTION
MANAGER &
RESEARCHER
DISCUSS
PROPOSAL.
CLARIFY AND
REDEFINE
PROBLEM &
OBJECTIVES OF
PROJECT
RESEARCHER
PREPARES
PROPOSAL
MANAGER
REVIEWS
PROPOSAL
MANAGER
APPROVES
PROJECT
STUDY
BEGINS
THEY DISAGREE
THEY DISAGREE
THEY
AGREE
THEY
AGREE
4/5/2021

Structuring the Research Proposal
 Executive Summary
 Problem Statement
 Research Objectives
 Literature Review
 Importance/ Benefits of
study
 Research Design
 Data Analysis
 Nature/Form of Results
 Researcher’s
Qualification
 Budget
 Schedule
 Facilities of Study
 Project Management
 Bibliography
 Appendices
4/5/2021

 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Allows a business manager/sponsor to
understand quickly the thrust of the proposal
 Essentially an informative abstract
 Goal is to secure a positive evaluation by the executive while the
full evaluation is conducted by the staff.
 Should include:
 Brief statement of the problem
 Research objectives/research questions
 Benefit of the approach adopted
 In some unsolicited proposals, a brief description of
qualifications of researcher are also recommended
MODULES OF RESEARCH PROPOSALS
4/5/2021

PROBLEM STATEMENT
 Aims to convince the sponsor to continue reading the proposal
by capturing his attention
 Should cover:
 The problem (management question)
 Its background (and)
 Consequences
 The importance of the problem should also be emphasized if a
separate module on the benefits of the study is not included
 On reading this module the sponsor should know:
 The problem
 Its significance
 Why something should be done to change the status quo
4/5/2021

RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
 Flows naturally from the problem statement giving
specific, concrete and achievable goals
 Addresses the specific purpose of the investigation
 Lays out exactly what is being planned by the proposed
research:
In a descriptive study, objectives can be stated as
research questions or further broken down into
investigative questions
In a causal study, objectives can be restated as hypothesis
4/5/2021

LITERATURE REVIEW
 Examines recent or historically significant research studies,
company data, or industry reports that act as a basis for the
proposed study
 Begin from a comprehensive perspective and move to more specific
studies that are associated with the problem
 Extraneous details of the literature should be avoided and a brief
review of the information is made
 Following aspects are focused upon:
 Important results and conclusions of other studies
 Relevant data and trends from previous research
 Particular methods or designs that could be duplicated or should
be avoided
 How the literature under review applies to the study you are
proposing
4/5/2021

IMPORTANCE/BENEFITS OFTHE STUDY
 Describes explicit benefits that will accumulate
from the study
 Also requires the researcher to understand what
is most troubling to the sponsor and outline its
implications and possible remedies
 Is particularly important in unsolicited external
proposals where the sponsor has to be
convinced that your plan will meet their needs
4/5/2021

RESEARCH DESIGN
 Describes what you are going to do in technical terms
 Should include as many subsections as needed to show the
phases of the project
 Should also cover:
 Sample selection & size
 Data collection method
 Instrumentation, procedures and ethical requirements
 Data analysis (in smaller projects)
 If/when more than one way exists to approach the design, the
methods that have been rejected are discussed and it is explained
as to why you consider your method more superior than others
4/5/2021

DATA ANALYSIS
 Relavent for large scale contract research projects
and doctoral theses
 Objective is to assure the sponsor that you are
following the correct assumptions and using
theoretically sound data analysis procedures
 Describe proposed treatment and theoretical
basis for using the selected techniques
4/5/2021

NATURE AND FORM OF RESULTS
 Aims to take back the sponsor to the problem
statement and research objectives to satisfy him
that each goal set for the study has been covered
 Specifies the type of data to be obtained and the
interpretations that will be made in the analysis
 Outlines forms of results such as strategic plans,
models, action plans, etc
 Also covers distribution of report if meant for
more than one sponsor and final disposal of data
collected in the study including any proprietary
rights
4/5/2021

QUALIFICATIONS OF RESEARCHERS
 COVERS:
 Qualifications of investigators with the highest degree
held
 Experience of previous research
 Description of similar projects handled
 Experience as executive or employee of an
organization involved in related field
 Business & technical research societies to which
researcher belongs
 Entire cv of researcher may also be added as an annex
4/5/2021

BUDGET
Should be presented in the form required by
the sponsor
Should not be more than one to two pages.
Additional details may be covered in annexes
Keep backup of information used to generate
the budget figures for reference/ explanation
if necessary
4/5/2021

SCHEDULE
 Should include the major phases of the project, their timetables and
the milestones that signify completion of a phase
 Major phases may be:
 Finalization of investigative questions
 Exploratory interviews
 Final research proposal (if necessary)
 Questionnaire revision
 Field interviews
 Editing and coding
 Data analysis
 Report generation
 Preferably, the schedule may be charted to establish critical paths
and tasks/phases that can be handled concurrently
4/5/2021

OTHER MODULES
 Facilities and special resources
 Project management
 Bibliography – for all projects that require literature
review
 Annexes & appendices
 Glossary
 Measurement instrument
 Others
4/5/2021

Ethical principles
 Harm to participants,
 Lack of informed consent,
 Invasion of privacy
 Deception,
 Reciprocity and trust,
 Affiliation and conflicts of interest
4/5/2021

What is Ethics?
 Ethics are--- Study of right and wrong
 From Ethos, meaning cultural customs or habit System
of moral principles and values
 Principles of conduct that help govern human
behaviors, determine which acts are right and which
are wrong, and are used by society for evaluating the
behavior of individuals and groups.
 Means of regulating and setting limits on behavior.
 Ethical Consideration for Research
4/5/2021

Ethical principles -1) Harm to participants
 The research should not harm the participants in any way like
-Physical
-Physiological
-Social
-Economical
-Legal
 Where there is the possibility that participants could
be harmed or put in a position of discomfort, there
must be strong justifications for this.
 Such scenarios will also require additional planning
to illustrate how participant harm (or discomfort) will
be reduced.
4/5/2021

Ethical principles -2) Lack of informed consent
4/5/2021
A lack of informed consent refers to researcher neglecting to provide
appropriate information about the purpose, risks, benefits and alternatives,
etc.

Ethical principles -2) Lack of informed consent
4/5/2021

Ethical principles -3) Invasion of privacy
 Researcher must protect & keep all personal
information of the participants confidential.
4/5/2021

Ethical principles -3) Invasion of privacy
4/5/2021

Ethical principles -4) Deception
 Deception in research entails that participants are not
fully informed ( incomplete information-important
information missing) or providing misleading
information about the purpose of the study.
 Deception research is an ethical dilemma in itself.
4/5/2021

 Deception is sometimes a necessary component
of covert research, which can be justified in some
cases.
 Covert research reflects research where
(a) the identity of the observer and/or
(b) the purpose of the research is not known to
participants.
4/5/2021

 Cases where you may choose to engage in
covert research may include instances where:
1) It is not feasible to let everyone in a
particular research setting know what you are
doing.
e.g. Observing what users are doing in an
Internet chat room. / Observing individuals
going about their business (e.g., shopping,
going to work, etc.).
4/5/2021

 Deception is sometimes a necessary component
of covert research, which can be justified in some
cases.
 Covert research reflects research where
(a) the identity of the observer and/or
(b) the purpose of the research is not known to
participants.
 Covert observation or knowledge of the purpose
of the research may alter the particular
phenomenon that is being studied.
4/5/2021

Ethical principles -5) Reciprocity
and trust
 Trust and Reciprocity examines the importance of
reciprocal relationships in explaining the origins of
trust and trustworthy behavior.
 Reciprocity concerns balanced patterns of giving
and taking between people.
 Research relationships are not necessarily
reciprocal, but good research ethics practice
requires that researchers consider what they
take from research participants as well as what
they give to them.
4/5/2021

Ethical principles -5) Reciprocity and trust
4/5/2021
 The researcher-participant relationship has the potential to
be reciprocal, a relationship in which each contributes
something the other needs or desires.
 Participants devote their time, effort, experiences, and
wisdom to inform and shape the researcher's study.
 The researcher's scope, depth, and nature of inquiry
introduce vulnerability to participants' lives.

Ethical principles -6) Affiliation and
conflicts of interest
 The independence of the research must be clear; any conflicts of
interest or partiality must be explicit.
 A conflict of interest in research exists where an
individual may preference, or be perceived to
preference, their own interests or obligations over their
duties and responsibilities as a researcher.
 Conflicts of interest may be actual, potential or
perceived and involve financial and non-financial
benefits.
 Conflicts of interest may affect, or be perceived to affect,
a researcher's impartiality and judgement, which can
erode confidence in the research. 4/5/2021

Ethical principles -6) Affiliation and conflicts of interest
 Research which is deliberately opposed to the interests of the
research subjects –
 E.g.- studies of power or inequality
 – aim to reveal and critique economic, political, or cultural
disadvantage
 – may have negative impact on some subjects
 Some common conflicts include:
 1) Personal
 2) Financial
 3) Intellectual Property
 4) Affiliation : An individual if employee / Member/ associated
with an organization …the research is an effect of the same.
4/5/2021

4/5/2021
Affiliation

Authorship…
 Misleading authorship
➢ who should be an author?
➢ Technicians do not necessarily become joint authors.
➢ Authorship should involve only those who contribute directly.
➢ Discuss authorship before the project!
 Publication of the thesis or dissertation
➢ Should be regarded as the student’s work
➢ Committee chair and members may be listed as secondary
authors •
 Dual publication – a manuscript should only be published in a
single journal.
4/5/2021

Legal Considerations
 Data Management
 Copyrights
4/5/2021

Data Management
 Responsibility for the management of research
data
The Principal Investigator and/or researcher/
supervisor is the custodian of the research data and is
responsible for its management, including security,
storage and retention.
 The Principal Investigator and/or researcher/
supervisor is also responsible for informing the
research participants of the researchers obligations in
relation to the data.
4/5/2021

Data Management
A) Working with data
 There are a number of practical activities and
considerations involved with day-to-day
management of research data.
 You can find out more about the different aspects of
working with data using the links below.
• Data management planning
• Ethical issues and data protection
• Backup, storage & security
• Organizing your data
4/5/2021

Data Management
 B) Security of research data – Access
 The Principal Investigator and/or researcher/
supervisor must determine and control access rights
to research data.
 It is particularly important that access rights to
personal data are strictly confined only to those who
have been granted access ( right person / authority)
4/5/2021

Data Management
 C) Security of research data - Storage
 Appropriate levels of storage security must therefore
be established by the Principal Investigator and
maintained by research participants.
 These will include strict protocols for the protection
from unauthorized access of all physical and
electronic locations where data are stored.
4/5/2021

Data Management
 D) Retention of research data for duration of
study
The Principal Investigator and/or
researcher/supervisor must determine and make
arrangements for the retention of data for
appropriate periods following the conclusion of the
project.
 Retention periods can vary depending on the
research discipline, research purpose and type of
data involved.
4/5/2021

Data Management
 E) Retention of research data for Archiving:
 The Principal Investigator and/or
researcher/supervisor may wish to archive the
collected data for the purposes of making it
available for future use.
 Storing your data in suitable formats and under
suitable conditions helps ensure that it can be
viewed and built upon by future generations of
researchers
4/5/2021

Definition of IPR
 Intellectual property rights have been defined as “the rights
given to people over the creations of their minds”.
 They usually give the creator an exclusive right over the use
of his/her creations for a certain period of time”
 Under intellectual property law, owners are granted
certain exclusive rights to a variety of intangible assets,
such as musical, literary, and artistic works; ideas,
discoveries and inventions; and words, phrases, symbols,
and designs.
 Common types of intellectual property include
copyrights, trademarks, patents, and trade secrets.

What is intellectual property?
06/27
THU 11:29
Utility model
Antenna storage
structure
Smart design
Brand name
LCD
technology
Trade
mark
Patent
Design

Copyrights
(1) Copyrights – rights enforceable by law and accorded to
an artist, inventor/creator of an expression or creative
works: literary, dramatic, musical, pictorial, graphics,
artistic, audiovisual, architectural, or sound recording.
– The protected works must have:
⚫ Tangible form(expression)
⚫ Originality
⚫ Fixation in a medium

What is Copyright ?
“The exclusive right given by law for a certain term of
years to an author, composer etc. (or his assignee) to
print, publish and sell copies of his original work”
(Oxford English Dictionary)

What can be Protected ?
 literary or dramatic work
 a musical work
 an artistic work
 a cinematograph film
 a sound recording
 a photograph
 a computer generated work
4

Whose Rights are protected ?
 Copyright protects the right of Author, i.e. creator
of Intellectual Properties.
 He/She is also called the First Owner of Copyright.
 However, in course of employment, the employer is
the first owner of these rights.
Work Creator of work
Literary or dramatic work Author
Musical work Composer
Cinematograph Producer
Sound recording Producer
Photograph Photographer
5

Why Copyright ?
Favour
• Rewards creative
efforts.
• Protects interest of
the creator
Against
• Protects corporate
interests only
• Criminalizing
legitimate use
6

Indian Copyright Act, 1957
 No single “international copyright” for whole world
 First right in India in 1914
 Now, Indian Copyright Act,1957; w.e.f. 1958
 Further amendments in 1983,1984,1992,1994,1999
 adopted many English provisions, introduced new ideas and
concepts.
 Created Copyright Office and Copyright Board
 Introduced civil and criminal remedies against infringement
8

Indian Perspective on Copyright
The Copyright Act, 1957 confers copyright protection
in the following two forms:
Economic Rights
Moral Rights
9

Economic Rights
Several exclusive rights typically attach to the holder of a copyright:-
to produce copies or reproductions of the work and to
sell those copies (including, typically, electronic copies)
to import or export the work
to create derivative works (works that adapt the
original work)
to perform or display the work publicly
to sell or assign these rights to others
to transmit or display by radio or video
10

Moral Rights
(i) Right of paternity
to claim authorship of work and to prevent all others
from claiming authorship of his work.
(ii)Right of integrity.
to prevent distortion, mutilation or other alterations of
his work, or any other action in relation to said work,
which would be prejudicial to his honour or
reputation.
11

Term of Copyright
The general rule is that copyright lasts for 60 years.
It is counted-
From the death of the author
• Literary
• Dramatic
• Musical
• Artistic work
From the date of publication
• Cinematograph films
• Sound recordings
• Photographs
• Posthumous publication
• Works of government & international organizations

Copyright Symbol ©
 Use of the "©" symbol
 Anyone who claims copyrights can use it
 not necessary to have a registration to use the
designations
 highly advisable to incorporate a copyright notice
 Example:
Copyright © 2009 Microsoft Corporation
14

Remedies for Copyright Infringement
Remedies for
Copyright
Infringement
Civil Criminal Administrative
18

Civil Remedies
 Civil remedies
 Injunction
 Damages
 Accounts
 Delivery of infringing copy
 Damages for conversion
 Jurisdiction in District Court
19

Criminal Remedies
 Criminal offences, if done knowingly
 Imprisonment
 6 months – 3years

 Fine
 Rs.50,000 – Rs.200,000
 Seizure of infringing copies
20

References
 1) Business Research Methods, Donald Cooper & Pamela
Schindler,TMGH.
 2) Managing Research Data - Legal Skills and Research - Oxford
Lib Guides at Oxford University.
 3) Business Research: Definition, Methods,Types and Examples
| QuestionPro
 4) Ethical Considerations - Research Data Management -
LibGuides at UCD Library
 5) Sampling brm chap-4 (slideshare.net)
 6) Copyright (presentation) (slideshare.net)
 7) Research Process: 8 Steps in Research Process (iedunote.com)
4/5/2021

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