BUSINESS RESEARCH Module - 3

PROCESS

Module - 3 1
 RESEARCH PROCESS
Development Fieldwork and
Problem of an approach primary data
Definition to solve the collection
problem

Data
Research Design formulation preparation
and analysis
1. Secondary data sources
2. Measurement and scaling
procedures Report
3. Questionnaire Design preparation
4. Sampling and
5. Plan of data analysis
presentation
 RESEARCH DESIGN

 A framework or blueprint for conducting the business research project. It

specifies the details of the procedures necessary for obtaining the
information needed to structure and/or solve business research
problems.
 TYPES OF RESEARCH DESIGN

 Exploratory Research Design

 Conclusive Research Design
 Descriptive Research Design
 Longitudinal Research Design
 Cross-Sectional Research Design
 Single Cross-Sectional Design
 Multiple Cross-Sectional Design
 Causal / Experimental Research Design
 COMPARISON OF BASIC DESIGNS

Exploratory Descriptive Causal

Discover Describe Determine Cause and

Objective Ideas and characteristics Effect relationships
insights and/or functions.
Flexible, Marked by the Manipulation of one
Versatile, prior formulation /more independent
Features of hypotheses, variables, control of
Preplanned and other mediating
structured design variables
Expert Surveys, Panels, Experiments
Methods Survey, Pilot Observations,
Survey etc., Cohorts, etc.,
 EXPLORATORY RESEARCH DESIGN

 Exploratory research usually results when a manager or client notices a

deviation in some planned activity and is not sure why the deviation has
occurred.
 Much business research is exploratory
 The number of opportunities or possible problems may be very large.
Exploratory studies are useful to find out the most likely alternatives, which
may then be turned into hypotheses.
 EXPLORATORY RESEARCH DESIGN

Flexibility is the essential feature of exploratory

research. Since the area under consideration is
largely unexplored the researcher cannot be forced
to follow hard and fast rules.
Though exploratory research has no formally
defined design and investigators exercise their
individual initiative in spotting and following leads, it
does not mean that such a study is done in an
aimless fashion.
 EXPLORATORY RESEARCH DESIGN

 Purposes
 Formulate a problem or define a problem more precisely
 Identify alternative courses of action
 Develop hypotheses
 Isolate key variables and relationships for further examination
 Establish priorities for further research.
 EXPLORATORY RESEARCH DESIGN

 Study of secondary data

 The quickest and most economical way to find possible hypotheses.
 Researcher must be skilled in spotting and following leads that provide
useful information.
 Presence of computers and the usage of the Internet and other electronic
media help the researcher in this regard.
 EXPLORATORY RESEARCH DESIGN

 Survey of knowledgeable persons

 Anyone associated closely with the business phenomenon in question is a
subject for survey.
 Though people with ideas maybe found in these groups only a few will be
able to articulate and tell out the correct ideas. Therefore, the researcher
has to exercise extreme caution in finding out who can be relied upon
providing which information.
 EXPLORATORY RESEARCH DESIGN

 Case Study
 A comprehensive study of one, or a few, specific situations. It is the
empirical study of a busiess situation within its actual context when the
situation is somewhat obscure and multiple sources of evidence are
used.
 METHODS USED – DEPTH INTERVIEW

 Unstructured, direct and personal method of interviewing.

 Requires a highly skilled interviewer who can probe and uncover
hidden motives, beliefs, attitudes and feelings.
 METHODS USED – DEPTH INTERVIEW

 Techniques used
 Laddering
 Product characteristics to user characteristics
 Hidden issue questioning
 Identifying personal “Sore Spots”.
 Symbolic analysis
 Identifying symbolic meaning of objects by comparing them with their opposites.
 METHODS USED – DEPTH INTERVIEW

Advantages Disadvantages
 Greater depth of  Difficulty in availability
insights of skilled interviewers,
 Free exchange of  Data obtained are
information difficult to analyze and
interpret,
 Unsuitable for a large
sample.
 METHODS USED – FOCUS GROUPS

 Focus Group Discussions

 Interview conducted by a trained moderator in a non-structured and
natural manner with a small group of respondents.
 The main purpose of a focus group is to gain insights by listening to a
group of people from the appropriate target market talk about issues of
interest to the researcher.
 METHODS USED – FOCUS GROUPS

Characteristics of the focus group

 Group size – 8 to 12
 Group composition – homogenous; prescreened
 Physical setting – relaxed, informal atmosphere
 Time duration – 1 to 3 hours
 Recording – use of audio cassettes and videotapes
 Moderator – observation, interpersonal and
communication skills of the moderator.
 METHODS USED – FOCUS GROUPS

Advantages Disadvantages
 Synergism  Misuse
 Snowballing  Misjudge
 Stimulation  Moderation
 Security  Messy
 Spontaneity
 Scientific scrutiny
 Structure
 Speed
 METHODS USED – PROJECTIVE
TECHNIQUES
 Association Techniques
 Word association
 Completion Techniques
 Sentence Completion, Story Completion
 Construction Techniques
 Picture response, Cartoon Tests
 Expressive Techniques
 Role Playing, Third-Person technique
 COMPARISON OF METHODS USED

Depth Projective
Criteria Focus Groups
Interviews Techniques
Degree of Relatively High Relatively Relatively low
Structure Medium
Probing of Low High Medium
individual
respondents
Moderator Bias Relatively Relatively high Low to high
Medium
Interpretation Relatively Low Relatively Relatively high
Bias Medium
 COMPARISON OF METHODS USED

Depth Projective
Criteria Focus Groups
Interviews Techniques
Uncovering Low Medium to high High
subconscious
information
Discovering High Medium Low
innovative
information

Obtaining Low Medium High

sensitive
information
 COMPARISON OF METHODS USED

Depth Projective
Criteria Focus Groups
Interviews Techniques
Involve No To a limited Yes
unusual extent
behavior /
questioning
Overall Highly useful Useful Somewhat
usefulness useful
 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH DESIGN

 It is a type of conclusive research that has as its major objective the

description of something – usually market characteristics or functions.
 A clear statement of the problem, specific hypotheses, and detailed
information needs marks descriptive research in contrast to exploratory
research.
 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH DESIGN

 Reasons to use
 To describe the characteristics of relevant groups, such
as consumers, salespeople, organizations or markets.
 To estimate the percentage of units in a specified
population exhibiting a certain behavior.
 To determine perceptions of product characteristics
 To determine the degree to which marketing variables
are associated.
 To make specific predictions.
 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH DESIGN

 Cross – Sectional Designs

 Single cross-sectional design
 Multiple cross-sectional design
 Cohort Analysis
 Longitudinal Design
 Panels
 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH DESIGN

 Cross-Sectional Design
 It involves the collection of information from any given sample of population
elements only once.
 Provides a snapshot of variables across a population at a single point in time.
 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH DESIGN

Single cross-sectional designs

 It involves drawing of a single sample from the target
population and collecting information from the
respondents only once.
Multiple cross-sectional designs
 Involves drawing of two or more samples of respondents
and collecting information from the respondents from
each sample only once.
 Information from different samples is collected at different
times over long intervals.
 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH DESIGN

 Cohort Analysis
 A cohort is a group of respondents who experience the same event within the
same time interval.
 Cohort analysis refers to any study in which there are measures of some
characteristics of one or more cohorts at two or more points in time.
 It consists of a series of surveys conducted at appropriate intervals of time.
 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH DESIGN

 Longitudinal Designs
 It involves repeatedly measuring a fixed sample(s) of population elements on
the same variables.
 It provides a series of pictures that give an in-depth view of the situation and
the changes that take place over time.
 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH DESIGN

 Longitudinal Design
 Panel Design
 A panel consists of a sample of respondents, generally households that agree to
provide information at specified intervals over time.
 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH DESIGN

Relative advantages and disadvantages of

longitudinal and cross-sectional designs
Evaluation Criteria Cross- Longitu-
Sectional dinal
Design Design
Detecting change - +
Volume of data - +
Accuracy - +
Representative Sampling + -
Response Bias + -
 CAUSAL RESEARCH DESIGN

 It is a type of conclusive research where the major objective is to obtain

evidence regarding the cause-and-effect relationships among variables.
 Causal research requires planned and formally structured design that
enables relative control of the environment in which the variables are
being manipulated.
 CAUSAL RESEARCH DESIGN

Experimentation is the main method of causal

research. It involves the manipulation of one or
more variables by the experimenter in such a way
that its effect on one or more other variables can be
measured.
A variable that is being manipulated is called the
Independent Variable. The variable that will reflect
the impact of the independent variable is called the
Dependent Variable.
 CAUSAL RESEARCH DESIGN

 The portion of the sample or population that is exposed to the

manipulation of the independent variable is called the Treatment Group.
The group in which the independent variable is unchanged is called the
Control Group.
 ERRORS AFFECTING RESEARCH DESIGNS

 Surrogate information error

 Variation between information required to solve the
problem and information collected by the researcher
 Measurement Error
 Variation between information sought by the
researcher and information provided by the measuring
instrument
 Experimental Error
 Variation between the actual impact of the
independent variable and the impact attributed to the
independent variable.
 ERRORS AFFECTING RESEARCH DESIGN

Population specification error

 Variation between the population required to provide the
information and the population selected by the researcher
Frame error
 Variation between the population as defined by the
researcher and the list of population members used by the
researcher
Sampling error
 Variation between a representative sample and the
sample obtained by the researcher using a probability
sampling method
 ERRORS AFFECTING RESEARCH DESIGN

 Selection error
 Variation between a representative sample and the sample obtained by the
researcher using a non-probability sampling method
 Non response error
 Variation between the selected sample and the sample that actually
participates in the study