Defining and Refining the Problem

Overview
• To clarify to the students that though the Research Process has
distinct phases, some of the steps follow an iterative, rather than a
linear process.
• To illustrate that identifying the Broad Problem Area sets the
stage for focusing on literature search and subsequently clearly
defining and refining the problem.

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Objectives
• After completing this unit, you should be able to:
• Identify problem areas the are likely to be studied in organizations
• Narrow down a broad problem into a feasible topic for research using
preliminary research
• Develop a good problem statement
• Develop a research proposal

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Contents
• First Steps Research Process
• Problem
• The Broad Problem Area
• Symptoms versus Problems
• From Problem to Feasible Research Topic
• Preliminary Information Gatheting
• First Reviews of the Literature
• What Makes a Good Problem Statement
• Basic Types of Questions
• Research Proposal

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 FIGURE 3.1

First Steps
Three Research Process
important first steps in the research process:

Step 1 Step 2
Step 3

Identification of
the Broad Preliminary Definition of the
Management Research Research Problem
Problem

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Problem

• Problem: any situation where a gap exists between an actual and a

desired ideal state.

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 The Broad Problem Area
• Examples of broad problem areas that a manager
could observe at the workplace:
• Training programs are not as effective as anticipated.
• The sales volume of a product is not picking up.
• Minority group members are not advancing in their careers.
• The newly installed information system is not being used by the managers
for whom it was primarily designed.
• The introduction of flexible work hours has created more problems than it
has solved in many companies.

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Symptoms versus Problems

• It is important that symptoms of problems are not defined as the

real problem.
• One way of determining that the problem, rather than the
symptom, is being addressed is a technique called ‘5 Whys’ or ‘5
times why’.
• This approach will help you to get to the root cause (the most
basic cause) of a problem.

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 Symptoms versus Problems
• Keep asking “Why?” until the most basic cause is arrived
at.
• Example: My best employees are leaving the organization.
• Why? They are not satisfied with their jobs.
• Why? They don’t find a challenge in their jobs.
• Why? They don’t have control over their work.
• Why? They don’t have enough influence over
planning, executing, and evaluating their
work.
• Why? We have been reluctant to delegate.

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From Problem to Feasible Research Topic

• We need to transform the broad problem into a feasible topic for

research by:
a) making it more specific and precise;
b) setting clear boundaries;
c) selecting a perspective from which we
investigate the subject (Machi and McEvoy,
2012).

• Preliminary research will help us to make these transformations.

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Preliminary Information Gathering

• Nature of information to be gathered:

1. Information on the organization and its
environment – that is, the contextual
factors.
2. Information on the topic of interest.

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First Review of the Literature

• Helps the researcher to:

• Structure research on work already done
• Develop problem statement with precision
and clarity

• Is beneficial in both basic and applied research projects

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What Makes a Good Problem Statement?

• Good problem statement includes both:

• The research objective
• Research questions

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 A Good Problem Statement

• Research objective: why of the research

• Research objective applied research:

• to solve a specific problem in a work setting;
• to change something.

• Example:
• To determine factors that increase employee commitment
to the organization;

• Allows manager to increase commitment and hence to

decrease turnover, absenteeism and increase performance
levels. 14
Example

The purpose of this study is twofold:

1. to identify the factors that influence the passenger’s waiting
experience and
2. to investigate the possible impact of waiting on customer
satisfaction and service evaluations.

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 A Good Problem Statement
• Research questions:
• what of the research (what do you want to learn?)
• Translates problem into a specific need for information

• Research questions:
• Are related to the objective
• If objective is unclear we will not be able to formulate research questions

• Example:
• What are the factors that affect the perceived waiting experience of airline
passengers
• To what extent do these factors affect the perception of waiting times?
• What are the affective consequences of waiting
• How does affect mediate the relationship between waiting and service
evaluations?
• How do situational variables (such as filled time) influence customer reactions to
the waiting experience?
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Good Problem Statement

• Relevant
• for the organization
• Feasible
• you are able to answer the research
questions within the restrictions of the
research project.
• Interesting
• to you!

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Basic Types of Questions

•Exploratory
•Descriptive
•Causal

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 Basic Types of Questions
• Exploratory questions:
• not much is known about the situation at
hand, or no information is available on how
similar problems or research issues have been
solved in the past.
• Example:
• A service provider wants to know why his
customers are switching to other service
providers?

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 Basic Types of Questions
• Descriptive questions:
• Enable the researcher to describe the characteristics of
the variables of interest in a situation.
• Example:
• What is the profile of the individuals who have loan
payments outstanding for 6 months and more?
• The profile would include details of their average age,
earnings, nature of occupation, full-time/part-time
employment status, and the like. This might help him to
elicit further information or decide right away on the
types of individuals who should be made ineligible for
loans in the future.

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Basic Types of Questions

• Causal questions:
• Delineating one or more factors that are
causing a problem.
• Example:
• Will the sales of product X increase if we
increase the advertising budget?

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The Research Proposal

• The research proposal drawn up by the investigator is the result

of a planned, organized, and careful effort.

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Research Proposal Contains (1)

• Working title.
• Background of the study.
• The problem statement.
- The purpose of the study.
- Research questions.
• The scope of the study.
• The relevance of the study.

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Research Proposal Contains (2)

• The research design offering details on:

a. Type of study
b. Data collection methods
c. The sampling design.
d. Data analysis.
• Time frame of the study
• Budget
• Selected bibliography.

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Unit Summary
• You should now be able to:
• Identify problem areas the are likely to be studied in organizations
• Narrow down a broad problem into a feasible topic for research using
preliminary research
• Develop a good problem statement
• Develop a research proposal

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Question & Answers

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