BUSINESS RESEARCH

METHODS
RESEARCH DESIGN
SEM 1 22-24
RESEARCH PROCESS OVERVIEW
• Determining Objectives of Research / Brief from Client
• Literature Review
• Problem formulation
• Proposal
• Finalising Research Method
• Sample selection
• Data Collection Instrument
• Data Collection / Fieldwork
• Quality Check of incoming data
• Coding
• Data Entry
• Electronic QA check of raw data
• Data Analysis & Interpretation
• Reporting & Presentation
 RESEARCH DESIGN
• Problem definition – most crucial
• Understanding the problem under study
• Data to be collected & its characteristics
• Relations between variables & techniques to be used
• Hypotheses to be tested, if any
• Determining Sample design
• Collection of data
• Method – Observation, Face-to-face/Telephone Interviews, CAPI/ CATI
• Period of study – Single / Multiple tracks
• Analysis
• Time & Cost relating to the research
RESEARCH PROBLEM
Causal research Exploratory research Descriptive research

Amount of uncertainty
characterising decision Clearly defined Highly ambiguous Partially defined
situation
Key research statement Research hypotheses Research question Research question
Later stages of decision Early stage of decision Later stages of decision
When conducted?
making making making
Usual research approach Highly structured Unstructured Structured
‘What kind of people
‘Will consumers buy more ‘Our sales are declining
patronize our stores
products in a blue for no apparent reason’
compared to our primary
package?’ ‘What kinds of new
Examples competitor?’
‘Which of two advertising products are fast-food
‘What product features
campaigns will be more consumers interested
are the most important
effective?’ in?’
to our customers?’
TERMS USED - QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
• Respondents
• From whom data is collected
• People or Communities or Institutions
• Data
• Variables
• Measurement scales
• Sample
• Representative sub-set of population under study
• Probability Vs Non-probability sampling
• Analysis & Interpretation
• Univariate, Bi-variate, Multivariate
• Confidence levels
• Statistical tests of significance
DATA
• Factual information expressed by numbers or narrative data
• Numerical Variables – Quantitative data
• String Variables – Qualitative data
• Variables – characteristic measured that varies among individuals, events, objects
• Univariate (height), Bivariate (height & weight), Multivariate
• Measurement scales
• Questionnaire checking – Pre-tests?
• Editing, Coding, Data cleaning
• Transcribing
• Using CAPI & CATI eliminates the need for transcribing
• Analysis
• Data Processing Instructions DPI
• Tabulations
VARIABLES
All variables fall in one of the following scales:
o Nominal – Assigned to items divided into categories. E.g. – Colours, Gender, States, etc.
o Ordinal - Ranking or rating of responses. Order present but distance between points not the
same
o Interval – Floating zero. E.g. - degree Centigrade or degree Fahrenheit
o Ratio – It has a true zero point. E.g. measurement of length, height, etc.
Having zero length or zero money means that there is no length and no money (but zero
temperature is not an absolute zero,). It is possible to apply mathematical operations that include
addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
These are the scales used for data analysis
Assigning proper scale to the variables is important because that determines
o mathematical operations allowed
o statistical operations which can be used
EXAMPLES – NOMINAL SCALE

 Nominal scales are used for labeling variables, without any quantitative value.
 “Nominal” scales could simply be called “labels.”
 All of these scales are mutually exclusive (no overlap)
 None of them have any numerical significance.
 “Nominal” sounds a lot like “name” and nominal scales are kind of like “names”
or labels.
EXAMPLES – ORDINAL SCALE
 Rating values given in the scale have a order, but the differences between each rating is
not known
 In the example, we know that a #4 is better than a #3 or #2, but not how much better it
is.
 For example, is the difference between “OK” and “Unhappy” the same as the difference
between “Very Happy” and “Happy?” We can’t say.
 Ordinal scales are typically measures of non-numeric concepts like satisfaction, happiness,
discomfort, etc.
EXAMPLES – INTERVAL SCALE

In Interval scales the order and the exact differences between the values is
known.
Interval scales don’t have a “true zero” - there is no such thing as “no
temperature.”
Without a true zero, it is impossible to compute ratios.
With interval data, we can add and subtract, but cannot multiply or divide.
In Celsius temperature scale the difference between each value is the same
i.e. the difference between 60 and 50 degrees is the same as the difference
between 80 and 70 degrees - a measurable 10 degrees.
Time is an example of an interval scale in which the increments are known,
consistent, and measurable.
EXAMPLES – RATIO SCALE

Ratio scales are the ultimate measurement scales because

they tell us about the order,
they tell us the exact value between units, AND
they also have an absolute zero
Good examples of ratio variables include height and weight
These variables can be meaningfully added, subtracted, multiplied,
divided (ratios)
TERMS TO UNDERSTAND
• Statistics – Collection, Organisation • Normal curve
& Interpretation of data
• Impossible to interview an entire
population. Hence Sampling of a
representative subset.
• Parameter – unknown value of a
characteristic for the entire
population
• Statistic – value of the same
characteristic for the sample. This is
used to estimate the population
parameter. This changes from sample
to sample.
SAMPLING TERMS
• Population – Group of people/objects that are the subject of study
• Census – Complete enumeration Appropriate when population is small
• Sample – Subset of the population
• Sampling Frame – All elements of the population available for selection
• Sampling Unit – Single member of the sample
• Sampling – Process of selecting a set of elements from the population for study
• Probability Sampling
• Non-probability sampling
DATA ANALYSIS
PREPARING DATA FILE
TABULATIONS
• Percentages are useful when comparing 2 series of data
• Column % Brand 1 Brand 2 Total
Area Units % Units % Units %
A 3742 21.13 4596 31.22 8338 25.71
B 1006 5.68 2711 18.41 3717 11.46
C 12231 69.06 6201 42.12 18432 56.83
D 732 4.13 1214 8.25 1946 6.00
• Row % Total 17711 100.00 14722 100.00 32433 100.00

Brand 1 Brand 2 Total

Area Units % Units % Units %
A 3742 44.88 4596 55.12 8338 100.00
B 1006 27.06 2711 72.94 3717 100.00
C 12231 66.36 6201 33.64 18432 100.00
D 732 37.62 1214 62.38 1946 100.00
Total 17711 54.61 14722 45.39 32433 100.00
UNIVARIATE COUNTS

Count %
Agree very much 35 21.9
Agree somewhat 20 12.5
Not sure 31 19.4
Disagree somewhat 50 31.3
Disagree very much 24 15.0
160 100.0
MULTIPLE RESPONSE TABULATION
• Number of respondents reading each magazine
% %
Responde Response
No. nts s
A 331 18.29 6.66
B 606 33.48 12.19
C 947 52.32 19.04
D 713 39.39 14.34
E 834 46.08 16.77
F 538 29.72 10.82
ALL OTHERS 828 45.75 16.65
NONE 176 9.72 3.54
Total respondents 1810 100.00
Total responses 4973 100.00