Systematic, intensive, patient study and investigation in some field of knowledge, usually employing the techniques of hypothesis and experiment, whose purpose is to reveal new facts, theories, or principles Means a systematic investigation, including research development, testing and evaluation, designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge Systematic study directed toward more complete scientific knowledge or understanding of the subject studied Zikmund (p. 41) has defined a theory as “a coherent set of general propositions, used as principles of explanation of the amount of the apparent relationships of certain observed phenomona” Concepts (or constructs) are the basic building blocks of theory development. A concept (or construct) is a generalized idea about a class of objects, attributes, occurrences, or processes that have been given a name. A concept (or construct) may vary in terms of the level of abstraction Examples: Productivity, Leadership, Morale, Assets, Inflation