RMBA 052: BUSINESS

RESEARCH AND
REPORTING

MODULE 5
LECTURER: Prof E Matiku
(PhD)
SELECTING A RESEARCH
DESIGN
LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this Module, students should be
able to:
 Know the meaning of a research design
 Understand the features of research design
 Understand the importance of a research
design
Understand the different types of research
designs and their uses
Appreciate the use of case study design
SELECTING A RESEARCH DESIGN

 What is meant by Research Design?

 What is the importance of a research
design in a research process?
 What are the different research designs
in research?
Before this stage, the researcher has completed
THREE stages of the research process as
provided in the figure hereunder:
A research Process
r 1. Identifying a
Research 6. Collecting 7. Analysing
Problem Data Data

2. Determining 5. Drawing 8. Interpreting

Research a Sample Data
Objectives and
Questions

4. Selecting a 9. Writing a
Research Research
3. Reviewing
Design Report
Literature
STAGE 1: Identifying a research problem
The researcher has selected the research
problem and is clear about what needs to be
investigated in terms of:
 The background/history of the research
problem.
The statement of the research problem.
STAGE 2: Determining research objectives
The researcher has determined:
 The general objective of the study.
 The specific objectives of the study.
 The research questions to be answered.
STAGE 3: Review of Relevant Literature
In this stage, the researcher has carried out a review of
the relevant literature in terms of:
 Defining relevant concepts and terms:
Example: What is meant by school drop out?
The general factors influencing the existence of your
identified research problem. Example: What does the
literature say generally about the possible causes of
school drop out among girls?
The current research (empirical studies) related to your
study. Example: What similar studies have been done by
other researchers on the problem?
STAGE 4: The Research Design
After completing stage 1, 2 and 3, you find yourself
confronted with the following questions:
Given my research problem to be investigated:
What data will be required to meet the objectives
of the study?
How will the data be collected?
Where will the data be collected
What will be the unit of inquiry?
What will be the time and cost of collecting the
data?
How will the data be analysed?
WHAT IS A RESEARCH DESIGN?
When considering the above questions and
deciding how to address them, you are
dealing with what is known as the research
design.
Definitions:
Design is the process of intentionally creating
something while simultaneously considering
its objective (purpose), function and cost-
benefits.
Creswell and Plano Clark (2007, p. 58) define a
research design as the 'procedures for
collecting, analyzing, interpreting and
reporting data in research studies‘.
It is the overall plan in which the researcher
makes decisions on various procedures to be
applied in carrying out data collection and
data analysis to realize the general and
specific objectives of the research study.
 METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION
There are basically six methods of data collection
namely:
 Interview
 Questionnaire
 Direct observation
Case study
 Documentary review
 Focus group discussions
When you decide on and select the
method/procedure you are going to use to
carry to collect data for a particular study,
then your selected method or procedure is
your research design.
It is important to note that different categories
of research employ different methods of data
collection.
This means, there are different research
designs for different research categories.
The method or design to be selected by the
researcher for data collection will always
depend on the purpose of the research.
Given the research purpose, a research design,
therefore, involves decisions about:
 What data to be collected
 How much data to be collected
 Where is the data to be collected
 How will data be collected.
DIFFERENT TYPES OF RESEARCH
In module 1 of this course, we identified
different types or categories of research as
shown below:
 RESEARCH CATEGORIES
AIM/INTENTION/PURPOSE TYPE OF RESEARCH
1. To develop and expand Pure/Basic/Fundamental
scientific knowledge and Research
understanding
2. To solve a practical problem Applied Research
3. To identify characteristics, Descriptive Research
patterns and correlations
4. To test causal relationships Experimental Research
between existing variables?
5. To understanding the current Cross-sectional Research
situation (e.g. Covid-19)
In each of the above research categories, a
different plan or procedure may be applied
for data collection.
For example, the methods and procedures used
to collect data in exploratory research are
different from those applied in descriptive
research etc.
For instance, the purpose of a descriptive study is to
provide a picture or characteristics of a situation,
person or event or show how things are related
to each other.
However, descriptive studies cannot explain why an
event has occurred or why a particular situation
exists.
A different category of research called cross-
sectional research or exploratory research is
required to accomplish this objective.
Exploratory research is conducted when
enough is not known about a certain
problem.
Therefore, different procedures will be applied
between descriptive and exploratory research
categories.
For example, the main method or procedure
applied in descriptive research is Observation,
while in exploratory research it is Survey.
 Need for Research Design
For better, economical and attractive
construction of a house, we need a
blueprint (or what is called the map of the
house)
Therefore, a research design is necessary
because it makes possible the smooth
carrying out of the research using the various
research procedures.
Research design stands for advance
planning of the methods to be adopted
for collecting the relevant data and the
techniques to be used in data analysis,
keeping in view the objective of the research.
The research design helps the investigator to
organize his/her ideas in a manner that will
make it possible for him/her to identify errors
and shortages and how to avoid them.
Importance of A Research Design
A well selected research design is important to you
because it:
 helps you to prepare yourself to carry out research
in a proper and systematic way.
 ensures that requisite data is collected accurately
and economically in accordance with the problem
at hand .
 leads to better documentation of the various
activities while the research work is going on.
 guides you in the right direction
 minimizes wastage of your research time;
FEATURES OF A GOOD RESEARCH DESIGN
From the definition and what has been stated above, we
can state the important features of a research design as
follows: It is a plan that:
specifies the sources and types of information relevant
to the research problem.
 specifies which approach, method or procedure will be
used for gathering and analysing the data.
indicates the area where the research will take place
shows the population to be studied and the size of
sample
includes the time and cost budgets for the study.
FEATURES OF A GOOD RESEARCH DESIGN ..
Research design should be in line with:
the focus of the research which may be
either:
conditions to be investigated: e.g. the
current status of the labour market or,
orientation: e.g. what people believe in or
their attitudes or behaviour or
actions: e.g. how people travel in rural
areas.
problem to be investigated.
unity of analysis: households, group of
people, individual, schools etc
the time dimension of the problem to be
investigated
MAJOR CATEGORIES OF RESEARCH
DESIGNS
Depending on the purpose of the research,
research design falls under the following
three major categories of designs as follows:
 Operational design
 Sampling design
 Statistical design
 1) Operational design:
This concerns the overall method to be used by the
researcher for field study.
Let us assume that the researcher has completed
his/her literature review and is now read to go to
the field for data collection.
Before he/she starts his/her fieldwork to collect
data, he/she is required to select an overall
method that will make it easy for his/her to
organize and complete his/her objective.
This overall method is called Operational design.
Under operational design, there are several methods,
branches or sub-designs from which the researcher
can choose from, depending on the purpose of
his/her research. These are:
case study design,
survey design,
experimental design.
Case Study Design
A case study design or plan is an in depth study of a
particular situation or organization within its real-
life context.
Under this method you can take one single social
unit (e.g. a business organization) or a situation
and study it comprehensively and in minute
details.
The purpose of the case study design is to locate the
factors that account for the behaviour-patterns of
the given business organization.
Basic Tools For Data Collection In Case Study
Design
Case study research typically employs
multiple data collection
techniques and data are collected from multiple
sources. Data collection techniques include:
 interviews,
observations (direct and participant),
questionnaires, and
relevant documents
Advantages Of Using Case Study Design
There are several advantages of the case study
method/design as follows:
It is an exhaustive study and hence, the case
study method enables us to understand fully
the behaviour pattern of the concerned
organization.
It enables the researcher to obtain a real and
enlightened record of personal experiences in
organizations, which would reveal man’s inner
conflicts, tensions and motivations that drive him to
action along with the forces that direct him to
adopt a certain pattern of behaviour.
It enables the researcher to trace out the
natural history of the organization and its
relationship with the social factors and the
forces involved in its surrounding
environment.
 It enables the researcher to use the methods
of data collection effectively.
It enables the researcher to generalize results
of the finding. This is on assumption of
uniformity in the basic human nature in spite
of the fact that human behaviour may vary
according to situations
Limitations Of Case Study Design
Case study design/method has several
disadvantages as follows:
It consumes more time and requires lot of
expenditure. More time is needed under case
study method since one studies the
organization in great details.
The danger of false generalisation always
exists because no set rules or principles are
followed in collection of the information and
only few units are studied.
Survey Design
Survey research design is a procedure or
method applied research whereby the
researcher conducts a survey to a sample or
to the entire population of people to
describe the attitudes, opinions, behaviors,
or characteristics of the population.
Basic Tools For Data Collection In Survey
Design

Data collection methods used in survey design

include:
 Interview (e,g, online survey)
 Questionnaire
Usefulness Of Survey Design
Survey design may be advantageous for the
following reasons:
 Opinions and attitudes: It helps to determine
beliefs, opinions and attitudes of people towards
something (e.g. a business policy).
 Product improvement: It helps in product
improvement, to find out what people think
about a particular product, and what should be
done.
 Follow-up studies: It is used in follow-up studies
(e.g. follow up on graduates 5 years after
graduation).
Cost effectiveness
Surveys – particularly online surveys – have a
very small cost per participant.
Data Collection
Data collection is much easier with surveys,
which tend to use easy to read data sources
that can be compiled and analyzed as needed
for your market research needs.
Sample Size
Surveys allow you to reach thousands of possible
participants if necessary, which ensures a more
accurate sample in which to draw conclusions.
Candid and honest Responses
The anonymity of surveys allows people to feel
more free with their responses.
Therefore, surveys provide more honest responses
than other types of research methodology,
especially if it is clear that the answers will remain
confidential.
.
 Limitations Of Surveys
Sample Choice
The researcher may not be able to reach everyone
involved in the sample. For example, if you are
using online survey on low income communities,
many may not have email access or handsets, so
their voice won’t be heard in your data.
Rigidity
Another weakness of survey research is rigidity.
When developing survey questionnaire, it may
be difficult to obtain all the answers. Other wise
you may be missing out on data.
 2) Sampling design:
A sampling or sample design is the framework,
or road map, that serves as the basis for
selecting subjects or items for study.
The subjects or items called a sample are
selected from a larger population.
The sample design provides the basic plan and
procedure for selecting the sample.
 Experimental Design
What is experimental design?
Experimental design is a study that includes a
hypothesis, whereby there is a variable
(experimental variable) that can be
manipulated by the researcher, and a
comparable variable (control variable) that
can be measured, calculated and compared.
PRINCIPLES OF EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN
There are three principles applied in
experimental design:
 the Principle of Local Control;
 the Principle of Randomization;
 the Principle of Replication.
a) The Principle of Local Control
We may wish to test or prove the following Research
Question: Does salted drinking water affect blood pressure
(BP) in mice?
A researcher needs to carry out an experiment to establish
the truth on this matter.
The Principle of local control requires that experimental
design should be planned in such a way that in carrying
out this experiment, there should be two mice, one for the
experiment (Mouse A) and another for control (Mouse B)
as demonstrated hereunder.
 EXAMPLE
Experiment:
1.Provide mouse A with water containing salt.
2.Wait 14 days.
3.Measure BP.
Control:
1.Provide mouse B with salt-free water.
2.Wait 14 days.
3.Measure BP.
Compare the results of mouse A and Mouse B.
b)The Principle of Randomization :
This principle indicates that when selecting
research units into the experimental and
control groups, random selection should be
observed to ensures that every unit has an
equal chance of being selected to serve as the
experimental unit or the control unit.
The purpose of Randomization is to remove
bias and promote objectivity of the results.
 Experimental Unit or Group
The experimental unit is defined as a physical entity
which is the primary unit of interest in a
specific research objective. In an interventional
study, the experimental unit is assigned to an
intervention.
Commonly the individual study
subject (animal, person or product) is the
experimental unit.
The experimental unit is the physical entity which
can be assigned, at random, to a treatment.
Control Unit or Group
The group that receives the treatment in
an experiment (e.g. Mouse A) is called
the experimental group, while the group that
does not receive the treatment (e.g. Mouse B)
is called the control group.
The control group provides a baseline that lets
us see if the treatment has any effect.
c) The Principle of Replication
According to the Principle of Replication, the
experiment should be repeated more than
once to ensure reliability of the results.
By doing so the accuracy of the experiment is
increased.
This increases the reliability and acceptability
of the experimental results.
This principle is followed by World Health
Organization (WHO) in re-testing drugs
before they are approved for human use.
Advantages of Experimental Design
It provides researchers with a high level of
control.
Experimental research provides conclusions
that are objective and specific.
The results of experimental research can be
duplicated/replicated
 3) Statistical design:
The third category of research design is the
statistical design.
This deals with procedures to be applied in
analysing collected data.
Before the researcher has collected data, he/she
has to decide or plan how the data will be
analysed and interpreted.
Researchers make use of software packages such as
SPSS (i.e. Statistical Package for Social Sciences)
to carry out data analysis and interpretation.
END OF MODULE 5