The document discusses various aspects of business research including the need for research due to increased competition, the importance of following scientific standards in research, the roles and obligations of managers and researchers, different types of research questions, research design, data collection and analysis, and reporting results. It provides an overview of key concepts in business research methodology.

1. Unit I

2.  Research is the process of finding solutions
to a problem after a thorough study and
analysis of the situational factors.
 Business Research is an organized,
systematic, data-based, critical, objective,
scientific inquiry or investigation into a
specific problem, undertaken with the
purpose of finding answers or solutions to
it.

3.  Studying Research provides the
knowledge and skills needed for the fast-
paced decision-making environment
 Managers need information because
• Global and domestic competition is more
vigorous
• Organizations are increasingly practicing data
mining and data warehousing

4.  To gather more information before
selecting a course of action
 To do a high-level research study
 To understand research design
 To evaluate and resolve a current
management dilemma
 To establish a career as a research
specialist

5.  Following the standards of the scientific
method
• Purpose clearly defined
• Research process detailed
• Research design thoroughly planned
• Limitations frankly revealed
• High ethical standards applied

6.  Following the standards of the scientific
method (cont.)
• Adequate analysis for decision-maker’s
needs
• Findings presented unambiguously
• Conclusions justified
• Researcher’s experience reflected

7.  Manager’s obligations
• Specify problems
• Provide adequate background information
• Access to company information gatekeepers
 Researcher’s obligations
• Develop a creative research design
• Provide answers to important business questions

8.  Management’s limited exposure to
research
 Manager sees researcher as threat to
personal status
 Researcher has to consider corporate
culture and political situations
 Researcher’s isolation from managers

9. CooperOverview.jpg

10.  Management Dilemma
 Research Questions
 Management Questions
 Investigative Questions
 Measurement Questions
 Management Decision

11.  Management Dilemma
• The symptom of an actual problem
• Not difficult to identify a dilemma,
however choosing one to focus on may
be difficult
 Management Question Categories
• Choice of purposes or objective
• Generation and evaluation of solutions
• Troubleshooting or control situation

12.  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

13.  Investigative Questions
• Questions the researcher must answer
to satisfactorily arrive at a conclusion
about the research question
 Measurement Questions
• The questions we actually ask or
extract from respondents

14.  To present the question to be researched
and its importance
 To discuss the research efforts of others
who have worked on related questions
 To suggest the data necessary for solving
the question

15.  Allows the researcher to plan and review
the project’s steps
 Serves as a guide throughout the
investigation
 Forces time and budget estimates

16.  Executive Summary
 Problem Statement
 Research Objectives
 Literature Review
 Importance of the
Study
 Research Design
 Data Analysis
 Nature and Form of
Results
 Qualifications of
Researcher
 Budget
 Schedule
 Facilities and Special
Resources
 Project Management
 Bibliography
 Appendices

17.  A PLAN for selecting the sources and
types of information used to answer
research questions
 A FRAMEWORK for specifying the
relationships among the study variables
 A BLUEPRINT that outlines each
procedure from the hypothesis to the
analysis

18.  Research data may be categorized as
Primary (generated by researcher) and
Secondary data (generated by others but
used in the research).
 Factors to consider when designing a
data collection strategy - Timing, Mode,
and Contacts

19.  A procedure or plan drawn up before any
data are collected to obtain a sample
from a given population.
 Steps in Sampling Process
• Define Population
• Identify Sampling Frame
• Select Sampling Design or Procedure
• Determine Sampling Size
• Draw the Sample

20.  Measurement is typically done by
developing an instrument, which can be a
questionnaire, an examination, an interview,
an observation schedule, etc.
 When designing an instrument, keep in
mind the following:
• Conclusions drawn in a research study are only as
good as the data that is collected.
• Data that is collected is only as good as the
instrument that collects the data.
• A poorly designed instrument will lead to bad data,
which will lead to bad conclusions.

21.  A pilot test is a method used to test the
design and/or methods and/or instrument
prior to carrying out the research
 Pilot testing involves conducting a
preliminary test of data collection tools and
procedures to identify and eliminate
problems, allowing programs to make
corrective changes or adjustments before
actually collecting data from the target
population

22.  Purpose of data collection is to obtain
information to keep on record, to make
decisions about important issues, or to
pass information on to others
 Researcher must prepare the data to be
analyzed. Organizing the data correctly
can save a lot of time and prevent
mistakes.

23.  Before undertaking any detailed analysis,
responses should be vetted for
consistency and completeness. It is
important to have a policy for handling
inconsistent and or incomplete
questionnaires.
 It is sometimes necessary to convert
nominal and ordinal scale data from
category names to numerical scores
prior to the data’s being input

24.  The purpose of the data analysis and
interpretation phase is to transform the data
collected into credible evidence about the
development of the intervention and its
performance.
 This process includes the following steps:
• Organizing the data for analysis (data preparation)
• Describing the data
• Interpreting the data (assessing the findings against
the adopted evaluation criteria)

25.  Reports communicate information which
has been compiled as a result of research
and analysis of data and of issues.
 It usually focus on transmitting
information with a clear purpose, to a
specific audience.
 Good reports are documents that are
accurate, objective and complete.

26.  R&D does have an impact on decision-
making by policy-makers and
practitioners
 Extent to which research is used and has
influence on decision-making can be
enhanced by the actions of the
stakeholders

28.  Descriptive vs. Analytical
 Applied vs. Fundamental
 Quantitative vs. Qualitative
 Conceptual vs. Empirical
 Some other types
• One time Research vs. Longitudinal Research
• Field setting or Laboratory or Simulation Research
• Clinical or Diagnostic Research
• Exploratory vs. Formalized Research
• Historical Research
• Conclusion oriented or Decision oriented

29.  Descriptive Research (otherwise known
as Ex-post facto research): Description of
state of affairs as it exists at present
• No control over variables
• Can only report what has happened or already
happening
 Analytical Research : Researcher has to
use facts or information already available
and analyze these to make a critical
evaluation of the material.

30.  Applied (or Action) Research : Aims to
finding a solution for an immediate
problem facing the society or business
organization
 Fundamental (or Basic or Pure) Research:
Concerned with generalizations and
formulation of theory; Directed towards
finding information that has broad range of
applications and adds to already existing
organized body of scientific knowledge

31.  Quantitative Research : Based on
measurement of quantity or amount
 Qualitative Research : Concerned with
phenomenon relating to or involving
quality or kind; aims at discovering
underlying motives and desires

32.  Conceptual Research : related to abstract
ideas or theory; generally used by
philosophers and thinkers to develop new
concepts or to reinterpret existing ones
 Empirical Research : relies on experience
and observation alone often without due
regard to theory; data-based research
coming up with conclusions and capable of
being verified by observation or
experiment

33.  One time research : Confined to single
time period
 Longitudinal research : research is
carried on over several time periods
 Field-setting or Laboratory-setting or
Simulation research : based on the
environment in which it is to be carried
out

34.  Clinical or Diagnostic research : usually go
deep into causes of things or events that
interest us, using very small samples and
very deep probing data gathering devices
 Exploratory research : objective is
development of hypothesis rather than their
testing
 Formalized research : research with
substantial structure and with specific
hypothesis to be tested

35.  Historical research : uses historical
sources like documents, remains etc., to
study events or ideas of the past
including philosophy of persons or
groups at any remote point of time

36.  Obtrusive Research :The researcher
introduces conditions that influence
participants; manipulates the
environment
 Non-Obtrusive Research : Researcher
avoids influencing subjects in any way
and tries to be as inconspicuous as
possible

37.  Experimental Research : An experiment is a
research situation where at least one
independent variable, called the
experimental variable, is deliberately
manipulated or varied by the researcher
 Correlation Research :To find relationships
between two or more variable so to:
• Better understand the conditions and events that we
encounter (what goes with what)
• To predict future conditions and events.
• Correlations do not show cause and effect