2020-

2021
Course Title Batch:
Course 20BLU19 And
Code Onwards
RESEARCH METHODS FOR
Semester: V
MANAGEMENT
Hrs/Week: 6 L 6 T P Credits: 4

BLOOMS
S.No COURSE OUTCOME
LEVEL
Defining the research concepts, types and the research design and
CO1 K1
growing importance of online research
CO2 Inferring the sampling types and various scaling techniques. K2
Determining data collection methods, prepare a Questionnaire, and
CO3 K3
online data collection

CO4 Analyze data, Interpret the data and prepare a research report. K4

20BLU19 RESEARCH METHODS FOR MANAGEMENT V

Unit No. Topics Hours

Introduction to Research and Research Process
Research: Meaning, Objectives, Types, Significance of research Process- 15
I Defining the Research Problem and Selection of the Research Problem.
Research design: Meaning- Need and its types– Criteria of Good Research-
Application of Research.
Sampling and Scaling Techniques
Sampling Design: Meaning, Types of Sampling Design – Determination of 14
Sample Size and Sampling Error.Measurement: Basic measurement scales-
II
nominal scale, Ordinal scale, interval scale and ratio scale. Scaling
techniques: comparative scaling techniques-non-comparative scaling
techniques.
Data Collection
Meaning and types – primary and secondary data collection - Observation, 14
survey, Questionnaire & Interview methods. Design – meaning, types
III process of designing Questionnaire. Secondary data sources – advantage
and disadvantage. Growing importance of online data collection – pros and
cons of online data collection techniques.
 Data Analysis
Data analysis: editing, Coding, classification .tabulation Graphical 15
IV representation of results–Hypothesis - its sources - formulation and testing
of Hypothesis - Z test, T test - Chi-square test (Simple Problems Only)-
Data Analysis Using MS-Excel.
Interpretation and report writing
Meaning of Interpretation-Techniques of Interpretation-Significance of 14
V
Report Writing-steps in report writing - Layout of Research Report,-Types
of Reports.

Teaching methods: Lecturing, PowerPoint Projection through LCD, Assignment, Discussion,

and Case Studies.
1. Uma Sekaran,”Research Methods for Business-A Skill Based Approach,” Fourth Edition,
Wiley India Pvt Ltd, New Delhi
1. Kothari C.R. – “Research Methodology” , New Age International Publishers.
2. Naresh K Malhotra,”Marketing Research-An Applied Orientation,”Pearson Education, New
Delhi.
3. Dr. Sharma D.D,”Marketing Research-Principles, Applications&Cases,”Sultan Chand &
Sons, New Delhi.
4. Saravanavel, “Research Methodology”, 16th Edition, KitabMahal, Allahabad
Web Link:

1. https://johnnoels.medium.com/what-is-spss-and-its-importance-in-research-data-analysis-
5f109ab90da1
 20BLU19
Research Methods For Management
Unit-I
Introduction To Research And
Research Process
BUSINESS RESEARCH

 Research – ‘Re – search’

Companies use research to make major decisions that affect

production, sales, service, hiring, promotion, and locations.

Business Research can be simply defined as a process of gather

comprehensive data and information of all the areas of business and
incorporating this information for sales and profit maximization.

Business research is a systematic management activity helping

companies to determine which product will be most profitable for
companies to produce.
 Business Research Example

Let say there’s an automobile company that is planning to

launch a car that runs on CNG. In order to promote cleaner
fuel, the company will be involved in developing different
plans and strategies to identify the demand for the car they
are intending to launch. Other than this, the company will
also look for competitors, the target audience, keeping in
mind the distribution of CNG in India. Hence the researches
are conducted on various ideas to formulate a sustainable
and more efficient design.
Scope of Business Research
1. Business competition – Competition is increasing day by day. To know about
customers, products and industry competition.
• Customers: To know their needs, their perception and future requirements.
Research helps to find out the variables and factors which are significant for
increasing customer loyalty and adding new customers.
• Products: Research helps to know customer needs and helps to develop new
product development. To decide about pricing, positioning, packaging, branding,
sales promotion and other promotional techniques to carry out business
research.
• Industry competition: To know what other companies are doing to increase their
market share…
2. Business environment – Business environment is the totality of

those factors which affect the business but are not under the control
of managers.
Economic and non-economic elements of environment includes,
• Economic system
• Economic anatomy
• Government legislations
• Government policies
• Movement of policies
• Velocity of policies
• Fiscal and monetary policies
• Ideology of ruling party
Importance of Business Research

• Gain better insights about their Target customer’s preference, buying patterns,
demographic and pain areas.
• Finding the areas where unnecessary costs can be minimised
• Business can innovate constantly

Different Research topics studied in departments,

Marketing
• Product identification
• Demand estimation
• Demand – supply analysis
• Product development
• Market segmentation
• Media mix
• Sales promotion programme
• Product launching
• Design of distribution channel
• Packaging…
Production

• Forecasting
• Capacity Planning
• Plant location and layout
• Inventory control
• Aggregate planning
• Project management
• Quality control
• Modern production system design like JIT…

Finance

• Model of break-even analysis of multi-product

• Economic evaluation of alternative
• Capital budgeting
• Ratio analysis
• Portfolio Management
• Inflation, Deflation…
Research Process

1. Problem Definition
2. Objectives of the research
3. Research Design
4. Data Collection
5. Data Analysis
6. Interpretation of results
7. Validation of results
1.Problem Definition

• A Research problem must be identified and defined.

• A good research always starts with a good problem.
• The research problem guides you in formulating the hypothesis and interpretation
of your findings so that you can formulate the right conclusion.

Researcher need to identify both

 Non-research Problem, and
 Research Problem.

Non-research Problems:
• Rises in the price of warm clothes during winter;
• Preferring admission in public universities over private universities;
• Crisis of accommodations in sea resorts during summer
• Traffic jam in the city street after office hours;
• High sales in department stores after an offer of a discount.
Research Problem

A research problem is of primary concern to a researcher.

a problem will qualify as a potential research problem when the following three
conditions exist:

1. There should be a perceived discrepancy between “what it is” and “what it should
have been.” This implies that there should be a difference between “what exists”
and the “ideal or planned situation”;
2. A question about “why” the discrepancy exists. This implies that the reason(s) for
this discrepancy is unclear to the researcher (so that it makes sense to develop a
research question); and
Example
While visiting a rural area, the UNICEF team observed that some villages have female school
attendance rates as high as 75%, while some have as low as 10%, although all villages should
have a nearly equal rate of attendance. What factors are associated with this discrepancy?

We may enumerate several reasons for this:

• Villages differ in their socio-economic background.
• In some villages, the Muslim population constitutes a large proportion of the total
population. Religion might play a vital role.
• Schools are far away from some villages. The distance thus may make this difference.

Because there is more than one answer to the problem, it is considered a research problem, and
a study can be undertaken to find a solution.
2.Objectives of the Research

Objectives of the research must be identified by taking the system requirements into account.
Objectives of the research may be Quantitative and/or Qualitative.
In the process, the researcher must finalize,

 Research Questions
 Hypothesis
 Boundary of the study

Research questions: Research questions are the problems which are not resolved till date.
The question must be relating to

• Purpose: What is the purpose of the study?

• Place: Whare does the study takes place?
• Present state: What is the present state of the research issue?
• Means: How is the purpose achieved? Why that particular method?

Hypothesis: is an assumption about a population of the study.

“Hypothesis: Age has no influence over achieving sales target of a salesperson”

Here the hypothesis may be true or false

Boundary of the study: Boundaries that limit the scope of the investigation to a
specified group of individuals, phenomena, geography.

3.Research Design: Complete guidelines for data collection. The essence of research
design:

• Selection of research approach – Exploratory Research and Conclusive research

(Survey based research)…
• Design of sampling plan – Probability sampling plan and non-probability sampling
plan.
• Design of experiment
• Design of questionnaire

Probability sampling plans – Simple random sampling, Systematic sampling,

Stratified random sampling, Cluster sampling, Multi-stage sampling.

Non-probability sampling – Convenience sampling, Judgement sampling, Quota

sampling, Snowball sampling
Design of experiment:

A study involves different response variables. Each response variable may be affected
by several factors. To test the effect of these factors on a response variables, a suitable
experiments is to be designed.

Steps of designing the experiments:

1. Identify the response variable of the study.
2. For each response variable, repeat the following variable:
• Identify the factors affecting the response variable
• Decide on the type of each of the factors (a factor may be fixed or random factor)
• Fix the number of levels (treatments) of each factor.
• From the skeleton of the experiment
• Write the model of the experiment and define its components.
Design of questionnaire:

Data – Primary data and secondary data.

Primary data: Data collected for the first time by direct observation.
Secondary data: Data which is obtained from existing records,
Publications…

Methods of collecting primary data: Observation methods, personal

interview, telephonic interview and mail survey.

The success of survey depends on the questionnaire.

Steps in designing questionnaire

• Identify the research issue and finalize the hypothesis

• Formulate set of questions and decide the content and format of each
question
• Deciding question wording depending upon the types of questions
• Arrangement of questions in the questionnaire in appropriate
sequence and also deciding the format of the questionnaire
• Pre-testing questionnaire
• Review the questionnaire for improvement
4.Data Collection – Basic input to any decision-making process

I. Primary Data – Observation method, Personal interview,

Telephonic interview and Mail survey.
II. Secondary Data – Collected from source which have been already created for the
purpose of first time use and future uses.
Secondary data can be collected from “Internal & External sources”

Internal sources – Organizations own past records or data that are stored.
External source- Government publications, journals, publication of trade association,
books, annual report…
5. Data Analysis

With the help of tools and applications, the collected data’s are analysed.

• Tools for classification of data’s are,

• Frequency distribution
• Cumulative frequency distribution
• Relative frequency distribution
• Charts

The analysis of data involves one or more of the following tasks:

• Computation of statistics
• Designing regression equation for estimating response variables as a function of set
of independent variables
• Performing correlation analysis
• Testing hypothesis relating to various issues of the research
• Factor analysis
• Discriminant analysis
• Conjoint analysis – (used in market research to understand how customers value
different components or features of their products or services)
6. Interpretation of Results
7. Validation of Results
After interpretation of results, the results must be validated by using
past data.
The process of validation of results ensure the credibility of the results.
Types of Research

• Descriptive Research
• Exploratory Research
• Conclusive research
• Theoretical/Conceptual Research
• Empirical Research
• Cross –Sectional Research
• Time – series Research
• Applied Research
• Quantitative Research
• Qualitative Research
• Experimental Research
• Historical Research
Exploratory Research

• Is the study of an unfamiliar problem about which the researcher has little or no
knowledge.
• In initial research which analyzes the data and explore the possibility of obtaining
as many relationships as possible between different variables without knowing
their end-application
• It involves a literature search or conducting focus group interview.
• The objective of exploratory research is to identify key issues and key variables
Example: Exploratory study of a new management technique in order to brief a
management team.
Purpose of Exploratory research:
• To generate new idea
• To increase the researcher’s familiarity with the problem
• To make a precise formulation of the problem
Conclusive research

“Exploratory research” - lays the foundation for the

formulation of hypothesis.
“Conclusive research” – tests the hypothesis of a research
problem formulated by exploratory research and draws
definite conclusions for implementations.

After validating the hypotheses, a decision-making

framework can be formulated.

The conclusive research is classified into Descriptive

research and Experimental research & Casual research

H0
Descriptive Research

• It seeks to provide an accurate description of observation of a

phenomenon.
• It is fact finding investigation with adequate interpretation.
• It is the simplest type of research which focus on particular aspects
or dimensions of the problem studied.

Example: Product – Television.

• The degree of use of television varies? with respect to
age(5,10,15,20,25,30,40,45.50+), sex, income level and profession as
well as place and time.

The researcher design a suitable questionnaire to capture data from the

respondents to test the above hypotheses and come out with
conclusions after data analysis.
Experimental Research

• Used to study the effect of a set of factors on the response of a

system of study
• This research is conducted in a controlled environment, and analysed
using ANOVA

Example: Rating of the taste of a soft drink by respondents on 1 to 10

scale. The factors which affect the response variable, namely the rating
be the Age and Profession of the respondent.
Casual Research (Explanatory Research)
• To find Cause and Effect relationships between two or more variables.
• It assists in determining the impact of a change in process and existing methods.
• It is easy to narrow down the cause and effect relationship by making sure that
both variables are not affected by any force other than each other.
• In order to maintain accuracy, other variables are assumed to be constant.
• It can help determine the exact impact an individual variable has on another.
• For example, “to find the connection between their customers and the changing
prices of their goods.

• Characteristics of causal research are:

• It follows a temporal sequence and therefore the “cause” must take place before
the “effect”.
• The variation must be systematic between the variables. This is known as
concomitant variation.
• The association should be nonspurious and therefore any covariation between a
cause and effect must not be due to a ‘third’ factor.

Cause – Action
Effect – Reaction of the action
Theoretical Research/Conceptual Research
• Logical exploration of a system of beliefs and assumptions.
• This type of research includes theorizing or defining how a cyber
system and its environment behave and then exploring or playing out
the implications of how it is defined.
• This research is very valuable in understanding the bounds, edge
cases, and emergent behaviors of a system.
• Does not involve any practical experiments
• Abstract concepts or Ideas
• Philosophers have long used conceptual research to develop new
theories or interpret existing theories.

Karnataka, Majority people like to travel in KSRTC rather than Private

bus.

The people who all are migrated to Kerala like to travel in train rather
than bus
Empirical Research
• Relies on experiments or observation
• Using Empirical evidence
• Conclusions of the study drawn from concretely empirical evidence
• It makes use of verifiable evidence in order to arrive at research
outcomes
• Data based research
• Empirical evidence can be gathered using, Quantitative and
Qualitative Market Research
RESEARCH METHODS FOR
MANAGEMENT
Unit-II

Sampling and Scaling Techniques

• Sampling Design
• A sample design is a definite plan for obtaining a
sample from a given population.

• It refers to the technique or the procedure the

researcher would adopt in selecting items for the
sample.

• Each element/respondent has a known

probability of being included in the sample.
• For example,

• A researcher may want to interview males

through a telephone survey.

• In this case, the sample design might be a

relatively simple one-stage sample of
telephone numbers using [Page 777]random-
digit dialing.
Sampling unit - choosing the category of the population to
be surveyed is the first and the foremost decision in a
sampling plan that initiates the research.

In the case of Banking industry, should the sampling unit consist of

current account holders, saving account holders, or both? Should it
include male or female account holders? These decisions once made
the then sampling frame is designed to give everyone in the target
population equal chance of being sampled.
size of the sample - “the larger the sample size, the more is the
reliability”
Sampling Methods
Random Sampling Methods:
The random sampling is also called as a probability sampling since
the sample selection is done randomly so the laws of probability can be
applied.

It is mainly used in quantitative research.

• Simple Random Sampling

• Stratified Sampling
• Systematic Sampling
• Multi-Stage Sampling
Simple random sampling
•In a simple random sample, every member of the
population has an equal chance of being selected.
•Your sampling frame should include the whole population.

Systematic sampling
•Systematic sampling is similar to simple random sampling,
but it is usually slightly easier to conduct.
•Every member of the population is listed with a number,
but instead of randomly generating numbers, individuals are
chosen at regular intervals.

(6, 16, 26, 36, and so on)

Stratified sampling
Stratified sampling involves dividing the population into
subpopulations that may differ in important ways. It allows you draw
more precise conclusions by ensuring that every subgroup is properly
represented in the sample.

divide the population into subgroups (called strata) based on the

relevant characteristic (e.g. gender, age range, income bracket, job
role).

Then you use random or systematic sampling to select a sample

from each subgroup.

The company has 800 female employees and 200 male employees. You
want to ensure that the sample reflects the gender balance of the
company, so you sort the population into two strata based on gender.
Then you use random sampling on each group, selecting 80 women and
20 men, which gives you a representative sample of 100 people.
Cluster sampling
Cluster sampling also involves dividing the population into subgroups,
but each subgroup should have similar characteristics to the whole
sample. Instead of sampling individuals from each subgroup, you
randomly select entire subgroups.

The company has offices in 10 cities across the country (all with
roughly the same number of employees in similar roles). You don’t
have the capacity to travel to every office to collect your data, so you
use random sampling to select 3 offices – these are your clusters.
Non-Random sampling methods

•Individuals are selected based on non-random criteria, and not every

individual has a chance of being included.
•it has a higher risk of sampling bias.
•Non-probability sampling techniques are often used
in exploratory and qualitative research.
Convenience sampling
A convenience sample simply includes the individuals who happen to
be most accessible to the researcher.

This is an easy and inexpensive way to gather initial data, but there is
no way to tell if the sample is representative of the population, so it
can’t produce generalizable results.

Purposive sampling
This type of sampling, also known as judgement sampling, involves the
researcher using their expertise to select a sample that is most useful to
the purposes of the research.
Snowball sampling
•If the population is hard to access, snowball sampling can be used to
recruit participants via other participants.
•The number of people you have access to “snowballs” as you get in
contact with more people.

Quota sampling
Researchers create a sample involving individuals that represent a
population. Researchers choose these individuals according to specific
traits or qualities.

A cigarette company wants to find out what age group prefers what
brand of cigarettes in a particular city. They apply survey quota on the
age groups of 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, and 51+. From this information, the
researcher gauges the smoking trend among the population of the city.
Determination of Sample Size and
Sampling Error
• Sample Size
• The sample size is a term used in market research
for defining the number of subjects included in a
sample size.
• By sample size, we understand a group of
subjects that are selected from the general
population and is considered a representative of
the real population for that specific study.
• The formula is described as:
• Sample Size = N / (1 + N*e2) N = population
size.
• Note that this is the least accurate formula
and, as such, the least ideal.
Sampling Error
• A sampling error is a statistical error that
occurs when an analyst does not select a
sample that represents the entire population
of data.

• As a result, the results found in the sample do

not represent the results that would be
obtained from the entire population.
• Sampling is an analysis performed by selecting
a number of observations from a larger
population.

• The method of selection can produce both

sampling errors and non-sampling errors.
Sampling Error Formula
• Sampling Error=Z× σ
√n
• where:
• Z= Z score value based on the confidence
interval (approx=1.96)
• σ= Population standard deviation
• n= Size of the sample​
• The sampling error is calculated by dividing the
standard deviation of the population by the
square root of the size of the sample, and then
multiplying the resultant with the Z score
value, which is based on the confidence
interval.
• A sampling error occurs when the sample used in
the study is not representative of the whole
population.
• Sampling is an analysis performed by selecting a
number of observations from a larger population.
• Even randomized samples will have some degree of
sampling error because a sample is only an
approximation of the population from which it is
drawn.
• The prevalence of sampling errors can be
reduced by increasing the sample size.

• Random sampling is an additional way to

minimize the occurrence of sampling errors.

• In general, sampling errors can be placed into

four categories: population-specific error,
selection error, sample frame error, or non-
response error.
Types of Sampling Errors
• There are different categories of sampling
errors.
• Population-Specific Error

• A population-specific error occurs when a

researcher doesn't understand who to survey.
• Selection Error
• Selection error occurs when the survey is self-
selected, or when only those participants who
are interested in the survey respond to the
questions.
• Researchers can attempt to overcome
selection error by finding ways to encourage
participation.
•Sample Frame Error
• A sample frame error occurs when a sample is
selected from the wrong population data.
• Non-response Error
• A non-response error occurs when a useful
response is not obtained from the surveys
because researchers were unable to contact
potential respondents (or potential
respondents refused to respond).
• Eliminating Sampling Errors
• The prevalence of sampling errors can be
reduced by increasing the sample size.

• As the sample size increases, the sample gets

closer to the actual population, which
decreases the potential for deviations from
the actual population.
 Measurement

Basic measurement scales

• Scale:
• A scale is a device or an object used to measure
or quantify any event or another object.

• Scale Factor Definition

• Measurement Of Objects

• Data Handling

• Sampling Methods
• Nominal scale
• A nominal scale is the 1st level of
measurement scale in which the
numbers serve as “tags” or “labels” to
classify or identify the objects.
• A nominal scale usually deals with the
non-numeric variables or the numbers
that do not have any value.
• Characteristics of Nominal Scale
• A nominal scale variable is classified into two or more
categories.
• In this measurement mechanism, the answer should
fall into either of the classes.
• It is qualitative. The numbers are used here to identify
the objects.
• The numbers don’t define the object characteristics.
• The only permissible aspect of numbers in the nominal
scale is “counting.”
• Example:
• An example of a nominal scale measurement
is given below:
• What is your gender?
• M- Male
• F- Female
• Here, the variables are used as tags, and the
answer to this question should be either M or
F.
• Ordinal Scale
• The ordinal scale is the 2nd level of
measurement that reports the ordering and
ranking of data without establishing the
degree of variation between them.
• Ordinal represents the “order.”
• Ordinal data is known as qualitative data or
categorical data.
• It can be grouped, named and also ranked.
• Characteristics of the Ordinal Scale
• The ordinal scale shows the relative ranking of
the variables.
• It identifies and describes the magnitude of a
variable.
• Along with the information provided by the
nominal scale, ordinal scales give the rankings
of those variables.
• The interval properties are not known
• The surveyors can quickly analyse the degree
of agreement concerning the identified order
of variables.
• Example:
• Ranking of school students – 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.
• Ratings in restaurants
• Evaluating the frequency of occurrences
– Very often
– Often
– Not often
– Not at all
• Assessing the degree of agreement
– Totally agree
– Agree
– Neutral
– Disagree
– Totally disagree
• Interval Scale
• The interval scale is the 3rd level of measurement
scale.
• It is defined as a quantitative measurement scale
in which the difference between the two variables
is meaningful.
• In other words, the variables are measured in an
exact manner, not as in a relative way in which the
presence of zero is arbitrary (random consistent
rule).
• Characteristics of Interval Scale:
• The interval scale is quantitative as it can quantify the
difference between the values.
• It allows calculating the mean and median of the
variables.
• To understand the difference between the variables, you
can subtract the values between the variables.
• The interval scale is the preferred scale in Statistics as it
helps to assign any numerical values to arbitrary
assessment such as feelings, calendar types, etc.
• Example:

• Likert Scale

• Net Promoter Score (NPS)

• Bipolar Matrix Table

• Ratio Scale
• The ratio scale is the 4th level of measurement
scale, which is quantitative.
• It is a type of variable measurement scale. It
allows researchers to compare the differences or
intervals.
• The ratio scale has a unique feature.
• It possesses the character of the origin or zero
points.
• Characteristics of Ratio Scale:
• Ratio scale has a feature of absolute zero.
• It doesn’t have negative numbers, because of its
zero-point feature.
• It affords unique opportunities for statistical
analysis. The variables can be orderly added,
subtracted, multiplied, divided.
• Mean, median, and mode can be calculated using
the ratio scale.
• Ratio scale has unique and useful properties. One
such feature is that it allows unit conversions like
kilogram – calories, gram – calories, etc.
• Example:
• An example of a ratio scale is:
• What is your weight in Kgs?
• Less than 55 kgs
• 55 – 75 kgs
• 76 – 85 kgs
• 86 – 95 kgs
• More than 95 kgs
 Scaling Techniques
• Scaling technique is a method of placing
respondents in continuation of gradual change in
the pre-assigned values, symbols or numbers
based on the features of a particular object as per
the defined rules.

• All the scaling techniques are based on four pillars,

i.e., order, description, distance and origin.
Other Scaling Techniques
• Scaling of objects can be used for a comparative study
between more than one objects (products, services,
brands, events, etc.).
• Or can be individually carried out to understand the
consumer’s behaviour and response towards a particular
object.
• Following are the two categories under which other
scaling techniques are placed based on their
comparability:
• Comparative Scales
• For comparing two or more variables, a
comparative scale is used by the respondents.

• Following are the different types of

comparative scaling techniques:
Paired Comparison
• A paired comparison symbolizes two variables
from which the respondent needs to select
one.

• This technique is mainly used at the time of

product testing, to facilitate the consumers
with a comparative analysis of the two major
products in the market.
• To compare more than two objects say comparing P, Q and
R, one can first compare P with Q and then the superior
one (i.e., one with a higher percentage) with R.
• For example, A market survey was conducted to find out
consumer’s preference for the network service provider
brands, A and B. The outcome of the survey was as follows:
Brand ‘A’ = 57%
Brand ‘B’ = 43%
Thus, it is visible that the consumers prefer brand ‘A’, over
brand ‘B’.
• Rank Order
• In rank order scaling the respondent needs to rank or
arrange the given objects according to his or her
preference.
• For example,
• A soap manufacturing company conducted a rank
order scaling to find out the orderly preference of the
consumers.
• It asked the respondents to rank the following brands
in the sequence of their choice:
SOAP BRANDS RANK

Brand V 4

Brand X 2

Brand Y 1

Brand Z 3
• The above scaling shows that soap ‘Y’ is the
most preferred brand, followed by soap ‘X’,
then soap ‘Z’ and the least preferred one is
the soap ‘V’.
 •Constant Sum
• It is a scaling technique where a continual sum
of units like dollars, points, chits, chips, etc. is
given to the features, attributes and
importance of a particular product or service
by the respondents.
• For example,
• The respondents belonging to 3 different
segments were asked to allocate 50 points to
the following attributes of a cosmetic product
‘P’:
ATTRIBUTES SEGMENT 1 SEGMENT 2 SEGMENT 3

Finish 11 8 9

Skin Friendly 11 12 12

Fragrance 7 11 8

Packaging 9 8 10

Price 12 11 11
• From the above constant sum scaling analysis,
we can see that:

• Segment 1 considers product ‘P’ due to its

competitive price as a major factor.

• But segment 2 and segment 3, prefers the

product because it is skin-friendly.
 Q-Sort Scaling
• Q-sort scaling is a technique used for sorting the most
appropriate objects out of a large number of given variables.

• It emphasizes on the ranking of the given objects in a

descending order to form similar piles based on specific
attributes.

• It is suitable in the case where the number of objects is not

less than 60 and more than 140, the most appropriate of all
ranging between 60 to 90.
• For example,
• The marketing manager of a garment
manufacturing company sorts the most efficient
marketing executives based on their past
performance, sales revenue generation, dedication
and growth.
• The Q-sort scaling was performed on 60 executives,
and the marketing head creates three piles based
on their efficiency as follows:
In the above diagram, the initials of the employees
are used to denote their names.
• Non-Comparative Scales
• A non-comparative scale is used to analyse the
performance of an individual product or object
on different parameters.

• Following are some of its most common types:

• Continuous Rating Scales
• It is a graphical rating scale where the
respondents are free to place the object at a
position of their choice.

• It is done by selecting and marking a point

along the vertical or horizontal line which
ranges between two extreme criteria.
• For example,

• A mattress manufacturing company used a

continuous rating scale to find out the level of
customer satisfaction for its new comfy
bedding.

• The response can be taken in the following

different ways (stated as versions here):
• The above diagram shows a non-comparative
analysis of one particular product, i.e. comfy
bedding.

• Thus, making it very clear that the customers

are quite satisfied with the product and its
features.
• Itemized Rating Scale
• Itemized scale is another essential technique
under the non-comparative scales.
• It emphasizes on choosing a particular
category among the various given categories
by the respondents.
• Each class is briefly defined by the researchers
to facilitate such selection.
• The three most commonly used itemized rating
scales are as follows:
• Likert Scale:
• In the Likert scale, the researcher provides
some statements and ask the respondents to
mark their level of agreement or disagreement
over these statements by selecting any one of
the options from the five given alternatives.
• For example,
• A shoes manufacturing company adopted the Likert scale
technique for its new sports shoe range named Z sports
shoes.

• The purpose is to know the agreement or disagreement

of the respondents.
For this, the researcher asked the respondents to circle a
number representing the most suitable answer according
to them, in the following representation:
• 1 – Strongly Disagree

• 2 – Disagree

• 3 – Neither Agree Nor Disagree

• 4 – Agree

• 5 – Strongly Agree
 NEITHER
STRONGLY STRONGLY
STATEMENT DISAGREE AGREE NOR AGREE
DISAGREE AGREE
DISAGREE
Z sports 1 2 3 4 5
shoes are
very light
weight
Z sports 1 2 3 4 5
shoes are
extremely
comfortable
sports shoes 1 2 3 4 5
look too
trendy
I will 1 2 3 4 5
definitely
recommend Z
sports shoes
to friends,
family and
colleagues
• The above illustration will help the company
to understand what the customers think about
its products.

• Also, whether there is any need for

improvement or not.
• Semantic Differential Scale:
• A bi-polar seven-point non-comparative rating
scale is where the respondent can mark on any
of the seven points for each given attribute of
the object as per personal choice.

• Thus, depicting the respondent’s attitude or

perception towards the object.
• For example,

• A well-known brand for watches, carried out

semantic differential scaling to understand the
customer’s attitude towards its product.

• The pictorial representation of this technique

is as follows:
• From the above diagram, we can analyze that
the customer finds the product of superior
quality; however, the brand needs to focus
more on the styling of its watches.
• Stapel Scale:

• A Stapel scale is that itemized rating scale which

measures the response, perception or attitude
of the respondents for a particular object
through a unipolar rating.

• The range of a Stapel scale is between -5 to +5

eliminating 0, thus confining to 10 units.
• For example,
• A tours and travel company asked the
respondent to rank their holiday package in
terms of value for money and user-friendly
interface as follows:
• With the help of the above scale, we can say
that the company needs to improve its package
in terms of value for money.

• However, the decisive point is that the interface

is quite user-friendly for the customers.
• Scaling techniques provide a clear picture of
the product life cycle and the market
acceptability of the products offered.

• It facilitates product development and

benchmarking through rigorous market

research.
 Unit-III
Data Collection
Data
• Foundation of any research
• Quality Data is needed to get the accuracy of
the research result.
• Research based on old and irrelevant data
leads to faulty solution.
• Purpose of gathering information
• It helps in recording, analysing, and making
decisions regarding significant issues
Data collection starts with,

1)Identifying the purpose of research

2)Identifying the sources of data collection

3)Collecting the data

4)Analysing the collected data and get a

conclusion
• Types
• Primary Data

• Secondary Data
• Primary Data
• Primary data is the data that is collected for the first time
through personal experiences or evidence, particularly for
research.

• It is also described as raw data or first-hand information.

• The mode of assembling the information is costly, as the

analysis is done by an agency or an external organization,
and needs human resources and investment.
• The investigator supervises and controls the
data collection process directly.

• The data is mostly collected through

observations, physical testing, mailed
questionnaires, surveys, personal interviews,
telephonic interviews, case studies, and focus
groups, etc.
• Secondary Data
• Secondary data is a second-hand data that is already
collected and recorded by some researchers for their
purpose, and not for the current research problem.

• It is accessible in the form of data collected from

different sources such as government publications,
censuses, internal records of the organization,
books, journal articles, websites and reports, etc.
• This method of gathering data is affordable,

readily available, and saves cost and time.

• However, the one disadvantage is that the

information assembled is for some other

purpose and may not meet the present

research purpose or may not be accurate.

Difference between Primary and
Secondary Data
Primary Data Secondary Data
Definition
Primary data are those that are Secondary data refer to those data that
collected for the first time. have already been collected by some
other person.
Originality
These are original because these are These are not original because someone
collected by the investigator for the first else has collected these for his own
time. purpose.
Nature of Data
These are in the form of raw materials. These are in the finished form.

Reliability and Suitability

These are more reliable and suitable for These are less reliable and less suitable as
the enquiry because these are collected someone else has collected the data
for a particular purpose. which may not perfectly match our
purpose.
 Time and Money

Collecting primary data is quite Secondary data requires less time

expensive both in the terms of and money; hence it is economical.
time and money.

Precaution and Editing

No particular precaution or editing Both precaution and editing are

is required while using the primary essential as secondary data were
data as these were collected with a collected by someone else for his
definite purpose. own purpose.
• Sources of Secondary Data
• The secondary data can be gathered from
different sources which can be categorized into
two categories.

• 1.Published sources

• 2. Unpublished sources
1. Published sources
• Secondary data is usually gathered from the
published (printed) sources. A few major
sources of published information are as follows:
• Published articles of local bodies, and central
and state governments
• Statistical synopses, census records, and other
reports issued by the different departments of
the government
• Official statements and publications of the
foreign governments
• Publications and reports of chambers of
commerce, financial institutions, trade
associations, etc.
• Magazines, journals, and periodicals
• Publications of government organizations like
the Central Statistical Organization (CSO),
National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO)
• Reports presented by research scholars,
bureaus , economists, etc.
2. Unpublished sources
• Statistical data can be obtained from several unpublished
references. Some of the major unpublished sources from
which secondary data can be gathered are as follows:
• The research works conducted by teachers, professors, and
professionals
• The records that are maintained by private and business
enterprises
• Statistics maintained by different departments and agencies
of the central and the state government, undertakings,
corporations, etc.
Advantages of Secondary Data

1. Easy to access

2. Low cost or cost-effective

3. Less time taking

4. Various sources are available to collect data

5. Data can be collected by anyone

6. The study is based on longitudinal analysis

Disadvantages of Secondary Data
1. Inaccuracy

2. Data may be sometimes outdated

3. Not compatible with the needs of the user

4. Anyone can access data

5. Data quality cannot be controlled

Q.1. _____________ sources mean data available in printed form.
a. Published
b. Unpublished
c. Both (a) and (b)
d. None of the above

Q.2. Records maintained by various government and private offices are examples of
________ source of collecting secondary data.

a. Published
b. Unpublished
c. Both (a) and (b)
d. None of the above

Q.3. Reports issued by agencies like WHO, UNO, IMF, etc., are examples of ________ source
of collecting secondary data.

a. Published
b. Unpublished
c. Both (a) and (b)
d. None of the above
Answer Key

1 – a, 2 – b, 3 – a
• Methods of Collecting Primary Data
1.Direct personal investigation

2.Indirect oral investigation

3.Information through correspondents

4.Telephonic interview

5.Mailed questionnaire

6.The questionnaire filled by enumerators

1. Direct Personal Investigation

● Under this method, the investigator obtains the first-hand

information from the respondents themselves.
● He personally visits the respondents to collect the information
(data).

• Merits of direct personal investigation:

• Reliable and Accurate
• Flexibility
• Additional information

Demerits
• Not suitable for a wide area
• Time-consuming
• Expensive
• Personal bias
2. Indirect oral investigation

• Investigators interview several other persons who are directly or

indirectly in touch with the informants.

• Merits of indirect oral investigation

• Wide Coverage
• Economical

Demerits of indirect oral investigation

• Indirect information
• Lack of accuracy
• Lack of uniformity
• Possibility of biased information
3.Information through correspondents

• Under this method, local agents or correspondents are appointed and

trained to collect the information from the respondents.

• Merits

• Wide coverage
• Economical
• Suitable for special purposes
• Continuity

Demerits

• Lack of uniformity
• Lack of reliability
• Less accuracy
• Costly
4.Telephonic interviews
• Under this method, data is collected through
interviews over the telephone.

• Merits
• Wide Coverage
• Economical
• Reliability

Demerits
• Limited use
• Visual feedback not possible
5.Mailed Questionnaire Method

• Under this method, a questionnaire containing a

number of questions related to the investigation is
prepared.

• It is then sent to informants by post along with the

instructions to fill.

• The informants, after filling up the questionnaire, send

it back to the investigator.
• Merits

• Wide Coverage
• Economical
• Free from bias
• Maintains secrecy

• Demerits

• Limited scope
• Less response
• Chance of misinterpretation
• Time consuming
• Questionnaire

• A questionnaire is a list or set of printed questions, which

is filled by the informants.

• Characteristics

• Simple and short

• Limited questions in a proper order
• Clear instructions
• Avoid mathematical calculations
• Avoid personal or controversial questions
• Secrecy assurance
• Cover letter
• Collection Of Secondary Data

• Secondary data refers to the data that has already been collected by
some other person or agency and is used by us.

• Sources

• Published source

• Unpublished source

All the statistical material is not always published.

• ● This category includes the records maintained by various
government and private offices.
• ● It includes the research done by scholar students or some
institutions.
• ● Sources like reports prepared by private investigation companies
can also be used depending upon the need.
• Construction of Questionnaire

1. Determine the Need of information

2. Decide the type of information to be used
3. Decide the types of questions to be used
4. Decide the Wording of questions
5. Sequence of questions
6. Length of Questions
7. Layout of questionnaire
8. Include check questions
9. Pilot-Testing or Pre-Testing of Questionnaire
10.Final Draft
• Limitations of Questionnaire
• Complicated Questions
• Suitability of Respondents
• Possibility of Invalid Response
Growing importance of online data collection
• Low Response Rates
• Respondent should be educated one
• Difference in contexts
• Possibility of Misunderstanding
Online Data Collection
 The internet is used as a method to research
and collect information through emails, texts
sent on phones and similar methods.

 The online data collected through by sending

emails, texts etc (usually interviews conducted
online) is known as online data collection.
• Growing importance of online data collection
1. Data Provides a Deeper Understanding of Your Market

• Data makes it much easier for your company

to understand what your customers want from

your company, the specific products/services

they're looking for, and even how they prefer

to interact with your brand.

• Perhaps the biggest reason why so many
companies collect consumer data is that it
helps them to get a much better
understanding of the way their consumers
behave online, define their overall
demographics, and identify the ways in which
they can improve the overall customer
experience.
2. Data Collection Improves Your Consumer
Database
This means you can reach out to them about
future opportunities, improve your lead
generation strategy, and better gauge the
actual level of interest a consumer has in your
company based on the way they act on your
site or respond to advertisements in another
way.
3. Consumer Data Improves Your Marketing
Strategies
• Data will be able to tell you which of your
marketing campaigns and tactics your target
audience responds to the most and prefers, so
that you can create more effective and
targeted advertisements in the future.
4. It Allows For Greater Personalization
• Collecting data allows you to meet consumer
expectations in regards to personalized
communications and suggestions.
• Additionally, the more you know about the kinds
of products/services your customers are
interested in, the more likely you are to pitch
them products they're the most likely to buy and
close the sale.
Pros and cons of online data collection
techniques
• Advantages of Online Surveys
1. More Convenience & Better Responses
2. Accessibility From any Device
3. Significant Cost-Cutting
4. Flexible With Design
5. Allows You to be Selective
6. AI-Powered Data Analysis
• Disadvantages of Online data techniques

1. Inability to Connect With People From

Remote Areas.

2. High Chances of Survey Fraud.

3. Sampling Issues.

4. Response Bias.

5. Survey Fatigue.
 20BLU19
Research Methods for Management
Unit-IV
Data Analysis
Data Analysis
• Data Analysis is the process of systematically
applying statistical and or logical techniques to
describe and illustrate, condense and recap, and
evaluate data.

• The purpose of Data Analysis is to extract useful

information from data and taking the decision
based upon the data analysis.
• Data preparation and processing is the primary stage of
data analysis.
• Data collected through study is usually in raw facts.
• While processing the data, the researcher simplifies,
conceptualises and transforms the selected data into a
proper form as per the research objectives.
• The raw data obtained from the questionnaires must
undergo preliminary preparation before they can be
analysed using statistical technique's.
 Types of Data Analysis

1. Descriptive Analysis – Univariate, Bivariate, Multivariate Analysis

2. Inferential Analysis – Estimation of Parameter Values, Hypotheses
Testing

Descriptive Analysis –
It is the type of analysis of data that helps describe, show or summarize
data points in a constructive way such that patterns might emerge that
fulfill every condition of the data.

Univariate analysis
It is the simplest form of analyzing data. “Uni” means “one”, so in
other words your data has only one variable. It doesn’t deal with causes
or relationships (unlike regression ) and it’s major purpose is to
describe; It takes data, summarizes that data and finds patterns in the
data.
• The purpose of univariate analysis is to
understand the distribution of values for a
single variable.
• Univariate analysis on Household size
• Significance of Data Processing
• Provide accurate data

• Provide comprehensive data

• Convert in a suitable formats

• Helps in decision making

• Data Validation
• Validation is the process of examining the
degree of validity and accuracy in the process
of survey, interviews and observation.

• Stages of Data validation

1. Field Validation

2. Validation within the Firm

• Data Editing and Stages

• Completeness
• Accuracy
• Consistency

•Stages

• Field Editing – By Researcher and by

Supervisor
• Central Editing
ICT Slides Presentation

17-11-2022
• Coding
• Coding refers to the process of assigning
numerals or other symbols to answers so that
responses can be put into a limited number of
categories or classes.
• Such classes should be appropriate to the
research problem under consideration.

• Coding is the process of converting the data into

meaningful categories and then assigning
symbols to each of these categories.
• Ex. Male Respondent 1
Female Respondent 2

• Coding is done to limit the data into a smaller

set of finite classes.
• These classes are homogenous in nature.
• Procedure of Coding:
1. Identifying Open Coding
2. Axial Coding
3. Selective Coding

These are all steps in the grounded theory

method of analyzing qualitative data.

Grounded theory, you derive new theories and

concepts based on data.
 Open Coding :
• Take textual data and break it up into discrete
parts, the create codes and labels these parts.

 Axial Coding:
• Draw connections between the codes that
developed In open coding, grouping of codes in
categories. These categories is called Axis.

 Selective Coding: Selective coding is the last step

in, where you connect all your categories tog
grounded theory together around one core
category.
Classification/Categorisation
• Classification is the process of creating the homogeneous classes.

• Example: Vegetarian vs Non Vegetarian

• Principles in Classification of Data

• Unambiguous Classification
• Single classification principle
• Mutually Exhaustive categories
• Mutually Exclusive Categories
• Action-oriented
• Distinctive categories
• Relevant for Research project
Types of Classification

 Classification:
• A systematic arrangement in groups or categories
according to established criteria.

 Classification Based on Attribute:

• Attribute:
• A characteristic or property of an object, such as
size, color, or shape.

• Based on Class-Intervals
Data Entry:
• The process of converting collected data to a
more operational and readable form.
• Alternative Data Entry Formats
• Keyboarding – SPSS, SAS, EXCEL
Database development :
•A large collection of data which is prepared for
recovery via a computer is Database. E-mail
survey
Spreadsheet :
• Data that requires arrangement, tabulation and
analysis can be compiled in a spreadsheet.
• Optical Recognition – OCR(Optical Character
Recognition)/OMR(Optical Mark Recognition)
• Voice Recognition
• Digital
• Bar code
• Tabulation
• Tabulation is a systematic and logical representation of
numeric data in rows and columns to facilitate
comparison and statistical analysis.
• It facilitates comparison by bringing related
information close to each other and helps in statistical
analysis and interpretation.

• Objectives Of Tabulation
• To simplify complex data
• To bring out essential features of data
• To facilitate comparison
• To facilitate statistical analysis
• To save space
• Q.1- Tabulation makes the data
• a. Simple
• b. Complex
• c. Very complex
• d. None of the above

• Q.2 Which of the following is/are the objective(s) of constructing a

table for representing data?
• a. To bring out essential features of the data
• b. To facilitate statistical analysis
• c. To save space
• d. All of the above

• Q.3 Tabular presentation of data saves space without compromising

________ of data?
• a. Quality of data
• b. Quantity of data
• c. Both (a) and (b)
• d. None of the above
• Graphical representation of results
• Graphical Representation is a way of
analysing numerical data.
• It exhibits the relation between data,
ideas, information and concepts in a
diagram.
• It is easy to understand and it is one of
the most important learning strategies.
• It always depends on the type of
information in a particular domain.
• Line Graphs – Line graph or the linear graph is
used to display the continuous data and it is
useful for predicting future events over time.
• Bar Graphs – Bar Graph is used to display the
category of data and it compares the data using
solid bars to represent the quantities.
• Histograms – The graph that uses bars to
represent the frequency of numerical data that
are organised into intervals. Since all the
intervals are equal and continuous, all the bars
have the same width.
• Line Plot – It shows the frequency of data on a
given number line. ‘ x ‘ is placed above a
number line each time when that data occurs
again.
• Frequency Table – The table shows the
number of pieces of data that falls within the
given interval.
• Circle Graph – Also known as the pie chart that
shows the relationships of the parts of the whole.
The circle is considered with 100% and the
categories occupied is represented with that
specific percentage like 15%, 56%, etc.
• Stem and Leaf Plot – In the stem and leaf plot,
the data are organised from least value to the
greatest value. The digits of the least place values
from the leaves and the next place value digit
forms the stems.
• Box and Whisker Plot – The plot diagram
summarises the data by dividing into four parts.
Box and whisker show the range (spread) and the
middle ( median) of the data.
• Merits of Using Graphs and Graphical Method
• Some of the merits of using graphs are as follows:
• The graph is easily understood by everyone
without any prior knowledge.
• It saves time
• It allows us to relate and compare the data for
different time periods
• It is used in statistics to determine the mean,
median and mode for different data, as well as in
the interpolation and the extrapolation of data.
• It makes data more easily understandable.
• It saves time.
• It makes the comparison of data more
efficient.
Hypothesis - its sources
• Hypothesis:
• A hypothesis is an assumption that is made
based on some evidence.
• This is the initial point of any investigation that
translates the research questions into
predictions.
• It includes components like variables,
population and the relation between the
variables.
• A research hypothesis is a hypothesis that is
used to test the relationship between two or
more variables.
• Characteristics of the hypothesis:
• The hypothesis should be clear and precise to
consider it to be reliable.
• If the hypothesis is a relational hypothesis,
then it should be stating the relationship
between variables.
• The hypothesis must be specific and should
have scope for conducting more tests.
• The way of explanation of the hypothesis must
be very simple and it should also be
understood that the simplicity of the
hypothesis is not related to its significance.
• Sources of hypothesis:
• The resemblance between the phenomenon.

• Observations from past studies, present-day

experiences and from the competitors.

• Scientific theories.

• General patterns that influence the thinking

process of people.
The main sources of hypothesis:
1. Personal Experience
• on the basis of his personal experience he uses
his mind and suggests some points for the
eradication (complete destruction ) of a social
problem through developing a good hypothesis.

• Greater researcher experience lead to higher

degree of formation.
2. Imagination and thinking
• Creative thinking and imagination of a
researcher sometimes help in formulating a
good hypothesis.

• Personal ideas and the thinking capabilities

of a researcher would lead to greater number
of hypothesis formulation as well as control
over the problem.
3. Observation
• In consideration and undertaking a research
problem, observation is necessary.

• The collection of previous facts and current

facts related to the problem lead to the
formulation of a good hypothesis.
4. Scientific Theory

• Theory is capable in explaining all the facts

relating to the problem.

• Scientific theory is a fertile source of hypothesis

formulation.

• The knowledge of theory leads us to form further

generalizations from it.

• These generalizations form the part of hypothesis.

5. Previous Study:
• Previous study is also a source of developing
a concrete hypothesis.
• If a researcher uses previous knowledge
about a phenomenon for a particular place,
then another researcher followed his
techniques and formulates his own.
• For Example increase in fertilizers and
irrigation leads to higher production in
agriculture sector.
6. Culture

• The general pattern of culture helps not only to

formulate a hypothesis, but also to guide its
trend.

• The culture has a great influence upon the

thinking process of people and hypothesis may
be formed to test one or more of these ideas.
• Functions of Hypothesis
• Following are the functions performed by the
hypothesis:
• Hypothesis helps in making an observation
and experiments possible.
• It becomes the start point for the
investigation.
• Hypothesis helps in verifying the observations.
• It helps in directing the inquiries in the right
direction.
Formulation a hypothesis:
 Ask a question. Writing a hypothesis begins with
a research question that you want to answer.
 Do some preliminary research.
 Formulate your hypothesis.
 Refine your hypothesis.
 Phrase your hypothesis in three ways.
 Write a null hypothesis.
Testing of hypothesis
• Identify Population and Sample.
• State the Hypotheses in terms of population
parameters.
• State Assumptions and Check Conditions.
• Calculate the Test Statistic.
• Calculate the P-value.
• State the Conclusion.
• P-value, on the other hand, is the probability to
the right of the respective statistic (z, t or chi).

• The benefit of using p-value is that it calculates a

probability estimate, which means we can test at
any desired level of significance by comparing
this probability directly with the significance
level.
 Z Test
• Z test is a statistical test that is conducted on data
that approximately follows a normal distribution.

• The z test can be performed on one sample, two

samples, or on proportions for hypothesis testing.

• It checks if the means of two large samples are

different or not when the population variance is
known.
• Example 1:
• A teacher claims that the mean score of students in his class is greater
than 82 with a standard deviation of 20. If a sample of 81 students was
selected with a mean score of 90 then check if there is enough
evidence to support this claim at a 0.05 significance level.

• Solution: As the sample size is 81 and population standard deviation is

known, this is an example of a right-tailed one-sample z test.

• H0H0 : μ=82μ=82

• H1H1 : μ>82μ>82
• From the z table the critical value at αα = 1.645

• z = ¯¯¯x−μσ√nx¯−μσn

• ¯¯¯xx¯ = 90, μμ = 82, n = 81, σσ = 20

• z = 3.6

• As 3.6 > 1.645 thus, the null hypothesis is rejected and

it is concluded that there is enough evidence to
support the teacher's claim.

• Answer: Reject the null hypothesis

• Example 2: An online medicine shop claims that the
mean delivery time for medicines is less than 120
minutes with a standard deviation of 30 minutes. Is
there enough evidence to support this claim at a 0.05
significance level if 49 orders were examined with a
mean of 100 minutes?
• Solution: As the sample size is 49 and population
standard deviation is known, this is an example of a
left-tailed one-sample z test.
• H0H0 : μ=120μ=120
• H1H1 : μ<120μ<120
• From the z table the critical value at αα = -1.645.
A negative sign is used as this is a left tailed test.
• z = ¯¯¯x−μσ√nx¯−μσn
• ¯¯¯xx¯ = 100, μμ = 120, n = 49, σσ = 30
• z = -4.66
• As -4.66 < -1.645 thus, the null hypothesis is
rejected and it is concluded that there is enough
evidence to support the medicine shop's claim.
• Answer: Reject the null hypothesis
• T-test
• The t-test is any statistical hypothesis test in which
the test statistic follows a Student’s t-distribution
under the null hypothesis.
• It can be used to determine if two sets of data are
significantly different from each other, and is most
commonly applied when the test statistic would
follow a normal distribution if the value of a scaling
term in the test statistic were known.
T-test formula
Problem Using t-test Formula
• Example 1:
• Calculate a t-test for the following data of the
number of times people prefer coffee or tea in
five time intervals.
Coffee Tea

4 3

5 8

7 6

6 4

9 7
• Solution:
• let x1x1 be the sample of data that prefers
coffee and x2x2 be the sample of data that
prefers tea.
• let us find the mean, variance and the SD
 (x1−¯¯¯¯¯ (x2−¯¯¯¯¯
(x1−¯¯¯¯¯ (x2−¯¯¯¯¯
x1x1 x1)2x1−x1 x2x2 x2)2x2−x2
x1)x1−x1¯) x2)x2−x2¯)
¯)2 ¯)2

4 -2.2 4.84 3 -2.6 6.76

5 -1.2 1.44 8 2.4 5.76

7 0.8 0.64 6 0.4 0.16

6 -0.2 0.04 4 -1.6 2.56

9 2.8 7.84 7 1.4 1.96

6.2 14.8 5.6 17.20

• x1x1¯ = 31/ 5 = 6.2
• ¯¯¯¯¯x2x2¯ = 28/5 = 5.6
• Σ(x1-¯¯¯¯¯x1x1¯)2 = 14.8
• Σ(x2-¯¯¯¯¯x2x2¯)2= 17.2
• S1= 14.8/4 = 3.7
• S2 = 17.2/4 = 4.3
• According to the t-test formula,
• t=¯¯¯¯¯x1−¯¯¯¯¯x2√(s21n1+s22n2)t=x1¯−x2¯(s12n1+
s22n2)
• Applying the known values in the t-test formula, we
get
• t=6.2−5.6√(3.75+4.35)t=6.2−5.6(3.75+4.35)
• =0.6√1.6=0.61.6= 0.6/1.26 = 0.47
• t = 0.47
• Example 2: A company wants to improve its sales.
The previous sales data indicated that the average
sale of 25 salesmen was $50 per transaction. After
training, the recent data showed an average sale of
$80 per transaction. If the standard deviation is
$15, find the t-score. Has the training provided
improved the sales?
• Solution:
• H0H0accepted hypothesis:the population mean =
the claimed value⇒ μ = μ0
• H0H0alternate hypothesis: the population mean not
equal to the claimed value⇒ μ ≠ μ0
• t-test formula for independent test is t=m−μs√n
• t=m−μsn
• Mean sale = 80, μ = 50, s= 15 and n= 25
• substituting the values, we get t= (80-
50)/(15/√25)
• t = (30 ×5)/10 = 10
• looking at the t-table we find 10 > 1.711 . (I.e.
CV for α = 0.05).
• ∴ the accepted hypothesis is not true.
• Thus we conclude that the training boosted
the sales.
Chi-square test
• The Chi-square formula is used in the Chi-square test to
compare two statistical data sets.

• Chi-Square is one of the most useful non-parametric

statistics.

• The Chi-Square test is used in data consist of people

distributed across categories, and to know whether that
distribution is different from what would expect by chance.

• A very small Chi-Square test statistic means that your

observed data fits your expected data extremely well.
• Formula for Chi-Square Test
• The Chi-Square is denoted by χ2 and the formula is:
• χ2 = ∑ (O − E)2 / E
• Where,
• O = Observed frequency
• E = Expected frequency
• ∑ = Summation
• χ2 = Chi-Square value
• Question:
o Calculate the chi-square value for the
following data:
Male Female

Full Stop 6(observed) 6 (observed)

6.24 (expected) 5.76 (expected)

Rolling Stop 16 (observed) 15 (observed)

16.12 (expected) 14.88 (expected)

No Stop 4 (observed) 3 (observed)

3.64 (expected) 3.36 (expected)
• Solution:
• Now calculate Chi Square using the following
formula:
• χ2 = ∑ (O − E)2 / E
• Calculate this formula for each cell, one at a time.
For example, cell #1 (Male/Full Stop):
• Observed number is: 6
Expected number is: 6.24
• Therefore, (6 – 6.24)2 /6.24 = 0.0092
• Continue doing this for the rest of the cells, and
add the final numbers for each cell together to get
the final Chi-Square number.
• There are 6 total cells, so at the end, you should be
adding six numbers together for your final Chi-
Square number.
 Data Analysis Using MS-Excel:
• Microsoft Excel is one of the most popular applications
for data analysis.
• Equipped with built-in pivot tables, they are without a
doubt the most sought-after analytic tool available.
• It is an all-in-one data management software that allows
you to easily import, explore, clean, analyze, and
visualize your data.
• In this article, we will discuss the various methods of
data analysis in Excel.
Sorting
• Sorting data is a very critical and vital part of
Data Analysis.
• we can sort your Excel data by multiple
columns or even a single column.
• The sorting is done in ascending or descending
order as well.
• Single Column
• Consider the following data:
• sort the data on the basis of Units.
• To do that, follow these steps:
• The first step is to click on any cell in the
column which you want to sort.
• Next, to sort in ascending order, click on AZ
which is found on the Data tab, in the Sort &
Filter group.
 20BLU19
RESEARCH METHODS FOR
MANAGEMENT
Unit-V
Interpretation and report writing
 Meaning of Interpretation
• Interpretation refers to the task of drawing
inferences from the collected facts after an
analytical and/or experimental study.
• In fact, it is a search for broader meaning. of
research findings.
• "Interpretation refers to the process of making
sense of numerical data that has been collected,
analysed and presented".
 Techniques Of Interpretation
 The task of interpretation is not an easy job;
rather it requires a great skill and dexterity on the
part of researcher.
 Interpretation is an art that one learns through
practice and experience.
 The researcher may, at times, seek the guidance
from experts for accomplishing the task of
interpretation.
The technique of interpretation often
involves the following steps:
 Researcher must give reasonable explanations
of the relations which he has found and he must
interpret the lines of relationship in terms of the
underlying processes and must try to find out
the thread of uniformity that lies under the
surface layer of his diversified research findings.
 In fact, this is the technique of how
generalization should be done and concepts be
formulated.
 Extraneous information, if collected during
the study, must be considered while
interpreting the final results of research
study, for it may prove to be a key factor in
understanding the problem under
consideration.
 It is advisable, before embarking upon final
interpretation, to consult someone having
insight into the study and who is frank and
honest and will not hesitate to point out
omissions and errors in logical argumentation.
 Such a consultation will result in correct
interpretation and, thus, will enhance the
utility of research results.
 Researcher must accomplish the task of
interpretation only after considering all
relevant factors affecting the problem to avoid
false generalization.

 He must be in no hurry while interpreting

results, for quite often the conclusions, which
appear to be all right at the beginning, may
not at all be accurate.
 Significance of Report Writing
 Another reason that adds to the significance of
report writing is that it is a collection of
evaluated information.
 Different types of activities by different
departments define an organization.
 Think of the departments your organization has–
development, sales, distribution, marketing, HR,
and more.
Steps in report writing
 Step 1: Choose Your Topic
 When choosing a topic, choose one in
which you are interested, and for which
there is enough information.
 If your topic is too broad, you will have
difficulty completing your paper.
Step 2: Locate Information
Use information from a variety of reference
sources.

These sources include encyclopedias,

almanacs, scholarly journals, books,
magazines, and newspapers.

Find these sources in print form, on CD-ROMS,

and on the Internet.
Step 3: Prepare Bibliography Cards.

 Prepare bibliography cards to document the

sources of information you use when writing
your paper.

 Your library will have style manuals to

illustrate how to prepare bibliography cards
for various sources of information.
Step 4: Prepare Note Cards

 Use note cards to record notes from each

source you use when writing your paper.

 Number your note cards to keep track of

them.
Step 5: Prepare an Outline
 Write an outline for your paper by organizing
your notes from the note cards into topics,
subtopics, details, and sub details.
Use an organization such as:
I. (topic)
• A. (subtopic)
• 1. (detail)
• a. (sub detail)
Step 6: Write A Rough Draft
 Use your note cards and outline to write a
rough draft of your paper.
 As you write your draft, use numbered
footnotes to credit sources from which you
take quotations or major ideas.
• Step 7: Revise Your Rough Draft
• Make any changes needed to be sure your
ideas are clearly expressed and your writing
has accurate spelling and grammar.
Step 8: Prepare Your Bibliography.
 At the end of your paper, provide a list of all
the sources you used to gather information for
the paper.
 Your bibliography cards will provide this
information.
 List your sources in alphabetical order by the
first word on each of your bibliography cards.
 Step 9: Prepare a Title Page and Table of
Contents.
 The title page is the first page of the paper. It
should include the title of your paper, your name,
and the date on which the paper is due.
 The table of contents is the second page.
 It should list the main topics, important
subtopics, and the page on which each is
introduced in your paper.
Step 10: Final Checklist.
 Before handing in your paper, be sure you can
answer "Yes" to each of the following
questions.
– Did I include a title page?
– Did I include a table of contents?
– Did I number all pages correctly?
– Did I provide footnotes for quotations and major
sources of information?
– Did I include a bibliography?
– Did I keep a second copy for my files?
Layout of Research Report
• A comprehensive layout of the research
report should comprise preliminary pages,
the main text and the end matter.

• Preliminary Pages In its preliminary pages

the report should carry a title and date,
followed by acknowledgements in the form
of 'Preface' or 'Foreword'.
Types of Reports
1. Technical Report
• Technical report is one that is needed where complete
written report of research study is needed for the
purpose of public dissemination or record-keeping.

• In these report, data is presented in a simple manner

and key results are defined properly.

• Technical report emphasis on tools used in study,

assumptions made and presentation of findings along
with their limitation.
Outline of Technical report is:
1. Results Summary- Description of key findings of the study
conducted.

2. Nature of Study- Denotes objectives of study, formulating

problem on operational basis, hypothesis used for working,
type of data needed and kinds of analysis.

3. Methods Used- Tools and techniques used for carrying out

the study along with their limitations is explained.

4. Data- Description of how the data was collected, what are

their sources, their characteristics and limitations.
5. Data Analysis and Presenting Findings-
It is the main body of report where data is
analyzed and finding are presented along with
supporting data. Distinct types of tables and
charts are used for better explanation.
6. Conclusions-
Findings are narrated in a detailed manner and
implications of policies drawn from results is
explained.
7. Bibliography- It provide details of distinct sources
which were consulted while performing a
research.

8. Technical Appendices- Technical appendices

related to mathematical deviations, questionnaire
and analysis technique elaboration.

9. Index- It is attached invariably at the report end.

• Outline of a Technical report may not be same
in all case and may vary in all technical
reports.
2. Popular Report
• Popular report is the one that focuses on
attractiveness and simplification of data.

• It is used when its findings will have policy

implications.

• Focus is laid on writing in a clear manner,

minimization of technical aspects, using charts
and diagrams in liberal and detailed manner.
• Other key characteristics of popular report are
use of many subheadings, large prints and
occasional cartoon.

• Practical emphasis is given more importance

in these type of report.
General outline of Popular report is as given
below: –
1. Findings and Their Implications- Focus is
given on practical aspects of findings of study
conducted and how these findings are
implied.
2. Recommendations for Action- This section of
report on basis of findings provides
recommendations for action.
3. Objectives of Study- A description of nature
of problem and key objectives of conducting
a study are explained here.
4. Techniques Used-
• Review of all tools and techniques employed along with
data employed for concluding the study is given in this
portion of study.
• All description is given in non-technical manner.
5. Results-
• It is the main portion of report where all finding are
denoted in simplified and non-technical terms.
• All sorts of illustration like diagrams and charts are used
liberally.
6. Technical Appendices-
• Technical appendices provides a detailed informed on
different methods used, forms etc.
• In case, if report is meant for general public then
technical appendices is kept precise.