RM Module 1-6 Materials

Research Methodology (22MBA23)
Department
of MBA
Research Methodology 20MBA23
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Research Methodology
Semester IV CIE Marks: 40
Course Code 20MBA23 SEE Marks : 60
Teaching Hours / week (L:T:P) 3-0-2 Exam Hours: 03
Credits: 04
Module-1-Business Research
Business Research: Meaning, types, process of research- management problem, defining
the research problem, formulating the research Hypothesis, developing the research
proposals, research design formulation, sampling design, planning and collecting the data
for research, data analysis and interpretation. Research Application in business decisions,
Features of good research study.
Module -2-Business Research Design
Meaning, types and significance of research design. Exploratory and Conclusive Research
Design.
Exploratory Research: Meaning, purpose, methods- Literature search, experience survey,
focus groups and comprehensive case methods. Conclusive Research Design - Descriptive
Research - Meaning, Types – Cross sectional studies and longitudinal studies.
Experimental Research Design – Meaning and classification of experimental designs- formal
and informal, Pre experimental design, Quasi-experimental design, True experimental
design, statistical experimental design.
Module -3-Sampling
Sampling: Concepts- Types of Sampling - Probability Sampling – simple random sampling,
systematic sampling, stratified random sampling, cluster sampling -Non-Probability
Sampling –convenience sampling- judgemental sampling, snowball sampling- quota
sampling - Errors in sampling.
Module -4-Data Collection
Meaning of Primary and Secondary data, Primary data collection methods - observations,
survey, interview and Questionnaire, Qualitative Techniques of data collection,
Questionnaire design – Meaning - process of designing questionnaire. Secondary data -
Sources – advantages and disadvantages.
Measurement and Scaling Techniques: Basic measurement scales-Nominal scale, Ordinal
scale, Interval scale, Ratio scale. Attitude measurement scale - Likert’s Scale, Semantic
Differential Scale, Thurstone scale, Multi-Dimensional Scaling. Case Study as per the chapter
needs.
Module -5 -Data Analysis and Report Writing
Editing, Coding, Classification, Tabulation, Validation Analysis and Interpretation- Report
writing and presentation of results: Importance of report writing, types of research report,
report structure, guidelines for effective documentation.
Module – 6-Advanced Excel and real time application
V Look Up, H Look up, Sort and filter, concatenate, Conditional Formatting., Pivot Table, If
statement, Nested If, Charts. Statistical tests and how to interpret statistical outputs.
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MODULE-1
Part-A-Introduction to Business Research
In today’s educational and competitive environment, Marketing Research is a very crucial
topic which must be learned and understood as it being an inevitable and essential factor
for survival and growth.
Research in common parlance refers to a search for knowledge. Once can also define
research as a scientific and systematic search for pertinent information on a specific topic. In
fact, research is an art of scientific investigation. Research is an academic activity and as
such the term should be used in a technical sense.
According to Clifford Woody research comprises defining and redefining problems,
formulating hypothesis or suggested solutions; collecting, organising and evaluating data;
making deductions and reaching conclusions; and at last carefully testing the conclusions to
determine whether they fit the formulating hypothesis.
What is Research?
Research is defined as a ‘‘systematic inquiry aimed at providing information to solve
managerial problems.’’ The term systematic is related to the scientific method, the idea
being that research is the process of inquiry conducted in the best, or at least, most
appropriate way.
Redman and Mory define research as a “systematized effort to gain new knowledge.”
Research is an academic activity and as such the term should be used in a technical sense.
According to Clifford Woody research comprises defining and redefining problems,
formulating hypothesis or suggested solutions; collecting, organising and evaluating data;
making deductions and reaching conclusions; and at last carefully testing the conclusions to
determine whether they fit the formulating hypothesis.
D. Slesinger and M. Stephenson in the Encyclopaedia of Social Sciences define research as
“the manipulation of things, concepts or symbols for the purpose of generalising to extend,
correct or verify knowledge, whether that knowledge aids in construction of theory or in the
practice of an art.”
Research is, thus, an original contribution to the existing stock of knowledge making for its
advancement. It is the pursuit of truth with the help of study, observation, comparison and
experiment. In short, the search for knowledge through objective and systematic method of
finding solution to a problem is research. The systematic approach concerning
generalization and the formulation of a theory is also research. As such the term ‘research’
refers to the systematic method consisting of enunciating the problem, formulating a
hypothesis, collecting the facts or data, analyzing the facts and reaching certain conclusions
either in the form of solutions(s) towards the concerned problem or in certain
generalizations for some theoretical formulation.
Objectives of Research
The purpose of research is to discover answers to questions through the application of
scientific procedures. The main aim of research is to find out the truth which is hidden and
which has not been discovered as yet. Though each research study has its own specific
purpose, one may think of research objectives as falling into a number of following broad
groupings:
1) To gain familiarity with a phenomenon or to achieve new insights into it (studies
with this object in view are termed as exploratory or formulative research studies);
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2) To portray accurately the characteristics of a particular individual, situation or a

group (studies with this object in view are known as descriptive research studies);
3) To determine the frequency with which something occurs or with which it is
associated with something else (studies with this object in view are known as
diagnostic research studies)
4) To test a hypothesis of a causal relationship between variables (such studies are
known as hypothesis-testing research studies).
Characteristics of Research
Research is the scientific investigation of phenomena which includes collection,
presentation, analysis and interpretation of facts that lines an individual’s speculation with
reality. Characteristics of Research can be explained as below:
a) Empirical: Research is based on direct experience or observation by the researcher.
b) Logical: Research is based on valid procedures and principles.
c) Cyclical: Research is a cyclical process because it starts with a problem and ends with a
problem.
d) Analytical: Research utilizes proven analytical procedures in gathering the data, whether
historical, descriptive, and experimental and case study.
e) Critical: Research exhibits careful and precise judgment.
f) Methodical: Research is conducted in a methodical manner without bias using systematic
method and procedures.
g) Replicability: The research design and procedures are replicated or repeated to enable
the researcher to arrive at valid and conclusive results.
Motivation in Research
The possible motives for doing research may be either one or more of the following:
 Desire to get a research degree along with its consequential benefits;
 Desire to face the challenge in solving the unsolved problems, i.e., concern over
practical problems initiates research;
 Desire to get intellectual joy of doing some creative work;
 Desire to be of service to society;
 Desire to get respectability.
However, this is not an exhaustive list of factors motivating people to undertake research
studies. Many more factors such as directives of government, employment conditions,
curiosity about new things, desire to understand causal relationships, social thinking and
awakening, and the like may as well motivate (or at times compel) people to perform
research operations.
Types of Research
1) Descriptive vs. Analytical: Descriptive research includes surveys and fact-finding
enquiries of different kinds. The major purpose of descriptive research is description of the
state of affairs as it exists at present. In social science and business research quite often use
the term Ex post facto research for descriptive research studies. The main characteristic of
this method is that the researcher has no control over the variables; he can only report what
has happened or what is happening. Most ex post facto research projects are used for
descriptive studies in which the researcher seeks to measure such items as, for example,
frequency of shopping, preferences of people, or similar data. Ex post facto studies also
include attempts by researchers to discover causes even when they cannot control the
variables.
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In analytical research, on the other hand, the researcher has to use facts or information
already available, and analyse these to make a critical evaluation of the material.
2) Applied vs. Fundamental: Research can either be applied (or action) research or
fundamental (to basic or pure) research. Applied research aims at finding a solution for an
immediate problem facing a society or an industrial/business organisation, whereas
fundamental research is mainly concerned with generalisations and with the formulation of
a theory. “Gathering knowledge for knowledge’s sake is termed ‘pure’ or ‘basic’ research.”
Research concerning some natural phenomenon or relating to pure mathematics are
examples of fundamental research. Similarly, research studies, concerning human behaviour
carried on with a view to make generalisations about human behaviour, are also examples
of fundamental research, but research aimed at certain conclusions (say, a solution) facing a
concrete social or business problem is an example of applied research.
3) Quantitative vs. Qualitative: Quantitative research is based on the measurement of
quantity or amount. It is applicable to phenomena that can be expressed in terms of
quantity. Qualitative research, on the other hand, is concerned with qualitative
phenomenon, i.e., phenomena relating to or involving quality or kind.
4) Conceptual vs. Empirical: Conceptual research is that related to some abstract idea(s) or
theory. It is generally used by philosophers and thinkers to develop new concepts or to
reinterpret existing ones. On the other hand, empirical research relies on experience or
observation alone, often without due regard for system and theory. It is data-based
research, coming up with conclusions which are capable of being verified by observation or
experiment.
5) Other Types of Research: All other types of research are variations of one or more of the
above stated approaches, based on either the purpose of research, or the time required to
accomplish research, on the environment in which research is done, or on the basis of some
other similar factor. Form the point of view of time, we can think of research either as one-
time research or longitudinal research. In the former case the research is confined to a
single time-period, whereas in the latter case the research is carried on over several time-
periods. Research can be field-setting research or laboratory research or simulation
research, depending upon the environment in which it is to be carried out. Research can as
well be understood as clinical or diagnostic research. Such research follows case-study
methods or in-depth approaches to reach the basic causal relations. Such studies usually go
deep into the causes of things or events that interest us, using very small samples and very
deep probing data gathering devices. The research may be exploratory or it may be
formalized. The objective of exploratory research is the development of hypotheses rather
than their testing, whereas formalized research studies are those with substantial structure
and with specific hypotheses to be tested. Historical research is that which utilizes historical
sources like documents, remains, etc. to study events or ideas of the past, including the
philosophy of persons and groups at any remote point of time. Research can also be
classified as conclusion- oriented and decision-oriented. While doing conclusion oriented
research, a researcher is free to pick up a problem, redesign the enquiry as he proceeds and
is prepared to conceptualize as he wishes. Decision-oriented research is always for the need
of a decision maker and the researcher in this case is not free to embark upon research
according to his own inclination.
Research Approaches
There are two basic approaches to research, viz.,
1) Quantitative approach and the
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2) Qualitative approach.
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1) Quantitative Approach
It involves the generation of data in quantitative form which can be subjected to rigorous
quantitative analysis in a formal and rigid fashion.
This approach can be further sub-classified into:
a) Inferential Approach: The purpose of inferential approach to research is to form a data
base from which to infe
b) r characteristics or relationships of population. This usually means survey research where
a sample of population is studied (questioned or observed) to determine its characteristics,
and it is then inferred that the population has the same characteristics.
c) Experimental Approach: Experimental approach is characterised by much greater control
over the research environment and in this case some variables are manipulated to observe
their effect on other variables.
d) Simulation Approach: Simulation approach involves the construction of an artificial
environment within which relevant information and data can be generated. This permits an
observation of the dynamic behaviour of a system (or its sub-system) under controlled
conditions. The term ‘simulation’ in the context of business and social sciences applications
refers to “the operation of a numerical model that represents the structure of a dynamic
process.
2) Qualitative Approach
Qualitative approach to research is concerned with subjective assessment of attitudes,
opinions and behaviour. Research in such a situation is a function of researcher’s insights and
impressions. Such an approach to research generates results either in non-quantitative form
or in the form which are not subjected to rigorous quantitative analysis. Generally, the
techniques of focus group interviews, projective techniques and depth interviews are used.
Significance of Research
Increased
amounts of research make progress possible. Research inculcates scientific and inductive
thinking and it promotes the development of logical habits of thinking and organisation.
Importance or significance of research can be presented as below:
1) The role of research in several fields of applied economics, whether related to business
or to the economy as a whole, has greatly increased in modern times. The increasingly
complex nature of business and government has focused attention on the use of research in
solving operational problems. Research, as an aid to economic policy, has gained added
importance, both for government and business.
2) Research provides the basis for nearly all government policies in our economic system.
For instance, government’s budgets rest in part on an analysis of the needs and desires of
the people and on the availability of revenues to meet these needs. The cost of needs has to
be equated to probable revenues and this is a field where research is most needed. Through
research we can devise alternative policies and can as well examine the consequences of
each of these alternatives. Decision-making may not be a part of research, but research
certainly facilitates the decisions of the policy maker. Government has also to chalk out
programmes for dealing with all facets of the country’s existence and most of these will be
related directly or indirectly to economic conditions. The plight of cultivators, the problems
of big and small business and industry, working conditions, trade union activities, the
problems of distribution, even the size and nature of defence services are matters requiring
research. Thus, research is considered necessary with regard to the allocation of nation’s
resources.
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3) Research has its special significance in solving various operational and planning
problems of business and industry. Operations research and market research, along with
motivational research, are considered crucial and their results assist, in more than one way,
in taking business decisions. Market research is the investigation of the structure and
development of a market for the purpose of formulating efficient policies for purchasing,
production and sales. Operations research refers to the application of mathematical, logical
and analytical techniques to the solution of business problems of cost minimisation or of
profit maximisation or what can be termed as optimisation problems. Motivational research
of determining why people behave as they do is mainly concerned with market
characteristics. In other words, it is concerned with the determination of motivations
underlying the consumer (market) behaviour. All these are of great help to people in
business and industry who are responsible for taking business decisions. Research with
regard to demand and market factors has great utility in business. Given knowledge of
future demand, it is generally not difficult for a firm, or for an industry to adjust its supply
schedule within the limits of its projected capacity. Market analysis has become an integral
tool of business policy these days.
4) Research is equally important for social scientists in studying social relationships and in
seeking answers to various social problems. It provides the intellectual satisfaction of
knowing a few things just for the sake of knowledge and also has practical utility for the
social scientist to know for the sake of being able to do something better or in a more
efficient manner. Research in social sciences is concerned both with knowledge for its own
sake and with knowledge for what it can contribute to practical concerns.
In addition to what has been stated above, the significance of research can also be
understood keeping in view the following points:
 To those students who are to write a master’s or Ph.D. thesis, research may mean a
careerism or a way to attain a high position in the social structure;
 To professionals in research methodology, research may mean a source of livelihood;
 To philosophers and thinkers, research may mean the outlet for new ideas and
insights;
 To literary men and women, research may mean the development of new styles and
creative work;
 To analysts and intellectuals, research may mean the generalisations of new
theories. Thus, research is the fountain of knowledge for the sake of knowledge and an
important source of providing guidelines for solving different business, governmental and
social problems. It is a sort of formal training which enables one to understand the new
developments in one’s field in a better way.
Research Methods Vs Methodology
Research methods may be understood as all those methods/techniques that are used for
conduction of research. Research methods or techniques, thus, refer to the methods the
researchers use in performing research operations. In other words, all those methods which
are used by the researcher during the course of studying his research problem are termed
as research methods. Since the object of research, particularly the applied research, it to
arrive at a solution for a given problem, the available data and the unknown aspects of the
problem have to be related to each other to make a solution possible.
Research methodology is a way to systematically solve the research problem. It may be
understood as a science of studying how research is done scientifically. In it we study the
various steps that are generally adopted by a researcher in studying his research problem
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along with the logic behind them. It is necessary for the researcher to know not only the
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research methods
/techniques but also the methodology. Researchers not only need to know how to develop
certain indices or tests, how to calculate the mean, the mode, the median or the standard
deviation or chi-square, how to apply particular research techniques, but they also need to
know which of these methods or techniques, are relevant and which are not, and what
would they mean and indicate and why. Researchers also need to understand the
assumptions underlying various techniques and they need to know the criteria by which
they can decide that certain techniques and procedures will be applicable to certain
problems and others will not. All this means that it is necessary for the researcher to design
his methodology for his problem as the same may differ from problem to problem.
Research methodology we not only talk of the research methods but also consider the logic
behind the methods we use in the context of our research study and explain why we are
using a particular method or technique and why we are not using others so that research
results are capable of being evaluated either by the researcher himself or by others.
Research and Scientific Method
For a clear perception of the term research, one should know the meaning of scientific
method. The two terms, research and scientific method, are closely related. Research, as we
have already stated, can be termed as “an inquiry into the nature of, the reasons for, and
the consequences of any particular set of circumstances, whether these circumstances are
experimentally controlled or recorded just as they occur. Further, research implies the
researcher is interested in more than particular results; he is interested in the repeatability
of the results and in their extension to more complicated and general situations.”
On the other hand, the philosophy common to all research methods and techniques,
although they may vary considerably from one science to another, is usually given the name
of scientific method. In this context, Karl Pearson writes, “The scientific method is one and
same in the branches (of science) and that method is the method of all logically trained
minds … the unity of all sciences consists alone in its methods, not its material; the man who
classifies facts of any kind whatever, who sees their mutual relation and describes their
sequences, is applying the Scientific Method and is a man of science.”
Scientific method is the pursuit of truth as determined by logical considerations. The ideal of
science is to achieve a systematic interrelation of facts. Scientific method attempts to
achieve “this ideal by experimentation, observation, logical arguments from accepted
postulates and a combination of these three in varying proportions.”
In scientific method, logic aids in formulating propositions explicitly and accurately so that
their possible alternatives become clear. Further, logic develops the consequences of such
alternatives, and when these are compared with observable phenomena, it becomes
possible for the researcher or the scientist to state which alternative is most in harmony
with the observed facts.
The scientific method is, thus, based on certain basic postulates which can be stated as under:
 It relies on empirical evidence;
 It utilizes relevant concepts;
 It is committed to only objective considerations;
 It presupposes ethical neutrality, i.e., it aims at nothing but making only adequate
and correct statements about population objects;
 It results into probabilistic predictions;
 Its methodology is made known to all concerned for critical scrutiny are for use in
testing the conclusions through replication;
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 It aims at formulating most general axioms or what can be termed as scientific

theories.
Importance of Knowing How Research is Done
The study of research methodology gives the student the necessary training in gathering
material and arranging or card-indexing them, participation in the field work when required,
and also training in techniques for the collection of data appropriate to particular problems,
in the use of statistics, questionnaires and controlled experimentation and in recording
evidence, sorting it out and interpreting it. In fact, importance of knowing the methodology
of research or how research is done stems from the following considerations:
a) For one who is preparing himself for a career of carrying out research, the
importance of knowing research methodology and research techniques is obvious
since the same constitute the tools of his trade. The knowledge of methodology
provides good training specially to the new research worker and enables him to do
better research. It helps him to develop disciplined thinking or a ‘bent of mind’ to
observe the field objectively. Hence, those aspiring for careerism in research must
develop the skill of using research techniques and must thoroughly understand the
logic behind them.
b) Knowledge of how to do research will inculcate the ability to evaluate and use
research results with reasonable confidence. In other words, we can state that the
knowledge of research methodology is helpful in various fields such as government
or business administration
c)
d) , community development and social work where persons are increasingly called
upon to evaluate and use research results for action.
e) When one knows how research is done, then one may have the satisfaction of
acquiring a new intellectual tool which can become a way of looking at the world and
of judging every day experience. Accordingly, it enables use to make intelligent
decisions concerning problems facing us in practical life at different points of time.
Thus, the knowledge of research methodology provides tools to took at things in life
objectively.
f) In this scientific age, all of us are in many ways consumers of research results and we
can use them intelligently provided we are able to judge the adequacy of the
methods by which they have been obtained. The knowledge of methodology helps
the consumer of research results to evaluate them and enables him to take rational
decisions.
Research Process
Research process consists of series of actions or steps necessary to effectively carry out
research and the desired sequencing of these steps:
1) Formulating the Research Problem: There are two types of research problems, viz., those
which relate to states of nature and those which relate to relationships between variables.
At the very outset the researcher must single out the problem he wants to study, i.e., he
must decide the general area of interest or aspect of a subject-matter that he would like to
inquire into. Initially the problem may be stated in a broad general way and then the
ambiguities, if any, relating to the problem be resolved. Then, the feasibility of a particular
solution has to be considered before a working formulation of the problem can be set up.
The formulation of a general topic into a specific research problem, thus, constitutes the first
step in a scientific enquiry.
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Steps in Research Process
2) Extensive Literature Survey: Once the problem is formulated, a brief summary of it

should be written down. For this purpose, the abstracting and indexing journals and
published or unpublished bibliographies are the first place to go to. Academic journals,
conference proceedings, government reports, books etc., must be tapped depending on the
nature of the problem. In this process, it should be remembered that one source will lead to
another. The earlier studies, if any, which are similar to the study in hand should be carefully
studied. A good library will be a great help to the researcher at this stage.
3) Development of Working Hypotheses: After extensive literature survey, researcher
should state in clear terms the working hypothesis or hypotheses. Working hypothesis is
tentative assumption made in order to draw out and test its logical or empirical
consequences. As such the manner in which research hypotheses are developed is
particularly important since they provide the focal point for research. They also affect the
manner in which tests must be conducted in the analysis of data and indirectly the quality of
data which is required for the analysis. In most types of research, the development of
working hypothesis plays an important role. Hypothesis should be very specific and limited
to the piece of research in hand because it has to be tested. The role of the hypothesis is to
guide the researcher by delimiting the area of research and to keep him on the right track.
4) Preparing the Research Design: The research problem having been formulated in clear
cut terms, the researcher will be required to prepare a research design, i.e., he will have to
state the conceptual structure within which research would be conducted. The preparation
of such a design facilitates research to be as efficient as possible yielding maximal
information. In other words, the function of research design is to provide for the collection
of relevant evidence with minimal expenditure of effort, time and money. But how all these
can be achieved depends mainly on the research purpose. Research purposes may be
grouped into four categories, viz., (i) Exploration, (ii) Description, (iii) Diagnosis, and (iv)
Experimentation. A flexible research design which provides opportunity for considering
many different aspects of a problem is considered appropriate if the purpose of the
research study is that of exploration.
5. Determining Sample Design: All the items under consideration in any field of inquiry
constitute a ‘universe’ or ‘population’. A complete enumeration of all the items in the
‘population’ is known as a census inquiry. It can be presumed that in such an inquiry when
all the items are covered no element of chance is left and highest accuracy is obtained. But
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in practice this may not be true. Even the slightest element of bias in such an inquiry will
get
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larger and larger as the number of observations increases. Moreover, there is no way of
checking the element of bias or its extent except through a resurvey or use of sample checks.
Besides, this type of inquiry involves a great deal of time, money and energy. Not only this,
census inquiry is not possible in practice under many circumstances. For instance, blood testing
is done only on sample basis. Hence, quite often we select only a few items from the universe
for our study purposes.
Samples can be either probability samples or non-probability samples. With probability
samples each element has a known probability of being included in the sample but the non-
probability samples do not allow the researcher to determine this probability. Probability
samples are those based on simple random sampling, systematic sampling, stratified
sampling, cluster/area sampling whereas non-probability samples are those based on
convenience sampling, judgement sampling and quota sampling techniques.
6) Collecting the Data: In dealing with any real life problem it is often found that data at
hand are inadequate, and hence, it becomes necessary to collect data that are appropriate.
There are several ways of collecting the appropriate data which differ considerably in
context of money costs, time and other resources at the disposal of the researcher.
Primary data can be collected either through experiment or through survey. If the
researcher conducts an experiment, he observes some quantitative measurements, or the
data, with the help of which he examines the truth contained in his hypothesis.
The researcher should select one of these methods of collecting the data taking into
consideration the nature of investigation, objective and scope of the inquiry, financial
resources, available time and the desired degree of accuracy.
7) Execution of the Project: Execution of the project is a very important step in the research
process. If the execution of the project proceeds on correct lines, the data to be collected
would be adequate and dependable. The researcher should see that the project is executed
in a systematic manner and in time. If the survey is to be conducted by means of structured
questionnaires, data can be readily machine-processed. In such a situation, questions as well
as the possible answers may be coded. If the data are to be collected through interviewers,
arrangements should be made for proper selection and training of the interviewers. The
training may be given with the help of instruction manuals which explain clearly the job of
the interviewers at each step. Occasional field checks should be made to ensure that the
interviewers are doing their assigned job sincerely and efficiently.
8) Analysis of Data: After the data have been collected, the researcher turns to the task of
analysing them. The analysis of data requires a number of closely related operations such as
establishment of categories, the application of these categories to raw data through coding,
tabulation and then drawing statistical inferences. The unwieldy data should necessarily be
condensed into a few manageable groups and tables for further analysis. Thus, researcher
should classify the raw data into some purposeful and usable categories. Coding operation is
usually done at this stage through which the categories of data are transformed into
symbols that may be tabulated and counted. Editing is the procedure that improves the
quality of the data for coding. With coding the stage is ready for tabulation. Tabulation is a
part of the technical procedure wherein the classified data are put in the form of tables. The
mechanical devices can be made use of at this juncture. A great deal of data, especially in
large inquiries, is tabulated by computers. Computers not only save time but also make it
possible to study large number of variables affecting a problem simultaneously.
9) Hypothesis-Testing: After analysing the data as stated above, the researcher is in a
position to test the hypotheses, if any, he had formulated earlier. Do the facts support the
hypotheses
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or they happen to be contrary? This is the usual question which should be answered while
testing hypotheses.
Various tests, such as Chi square test, t-test, F-test, have been developed by statisticians for
the purpose. The hypotheses may be tested through the use of one or more of such tests,
depending upon the nature and object of research inquiry.
10) Generalisations and Interpretation: If a hypothesis is tested and upheld several times, it
may be possible for the researcher to arrive at generalisation, i.e., to build a theory. As a
matter of fact, the real value of research lies in its ability to arrive at certain generalisations.
If the researcher had no hypothesis to start with, he might seek to explain his findings on
the basis of some theory. It is known as interpretation. The process of interpretation may
quite often trigger off new questions which in turn may lead to further researches.
11) Preparation of the Report or the Thesis: Finally, the researcher has to prepare the
report of what has been done by him. Writing of report must be done with great care
keeping in view the following:
 The layout of the report should be as follows: (i) the preliminary pages; (ii) the main
text, and (iii) the end matter.
 At the end of the report, appendices should be enlisted in respect of all technical
data. Bibliography, i.e., list of books, journals, reports, etc., consulted, should also be
given in the end. Index should also be given specially in a published research report.
Criteria of Good Research
Whatever may be the types of research works and studies, one thing that is important is
that they all meet on the common ground of scientific method employed by them. One
expects scientific research to satisfy the following criteria:
 The purpose of the research should be clearly defined and common concepts be used.
 The research procedure used should be described in sufficient detail to permit
another researcher to repeat the research for further advancement, keeping the
continuity of what has already been attained.
 The procedural design of the research should be carefully planned to yield results
that are as objective as possible.
 The researcher should report with complete frankness, flaws in procedural design
and estimate their effects upon the findings.
 The analysis of data should be sufficiently adequate to reveal its significance and the
methods of analysis used should be appropriate. The validity and reliability of the
data should be checked carefully.
 Conclusions should be confined to those justified by the data of the research and
limited to those for which the data provide an adequate basis.
 Greater confidence in research is warranted if the researcher is experienced, has a
good reputation in research and is a person of integrity.
Qualities of Good Research
Qualities of a good research are as under:
a) Good research is systematic: It means that research is structured with specified steps to
be taken in a specified sequence in accordance with the well-defined set of rules. Systematic
characteristic of the research does not rule out creative thinking but it certainly does reject
the use of guessing and intuition in arriving at conclusions.
b) Good research is logical: This implies that research is guided by the rules of logical
reasoning and the logical process of induction and deduction are of great value in carrying
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out research. Induction is the process of reasoning from a part to the whole whereas
deduction is the process of reasoning from some premise to a conclusion which follows
from that very premise. In fact, logical reasoning makes research more meaningful in the
context of decision making.
c) Good research is empirical: It implies that research is related basically to one or more
aspects of a real situation and deals with concrete data that provides a basis for external
validity to research results.
d) Good research is replicable: This characteristic allows research results to be verified by
replicating the study and thereby building a sound basis for decisions.
Problems Encountered by Researchers in India
Researchers in India, particularly those engaged in empirical research, are facing several
problems.
Some of the important problems are as follows:
1) Lack of a scientific training in the Research methodology: The lack of a scientific training
in the methodology of research is a great impediment for researchers in our country. There
is paucity of competent researchers. Many researchers take a leap in the dark without
knowing research methods. Most of the work, which goes in the name of research is not
methodologically sound.
2) Insufficient interaction: There is insufficient interaction between the university research
departments on one side and business establishments, government departments and
research institutions on the other side. A great deal of primary data of non-confidential
nature remain untouched/untreated by the researchers for want of proper contacts.
3) Most of the business units in our country do not have the confidence that the material
supplied by them to researchers will not be misused and as such they are often reluctant in
supplying the needed information to researchers.
4) Research studies overlapping one another are undertaken quite often for want of
adequate information. This results in duplication and fritters away resources. This problem
can be solved by proper compilation and revision, at regular intervals, of a list of subjects on
which and the places where the research is going on.
5) There does not exist a code of conduct for researchers and inter-university and
interdepartmental rivalries are also quite common.
6) Many researchers in our country also face the difficulty of adequate and timely secretarial
assistance, including computerial assistance. This causes unnecessary delays in the
completion of research studies.
7) Library management and functioning is not satisfactory at many places and much of the
time and energy of researchers are spent in tracing out the books, journals, reports, etc.,
rather than in tracing out relevant material from them.
8) There is also the problem that many of our libraries are not able to get copies of old and
new Acts/Rules, reports and other government publications in time.
9) There is also the difficulty of timely availability of published data from various
government and other agencies doing this job in our country. Researcher also faces the
problem on account of the fact that the published data vary quite significantly because of
differences in coverage by the concerning agencies.
10) There may, at times, take place the problem of conceptualization and also problems
relating to the process of data collection and related things.
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Research Application in business decisions

Business managers in each field— whether human resources or production, marketing or
finance—are constantly being confronted by problem situations that require effective and
actionable decision making.
Most of these decisions require additional information or information evaluation, which can
be best addressed by research. While the nature of the decision problem might be singularly
unique to the manager, organization and situation, broadly for the sake of understanding, it
is possible to categorize them under different heads.
1) Marketing Function
This is one area of business where research is the lifeline and is carried out on a vast array of
topics and is conducted both in-house by the organization itself and outsourced to external
agencies. Broader industry- or product-category-specific studies are also carried out by
market research agencies and sold as reports for assisting in business decisions. Studies like
these could be:
 Market potential analysis; market segmentation analysis and demand estimation.
 Market structure analysis which includes market size, players and market share
of the key players.
 Sales and retail audits of product categories by players and regions as well as
national sales; consumer and business trend analysis—sometimes including short-
and long-term forecasting.
Other than these, an organization also carries out researches related to all four Ps of
marketing, such as:
a) Product Research: This would include new product research; product testing and
development; product differentiation and positioning; testing and evaluating new products
and packaging research; brand research—including equity to tracks and imaging studies.
b) Pricing Research: This includes price determination research; evaluating customer value;
competitor pricing strategies; alternative pricing models and implications.
c) Promotional Research: This includes everything from designing of the communication mix
to design of advertisements, copy testing, measuring the impact of alternative media
vehicles, impact of competitors’ strategy.
D) Place Research: This includes locational analysis, design and planning of distribution
channels and measuring the effectiveness of the distribution network.
2) Personnel and Human Resource Management
Human Resources (HR) and organizational behaviour is an area which involves basic or
fundamental research as a lot of academic, macro-level research may be adapted and
implemented by organizations into their policies and programmes.
Applied HR research by contrast is more predictive and solution-oriented. Though there are
a number of academic and organizational areas in which research is conducted, yet some
key contemporary areas which seem to attract more research are as follows:
a) Performance Management: This includes leadership analysis development and
evaluation; organizational climate and work environment studies; talent and aptitude
analysis and management; organizational change implementation, management and
effectiveness analysis.
b) Employee Selection and Staffing: This includes pre and on-the-job employee assessment
and analysis; staffing studies.
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c) Organizational Planning and Development: This includes culture assessment—either

organization specific or the study of individual and merged culture analysis for mergers and
acquisitions; manpower planning and development.
d) Incentive and Benefit Studies: These include job analysis and performance appraisal
studies; recognition and reward studies, hierarchical compensation analysis; employee
benefits and reward analysis, both within the organization and industry best practices.
e) Training and Development: These include training need gap analysis; training
development modules; monitoring and assessing impact and effectiveness of training.
f) Other Areas: Other areas include employee relationship analysis; labours tudies;
negotiation and wage settlement studies; absenteeism and accident analysis; turnover and
attrition studies and work-life balance analysis.
3) Financial and Accounting Research
a) Asset Pricing, Corporate Finance and Capital Markets: The focus here is on stock market
response to corporate actions (IPOs or Initial Public Offerings, takeovers and mergers),
financial reporting (earnings and firm specific announcements) and the impact of factors on
returns, e.g., liquidity and volume.
b) Financial Derivatives and Interest Rate and Credit Risk Modelling: This includes
analysing interest rate derivatives, development and validation of corporate credit rating
models and associated derivatives; analysing corporate decision- making and investment
risk appraisal.
c) Market Based Accounting Research: This includes analysis of corporate financial
reporting behaviour; accounting-based valuations; evaluation and usage of accounting
information by investors and evaluation of management compensation schemes.
d) Auditing and Accountability: This includes both private and public sector accounting
studies, analysis of audit regulations; analysis of different audit methodologies; governance
and accountability of audit committees.
e) Financial Econometrics: This includes modelling and forecasting in volatility, risk
estimation and analysis.
f) Other Areas: Other related areas of investigation are in merchant banking and insurance
sector and business policy and economics areas.
4) Production and Operation Management
This area of management is one in which quantifiable implementation of the research
results takes on huge cost and process implications. Research in this area is highly focused
and problem specific. The decision areas in which research studies are carried out are as
follows:
 Operation planning which includes product/service design and development;
resource allocation and capacity planning.
 Demand forecasting and decision analysis.
 Process planning which includes production scheduling and material requirement
management; work design planning and monitoring.
 Production scheduling and material requirement management; work design planning
and monitoring.
 Project management and maintenance management studies.
 Logistics and supply chain, and inventory management analysis.
Quality estimation and assurance studies which include Total Quality Management
(TQM) and quality certification analysis.
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5) Cross-Functional Research
Business management being an integrated amalgamation of all these and other areas
sometimes requires a unified thought and approach to research. These studies require an
open orientation where experts from across the disciplines contribute to and gain from the
study.
 Corporate governance and ethics—the role of social values and ethics and their
integration into a company’s working is an area that is of critical significance to
any organization.
 Technical support systems, enterprise resource planning systems, knowledge
management, and data mining and warehousing are integrated areas requiring
research on managing coordinated efforts across divisions.
 Ecological and environmental analysis; legal analysis of managerial actions;
human rights and discrimination studies.
Questions
3 Marks
1) What is Research?
2) What is Descriptive
3) What is Analytical Research?
4) What is Applied Research?
5) What is Fundamental Research?
6) What is Quantitative Research?
7) Qualitative Research?
8) What is Conceptual Research?
9) What is Empirical Research?
10) What is one-time research?
11) What is longitudinal research?
12) What is field-setting research?
13) What is laboratory research?
14) What is clinical research?
15) What is diagnostic research?
16) What is exploratory Research
17) What is formalized Research?
18) What is Historical research?
19) What is conclusion-oriented research?
20) What is decision-oriented?
7 Marks
1) What are the Objectives of Research?
2) Substantiate the Characteristics of Research
3) What are the possible motives for doing research in Business
4) Discuss the two different Approaches used in research
5) Distinguish between Research Methods and Research Methodology
6) What are Criteria used for Good Research?
7) What are the qualities of Good Research?
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10 Marks
1) Explain different types of Types of Research
2) Identify and explain Significance and importance of Research
3) Draw the neat flow chart of research process and explain different steps involved in the
research process.
4) What are the different Problems Encountered by Researchers in India?
5) Explain Research Application in business decisions
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Module-2
Research Design
Introduction
The purpose of research is making an inquiry about a phenomenon for finding a solution to
the problem or identifying a way of utilizing an opportunity. To achieve the end of collecting
right information from right source, in the right way and analyze it in the right manner
researcher has to make analysis of the alternatives available at each step of the research
process.
A research design lays the foundation for conducting the project. A good research design
will ensure that the marketing research project is conducted effectively and efficiently.
What is Research Design?
A research design is a framework or blueprint for conducting a marketing research project.
It details the procedures necessary for obtaining the information needed to structure or
solve marketing research problems.
The formidable problem that follows the task of defining the research problem is the
preparation of the design of the research project, popularly known as the “research
design”. A research design is the arrangement of conditions for collection and analysis of
data in a manner that aims to combine relevance to the research purpose with economy in
procedure. In formulating a research design, the researcher has to balance the perspectives
of marketing decision-makers and target respondents. From their education and experience,
marketing decision-makers may have certain techniques that they believe to be the most
effective and in which they subsequently have more confidence. There is no problem with
this, providing the technique is the best means to measure or understand the issue under
investigation, from the perspective of respondents.
Need For Research Design
Research design is needed because it facilitates the smooth sailing of the various research
operations, thereby making research as efficient as possible yielding maximal information
with minimal expenditure of effort, time and money. Just as for better, economical and
attractive construction of a house, we need a blueprint (or what is commonly called the map
of the house) well thought out and prepared by an expert architect, similarly we need a
research design or a plan in advance of data collection and analysis for our research project.
Research design stands for advance planning of the methods to be adopted for collecting
the relevant data and the techniques to be used in their analysis, keeping in view the
objective of the research and the availability of staff, time and money. Preparation of the
research design should be done with great care as any error in it may upset the entire
project.
Research design, in fact, has a great bearing on the reliability of the results arrived at and as
such constitutes the firm foundation of the entire edifice of the research work.
Even then the need for a well thought out research design is at times not realised by many.
The importance which this problem deserves is not given to it. As a result, many researches
do not serve the purpose for which they are undertaken. In fact, they may even give
misleading conclusions. Thoughtlessness in designing the research project may result in
rendering the research exercise futile. It is, therefore, imperative that an efficient and
appropriate design must be prepared before starting research operations. The design helps
the researcher to organize his ideas in a form whereby it will be possible for him to look for
flaws and inadequacies. Such a design can even be given to others for their comments and
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critical evaluation. In the absence of such a course of action, it will be difficult for the critic
to provide a comprehensive review of the proposed study.
Features of a Good Design
A good design is often characterized by adjectives like flexible, appropriate, efficient, and
economical and so on. Generally, the design which minimizes bias and maximizes the
reliability of the data collected and analysed is considered a good design. The design which
gives the smallest experimental error is supposed to be the best design in many
investigations. Similarly, a design which yields maximal information and provides an
opportunity for considering many different aspects of a problem is considered most
appropriate and efficient design in respect of many research problems. Thus, the question of
good design is related to the purpose or objective of the research problem and also with the
nature of the problem to be studied. A design may be quite suitable in one case, but may be
found wanting in one respect or the other in the context of some other research problem.
One single design cannot serve the purpose of all types of research problems.
Types of Research Design/Research Design Classification
Research designs may be broadly classified as exploratory or conclusive, which is shown in
the below figure.
1) Exploratory Research Design

Exploration refers to finding something existing but unknown to us. It is getting information
and getting an idea about the issue. However, the information is not valid for making major
decisions.
Exploratory research is used in situations where the issue is not clear. It helps gain
additional insights about the issue (clarifies the problem) and formulate hypotheses
(tentative solutions to the problem on hand).
The aim of exploratory research design is to get a better understanding or insights of the
research problem. Exploratory research helps ensure that a rigorous and conclusive study
will not begin with an inadequate understanding of the nature of the business problem.
Exploratory research is undertaken in the following situations.
a) Limited knowledge- There are limited amount of research works discussing the issue
and hence prior knowledge about these studies are limited. The researchers need
insights to develop further research works
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b) Prior to a major research - When major research is planned to for making policy
decisions, a pilot study in the form of exploratory research is undertaken.
Characteristics of the exploratory design
The characteristics of the exploratory design are:
a) Single vs serial research -Exploratory research may be a single research investigation
or it may be a series of informal studies; both methods provide background
information.
b) Informal approach - Researchers must be creative in the choice of information
sources. They should explore all appropriate inexpensive sources before embarking
on expensive research of their own. However, they should still be systematic and
careful at all times.
c) Nature of data - Most exploratory research designs provide qualitative data which
provides greater understanding of a concept. In contrast, quantitative data provides
precise measurement.
Purposes of exploratory design
There are three different purposes for conducting exploratory research; all three are
interrelated:
a) Discovering new ideas: Uncovering consumer needs is a great potential source of
ideas. Exploratory research is often used to generate new product ideas, ideas for
advertising copy, etc.
b) Concept testing: Concept testing refers to those research procedures that test some
sort of stimulus as a proxy for a new, revised, or remarketed product or service.
Generally, consumers are presented with an idea and asked if they like it would use
it, etc.
c) Diagnosing a situation: Exploratory research helps diagnose the dimensions of
problems so that successive research projects will be on target. Particularly, when
the topic of research is very new, the researcher needs insights to develop
research problem and magnitude of the issue and variables involved in the
research.
d) Screening alternatives: When several opportunities arise and budgets restrict the
use of all possible options, exploratory research may be utilized to determine the
best alternatives. Certain evaluative information can be obtained through
exploratory research.
Exploratory Design Categories
A manager may choose from three general categories of exploratory research:
a) Experience Surveys: Concepts may be discussed with people who have had personal
experience in the field being researched. This constitutes an informal experience
survey.
c) Secondary Data Analysis: A quick, easy and economical source of background
information is trade literature. Research rarely begins without a literature review.
d) Case Study Method: The purpose of a case study is to obtain information from one,
or a few, situations similar to the researcher’s situation. A case study has no set
procedures. However, this freedom to research makes the success of the case study
highly dependent on the ability of the researcher.
e) Pilot Studies: The term “pilot studies” is used as a collective to group together a
number of diverse research techniques all of which are conducted on a small scale.
They generate primary data from consumers, or other subjects of ultimate concern.
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2) Conclusive Research Design

Conclusion refers to an understanding obtained from discussion. It is based on evaluation of
the situation. The information obtained for conclusion covers all aspects of inquiry. It is
reasonable in depth and good in terms of validity and reliability.
Conclusive research would be used to test specific hypotheses, examine specific
relationships, or make predictions; this will include both descriptive and causal research
designs.
 Descriptive research is used to describe something, usually market characteristics or
functions.
 Causal research is used to obtain evidence regarding cause-and-effect relationships.
2a) Descriptive Research Design
Descriptive research is conducted to discover and determine the characteristics of a
population. It seeks to determine the answers to the questions “who,” “what,” “when,”
“where,” and “how.” However, it does not tell us “why” or the causes for an effect.
It is characterized by a clear statement of the problem, specific hypotheses, and detailed
information needs. In this type of research design, the researcher begins with the structure (
a model) already defined and proceeds to actual data collection in order to describe a
process or determine some market variable.
Types of Descriptive Design
Descriptive research can be further classified into cross-sectional and longitudinal research:
a) Cross-sectional designs: The cross-sectional study is the most frequently used descriptive
design in marketing research. Cross-sectional designs involve the collection of information
from any given sample of population elements only once. They may be either single cross-
sectional or multiple cross-sectional
 In single cross-sectional designs, only one sample of respondents is drawn from the
target population, and information is obtained from this sample only once. These
designs are also called sample survey research designs.
 In multiple cross-sectional designs, there are two or more samples of respondents,
and information from each sample is obtained only once. Often, information from
different samples is obtained at different times.
b) Longitudinal design: A type of research design involving a fixed sample of population
elements measured repeatedly. The sample remains the same over time, thus providing a
series of pictures that, when viewed together, vividly illustrate the situation and the changes
that are taking place.
2b) Causal Research Design
Causal research design deals with answering questions like “why”. It attempts to identify
cause-and-effect relationships between variables. It usually follows exploratory and
descriptive research and, therefore, the researchers are quite knowledgeable about the
subject.
Causal research, precisely estimates the extent to which each variable of ad has contributed
to the rise in sales.
Thus, causal research attempts to establish that when we do one thing (e.g., increase
advertising), another will follow (e.g., increased sales). In other words every action causes
some effect. It seeks to obtain evidence regarding cause-and-effect relationships. It
proceeds from a pre-established structure and attempts to infer causal relationships
between variables.
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Exploratory Vs Conclusive
The differences between exploratory and conclusive research can be distinguished by their
objectives, characteristics, findings from the research, and outcomes of the research.
 Objectives - First, the objective of exploratory research is to identify relationships
and formulate hypotheses, whereas the objective of conclusive research is to
examine relationships and test hypotheses.
 Methodology- Second, in exploratory research the information needed is only
loosely defined. The research process that is adopted is flexible and unstructured.
The sample, selected to generate maximum insights, is small and non-representative.
The primary data, which is collected, is qualitative in nature and is analyzed as such.
In conclusive research, the information needed is clearly specified. Such research is
typically more formal and structured than exploratory research. It is based on large
and representative samples and the data obtained are subjected to quantitative
analysis.
 Findings- Third, given these characteristics of the research process, the findings of
exploratory research should be regarded as tentative or used as input to further
research, whereas the findings from conclusive research are considered to be final
and useful for policy making.
Important Concepts Relating to Research Design
Before describing the different research designs, it will be appropriate to explain the various
concepts relating to designs so that these may be better and easily understood.
1) Dependent and independent variables: A concept which can take on different
quantitative values is called a variable. As such the concepts like weight, height, income are
all examples of variables. Qualitative phenomena (or the attributes) are also quantified on
the basis of the presence or absence of the concerning attribute(s). Phenomena which can
take on quantitatively different values even in decimal points are called ‘continuous
variables’. But all variables are not continuous. If they can only be expressed in integer
values, they are non- continuous variables or in statistical language ‘discrete variables’. Age
is an example of continuous variable, but the number of children is an example of non-
continuous variable. If one variable depends upon or is a consequence of the other variable,
it is termed as a dependent variable, and the variable that is antecedent to the dependent
variable is termed as an independent variable
2) Extraneous variable: Independent variables that are not related to the purpose of the
study, but may affect the dependent variable are termed as extraneous variables. Suppose
the researcher wants to test the hypothesis that there is a relationship between children’s
gains in social studies achievement and their self-concepts. In this case self-concept is an
independent variable and social studies achievement is a dependent variable. Intelligence
may as well affect the social studies achievement, but since it is not related to the purpose
of the study undertaken by the researcher, it will be termed as an extraneous variable.
3) Control: One important characteristic of a good research design is to minimise the
influence or effect of extraneous variable(s). The technical term ‘control’ is used when we
design the study minimising the effects of extraneous independent variables. In
experimental researches, the term ‘control’ is used to refer to restrain experimental
conditions.
4) Confounded relationship: When the dependent variable is not free from the influence of
extraneous variable(s), the relationship between the dependent and independent variables
is said to be confounded by an extraneous variable(s).
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5) Research hypothesis: When a prediction or a hypothesised relationship is to be tested by

scientific methods, it is termed as research hypothesis. The research hypothesis is a
predictive statement that relates an independent variable to a dependent variable. Usually a
research hypothesis must contain, at least, one independent and one dependent variable.
6) Experimental and non-experimental hypothesis-testing research: When the purpose of
research is to test a research hypothesis, it is termed as hypothesis-testing research. It can
be of the experimental design or of the non-experimental design. Research in which the
independent variable is manipulated is termed ‘experimental hypothesis-testing research’
and research in which an independent variable is not manipulated is called ‘non-
experimental hypothesis-testing research’.
7) Experimental and control groups: In an experimental hypothesis-testing research when a
group is exposed to usual conditions, it is termed a ‘control group’, but when the group is
exposed to some novel or special condition, it is termed an ‘experimental group’. In the
above illustration, the Group A can be called a control group and the Group B an
experimental group. If both groups A and B are exposed to special studies programmes,
then both groups would be termed ‘experimental groups.’
8) Treatments: The different conditions under which experimental and control groups are
put are usually referred to as ‘treatments’. In the illustration taken above, the two
treatments are the usual studies programme and the special studies programme. Similarly, if
we want to determine through an experiment the comparative impact of three varieties of
fertilizers on the yield of wheat, in that case the three varieties of fertilizers will be treated
as three treatments.
9) Experiment: The process of examining the truth of a statistical hypothesis, relating to
some research problem, is known as an experiment.
10) Experimental unit(s): The pre-determined plots or the blocks, where different
treatments are used, are known as experimental units. Such experimental units must be
selected (defined) very carefully.
Basic Principles of Experimental Designs
Professor Fisher has enumerated three principles of experimental designs: (1) the Principle
of Replication; (2) the Principle of Randomization; and the (3) Principle of Local Control.
1) The Principle of Replication: According to the Principle of Replication, the experiment
should be repeated more than once. Thus, each treatment is applied in many experimental
units instead of one. By doing so the statistical accuracy of the experiments is increased.
2) The Principle of Randomization: The Principle of Randomization provides protection,
when we conduct an experiment, against the effect of extraneous factors by randomization.
In other words, this principle indicates that we should design or plan the experiment in such
a way that the variations caused by extraneous factors can all be combined under the
general heading of “chance.”
3) Principle of Local Control: The Principle of Local Control is another important principle of
experimental designs. Under it the extraneous factor, the known source of variability, is
made to vary deliberately over as wide a range as necessary and this needs to be done in
such a way that the variability it causes can be measured and hence eliminated from the
experimental error. This means that we should plan the experiment in a manner that we can
perform a two-way analysis of variance, in which the total variability of the data is divided
into three components attributed to treatments (varieties of rice in our case), the
extraneous factor (soil fertility in our case) and experimental error. In other words,
according to the principle of local
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control, we first divide the field into several homogeneous parts, known as blocks, and then
each such block is divided into parts equal to the number of treatments.
Then the treatments are randomly assigned to these parts of a block. Dividing the field into
several homogenous parts is known as ‘blocking’. In general, blocks are the levels at which
we hold an extraneous factor fixed, so that we can measure its contribution to the total
variability of the data by means of a two-way analysis of variance. In brief, through the
principle of local control we can eliminate the variability due to extraneous factor(s) from
the experimental error.
Important Types of Experimental Designs
Experimental design refers to the framework or structure of an experiment and as such
there are several experimental designs. We can classify experimental designs into two broad
categories, viz., informal experimental designs and formal experimental designs. Informal
experimental designs are those designs that normally use a less sophisticated form of
analysis based on differences in magnitudes, whereas formal experimental designs offer
relatively more control and use precise statistical procedures for analysis. Important
experiment designs are as follows:
(I) Informal experimental designs:
(i) Before-and-after without control design.
(ii) After-only with control design.
(iii) Before-and-after with control design.
(II) Formal experimental designs:
(i) Completely randomized design (C.R. Design).
(ii) Randomized block design (R.B. Design).
(iii) Latin square design (L.S. Design).
(iv) Factorial designs.
III) Pre-experimental Research Design
IV) Quasi-experimental Research Design
V) True Experimental Research Design
I. Informal experimental designs
1. Before-and-after without control design: In such a design a single test group or area is
selected and the dependent variable is measured before the introduction of the treatment.
The treatment is then introduced and the dependent variable is measured again after the
treatment has been introduced. The effect of the treatment would be equal to the level of
the phenomenon after the treatment minus the level of the phenomenon before the
treatment. The design can be represented thus:
2. After-only with control design: In this design two groups or areas (test area and control
area) are selected and the treatment is introduced into the test area only. The dependent
variable is then measured in both the areas at the same time. Treatment impact is assessed
by subtracting the value of the dependent variable in the control area from its value in the
test area. This can be exhibited in the following form:
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3. Before-and-after with control design: In this design two areas are selected and the
dependent variable is measured in both the areas for an identical time-period before the
treatment. The treatment is then introduced into the test area only, and the dependent
variable is measured in both for an identical time-period after the introduction of the
treatment. The treatment effect is determined by subtracting the change in the dependent
variable in the control area from the change in the dependent variable in test area. This
design can be shown in this way:
(II) Formal experimental designs:

1. Completely randomized design (C.R. design): Involves only two principles viz., the
principle of replication and the principle of randomization of experimental designs. It is the
simplest possible design and its procedure of analysis is also easier. The essential
characteristic of the design is that subjects are randomly assigned to experimental
treatments (or vice-versa).
a) Two-group simple randomized design: In a two-group simple randomized design, first of
all the population is defined and then from the population a sample is selected randomly.
Further, requirement of this design is that items, after being selected randomly from the
population, be randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups (Such random
assignment of items to two groups is technically described as principle of randomization).
Thus, this design yields two groups as representatives of the population. In a diagram form
this design can be shown in this way:
b) Random replications design: The limitation of the two-group randomized design is
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usually eliminated within the random replications design. In the illustration just cited
above, the
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teacher differences on the dependent variable were ignored, i.e., the extraneous variable
was not controlled. But in a random replications design, the effect of such differences are
minimised (or reduced) by providing a number of repetitions for each treatment. Each
repetition is technically called a ‘replication’. Random replication design serves two
purposes viz., it provides controls for the differential effects of the extraneous independent
variables and secondly, it randomizes any individual differences among those conducting
the treatments.
2. Randomized block design (R.B. design) is an improvement over the C.R. design. In the
R.B. design the principle of local control can be applied along with the other two principles
of experimental designs. In the R.B. design, subjects are first divided into groups, known as
blocks, such that within each group the subjects are relatively homogeneous in respect to
some selected variable. The variable selected for grouping the subjects is one that is
believed to be related to the measures to be obtained in respect of the dependent variable.
The number of subjects in a given block would be equal to the number of treatments and
one subject in each block would be randomly assigned to each treatment. In general, blocks
are the levels at which we hold the extraneous factor fixed, so that its contribution to the
total variability of data can be measured. The main feature of the R.B. design is that in this
each treatment appears the same number of times in each block.
3. Latin square design (L.S. design) is an experimental design very frequently used in
agricultural research. The conditions under which agricultural investigations are carried out
are different from those in other studies for nature plays an important role in agriculture.
4. Factorial designs: Factorial designs are used in experiments where the effects of varying
more than one factor are to be determined. They are especially important in several
economic and social phenomena where usually a large number of factors affect a particular
problem. Factorial designs can be of two types: (i) simple factorial designs and (ii)
complex factorial designs. We take them separately
a) Simple factorial designs: In case of simple factorial designs, we consider the effects of
varying two factors on the dependent variable, but when an experiment is done with more
than two factors, we use complex factorial designs. Simple factorial design is also termed as
a ‘two-factor-factorial design’, whereas complex factorial design is known as ‘multifactor-
factorial design.’ Simple factorial design may either be a 2 × 2 simple factorial design, or it
may be, say, 3 × 4 or 5 × 3 or the like type of simple factorial design.
b) Complex factorial designs: Experiments with more than two factors at a time involve the
use of complex factorial designs. A design which considers three or more independent
variables simultaneously is called a complex factorial design. In case of three factors with
one experimental variable having two treatments and two control variables, each one of
which having two levels, the design used will be termed 2 × 2 × 2 complex factorial design
which will contain a total of eight cells.
III. Pre-experimental Research Design
In pre-experimental research design, either a group or various dependent groups are
observed for the effect of the application of an independent variable which is presumed to
cause change. It is the simplest form of experimental research design and is treated with no
control group.
Although very practical, experimental research is lacking in several areas of the true-
experimental criteria. The pre-experimental research design is further divided into three
types
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1) One-shot Case Study Research Design: In this type of experimental study, only one
dependent group or variable is considered. The study is carried out after some treatment
which was presumed to cause change, making it a post-test study.
2) One-group Pre-test-post-test Research Design: This research design combines both post-
test and pre-test study by carrying out a test on a single group before the treatment is
administered and after the treatment is administered. With the former being administered
at the beginning of treatment and later at the end.
3) Static-group Comparison: In a static-group comparison study, 2 or more groups are
placed under observation, where only one of the groups is subjected to some treatment
while the other groups are held static. All the groups are post-tested, and the observed
differences between the groups are assumed to be a result of the treatment.
IV. Quasi-experimental Research Design
The word "quasi" means partial, half, or pseudo. Therefore, the quasi-experimental research
bearing a resemblance to the true experimental research, but not the same. In quasi-
experiments, the participants are not randomly assigned, and as such, they are used in
settings where randomization is difficult or impossible. This is very common in educational
research, where administrators are unwilling to allow the random selection of students for
experimental samples.
Quasi-experimental designs have a comparison group that is similar to a control group
except assignment to the comparison group is not determined by random assignment. The
most basic of these quasi-experimental designs is the non-equivalent comparison groups
design.
V. True Experimental Research Design
The true experimental research design relies on statistical analysis to approve or disprove a
hypothesis. It is the most accurate type of experimental design and may be carried out with
or without a pre-test on at least 2 randomly assigned dependent subjects.
The true experimental research design must contain a control group, a variable that can be
manipulated by the researcher, and the distribution must be random. The classification of
true experimental design include:
1) The post-test-only Control Group Design: In this design, subjects are randomly selected
and assigned to the 2 groups (control and experimental), and only the experimental group is
treated. After close observation, both groups are post-tested, and a conclusion is drawn
from the difference between these groups.
2) The pre-test-post-test Control Group Design: For this control group design, subjects are
randomly assigned to the 2 groups, both are presented, but only the experimental group is
treated. After close observation, both groups are post-tested to measure the degree of
change in each group.
3) Solomon four-group Design: This is the combination of the pre-test-only and the pre-test-
post-test control groups. In this case, the randomly selected subjects are placed into 4
groups.
Questions
3 Marks
1) What is Research Design?
2) What is Exploratory Research Design?
3) What is Conclusive Research Design?
4) What is Descriptive Research Design?
5) What is Causal Research Design?
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6) What is Pre-experimental Research Design
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7) What is Quasi-experimental Research Design

8) What is True Experimental Research Design
7 Marks
1) Explain the Need for Research Design
2) Explain Characteristics of the exploratory design
3) Explain Purposes of exploratory design
4) What are Exploratory Design Categories?
5) Explain Types of Descriptive Design
6) Explain Basic Principles of Experimental Designs
7) What are the different Pre-experimental Research Design
8) Explain True Experimental Research Design
10 Marks
1) What are the different types of Research Design?
2) Explain Important Concepts Relating to Research Design
3) Explain Different types of Experimental Designs
4) Explain different types informal Experimental Designs
5) Explain different types formal Experimental Designs
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MODULE-3
Sampling
Concept of Sampling
A population (finite group) or universe (infinite group) is any complete group sharing some
common set of characteristics. Sample is a subset or some part of a larger population.
Sampling involves using a small number of items or parts or portion of the population to
make conclusions regarding the whole population. Thus, the purpose of sampling is to
estimate some unknown characteristic of the population.
Sample or Census
The objective of most marketing research projects is to obtain information about the
characteristics or parameters of a population. A population is the aggregate of all the
elements that share some common set of characteristics and that comprise the universe for
the purpose of the marketing research problem. The population parameters are typically
numbers, such as the proportion of consumers who are loyal to a particular brand of
toothpaste. Information about population parameters may be obtained by taking a census
or a sample. A census involves a complete enumeration of the elements of a population.
The population parameters can be calculated directly in a straightforward way after the
census is enumerated. A sample, on the other hand, is a subgroup of the population
selected for participation in the study. Sample characteristics, called statistics, are then used
to make inferences about the population parameters. The inferences that link sample
characteristics and population parameters are estimation procedures and tests of
hypotheses.
Key Differences between Census and Sampling
The paramount differences between census and sampling are discussed in detail in the given
below points:
1. The census is a systematic method that collects and records the data about the
members of the population. The sampling is defined as the subset of the population
selected to represent the entire group, in all its characteristics.
2. The census is alternately known as a complete enumeration survey method. In
contrast, sampling is also known as a partial enumeration survey method.
3. In the census, each and every unit of population is researched. On the contrary, only
a handful of items is selected from the population for research.
4. Census, is a very time-consuming method of survey, whereas, in the case of
sampling, the survey does not take much time.
5. The census method requires high capital investment as it involves the research and
collection of all the values of the population. Unlike sampling which is a
comparatively economical method.
6. The results drawn by conducting a census is accurate and reliable while there are
chances of errors in the results drawn from the sample.
7. The size of the sample determines the probability of errors in the outcome, i.e. the
larger the size of population the less are the chances of errors and the smaller the
size; the higher are the chances of errors. This is not possible with census as all the
items are taken into consideration.
8. Census is best suited for the population of heterogeneous nature. As opposed to
sampling which is appropriate for homogeneous nature.
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Measures in Sampling
The terminologies that describe sampling measures are response, statistic and parameter.
 Parameter: The actual characteristic of the population, the true value of which can
only be known by taking an error-free census
 Statistic: The estimate of a characteristic obtained from the sample
 Population element refers to and individual member of the population.
 Census is an investigation of all the individual elements making up the population - a
total enumeration rather than selection of portion from the whole population.
 Census: It is process making an investigation / study of all the individual elements
making up the population.
 Sample: It is a small portion of the population, which possess the characteristics of
the population.
 Sampling frame – It is the enumerated list of target population elements that can be
identified and accessed for data collection.
 Sampling frame error- The discrepancy between the definition of the population and
a sampling frame is the first potential source of error associated with sample
selection.
 Sampling unit: A decision has to be taken concerning a sampling unit before
selecting sample. Sampling unit may be a geographical one such as state, district,
village, etc., or a construction unit such as house, flat, etc., or it may be a social unit
such as family, club, school, etc., or it may be an individual.
The Sampling Design Process
The sampling design process includes six steps; these steps are closely interrelated and
relevant to all aspects of the marketing research project, from problem definition to the
presentation of the results. Therefore, sample design decisions should be integrated with all
other decisions in a research project.
Sampling Design Process
1) Define the Target Population

Sampling design begins by specifying the target population. This is the collection of
elements or objects that possess the information sought by the researcher and about which
inferences are to be made. The target population must be defined precisely. Imprecise
definition of the target population will result in research that is ineffective at best and
misleading at worst. Defining the target population involves translating the problem
definition into a precise statement of who should and should not be included in the sample.
The target population should be defined in terms of elements, sampling units, extent and
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time. An element is the
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object about which or from which the information is desired. In survey research, the
element is usually the respondent. A sampling unit is an element, or a unit containing the
element, that is available for selection at some stage of the sampling process.
 Target population: The collection of elements or objects that possess the
information sought by the researcher and about which inferences are to be made.
 Element: An object that possesses the information sought by the researcher and
about which inferences are to be made.
 Sampling unit: An element, or a unit containing the element, that is available for
selection at some stage of the sampling process.
2) Determine the sampling frame
A sampling frame is a representation of the elements of the target population. It consists of
a list or set of directions for identifying the target population. Examples of a sampling frame
include the telephone book, an association directory listing the firms in an industry, a
customer database, a mailing list on a database purchased from a commercial organisation,
a city directory, or a map.4 If a list cannot be compiled, then at least some directions for
identifying the target population should be specified, such as random-digit dialing
procedures in telephone surveys.
3) Select a sampling technique
Selecting a sampling technique involves several decisions of a broader nature. The
researcher must decide whether to use a Bayesian or traditional sampling approach, to
sample with or without replacement, and to use non-probability or probability sampling.
4) Determine the sample size
Sample size refers to the number of elements to be included in the study. Determining the
sample size involves several qualitative and quantitative considerations. Important
qualitative factors to be considered in determining the sample size include:
 The importance of the decision,
 The nature of the research,
 The number of variables,
 The nature of the analysis,
 Sample sizes used in similar studies,
 Incidence rates,
 Completion rates, and
 Resource constraints.
In general, for more important decisions, more information is necessary, and that
information should be obtained very precisely. This calls for larger samples, but as the
sample size increases, each unit of information is obtained at greater cost. The degree of
precision may be measured in terms of the standard deviation of the mean, which is
inversely proportional to the square root of the sample size.
5) Execute the sampling process
Execution of the sampling process requires a detailed specification of how the sampling
design decisions with respect to the population, sampling unit, sampling frame, sampling
technique and sample size are to be implemented. Whilst individual researchers may know
how they are going to execute their sampling process, once more than one individual is
involved, a specification for execution is needed to ensure that the process is conducted in a
consistent manner.
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6) Validate the sample

Sample validation aims to account for sampling frame error by screening the respondents in
the data collection phase. Respondents can be screened with respect to demographic
characteristics, familiarity, product usage and other characteristics to ensure that they
satisfy the criteria for the target population. Screening can eliminate inappropriate elements
contained in the sampling frame, but it cannot account for elements that have been
omitted. The success of the validation process depends upon the accuracy of base statistics
that describe the structure of a target population.
Classification of sampling techniques
The major alternative sampling plans may be grouped into probability techniques and non-
probability techniques.
1) Non-probability sampling
Non-probability sampling, the probability of any particular member of the population being
chosen is unknown. In non-probability sampling, the probability of any particular member of
the population being chosen is unknown. As there are no appropriate statistical techniques
for measuring random sampling error from a non-probability sample, the results cannot be
generalized.
a) Convenience Sampling: Convenience sampling (also called haphazard or accidental
sampling) refers to the sampling procedure of obtaining / gathering responses from the
people who are most conveniently available. For example, a college professor wishes to
conduct a media study- say celebrity endorsement and recall rate / credibility of the
celebrity endorser, taking a sample of youth. He uses his or her students as it is convenient.
Convenience sampling is the least expensive and least time consuming of all sampling
techniques. The sampling units are accessible, easy to measure, and cooperative. In spite of
these advantages, this form of sampling has serious limitations. Many potential sources of
selection bias are present, including respondent self-selection. Convenience samples are
most suited for an exploratory research stage. It forms basis for additional research to be
conducted with a probability sample Convenience samples can be used for focus groups,
pretesting questionnaires, or pilot studies. Even in these cases, caution should be exercised
in interpreting the results. Nevertheless, this technique is sometimes used even in large
surveys.
b) Quota Sampling: This is another accidental sampling method. When the population is not
homogeneous, it is necessary to create representation for each of such groups in the study.
The purpose of quota sampling is to ensure that the various such subgroups in a population
are represented on pertinent sample characteristics to the exact extent that the marketing
researcher desire. In quota sampling, the interviewer has a quota to achieve.
There are two types of quota sampling – namely, proportional and non-proportional.
 Proportional quota sampling method, if you want to represent the major
characteristics of the population by sampling a proportional amount of each. For
instance, in the theme park study, if you know the population has 60 per cent
youth/college –school students and the remaining 40 per cent are general
public/household visitors of elderly age group, and that you want a total sample size
of 100, you will continue sampling until you get those percentages and then you will
stop. So, for example, if you have already got the 40 general public/household
visitors of elderly age group for your sample, but not the sixty youths /college –
school students, you will continue to sample youth/college –school students but
even if
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legitimate elderly age group respondents come along, you will not sample them
because you have already “completed your quota.”
 Non-proportional quota sampling is a method with least restrictions. In this method,
the marketing researcher specifies the minimum number of sampled units you want
in each category. However, the researcher is not concerned about the numbers that
match the proportions in the population. Quota samples have the tendency to
include people who are easily found, willing to be interviewed, and middle class. In
spite of these limitations, the method has various advantages, which include speed
of data collection, lower costs, and convenience. Although there are many problems
with this method, careful supervision of the data collection may provide a
representative for analyzing the various subgroups within a population.
c) Judgment Sampling: Judgment or purposive sampling is another non-probability
technique in which an experienced individual selects the sample upon his or her judgment
about some appropriate characteristic required of the sample members. For example, a
fashion manufacturer regularly selects a sample of key accounts that it believes are capable
of providing the information to predict what will sell in the nearer time period; the sample
has been selected to satisfy a specific objective.
d) Snowball Sampling: In this initial respondent are selected by probability methods, but
additional respondents are then obtained from information provided by the initial
respondents. This technique is used to locate members of rare populations by referrals.
Snowball sampling is especially useful when you are trying to reach populations that are
inaccessible or hard to find. Reduced costs and sample sizes are the major advantages of
snowball sampling. There is a chance of potential bias likely to take the centre stage of the
study, because a person who is known to someone also in the sample has a higher
probability of being similar to the first person.
2) Probability Sampling Techniques
Probability sampling every element in the population has a known nonzero probability of
selection; each member of the population has an equal probability of being selected.
If the researchers are interested in ensuring maximum precision and accuracy in a sample,
then probability sampling is the answer for them. Probability sampling method is any
method of sampling that utilizes some form of random selection of sample elements from
the population.
a) Simple Random Sampling: A simple random sample is a sampling procedure that assures
that each element in the population will have an equal chance of being included in the
sample. Drawing names from a bowl is a typical example of simple random sampling; each
person has an equal chance of being selected. When populations consist of large numbers of
elements, tables of random numbers or computer-generated random numbers are utilized
for sample selection.
b) Stratified Random Sampling: When population elements are heterogeneous, researcher
cannot make use of simple random sampling. A researcher selecting a stratified sample will
proceed in the following stages. First, a variable (sometimes several variables) is identified
as an efficient basis for stratification. The variable chosen should increase the homogeneity
within each stratum and increase the heterogeneity between strata. The stratification
variable is usually a categorical variable or one easily converted into categories, that is,
subgroups.
Next, for each separate subgroup or strata, a list of population elements must be obtained.
If a complete listing is not available, a true stratified probability cannot be selected. A table
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of
41
random numbers or some other device is then used to take a separate random sample
within each stratum. Of course, the research must determine how large a sample must be
drawn for each stratum.
c) Systematic Sampling: Systematic sampling is extremely simple to apply: An initial starting
point is selected by a random process; then everyth number on the list is selected. Systematic
sampling is less costly and easier than simple random sampling, because random selection is
done only once. It does not require preparation of population lists. Systematic sampling can
even be used without knowledge of the composition (elements) of the sampling frame.
d) Cluster Sampling: The purpose of cluster sampling is to sample economically while
retaining the characteristics of a probability sample. In a cluster sample, the primary
sampling unit is no longer the individual element in the population (for example, grocery
stores or individual respondents or dealers) but a larger cluster of elements located in
proximity to one another (for example, cities, two very large apartments consisting of 100s
of houses). The area sample is the most popular type of cluster sample.
Cluster samples are frequently utilized when there are no lists of the sample population
available. Ideally a cluster should be as heterogeneous as the population itself - indeed, a
mirror image of the population. A problem may arise with cluster sampling if the
characteristics and the attitudes of the elements within the cluster are too similar. To an
extent this problem may be resolved by the cluster construction process that consists of
diverse elements and by selecting a large number of sampled clusters.
e) Multistage Sampling: The four methods discussed above covered so far —simple,
stratified, systematic and cluster—are the simplest random sampling strategies. In most real
applied research situations, it will not so easy to select the respondents so easily; we may
have to make use sampling methods that are considerably more complex than these simple
variations. However, it is not a completely different method; this procedure combines the
simple methods described earlier in appropriate manners which would help the researcher
to address sampling related requirements more efficiently and effective manner as possible.
Since, we combine many of the sampling methods, we call this multi-stage sampling.
Thus, multistage area sampling involves two or more steps that combine some of the
probability techniques already described. It is possible to take as many steps as are
necessary to achieve a representative sample. The Department of Census, Government of
India provides maps, population information, and demographic characteristics of the
population, and so on broken down into several small geographical areas that may be useful
in sampling.
Sampling Error
1) Sampling Error
Sampling errors occur because only a sample of the population is investigated. The
particular sample used in this survey is one of a large number of possible samples of the
same size that could have been selected using the same sampling method. It is clear that
estimates based on different samples will differ from one another, and almost all of them
will differ from the value obtained had a complete census been taken – “the census value”
2) Non-Sampling Errors
Non-sampling errors may stem from many sources in the various stages of collecting and
processing the survey data and may occur equally in a full census. The main non-sampling
errors in this survey are:
a. Errors stemming from non-response: errors caused by the fact that households are not
investigated due to absence from home or refusal to participate. This may cause some bias
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in
43
the estimates, since the characteristics of persons belonging to these households may differ
from those of persons who were investigated.
b. Response errors: errors due to misunderstanding the question, unwillingness or inability
to answer correctly or incorrect presentation of questions.
c. Errors in processing: errors that occur at the stage of processing the material, such as
errors in coding and in the data entry process of the questionnaires. Some of these errors
are corrected by means of checks that the material undergoes.
Criteria of Selecting a Sampling Procedure
In this context one must remember that two costs are involved in a sampling analysis viz.,
the cost of collecting the data and the cost of an incorrect inference resulting from the data.
Researcher must keep in view the two causes of incorrect inferences viz., systematic bias
and sampling error. A systematic bias results from errors in the sampling procedures, and it
cannot be reduced or eliminated by increasing the sample size. At best the causes
responsible for these errors can be detected and corrected. Usually, a systematic bias is the
result of one or more of the following factors:
1) Inappropriate sampling frame: If the sampling frame is inappropriate i.e., a biased
representation of the universe, it will result in a systematic bias.
2) Defective measuring device: If the measuring device is constantly in error, it will result in
systematic bias. In survey work, systematic bias can result if the questionnaire or the
interviewer is biased. Similarly, if the physical measuring device is defective there will be
systematic bias in the data collected through such a measuring device.
3) Non-respondents: If we are unable to sample all the individuals initially included in the
sample, there may arise a systematic bias. The reason is that in such a situation the
likelihood of establishing contact or receiving a response from an individual is often
correlated with the measure of what is to be estimated.
4) Indeterminancy principle: Sometimes we find that individuals act differently when kept
under observation than what they do when kept in non-observed situations. For instance, if
workers are aware that somebody is observing them in course of a work study on the basis
of which the average length of time to complete a task will be determined and accordingly
the quota will be set for piece work, they generally tend to work slowly in comparison to the
speed with which they work if kept unobserved. Thus, the indeterminacy principle may also
be a cause of a systematic bias.
5) Natural bias in the reporting of data: Natural bias of respondents in the reporting of data
is often the cause of a systematic bias in many inquiries. There is usually a downward bias in
the income data collected by government taxation department, whereas we find an upward
bias in the income data collected by some social organisation.
Characteristics of a Good Sample Design
From what has been stated above, we can list down the characteristics of a good sample
design as under:
a) Sample design must result in a truly representative sample.
b) Sample design must be such which results in a small sampling error.
c) Sample design must be viable in the context of funds available for the
research study.
d) Sample design must be such so that systematic bias can be controlled in a better
way.
e) Sample should be such that the results of the sample study can be applied, in
general, for
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f) the universe with a reasonable level of confidence.

Determination of Sample Size
Statistical Determination of Sample Size
The sample size for a probability sample depends on the standard error of the mean, the
precision desired from the estimate, and the desired degree of confidence associated with
the estimate. The standard error of the mean measures sampling errors that arise from
estimating a population from a sample instead of including all of the essential information in
the population. The size of the standard error is the function of the standard deviation of
the population values and the size of the sample.
1) Sampling Distribution of the Mean: According to the central limit theorem, the various
arithmetic means of a large number of random samples of the same size will form a normal
distribution. If an arithmetic mean of all possible sample means is calculated, it will coincide
with the population mean.
2) Extent of Error: The first consideration relates to the extent of error allowed. This is
indicated by the standard error (i.e. the standard deviation of the sample means). The
researcher himself has to decide the magnitude of the standard error that he can tolerate.
Although this is a difficult question, it is necessary to fix the limit of the standard error
beyond which it should not exceed. The fixation of standard error should not be confined to
overall results but should also be applied to various subgroups. One way is to first determine
the size of each sub-group on the basis of a given degree of precision.
3) The Degree of Confidence: A second consideration is the degree of confidence that the
researcher wants to have in the results of the study. In case he wants to be 100 per cent
confident of the results, he is left with no option but the to cover the entire population.
However, as this is often not possible on account of cost, time and other constraints, the
researcher should be satisfied with less than 100 per cent confidence. Normally, three
confidence levels, namely, 99 per cent, 95 per cent and 90 per cant are used. When a 99 per
cent confidence level is used, it implies that there is a risk of only 1 per cent of the true
population statistic falling outside the range indicated by the confidence interval. In the case
of a 95 per cent confidence level, such a risk of 5 per cent and in the case of 90 per cent
confidence level, it is of 10 per cent.
Non-statistical Determination of Sample Size
1) Use Previous Sample Sizes: Companies that do repeated studies over time to gather
similar information to compare data and determine trends might automatically use the
same sample size every time the research is conducted. Also, if the same type of study is
done (e.g., concept tests of new product ideas), companies will often use the same sample
size.
2) Use “Typical” Sample Sizes: “Common wisdom” has led to an accepted sample size based
upon the number of subgroups which might be used to analyze the data.
3) Use a “Magic” Number: Decision makers unaccustomed to reviewing research findings
before making decisions may be sceptical of research findings that reveal unexpected results
or that go against conventional wisdom.
4) Use Resource Simulations: Perhaps the most common method of selecting a sample size
is “whatever the budget will allow.”
5) Ask an Expert: A final non-statistical approach is to ask an expert in research for advice on
appropriate sample size. The expert will probably use one of the statistical or non-statistical
approaches described here, but at least you will feel better about determining the sample
size.
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Questions
3 Marks
1) What is Sampling
2) What is Census
3) What is Parameter
4) What is Statistic
5) What is Sampling frame
6) What is Sampling unit
7) What is Convenience Sampling
8) What is Quota Sampling
9) What is Judgment Sampling
10) What is Snowball Sampling
11) What is Probability sampling
12) What is Simple Random Sampling
13) What is Stratified Random Sampling
14) What is Systematic Sampling
15) What is Cluster Sampling
16) What is Multistage Sampling
17) What is Sampling Error
7 Marks
1) Distinguish between Census and Sampling
2) What are the different Measures in Sampling?
3) What are the different methods of non-probability sampling?
4) What are the methods of Probability Sampling Techniques?
5) List out Characteristics of a Good Sample Design
6) How Sample size can be Determined?
10 Marks
1) Explain Sampling Design Process?
2) Explain different Classification of sampling techniques
3) What are the different methods of non-probability sampling?
4) What are the methods of Probability Sampling Techniques?
5) What are the different Criteria used in Selecting of a Sampling Procedure?
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Module-4
Data Collection & Measurement and Scaling Techniques
Part-A- Data Collection
Introduction
Data collection is a critical phase in research. It requires proper identification of data sources
and accessing them through appropriate data collection formats or instruments. Data
collection methods are primarily classified into primary and secondary data sources. With
the emergence of internet, we have a new opportunity for primary data collection – on line
data collection.
Data Collection Methods
Data Collection Methods
I. Collection of Secondary Data

Secondary data means data that are already available i.e., they refer to the data which have
already been collected and analysed by someone else. When the researcher utilises
secondary data, then he has to look into various sources from where he can obtain them. In
this case he is certainly not confronted with the problems that are usually associated with
the collection of original data.
Secondary data are gathered and recorded by “someone else” prior to (and for purposes
other than) the current needs of the researcher. Secondary data are usually historical in
nature, have already been assembled, and do not require access to respondents or subjects.
Secondary data offer several advantages over primary data. Secondary data are easily
accessible, relatively inexpensive and quickly obtained. Some secondary data, such as those
provided by the National Censuses, are available on topics where it would not be feasible
for a firm to collect primary data. Although it is rare for secondary data to provide all the
answers to a non-routine research problem, such data can be useful in a variety of ways.
 Diagnose the research problem.
 Develop an approach to the problem.
 Develop a sampling plan.
 Formulate an appropriate research design (e.g., by identifying the key variables to
measure or understand).
 Answer certain research questions and test some hypotheses.
 Interpret primary data with more insight.
 Validate qualitative research findings.
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Criteria for Evaluating Secondary Data

1) Specifications and research design: The specifications or the research design used to
collect the data should be critically examined to identify possible sources of bias. Such
design considerations include size and nature of the sample, response rate and quality,
questionnaire design and administration, procedures used for fieldwork, and data analysis
and reporting procedures.
1) Error and accuracy: The researcher must determine whether the data are accurate
enough for the purposes of the present study. Secondary data can have a number of sources
of error or inaccuracy, including errors in the approach, research design, sampling, data
collection, analysis, and reporting stages of the project
2) Currency: when the data were collected: Secondary data may not be current and the
time lag between data collection and publication may be long, as is the case with much
census data which may take up to two years from collection to publication.
3) Objective: the purpose for which the data were collected: Data are invariably collected
with some objective in mind, and a fundamental question to ask is why the data were
collected in the first place. The objective for collecting data will ultimately determine the
purpose for which that information is relevant and useful.
4) Nature: the content of the data: The nature, or content, of the data should be examined
with special attention to the definition of key variables, the units of measurement, the
categories used and the relationships examined.
5) Dependability: An overall indication of the dependability of data may be obtained by
examining the expertise, credibility, reputation and trustworthiness of the source. This
information can be obtained by checking with others who have used the information
provided by the source.
A Classification of Secondary Data
The sources of secondary data can be classified as internal or external.
1) Internal Data
Data that are internal to the organization refers to data created, recorded, or generated by
another entity. Most organizations routinely gather, record, and store internal data for
solving future problems. For example, sales departments continually gather data through
their sales representatives.
Aggregating or desegregating internal data is a frequent form of internal research. To collect
the internal data more efficiently and effectively, the researcher should know the company’s
operating procedures very clearly; then only he can establish very systematic methods for
gathering / recording the information required.
2) External Data
External data sources can be broadly classified into 1) Books and periodical, 2) Web sources
3) Media sources 4) Government Sources, and 5) Commercial Sources.
a) Books and periodicals - Books and periodicals provide a wealth of information. Libraries
stock many bibliographies, guides, directories, and indexes. Professional journals and
commercial business periodicals can be especially valuable sources of data. Original
research works, research abstracts, opinions and discussions are available for researcher.
Besides this, reports are found in library.
b) Web sources - The web has become a rich repository of information. Different search
engines like Google, Yahoo and others provide access to a variety of data sources.
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c) Government sources: Indian government provides census data, which can give important
information on demographics, manufacturers, retail trade agriculture, transportation, and
so on. Moreover, we know that the quality of census data is very high, making it a very
reliable and useful source.
d) Media sources: Information on a broad range of subjects is available from broadcast and
print media. Annual Industry surveys, periodical reports on Industry banking and finance
and reviews of stock markets, are common products in newspapers. Dedicated News
channels daily present some reviews and trends on business, markets and interviews with
experts. Besides this there are advertisements.
e) Commercial sources: Numerous firms specialize in selling information. They present
Demographic and census updates, Attitude and public opinion research, Stock market trends
and many compilations of data on other interesting aspects.
Classification of Secondary Data
Advantages of Secondary Data

 It is much more economical to use secondary data as we do not need to spend
money on printing data collection forms, and hiring large numbers of enumerators.
 Secondary data, if available, can be obtained more quickly compared to primary
data. Secondary data can be collected in a few days whereas it may take months to
complete field work for obtaining primary data. As such the investigation may be
accomplished in lesser time with the help of secondary data.
 Secondary data facilitates the work of individual investigator or research
organization when they find it impossible to collect primary data with regard to
several subjects. Census data, national income data, etc., cannot be collected by an
individual but they can be easily obtained from government publications.
 The worldwide data concerning diverse phenomena like world trade, industry,
population, health, etc., are usually obtainable through secondary sources published
by international agencies like United Nations Organisation, World Bank, International
Monetary Fund. etc.
 At time, there may be lots of usable information in the already available data which
can well be utilised by the investigator and he can even have new insights
concerning the problems he is studying.
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 Most statistical analysis in practice rest upon secondary data since they are readily
available in many cases in diverse fields. We use primary data only when secondary
data do not provide an adequate basis for analysis.
Disadvantages of Secondary Data
 Secondary data is very risky and is to be used only when their reliability, suitability
and adequacy have been ensured. If this is not done, the results of the investigation
may not be fully correct.
 It is difficult to find secondary data which exactly fit the needs of your investigation.
 There is also the problem of finding secondary data which is sufficiently accurate.
Due to bias, inadequate size of sample, errors of definition, etc., the secondary data
may be erroneous.
 Many times, secondary data are not available and in such situations we have to
compulsorily collect primary data.
II Collection of Primary Data
While the secondary data is collected from various established sources, primary data are
originated by the researcher for the specific purpose of addressing the research problems
faced by him /her. This primary data may be quantitative or qualitative in nature; it may be
collected using structured or unstructured format to interpret them. Many research problems
being unique in nature, the researchers have to collect primary data by asking respondents.
Sources of Primary Data
1) Qualitative Data
Qualitative research forms a major role in supporting marketing decision making, primarily
as an exploratory design but also as a descriptive design. Researchers may undertake
qualitative research to help define a research problem, to support quantitative, descriptive
or causal research designs or as a design in its own right. Qualitative research is often used
to generate hypotheses and identify variables that should be included in quantitative
approaches.
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a) Indirect-Non-disguised Method
This method is found in qualitative research, where the data collected are of highly
qualitative in nature and scope of applying statistical techniques are almost impossible or
not warranted.
i) Focus Groups
A focus group is a small group of people. A trained moderator conducts an interview in a
non- structured manner in a natural manner. The moderator’s role is to introduce a topic
and to encourage the group to discuss it among themselves. This is suitable for ‘Exploratory
Research Designs’.
 Step-1 Examine the objectives of the research project. It provides the rationale for
conducting the focus group.
 Step-2 Specify the objectives—outlines the goals of the study in order to guide the
interview.
 Step-3 State the questions to be answered from the focus group—a detailed set of
questions to be answered.
 Step-4 Develop a Moderator’s Outline. Based on the pertinent issues raised by the
objectives of qualitative research, a moderator’s outline can be devised. An effective
focus group moderator prepares a discussion guide to help ensure that the focus
group will cover all topics of interest.
 Step-5 Conduct the interview The moderator’s job is to develop a rapport with the
group and to promote interaction among its members. Moderator is responsible for
setting a tone in the focus group that makes the respondents feel comfortable
enough to discuss their thoughts. The sessions should be as relaxed and natural as
possible.
 Step-6 Review tapes and analyze data—allows the researcher to uncover
inconsistent responses, missed remarks, nonverbal communication and new ideas.
 Step-7 Summarize findings and plan follow-up research—to probe further into the
issues and sample statistically significant populations. Finally, ideas for follow-up
action can be generated.
ii) Depth Interview Method
Depth interview method is also often applied in the case of ‘Exploratory Research designs’.
Concepts may be discussed with top executives and knowledgeable managers who have had
personal experience in the field being researched. This constitutes an informal experience
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survey. Such a study may be conducted by the business manager rather than the research
department for the following purposes.
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 Detailed probing of the individual.

 Discussions on topics considered confidential, sensitive, or embarrassing.
 Situations where strong social norms exist and the individual may be easily swayed
by group response.
 Detailed understanding of complicated behaviour.
 Interviews with professional people.
 Interviews with competitors who are unlikely to reveal the information in a group
setting.
 Situations where the product consumption experience is sensory in nature affecting
mood states and emotions.
The following steps may be followed for conducting depth interview.
 Step-1 A depth interview is conducted on a one-on-one basis. Choose the expert to
be interviewed.
 Step-2 The respondent is probed in depth by a highly skilled interviewer to uncover
underlying motivations, beliefs, attitudes, and feelings on a topic. The interviewer
attempts to get the subject to talk freely and the direction of the interview is
influenced heavily by the subject’s answers.
 Step-3 Summarise the findings and draw conclusions
b) Indirect (Disguised)
In this type of primary data collection method, the response generated from the study is
highly unstructured and the respondents may not know what purpose [disguised] the data
have been collected by the researchers.
Projective technique
A projective technique is an indirect means of questioning that enables respondents to
express emotions and opinions that would normally be hidden from others and even hidden
from themselves.
i) Word Association: In word association, respondents are presented with a list of words,
one at a time and asked to respond to each with the first word that comes to mind. The
words of interest, called test words, are interspersed throughout the list which also contains
some neutral, or filler words to disguise the purpose of the study.
ii) Completion Techniques: In Sentence completion, respondents are given incomplete
sentences and asked to complete them. Generally, they are asked to use the first word or
phrase that comes to mind. In story completion, respondents are given part of a story –
enough to direct attention to a particular topic but not to hint at the ending. They are
required to give the conclusion in their own words.
iii) Construction Techniques: With a picture response, the respondents are asked to
describe a series of pictures of ordinary as well as unusual events. The respondent's
interpretation of the pictures gives indications of that individual's personality.
In cartoon tests, cartoon characters are shown in a specific situation related to the problem.
The respondents are asked to indicate what one cartoon character might say in response to
the comments of another character. Cartoon tests are simpler to administer and analyze
than picture response techniques.
iv) Expressive Techniques: In expressive techniques, respondents are presented with a
verbal or visual situation and asked to relate the feelings and attitudes of other people to
the situation.
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 Role playing Respondents are asked to play the role or assume the behavior of
someone else.
 Third-person technique: The respondent is presented with a verbal or visual situation
and the respondent is asked to relate the beliefs and attitudes of a third person
rather than directly expressing personal beliefs and attitudes. This third person may
be a friend, neighbor, colleague, or a “typical” person
2) Quantitative Data Collection Methods
a) Survey Method
Surveys require asking people, respondents, for information using either written or verbal
questioning. Questionnaires or interviews collect data through the mail, on the telephone,
or face-to-face.
Interviews
Interview method can be employed in different ways.
 Personal in-home interview - In this method, the researcher or field data collection
executives visit residences of respondents and ask questions face-to-face in their
homes. This method requires more of field work and costlier and expensive.
 Mall-intercept personal interview - Respondents are intercepted while they are
shopping in a mall, and then a questionnaire is administered to them by the
interviewer. The method may result in poor quality responses. Since the sampling
method falls under the category of convenience, it is difficult to generalize the
findings.
 Computer-assisted personal interview - Respondents are requested to sit in front of
a computer terminal. She or he answers the questionnaire on the screen by using
the keyboard and/or mouse.
 Telephone interview - It involves phoning a sample of respondents and asking them
a series of questions. It is more appropriate, when the amount of information
required is limited and highly structured. It is one of the quickest methods and
consumes less time than other methods.
 Computer-assisted telephone interview - The computer dials a telephone number,
the interviewer asks the questions on the screen of the computer, and the
interviewer records the respondents’ answers directly into the computer. There are
computer softwares, which links the responses to a database directly.
 Mail interview - In this method, the researchers send by postal/ mail the
questionnaires to pre-selected potential respondents. The respondents complete
and return the questionnaires by return mail. If an incentive is attached to the filled
responses, the respondents may be motivated to answer promptly. Poor response
rate and more time to collect the responses are some of the weaknesses with this
method.
 Mail panel - This method consists of a large and nationally representative sample of
households which have agreed to periodically participate in mail questionnaires,
product tests, and telephone surveys conducted by the specific marketing research
organization. For such panel enrolment, the firm has to pay a nominal amount as
participation fees.
 E-mail interview - The survey request and questionnaire is written within the body of
the e-mail message and send to the identified respondents [whose emails have been
collected]. The e-mails are sent out over the Internet.
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 Internet interview - Internet or Web surveys use ‘hypertext mark-up language’

(HTML), the language of the Web, and are posted on a Web site. Respondents may
be recruited over the Internet from potential respondent databases maintained by
the marketing research firm or they can be recruited by conventional methods (mail,
telephone).
b) Observation Method
Organisations trace huge amount of data through observation mode. Scientific observation
is the systematic process of recording behavioural patterns of people, objects, and
occurrences without questioning or communicating with them.
Types of observation
The researcher utilizes different observation methods.
 Structured Vs. Unstructured observation - Structured observation is appropriate
when the marketing research problem has been clearly defined and the information
needed has been specified. It requires that the researcher specify in detail what is to
be observed and how the measurements are to be recorded. Unstructured
observation is appropriate when the problem has yet to be formulated precisely, and
flexibility is needed in observation to identify key components of the problem and to
develop hypotheses.
 Disguised Vs. undisguised observation - In disguised observation, the respondents
are not aware that they are being observed, whereas in undisguised observation the
respondents are aware that they are under observation. Disguised observation is
used when it is felt that the respondents would act differently under direct
observation.
 Natural Vs. Contrived Observation - Natural observation involves observing
behaviour as it normally takes place in the environment. Contrived observation takes
place in an artificial environment that has been created by the researcher. Natural
observations allow the researcher to observe actual behaviour, but do not allow for
inferences on the causes of behaviour. Contrived observation enables the researcher
to control more of the variables that affect behaviour.
Classification of Observation Methods
 Personal observation - The researcher himself goes to the field and personally
observes actual behaviour as it occurs, and the observer merely records what takes
place. The researcher does not attempt to control or manipulate the phenomenon
being observed. This method requires researcher’s efforts and time; if field forces
are employed, then the researcher has to train them on method of observing.
 Mechanical observation - These are devices used to continually record ongoing
behaviour for later analysis. Closed circuit camera, Toll Plaza Tracking system,
Customer Shopping Behaviour Tracing Equipments and many more to say, are some
of the equipments used in the recent times, to trace the consumer behaviour.
 Audit - This process involves collection of data by examining physical records or
performing inventory analysis. There are two distinguishing features of an audit: (1)
data are collected personally by the researcher or by representatives of the
researcher and (2) the data are based upon counts, usually of physical objects other
than people.
 Content analysis - It is the objective, systematic, and quantitative description of the
manifest content of a communication. Marketing research applications involve
observing and analyzing the content or message of advertisements, newspaper
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articles, television and radio programs, can be considered as examples.
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 Trace analysis - It is an approach in which data collection is based on physical traces

of past behaviour where physical traces are evidence of some past event or
occurrence.
Relative Advantages of Observation
Following are the advantages of Observation:
 They permit measurement of actual behavior rather than reports of intended or
preferred behavior.
 There is no reporting bias, and potential bias caused by the interviewer and the
interviewing process is eliminated or reduced.
 Certain types of data can be collected only by observation.
 If the observed phenomenon occurs frequently or is of short duration,
observational methods may be cheaper and faster than survey methods
Relative Disadvantages of Observation
Following are the disadvantages of Observation:
 The reasons for the observed behavior may not be determined since little is
known about the underlying motives, beliefs, attitudes, and preferences.
 Selective perception (bias in the researcher's perception) can bias the data.
 Observational data are often time-consuming and expensive, and it is difficult to
observe certain forms of behavior.
 In some cases, the use of observational methods may be unethical, as in
observing people without their knowledge or consent.
Data Collection Instruments
1) Case Studies: A case study is usually an in-depth description of a process, experience, or
structure at a single institution. In order to answer a combination of ‘what’ and ‘why’
questions, case studies generally involve a mix of quantitative (i.e., surveys, usage statistics,
etc.) and qualitative (i.e., interviews, focus groups, extant document analysis, etc.) data
collection techniques. Most often, the researcher will analyze quantitative data first and
then use qualitative strategies to look deeper into the meaning of the trends identified in
the numerical data.
2) Checklists: Checklists structure a person’s observation or evaluation of a performance or
artifact. They can be simple lists of criteria that can be marked as present or absent, or can
provide space for observer comments. These tools can provide consistency over time or
between observers.
3) Interviews In-Depth Interviews include both individual interviews (e.g., one-on-one) as
well as “group” interviews (including focus groups). The data can be recorded in a wide
variety of ways including stenography, audio recording, video recording or written notes. In
depth interviews differ from direct observation primarily in the nature of the interaction. In
interviews it is assumed that there is a questioner and one or more interviewees. The
purpose of the interview is to probe the ideas of the interviewees about the phenomenon of
interest.
4) Observation: Sometimes, the best way to collect data through observation. This can be
done directly or indirectly with the subject knowing or unaware that someone is observing
them.
5) Surveys or Questionnaires: Surveys or questionnaires are instruments used for collecting
data in survey research. They usually include a set of standardized questions that explore a
specific topic and collect information about demographics, opinions, attitudes, or behaviors.
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Questionnaire Design
Introduction
Designing a questionnaire is not as simple a job as it looks at first sight. A marketing
researcher intending to collect primary data has to be extremely careful in deciding what
information is to be collected, how many questions are to be formulated, what should be
their sequence. What should be the wording of each question, and what should be the
layout of the questionnaire. All these aspects need considerable time and effort of the
marketing researcher. If he is able to develop a questionnaire suitable for his field
investigation, he will find that his task to collecting the data has become much easier than
otherwise.
What is Questionnaire?
Questionnaire is a structured technique for data collection consisting of a series of
questions, written or verbal, that a respondent answers.
A questionnaire, whether it is called a schedule, interview form or measuring instrument, is
a formalised set of questions for obtaining information from respondents. Typically, a
questionnaire is only one element of a data collection package that might also : include (1)
fieldwork procedures, such as instructions for selecting, approaching and questioning
respondents; (2) some reward, gift or payment offered to respondents; and (3)
communication aids, such as maps, pictures, advertisements and products and return
envelopes.
Questionnaire Objectives
Any questionnaire has three specific objectives.
 First, it must translate the information needed into a set of specific questions that
the respondents can and will answer. Developing questions that respondents can
and will answer and that will yield the desired information is difficult. Two
apparently similar ways of posing a question may yield different information. Hence,
this objective is most challenging.
 Second, a questionnaire must uplift, motivate and encourage the respondent to
become involved, to cooperate, and to complete the task.
 Third, a questionnaire should minimize response error. The potential sources of error
in research designs
Questionnaire design process
The great weakness of questionnaire design is a lack of theory. Because there are no
scientific principles that guarantee an optimal or ideal questionnaire, questionnaire design is
a skill acquired through experience. Similarly, the correct grammatical use of language does
not guarantee the optimal questionnaire. The design process is founded upon generating
information that will effectively support marketing decision-makers. Establishing the nature
of marketing problems and corresponding marketing research problems, i.e. defining the
nature of effective support.
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Questionnaire Design Process
1) Specify the information needed

The first step in questionnaire design is to specify the information needed. This is also the
first step in the research design process. Note that, as the research project progresses, the
information needed becomes more and more clearly defined. It is helpful to review the
components of the problem and the approach, particularly the research questions,
hypotheses and characteristics that influence the research design. To ensure further that
the information obtained fully addresses all the components of the problem, the researcher
should prepare a set of dummy tables. A dummy table is a blank table used to catalogue
data. It portrays how the analysis will be structured once the data have been collected.
2) Specify the type of interviewing method
An appreciation of how the type of interviewing method influences questionnaire design
can be obtained by considering how the questionnaire is administered under each method.
In personal interviews, respondents see the questionnaire and interact face to face with the
interviewer. Thus, lengthy, complex and varied questions can be asked. In telephone
interviews the respondents interact with the interviewer, but they do not see the
questionnaire. This limits the type of questions that can be asked to short and simple ones.
Mail and electronic questionnaires are self-administered, so the questions must be simple,
and detailed instructions must be provided. In Internet surveys and computer- assisted
interviewing (CAPI and CATI), complex skip patterns and randomization of questions to
eliminate order bias can be easily accommodated. Questionnaires designed for personal and
telephone interviews should be written in a conversational style.
3) Determine the content of individual questions
Once the information needed is specified and the type of interviewing method decided, the
next step is to determine individual question content: what to include in individual
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questions.
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a) Is the question necessary?

Every question in a questionnaire should contribute to the information needed or serve
some specific purpose. If there is no satisfactory use for the data resulting from a question,
that question should be eliminated.
In certain situations, however, questions may be asked that are not directly related to the
needed information. It is useful to ask some neutral questions at the beginning of the
questionnaire to establish involvement and rapport, particularly when the topic of the
questionnaire is sensitive or controversial.
b) Are several questions needed instead of one?
Sometimes, several questions are needed to obtain the required information in an
unambiguous manner. Consider the question:
“Do you think Coca-Cola is a tasty and refreshing soft drink?”
(Incorrect – double barreled)
Such a question is called a double-barreled question, because two or more questions are
combined into one. To obtain the required information, two distinct questions should be
asked:
“Do you think Coca-Cola is a tasty soft drink?”
“Do you think Coca-Cola is a refreshing soft drink?”
(Correct – single barreled)
Double-barrelled question: A single question that attempts to cover two issues. Such
questions can be confusing to respondents and result in ambiguous responses.
4) Overcoming the respondent’s inability and unwillingness to answer
Researchers should not assume that respondents can provide accurate or reasonable
answers to all questions. The researcher should attempt to overcome the respondents’
inability to answer. Certain factors limit the respondents’ ability to provide the desired
information. The respondents may not be informed, may not remember, or may be unable
to articulate certain types of responses.
a) Is the Respondent Informed?
 Filter questions or skip pattern: a question(s) associated with a conditional response.
 Filter questions can be used to measure familiarity with a given topic and
should be asked before questions about the topics themselves.
 If the question does not pertain to the respondent, the question is skipped.
 A “don't know” option reduces uninformed responses without reducing the response
rate.
b) Can the respondent remember?
The inability to remember leads to errors of omission, telescoping and creation. Omission is
the inability to recall an event that actually took place.
Example:
c) Can the Respondent Remember?
How many of soft drinks did you consume during the last four weeks?
(Incorrect – difficult to remember)
How often do you consume soft drinks in a typical week? (Correct – limit the choices)
1. Less than once a week
2. 1 to 3 times per week
3. 4 to 6 times per week
4. 7 or more times per week
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d) Can the Respondent Articulate?

Respondents may be unable to articulate certain types of responses.
Example:
Describe the atmosphere of a department store. (Incorrect = difficult to articulate)
Respondents should be given aids, such as pictures, maps, and descriptions to help them
articulate their responses.
e) Effort Required of the Respondents
Most respondents are unwilling to devote a lot of effort to provide information. Make sure
your questionnaire is simple, straight-forward, and not too long. Also, you generally want to
start with easier question.
Context
Respondents are unwilling to respond to questions which they consider to be inappropriate
for the given context.
E.g. a restaurant asking about personal hygiene needs to put the focus on the restaurant, not
the customer!
Legitimate Purpose
Explaining why the data are needed can make the request for the information seem legitimate
and increase the respondents' willingness to answer.
Sensitive Information
Respondents are unwilling to disclose sensitive information because this may cause
embarrassment or threaten the respondent's prestige or self-image.
Increasing the willingness of respondents
 Place sensitive topics at the end of the questionnaire.
 Preface the question with a statement that the behavior of interest is common.
 Ask the question using the third-person technique phrase the question as if it
referred to other people.
 Hide the question in a group of other questions which respondents are willing to
answer.
 Provide response categories rather than asking for specific figures.
5) Choose question structure
A question may be unstructured or structured.
a) Unstructured questions
Unstructured questions are open-ended questions that respondents answer in their own
words. They are also referred to as free-response or free-answer questions. The following
are some examples:
 _ What is your occupation?
 _ What do you think of people who patronise secondhand clothes shops?
 _ Who is your favourite film personality?
Open-ended questions can be good first questions on a topic. They enable the respondents
to express general attitudes and opinions that can help the researcher interpret their
responses to structured questions. They can also be useful as a final question in a
questionnaire.
b) Structured questions
Structured questions specify the set of response alternatives and the response format. A
structured question may be multiple choice, dichotomous or a scale.
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 Multiple-choice questions: In multiple-choice questions, the researcher provides a

choice of answers and respondents are asked to select one or more of the
alternatives given.
 Dichotomous questions: A dichotomous question has only two response
alternatives, such as yes or no, or agree or disagree. Often, the two alternatives of
interest are supplemented by a neutral alternative, such as ‘no opinion’, ‘don’t
know’, ‘both’ or ‘none’,
Scales (Please refer Chapter No.5)
 Primary
 Comparative
 Non-comparative
6) Choosing Question Wording
Question wording is the translation of the desired question content and structure into
words that respondents can clearly and easily understand. Deciding on question wording is
perhaps the most critical and difficult task in developing a questionnaire. If a question is
worded poorly, respondents may refuse to answer it or answer it incorrectly.
a) Define the issue
A question should clearly define the issue being addressed. Trainee journalists are cautioned
to define issues in terms of who, what, when, where, why and way (the six Ws).
Example:
Which brand of shampoo do you use? (Incorrect – Not Defined)
Which brand or brands of shampoo have you personally used at home during the last
month?
In case of more than one brand, please list all the brands that apply. (Correct - Defined)
b) Use ordinary words
Ordinary words should be used in a questionnaire, and they should match the vocabulary
level of the respondents. When choosing words, bear in mind the intellectual level of the
target group of respondents, and how comfortable they are with technical terms related to
any products or services we are measuring.
c) Use unambiguous words
The words used in a questionnaire should have a single meaning that is known to the
respondents. A number of words that appear to be unambiguous have different meanings
for different people. These include ‘usually’, ‘normally’, ‘frequently’, ‘often’, ‘regularly’,
‘occasionally’ and ‘sometimes’.
In a typical month, how often do you shop in department stores?
Never
Occasionally
Sometimes
Often
Regularly
(Incorrect -Ambiguous)
In a typical month, how often do you shop in department stores?
Less than once
1 or 2 times
3 or 4 times
More than 4 times (Correct - Unambiguous)
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d) Avoid leading or biasing questions

Leading question: A question that gives the respondent a clue as to whatthe answer should
be. A leading question is one that clues the respondent to what the answer should be, as in
the following:
Do you think that patriotic Americans should buy imported automobiles when that would
put American labor out of work?
Yes
No
Don't know
(Incorrect - Leading)
Do you think that Americans should buy imported automobiles?

Yes
No
Don't know (Correct – Not Leading)
e) Avoid Implicit Alternatives
An alternative that is not explicitly expressed in the options is an implicit alternative.
1. Do you prefer to fly when traveling short distances? (Incorrect - Implicit)
2. Do you prefer to drive, rather than fly, when travelling short distances?
(Correct - Explicit)
Questions should not be worded so that the answer is dependent upon implicit
assumptions about what will happen as a consequence.
1. Are you in favor of a balanced budget? (Incorrect - Implicit)
2. Are you in favor of a balanced budget if it would result in an increase in the
personal income tax? (Correct - Explicit)
f) Dual Statements: Positive and Negative
Questions that are in the form of statements should be worded both positively and
negatively. Directionality of statements may influence responses; using both negative and
positive statements will negate this.
7) Determining the Order of Questions
The order of questions is of equal importance to the wording used in the questions. As
noted in the last section, questions communicate and set respondents in a particular frame
of mind. This frame of mind is set at the start of the questioning process and can change as
each question is posed and responded to. It affects how respondents perceive individual
questions and respond to those questions.
a) Opening questions
The opening questions can be crucial in gaining the confidence and cooperation of
respondents. These questions should be interesting, simple and non-threatening. Questions
that ask respondents for their opinions can be good opening questions, because most
people like to express their opinions. Sometimes such questions are asked although they are
unrelated to the research problem and their responses are not analysed.
b) Type of Information
Information gathered in a survey includes:
 Basic information: related to the research problem
 Classification information: demographics
 Identification information: name, email, etc.
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d) Difficult Questions
Difficult questions or questions which are sensitive, embarrassing, complex, or dull, should
be placed late in the sequence.
8) Identify the form and layout
The format, spacing and positioning of questions can have a significant effect on the results,
particularly in self-administered questionnaires. It is good practice to divide a questionnaire
into several parts. Several parts may be needed for questions pertaining to the basic
information.
The questions in each part should be numbered, particularly when branching questions are
used. Numbering of questions also makes the coding of responses easier. In addition, the
questionnaires should preferably be pre-coded. In pre-coding, the codes to enter in the
computer can be printed on the questionnaire.
9) Reproduction of the Questionnaire
Grids/matrices are useful when there are a number of related questions that use the same
set of response categories. The tendency to crowd questions together to make the
questionnaire look shorter should be avoided. Directions or instructions for individual
questions should be placed as close to the questions as possible.
10) Eliminate problems by pilot-testing
Pilot-testing refers to testing the questionnaire on a small sample of respondents to identify
and eliminate potential problems. Even the best questionnaire can be improved by pilot-
testing. As a general rule, a questionnaire should not be used in the field survey without
adequate pilot-testing. A pilot-test should be extensive. All aspects of the questionnaire
should be tested, including question content, wording, sequence, form and layout, question
difficulty, and instructions. The respondents in the pilot-test should be similar to those who
will be included in the actual survey in terms of background characteristics, familiarity with
the topic, and attitudes and behaviours of interest. In other words, respondents for the
pilot- test and for the actual survey should be drawn from the same population.
Qualities of a Good Questionnaire
To draft a questionnaire or schedule is an art. The success of statistical investigation
depends on proper drafting of the questionnaire. It is a highly specialized job and following
points should be borne in mind:
1. Brief and Limited Questionnaire: The number of questions in a schedule should be brief
and limited as possible. Only relevant questions to the problem under investigation should
be added.
2. Simple and Clear: The questions should be simple, clear and precise. Its language should
be very simple so that informants may easily understand.
3. Unambiguous Questions": All unambiguous questions should be avoided at all,
complicated and long-worded questions irritate the respondents which results in careless;
replies.
4. No Personal Questions: No personal question should be asked from, respondents. Such
questions should be avoided.
5. Use of Proper Words: Questions should be framed with right words. This ensures the
validity.
6. Avoidance of Calculations: Questions should not be based on calculations. Only those
questions should be asked which the respondents may reply immediately. Moreover,
questions should avoid memories.
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7. Only Objective Questions: The questions should be objective. It should be based on

opinions of the individuals.
8. Sequence of the Questions: The arrangement of the questions should be such so that no
question may slip back. It must involve a logical flow of questions.
9. Pre-testing: Before sending the questionnaire to the respondents, it must be properly
tested.
10. Instructions: Precise and simple instructions of filling the questionnaire should be added
in the foot note.
11. Cross Examination: The questionnaire should be set in such a way that there may be
cross examination of the information supplied by the informants. In fact, it is a check on
false or inaccurate answers.
12. Secret Information: Every respondent should be ensured that information given by
them shall be kept secret.
13. Attractive Questionnaire: Proper care should be taken to make the questionnaire
attractive. A well set questionnaire will certainly impress the recipient.
Sections in a Questionnaire
There are normally five sections in a questionnaire:
1) The respondent’s identification data – such as their name, address, date of the interview,
name of the interviewer. The questionnaire would also have a unique number for purposes
of entering the data into the computer.
2) An introduction – this is the interviewer’s request for help. It is normally scripted and lays
out the credentials of the market research company, the purpose of the study and any
aspects of confidentiality.
3) Instructions – the interviewer and the respondent need to know how to move through
the questionnaire such as which questions to skip and where to move to if certain answers
are given.
4) Information – this is the main body of the document and is made up of the many
questions and response codes.
5) Classification data – these questions, sometimes at the front of the questionnaire,
sometimes at the end, establish the important characteristics of the respondent, particularly
related to their demographics.
Part-B-Measurement and Scaling Techniques
Measurement and scaling
Measurement means assigning numbers or other symbols to characteristics of objects
according to certain pre-specified rules. In marketing research, numbers are usually assigned
for one of two reasons. First, numbers permit statistical analysis of the resulting data.
Second, numbers facilitate universal communication of measurement rules and results. The
most important aspect of measurement is the specification of rules for assigning numbers to
the characteristics. The assignment process must be isomorphic, i.e. there must be one-to-
one correspondence between the numbers and the characteristics being measured.
For example, the same euro (€) figures can be assigned to households with identical annual
incomes. Only then can the numbers be associated with specific characteristics of the
measured object, and vice versa. In addition, the rules for assigning numbers should be
standardized and applied uniformly. They must not change over objects or time.
Scaling may be considered an extension of measurement. Scaling involves creating a
continuum upon which measured objects are located. Scale may be defined as any series of
items that are progressively arranged according to value or magnitude into which an item
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can
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be placed according to its quantification. In other words, a scale is a continuous spectrum or

series of categories. The purpose of scaling is to represent, usually quantitatively, an item’s,
a person’s, or an event’s place in the spectrum.
Primary Scales of Measurement
There are four primary scales of measurement: nominal, ordinal, interval and ratio.
1) Nominal Scale
The lowest measurement level one can use in marketing research projects from a statistical
point of view is the nominal scale. This is used only as a labeling scheme where numbers
serve only as labels or tags for identifying and classifying objects with a strict one-to-one
correspondence between the numbers and the objects. The numbers in a nominal scale do
not reflect the amount of a characteristic possessed by the objects; rather they are used
only for identification. For example, numbers on baseball players uniforms, street names, or
social security numbers.
2) Ordinal Scale
Ordinal scales involve the ranking of individuals, attitudes or items, brands and firms based
on the selected attribute along the continuum of the characteristic being scaled. Ranks are
assigned to objects to indicate the relative extent to which some characteristic is possessed
by the individual or firms or brands; that is to determine whether an object /firm/brand
has more or less of a specific characteristic than some other object /firm/ brand.
Consider the following case. Please rank the following cola brands based on
your preference:
The respondent compares all the five brands and determines which is his first choice and
assign Rank-1; from the remaining list of 4 brands, he compares them with one another and
among the 4 brands, the next preferred will be given a rank of 2 and so on.
3) Interval Scale
When the marketing researcher is asking you to rate your perception of sugar content, on a
5 point scale [there are 5 choices – very high-high-normal-low-very low, so the name 5-point
scale], the researcher is using an interval scale.
It is an interval scale because it is assumed to have equidistant points between each of the
scale elements. That is the distance between very high-high is same as the distance between
normal-low. This means that we can interpret differences in the distance along the scale.
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Numbers are used to rank objects such that numerically equal distances on the scale
represent equal distances in the characteristic being measured.
Example:
Thus, in the interval scale there is precise information about the interval between any two
brands based on the attribute chose. Hence, in an interval scale, the origin [zero point] is not
fixed, but arbitrarily chosen and unit of measurement is also arbitrary.
4) Ratio Scale
This is used to identify or classify objects, rank order the objects, and compare intervals,
differences, for example, height, age, and income. This scale contains all the properties such
as, assignment, order, distance and origin, thus possess all the properties of nominal,
ordinal and interval scales. Moreover, it contains an absolute zero, which makes any
measurement more meaningful.
This means that you can construct a meaningful fraction (or ratio) with a ratio variable.
Example
In marketing research, however, application ratio scales are very limited; variables like sales
of a dealer, cost associated with sales person expenses per month, number of clients added
to the company during a year and so on. Given that sociological and management research
contexts, very rarely researchers attempt to go beyond the interval level of measurement;
but virtually all the statistical tools can be applied and data can be analysed.
Classification of Scaling Techniques
Scaling methods are classified into two types: comparative and non-comparative. They help
evaluate one brand /product/firm /personality by a respondent.
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1) Comparative scaling procedures

The scales help respondent compare one brand /product/ firm/personality with another
brand/product/firm/personality on the selected characteristics or attributes.
Comparative rating scales include the following: Rank order scaling, Paired comparison
scaling, constant sum and Q sort scaling.
a) Rank order Scaling
The most popular comparative scaling technique is rank order scaling. In rank order scaling,
respondents are presented with several objects simultaneously and asked to order or rank
them according to some criterion.
Rank order scaling as the name suggests is about ranking a specific set of stimuli on a pre-
defined criterion. It’s also quite popular among researchers when trying to understand a
specific rank order among various stimuli. The respondents are provided with various stimuli
objects and asked to rank the most preferred object, the second most preferred object and
so on.
Example:
b) Paired comparison scaling

In paired comparison scaling, respondents are asked to choose one among two alternatives
on a selected criterion. For example, a respondent may be asked to choose between two
well-known toothpaste brands on the criterion of quality. The data obtained from paired
comparison scaling is ordinal in nature. When there are more than two stimuli involved
paired comparison scaling can still be useful technique to compare various stimuli. Lets say,
a researcher is interested in knowing consumers preference among three different
toothpaste
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brands, A, B and C. Using the paired comparison scaling researcher will create three
questions for respondents namely:
 Preference between toothpaste brand A and brand B
 Preference between toothpaste brand B and brand C
 Preference between toothpaste brand A and brand C.
c) Constant sum scaling

In constant sum scaling, respondents are asked to assign a constant sum of units (could
include points, currency, and so on) to a specific set of stimulus objects with respect to some
pre-defined criterion. For example, researcher may ask the respondents to assign a number
according to their perceptions of a specific stimuli object on the criteria chosen so as the
total becomes 100. The attributes are scaled by counting the points assigned to each
criterion by all the respondents and divided by the number of respondents.
Example
d) Q-sort
Q-sort can be called an extension to rank order scaling. It uses a rank order procedure in
which objects are sorted into piles based on similarity with respect to some pre-defined
criteria. It provides grouping according to the respondents’ preferences among a relative
larger number of objects quickly.
2) Non-comparative scaling
As the name suggests, in non-comparative scaling, researchers use whatever
rating standard seems appropriate to them. Respondents answering non-
comparative scale based questions do not compare the object being rated either
to another object or to some specified standard. They evaluate only one object
at a time. Non-comparative scaling involves two techniques namely: continuous
and itemized rating scales. Itemized scales are further divided in Likert, semantic
differential and stapel scale. Each of these scales will be discussed in details in
this section.
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a) Continuous rating scale

Continuous rating scale is also known as graphic rating scale in which
respondents rate the objects by placing a mark at the appropriate position on a
line that runs from one extreme criterion to the other. The respondent is
provided with the freedom here to choose a point anywhere along the line and
is not restricted to ranking only. The figure 5.2 below illustrates various types
of continuous rating scale which can be used in getting responses from the
respondents.
Example
b) Itemized rating scale

Itemized rating scales involve selection of a specific category out of various categories pre-
defined by the researcher. A brief description is associated with each category and
respondents are asked to select the best fitting category with the stimuli object. Itemized
scales are widely used in marketing research. Likert, semantic differential and stapel scale
are among the most used itemized rating scale and we shall describe them in details in this
section.
B1) Likert scale
Likert scale is one of the highly used scales in marketing research which focuses on degree
of agreement or disagreement. The scale is named after Rensis Likert who developed the
scale. The respondent is presented with a series of statements about the stimulus objects
and asked to provide views on agreement or disagreement with each of the statement. A
typical Likert scale constitutes of five items ranging from ‘strongly disagree’ to ‘strongly
agree’. For the ease of statistics, researchers also associated numbers with Likert scale.
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B2) Semantic differential scale

Semantic differential scale includes a seven-point bi-polar scale in comparison to Likert’s
five-point scale. While in Likert each item number of scale is defined in semantic differential
scale the endpoints are clearly defined. For example, ‘satisfaction’ and ‘dissatisfaction’ can
be used as the endpoints.
B3) Stapel scale

Stapel scale consists of a single criterion in the middle of an even-numbered range of values,
from -5 to +5, without a neutral point. The scale is generally presented vertically. The
respondents are asked to choose a specific number describing the stimuli object of concern
on the pre-defined criterion.
Other Scaling Techniques

1) Thurstone scale
Thurstone scale is defined as a unidimensional scale that is used to track respondent’s
behavior, attitude or feeling towards a subject. This scale consists of statements about a
particular issue or topic where each statement has a numerical value that indicates the
respondent’s attitude towards the topic as favorable or unfavorable. Respondents indicate
the statements that they agree with, and an average is computed. A mean score of the
agreements or disagreements is calculated as the attitude of the respondent towards the
topic.
This scale was developed by Robert Thurstone to approximate measurement in equal-
appearing interval levels. The Thurstone scale is built upon the fundamentals of the Likert
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scale, but this method of constructing an attitude scale not only takes value of each item of
into consideration while evaluating the final attitude score but also caters to neutral items.
A Thurstone scale survey is a series of related, dichotomous statements. Example:
I am inspired to meet my goals at work.
 Agree
 Disagree
2) Multidimensional Scaling
Multidimensional scaling refers to a family of mathematical (not statistical) models that can
be used to analyze distances between objects (e.g., health states). Information contained in
a set of data is represented by a set of points in space. These points are arranged in such a
way that the geometrical distance between them will reflect empirical relationships in the
data. The geometrical relationships can be situated in multidimensional space but can also
encompass the one-dimensional mode. They may be interval (metric) or rank distances
(nonmetric).
Example
Scale Evaluation
To avoid such errors and control the research process, after developing an appropriate
scale, researcher must assess the scale on three dynamic constructs: validity, reliability and
generalizability. Validity can be measured by examining content, criterion and construct
validity. Construct validity is divided into three parts namely, convergent, discriminant and
nomological validity. Reliability can be assessed by examining test/retest reliability,
alternative forms reliability and internal consistency reliability. Figure 5.6 represents the
classification graphically.
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Other Scales
1) Validity
Validity of a scale is defined as the extent to which differences in observed scale scores
reflect the true differences among objects on the characteristics being measured. In simple
words, by testing validity researcher can decide is the scale measuring what it is meant to
measure. A perfectly valid scale will have no measurement errors.
As the name suggests, content validity (or face validity as it is called some other times)
refers to the content of the scale. It involves a subjective but systematic evaluation of how
well the content represents the task at hand. At times, researchers as well as some other
experts in the field are asked to look at the scale and provide their opinion as to whether
the scale measures the phenomenon. Being a subjective evaluation technique, it is not
considered a sufficient measure of the validity of a scale. Criterion validity refers to
examining whether the measurement scale performs as expected in relation to other
variables selected as meaningful criteria. Construct validity is the bridge between theory
and the scale. It explains the questions of what construct or characteristic the scale is
measuring and what deductions can be made concerning the theory underlying the scale.
Construct validity is classified into three parts namely: convergent, discriminant and
nomological validity. Convergent validity focuses on how well the scale’s measurement
positively correlates with different measurements of the same scale. Discriminant validity
refers to the fact that the scale being investigated does not significantly correlate with other
constructs that are operationalized as being different. Nomological validity allows
researchers to evaluate how well one particular construct theoretically networks with other
established constructs that are related yet different.
2) Reliability
Reliability in research relates to consistency of results over a period of time. A scale is called
reliable if it produces consistent results when repeated measurements are made. Systematic
errors do not have an effect on reliability however random errors do. There are three ways
in which reliability is measured: test-retest reliability, alternative forms reliability and
internal consistency reliability.
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As the name suggests, in test-retest reliability measurement, same respondents are

administered identical sets of scale items at two different times (usually 2 – 4 weeks). The
degree of similarity between the measurements (measured through correlation between
both measurements) determines the reliability. The higher the correlation between the two
measurements, the higher the scale reliability. In measuring alternative forms reliability,
two equivalent forms of the scale are constructed and then the same respondents are
measured at two different times. Internal consistency reliability is used to assess the
reliability of a summated scale where several items are summated to form a total score.
3) Generalizability
Generalizability refers to the extent to which one can generalize from the observations at
hand to a universe of generalizations. For example, a researcher may wish to generalize a
scale developed for use in personal interviews to other modes of data collection, such as
mall- intercept and telephone interviews. Likewise, one may wish to generalize from a
sample of observers to a universe of observers, from a sample of times of measurement to
the universe of times of measurement, from a sample of items to the universe of items and
so on. To generalize to other universes, generalizability theory procedures must be
employed.
Questions
3 Marks
1) What is Primary data?
2) What is Secondary Data?
3) What is Focus Group Interview?
4) What is Depth Interview?
5) What is Survey Method?
6) What is observation?
7) What is Questionnaire?
8) What are double-barrelled question?
9) What are unstructured questions?
10) What is structured question?
11) What is Multiple-choice question?
12) What is Dichotomous question?
13) What is Leading Question?
14) What is Measurement?
15) Define Scaling?
16) What is Nominal Scale?
17) Define Ordinal Scale?
18) Define Interval Scale?
19) Define Ratio Scale?
20) What is Rank order scaling?
21) What is Paired comparison scaling?
22) What is Constant sum scaling?
23) What is Continuous rating scale?
24) What is Likert Scale?
25) What is Semantic differential scale?
26) What is Stapel Scale?
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7 Marks
1) What are the Criteria for Evaluating Secondary Data?
2) Explain external sources of secondary data?
3) Explain steps involved in focus group interview
4) What are the different types of Projective Techniques?
5) What are Relative Advantages and disadvantages of Observation?
6) What are the Questionnaire Objectives?
7) Explain different Sections in a Questionnaire
8) Explain Nominal Scale with example
9) Explain Ordinal Scale with example
10) Explain Interval Scale with example
11) Explain Ratio Scale with example
12) Explain with example different comparative scaling Techniques
13) Explain with Example different non-comparative scaling techniques.
14) What Itemized Scale? Explain types of Itemized scale.
10 Marks
1) Explain Data Collection Methods
2) What are the different sources of Secondary Data?
3) What are different Sources of Primary Data?
4) What are the different types of qualitative data?
5) Explain Quantitative Data collection methods of primary data
6) Explain types of survey interview.
7) Explain types of observation
8) What are the Steps involved in Questionnaire design process?
9) What are the Qualities of a Good Questionnaire?
10) What are the different Primary scales of Measurement? Explain with example.
11) What are the different advanced Scaling Techniques? Explain with example
12) Explain measurement and scaling evaluation techniques.
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Module-5
Data Analysis and Report Writing
Data Analysis and Interpretation
Introduction
After collecting data, it must be reduced to some form suitable for analysis so that
conclusions or findings can be reported to target population. For analysing data researchers
must decide:
 Whether the tabulation of data will be performed by hand or by computer.
 How information can be converted into a form that will allow it to be processed
efficiently.
 What statistical tools or methods will be employed.
Now a days computers have become an essential tool for the tabulation and analysis of
data. Even in simple statistical procedures computer tabulation is encouraged for easy and
flexible handling of data. Micro and laptop computers can produce tables of any dimension
and perform statistical operations much more easily and usually with far less error than is
possible manually. If the data is large and the processing undertaken by computer the
following issues are considered.
 Data preparation which includes editing, coding, and data entry.
 Exploring, displaying and examining data which involves breaking down, examining
and rearranging data so as to search for meaningful description, patterns and
relationships.
1) Editing of Data
The editing of data is a process of examining the raw data to detect errors and omissions
and to correct them, if possible, so as to ensure legibility, completeness, consistency and
accuracy. The recorded data must be legible so that it could he coded later. An illegible
response may be corrected by getting in touch with people who recorded it or alternatively
it may be inferred from other parts of the question. Completeness involves that all the items
in the questionnaire must be fully completed.
If some questions are not answered, the interviewers may be contacted to find out whether
he failed to respond to the question or the respondent refused to answer the question. In
case of former, it is quite likely that the interviewer will not remember the answer. In such a
case the respondent may be contacted again or alternatively this particular piece of data
may be treated as missing data
2) Coding of Data
Coding is the process of assigning some symbols (either) alphabetical or numerals or (both)
to the answers so that the responses can be recorded into a limited number of classes or
categories. The classes should be appropriate to the research problem being studied. They
must be exhaustive and must be mutually exclusive so that the answer can be placed in one
and only one cell in a given category. Further, every class must be defined in terms of only
one concept. The coding is necessary for the efficient analysis of data. The coding decisions
should usually be taken at the designing stage of the questionnaire itself so that the likely
responses to questions are pre-coded. This simplifies computer tabulation of the data for
further analysis. It may be noted that any errors in coding should be eliminated altogether
or at least be reduced to the minimum possible level.
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3) Classification of Data
In most research studies, voluminous raw data collected through a survey need to be
reduced into homogeneous groups for any meaningful analysis. This necessitates
classification of data, which in simple terms is the process of arranging data in groups or
classes on the basis of some characteristics. Classification condenses the data, facilitates
comparisons, helps to study the relationships and facilitates in statistical treatment of data.
The classification should be unambiguous and mutually exclusive and collectively
exhaustive.
a) Classification According to Attributes: To classify the data according to attributes we use
descriptive characteristics like sex, caste, education, user of a product etc. The descriptive
characters are the one which cannot be measured quantitatively. One can only talk in terms
of its presence or absence. The classification according to attributes may be of two types.
i) Simple Classification: In the case of simple classification each class is divided into two sub
classes and only one attribute is studied viz, user of a product or non-user of a product,
married or unmarried, employed or unemployed, Brahmin or non-Brahmin etc.
ii) Manifold Classification: In the case of manifold classification more than one attributes
are considered. For example, the respondents in a survey may be classified as user of a
particular brand of a product and non-user of particular brand of product. Both user and
non-user can be further classified into male and female. Further one can classify male and
female into two categories such as below 25 years of age and 25 and more years of age.
b) Classification According to Numerical Characteristic: When the observations possess
numerical characteristics such as sales, profits, height, weight, income, marks, they are
classified according to class intervals. For example, persons whose monthly income is
between Rs. 2001 and Rs. 3500 may-form one group, those whose income is within Rs. 3501
and Rs. 7000 may form another group, and so on. In this manner, the entire data may be
divided into a number of groins or classes, which are usually called class intervals. The
number of items in each class is called the. Frequency of the class.
4) Validation Analysis
After the development of an analytical procedure, it is must important to assure that the
procedure will consistently produce the intended a precise result with high degree of
accuracy. The method should give a specific result that may not be affected by external
matters. This creates a requirement to validate the analytical procedures. The validation
procedures consist of some characteristics parameters that makes the method acceptable
with addition of statistical tools.
Validation of an analytical procedure is the process by which it is established, by laboratory
studies, that the performance characteristics of the procedure meet the requirements for
the intended analytical applications. Method validation provides an assurance of reliability
during normal use, and is sometime referred to as “the process for providing documented
evidence that the method does what it is intended to do.” The main objective of the
validation is to demonstrate that the analytical method is suitable for its intended purpose,
is accurate, specific and precise over the specified range that an analyte will be analysed.
Analytical Method Validation is to be performed for new analysis methods or for current
methods when any changes are made to the procedure, composition of the drug product
and synthesis of the drugs substances.
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Interpretation
Introduction
After collecting and analysing the data, the researcher has to accomplish the task of drawing
inferences followed by report writing. This has to be done very carefully, otherwise
misleading conclusions may be drawn and the whole purpose of doing research may get
vitiated. It is only through interpretation that the researcher can expose relations and
processes that underlie his findings. In case of hypotheses testing studies, if hypotheses are
tested and upheld several times, the researcher may arrive at generalizations. But in case
the researcher had no hypothesis to start with, he would try to explain his findings on the
basis of some theory. This may at times result in new questions, leading to further
researches. All this analytical information and consequential inference(s) may well be
communicated, preferably through research report, to the consumers of research results
who may be either an individual or a group of individuals or some public/private
organisation.
What is Interpretation?
Evaluation does not end with just data collection and analysis to find out mean value or
degree of satisfaction. Based on those results of analysis, some value judgments should be
made according to the evaluation criteria. At the same time, in order to make useful
recommendations and lessons learned, influential factors that have affected the results
should be fully analysed. This task is called “interpretation.” As seen so far, the evaluation
study follows the process from “data collection” through “data analysis” to “interpretation
of results.”
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 is concerned with relationships within the collected data, partially
overlapping analysis. Interpretation also extends beyond the data of the study to include the
results of other research, theory and hypotheses.” Thus, interpretation is the device through
which the factors that seem to explain what has been observed by researcher in the course
of the study can be better understood and it also provides a theoretical conception which
can serve as a guide for further researches.
Interpretation refers to the task of drawing inferences from the collected facts after an
analytical and or experimental study.
Interpretation is drawing inferences from the analysis results. Inferences drawn from
interpretations lead to managerial implications. In other words, each statistical analysis
produces results that are interpreted with respect to insight into a particular decision. The
logical interpretation of the data and statistical analysis are closely intertwined.
Why Interpretation?
Interpretation is essential for the simple reason that the usefulness and utility of research
findings lie in proper interpretation. It is being considered a basic component of research
process because of the following reasons:
a) It is through interpretation that the researcher can well understand the abstract
principle that works beneath his findings. Through this he can link up his findings
with those of other studies, having the same abstract principle, and thereby can
predict about the concrete world of events.
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b) Interpretation leads to the establishment of explanatory concepts that can serve as a

guide for future research studies; it opens new avenues of intellectual adventure and
stimulates the quest for more knowledge.
c) Researcher can better appreciate only through interpretation why his findings are
what they are and can make others to understand the real significance of his
research findings.
d) The interpretation of the findings of exploratory research study often results into
hypotheses for experimental research and as such interpretation is involved in the
transition from exploratory to experimental research.
e) Enables the researcher to have an in – depth knowledge about the abstract principle
behind his own findings.
f) The researcher is able to understand his findings and the reasons behind their
existence.
g) More understanding and knowledge can be obtained with the help of the further
research.
h) Provides a very good guidance in the studies relating to the research work.
i) Sometimes may result in the formation of the hypothesis.
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:
a) 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.
b) 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.
c) 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.
d) 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.
Precautions in Interpretation
Researcher must pay attention to the following points for correct interpretation:
1) At the outset, researcher must invariably satisfy himself that
a) The data are appropriate, trustworthy and adequate for drawing inferences;
b) The data reflect good homogeneity;
c) Proper analysis has been done through statistical methods.
2) The researcher must remain cautious about the errors that can possibly arise in the
process of interpreting results. Errors can arise due to false generalization and/or
due to wrong interpretation of statistical measures, such as the application of
findings beyond the range of observations, identification of correlation with
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causation and the
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like. Another major pitfall is the tendency to affirm that definite relationships exist on
the basis of confirmation of particular hypotheses.
3) Researcher must always keep in view that the task of interpretation is very much
intertwined with analysis and cannot be distinctly separated.
4) Precautions concerning the reliability of data, computational checks, validation and
comparison of results.
5) Researcher must never lose sight of the fact that his task is not only to make
sensitive observations of relevant occurrences.
6) Identify and disengage the factors that are initially hidden to the eye.
7) The researcher must remember that “ideally in the course of a research study, there
should be constant interaction between initial hypothesis, empirical observation and
theoretical conceptions.
Report Writing
Introduction
Report provides a documentary evidence of research work and explains the problem
definition, approach, research design, fieldwork, and the results of data analysis and
interpretation. Reports are the tangible products of the research effort. They serve as a
historical record of the project. In general researchers prepare a written report and make an
oral presentation of the results. After the client has read the report, any follow-up
considerations or research will be addressed.
Research report is considered a major component of the research study for the research
task remains incomplete till the report has been presented and/or written. As a matter of
fact even the most brilliant hypothesis, highly well designed and conducted research study,
and the most striking generalizations and findings are of little value unless they are
effectively communicated to others.
The purpose of research is not well served unless the findings are made known to others.
Research results must invariably enter the general store of knowledge. All this explains the
significance of writing research report. There are people who do not consider writing of
report as an integral part of the research process. But the general opinion is in favour of
treating the presentation of research results or the writing of report as part and parcel of
the research project. Writing of report is the last step in a research study and requires a set
of skills somewhat different from those called for in respect of the earlier stages of research.
This task should be accomplished by the researcher with utmost care; he may seek the
assistance and guidance of experts for the purpose.
What is a Report?
A research report is a written document or oral presentation based on a written document
that communicates the purpose, scope, objective(s), hypotheses, methodology, findings,
limitations and finally, recommendations of a research project to others.
A research report is the decision maker makes rational decisions with the help of
information contained in the report. Preparation of a research report is an art and science
both.
A thesis or dissertation is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic
degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.
The required complexity or quality of research of a thesis or dissertation can vary by
country, university, or program, and the required minimum study period may thus vary
significantly in duration.
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Oral Presentation
Generally, an oral presentation supplements the written report. Oral presentation is
somewhat difficult compared to the written report. Direct interaction will take place with
the audience. Communication plays a predominant role. Planning and thinking is required to
decide “what to say”, “How to say”, “How much to say”.
Nature of Oral Presentation
 Opening: Explain the nature of the project, what was attempted and how it unfolds.
 Finding or Conclusion: Stated backed up by findings
 Recommendation: Must have the support of conclusion at the end of the
presentation.
 Method of Presentation: Use of tabular form for statistical information, Logical
sequence should be followed.
Different Steps in Writing Scientific Report
Research reports are the product of slow, painstaking, accurate inductive work. The usual
steps involved in writing report are:
1) Logical analysis of the subject matter: It is the first step which is primarily concerned with
the development of a subject. There are two ways in which to develop a subject (a) logically
and (b) chronologically.
2) Preparation of the final outline: It is the next step in writing the research report “Outlines
are the framework upon which long written works are constructed. They are an aid to the
logical organization of the material and a reminder of the points to be stressed in the
report.”
3) Preparation of the rough draft: This follows the logical analysis of the subject and the
preparation of the final outline. Such a step is of utmost importance for the researcher now
sits to write down what he has done in the context of his research study.
4) Rewriting and polishing of the rough draft: This step happens to be most difficult part of
all formal writing. Usually this step requires more time than the writing of the rough draft.
The careful revision makes the difference between a mediocre and a good piece of writing.
While rewriting and polishing, one should check the report for weaknesses in logical
development or presentation.
5) Preparation of the final bibliography: Next in order comes the task of the preparation of
the final bibliography. The bibliography, which is generally appended to the research report,
is a list of books in some way pertinent to the research which has been done. It should
contain all those works which the researcher has consulted.
6) Writing the final draft: This constitutes the last step. The final draft should be written in a
concise and objective style and in simple language, avoiding vague expressions such as “it
seems”, “there may be”, and the like ones. While writing the final draft, the researcher must
avoid abstract terminology and technical jargon.
Written Reports
The research is conducted and results are presented in the form of a report.
Layout of Written Reports
1) Introduction and explanation of the problem:
 Title page: Must indicate the nature of work done (subject matter in the report must
be reflected from the title. “ What the report is", “Who did it” “when was it done”
and “what its special”
 The letter of the transmission: Indicates to whom the report is directed, reason for
doing research and authorization to conduct research.
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 Table of content: All pages in the report should be numbered and indexed in the
beginning for future reference and ease at study.
 Acknowledgement: Reference to earlier studies conducted and clarifies problems.
 Explanation of the problems investigated: Detail discussion of the problem, scope of
the work, Hypothesis, historical background.
 Methodology: Research design used, Data collection methods, Questionnaire used
may be attached and explained, Sampling scheme used, Field work, Analysis and
statistical techniques used.
 Limitations: The degree of which results can be generalized, Weakness in research
methods, constraints of time and finance.
2) Body of the Report
It consists of the main work done. It must include analysis of the data gathered and findings.
3) Conclusions and Recommendations
Keeping in view of the objectives, conclusions must be drawn. It is advisable to find specific
conclusion for each objective. Recommendations should be pragmatic an alternative
solutions be provided with pros and cons of each of them.
4) Supporting Materials and Appendices
This section includes summary of the reports, so that the top executives may quickly grasp
the whole subject of research. This is also called an executive summary and may be
sometimes given separately.
 Appendix Material: relevance for the report to be annexed at the end: Maps,
Diagrams, Tables, and Regulations.
 Bibliography: must cover references of other studies, other books, journals
periodicals, web sites, Magazines, newspapers.
Contents of the Research/Technical Report
 1) Title page
 2) Letter of transmittal
3) Table of contents
4) List of tables
5) List of graphs
6) List of appendices
7) List of exhibits
5) Executive summary
a. Major findings
b. Conclusions
c. Recommendations
9) Introduction
a. Background to the problem
b. Statement of the problem
10) Approach to the problem
 11) Literature Review
 12) Research design
 a. Type of research design
b. Objectives of the study
c. Scope of the Study
d. Information needs
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e. Data collection from secondary sources

f. Data collection from primary sources
g. Sampling Design (Probability/Non-Probability)
h. Scaling techniques
f. Questionnaire development and pretesting
g. Sampling techniques
h. Field work
 13) Data analysis
a. Methodology
b. Plan of data analysis
 14) Results
 15) Limitations and caveats
 16) Conclusions and recommendations
 17) Bibliography
 18) Appendix
a. Questionnaires and forms
b. Statistical output
c. Any other listings
Types of Reports
1) Technical Report: A technical report is used whenever a full written report of the study is
required whether for recordkeeping or for public dissemination.
2) Popular Report: A popular report is used if the research results have policy implications.
A general outline of a popular report:
 The findings and their implications: Emphasis in the report is given on the findings
of most practical interest and on the implications of these findings.
 Recommendations for action: Recommendations for action on the basis of the
findings of the study is made in this section of the report.
 Objective of the study: A general review of how the problem arise is presented
along with the specific objectives of the project under study.
 Methods employed: A brief and non-technical description of the methods and
techniques used, including a short review of the data on which the study is based, is
given in this part of the report.
 Results: This section constitutes the main body of the report wherein the results of
the study are presented in clear and non-technical terms with liberal use of all sorts
of illustrations such as charts, diagrams and the like ones.
 Technical appendices: More detailed information on methods used, forms, etc. is
presented in the form of appendices. But the appendices are often not detailed if the
report is entirely meant for general public.
3) Written Report: A written report plays a vital role in every business operation. The
manner in which an organization writes business letters and business reports creates an
impression of its standard. Therefore, the organization should emphasize on the
improvement of the writing skills of the employees in order to maintain effective relations
with their customers. Writing effective written reports requires a lot of hard work.
4) Oral Report: At times, oral presentation of the results that are drawn out of research is
considered effective, particularly in cases where policy recommendations are to be made.
This approach proves beneficial because it provides a medium of interaction between a
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listener and a speaker. This leads to a better understanding of the findings and their
implications. However, the main drawback of oral presentation is the lack of any permanent
records related to the research. Oral presentation of the report is also effective when it is
supported with various visual devices, such as slides, wall charts and whiteboards that help
in better understanding of the research reports.
Mechanics of Writing a Research Report
There are very definite and set rules which should be followed in the actual preparation of the
research report or paper. Once the techniques are finally decided, they should be scrupulously
adhered to, and no deviation permitted. The criteria of format should be decided as soon as the
materials for the research paper have been assembled. The following points deserve mention so far
as the mechanics of writing a report are concerned:
1. Size and physical design:
 Paper: Executive Bond (A4 Size)
 Font : Times New Roman
 Font Size: Font size should be 12 Heading Font size-14
 Margin: Right, top, bottom=1 inch Left=1.5 inch (For Binding)
 Line Spacing:1.5 inch throughout the document
 Tables and Charts: Each table should have a number and title in the document and
each should appear in the list of tables and charts.
2. Procedure: Various steps in writing the report should be strictly adhered.
3. Layout: Keeping in view the objective and nature of the problem, the layout of the
report should be thought of and decided and accordingly adopted.
4. Treatment of quotations: Quotations should be placed in quotation marks and double
spaced, forming an immediate part of the text. But if a quotation is of a considerable length
then it should be single-spaced and indented at least half an inch to the right of the normal
text margin.
5. The footnotes: Regarding footnotes one should keep in view the followings:
 Footnotes are placed at the bottom of the page on which the reference or quotation
which they identify or supplement ends.
 Footnotes should be numbered consecutively, usually beginning with 1 in each
chapter separately.
6. Punctuation and abbreviations in footnotes: The first item after the number in the
footnote is the author’s name, given in the normal signature order. This is followed by a
comma. After the comma, the title of the book is given: the article (such as “A”, “An”, “The”
etc.) is omitted and only the first word and proper nouns and adjectives are capitalized. The
title is followed by a comma. Information concerning the edition is given next. This entry is
followed by a comma. The place of publication is then stated; it may be mentioned in an
abbreviated form, if the place happens to be a famous one such as Lond. for London, N.Y.
for New York, N.D. for New Delhi and so on.
7. Use of statistics, charts and graphs: A judicious use of statistics in research reports is
often considered a virtue for it contributes a great deal towards the clarification and
simplification of the material and research results. One may well remember that a good
picture is often worth more than a thousand words. Statistics are usually presented in the
form of tables, charts, bars and line-graphs and pictograms. Such presentation should be
self-explanatory and complete in itself. It should be suitable and appropriate looking to the
problem at hand.
8. The final draft: Revising and rewriting the rough draft of the report should be done with
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great care before writing the final draft. Having at least one colleague read the report just
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before the final revision is extremely helpful. Sentences that seem crystal-clear to the writer
may prove quite confusing to other people; a connection that had seemed self-evident may
strike others as a non-sequitur. A friendly critic, by pointing out passages that seem unclear
or illogical, and perhaps suggesting ways of remedying the difficulties, can be an invaluable
aid in achieving the goal of adequate communication.
9. Bibliography: (Refer APA format Material)
10. Preparation of the index: At the end of the report, an index should invariably be given,
the value of which lies in the fact that it acts as a good guide, to the reader. Index may be
prepared both as subject index and as author index. The former gives the names of the
subject-topics or concepts along with the number of pages on which they have appeared or
discussed in the report, whereas the latter gives the similar information regarding the
names of authors.
Effective use of Graphic representation
Use properly, various graphic aids can clarify complex points or emphasize a message.
Several types of graphic aids may be useful in research reports.
1) Tables: They are most useful for presenting numerical information. Each table should
include a table number, which allows simple reference from the text, a title, a box head and
stub head, footnotes, and a source note.
2) Charts: They translate numerical information into visual form so that relationships can be
easily grasped. Each chart should include a figure number, allowing easy reference from the
text, a title, an explanation of the chart, and a source and footnotes.
 Pie charts - One of the most useful types of charts is the pie chart. A pie chart shows
the composition of some total quantity at a particular time. Each angle or “slice” is
proportional to its percentage of the whole and should be labelled with its
description and percentage. Do not try to include too many slices—about six slices is
a usual maximum.
 Line graphs- They are useful to show the relationship of one variable to another. The
dependent variable is generally shown on the vertical axis and the independent
variable on the horizontal axis.
 Bar charts- They show changes in the dependent variable at discrete intervals of the
independent variable. Common variants are the subdivided bar chart or the multiple
bar charts. In each of these cases, each variable needs to be clearly identified.
Language of Research Report
A scientific report is a formal text written in an impersonal, objective, neutral and
professional way. The writing is concise with specific wordings and formulations. The
writing should be clear as well and lead to a deeper understanding of the subject. Scientific
papers should be written with correct grammar, spelling and punctuation.
1) Writing style in academic writing
 Avoid colloquial or informal language. Eliminate all 'filler' and needless words. Biased
language is not acceptable in academic writing.
 Avoid personal or familiar language. Do not directly address the reader and do not
ask rhetorical questions. Remember that the use of personal pronouns does not fit
into an objective, scientific paper.
 Avoid ambiguous, imprecise or vague words such as ‘various', 'some', 'particular',
'numerous'.
 Try to avoid impersonal expressions. Be clear, concrete, specific, precise and direct. If
possible, choose specific wordings which will lead to more concise writing.
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2) Abbreviations and contractions

 Limit the use of abbreviations in academic writing. Explain the abbreviations you are
using.
 Avoid contractions such as 'doesn't', 'haven't'. Always write full forms.
3) Reporting numbers
 Write out numbers at the beginning of a sentence.
 Spell out cardinal numbers from one to nine and ordinal numbers from first to ninth.
Numbers below 10 are usually written as words. Also write out hundred, thousand
and million in words.
4) Punctuation
 Do not forget punctuation.
 Make sure you are using punctuation marks correctly. Do not use commas instead of full
stops. To separate items in a list, use a colon. Commas are used between each item (use a
semicolon if you are including the items on a separate line in the text) and end the last item
in the list with a full stop.
 Do not use excessive punctuation.
5) Writing paragraphs
 Organize the text in paragraphs and ensure that paragraphs are more or less evenly
distributed.
 Structure paragraphs along a topic sentence. The topic sentence adequately
describes the main idea of that paragraph. The remainder of the paragraph then
develops that idea more fully.
 Develop a paragraph in a systematic way, for instance working from general to
specific or from theory to practice.
 Be consistent in tense use throughout paragraphs.
 Pay attention to transitions between and within paragraphs
6) Sentence structures
 Avoid complex sentence structures making your text difficult to follow.
 Use correct, simple and compound sentences. Break up long sentences creating
multiple sentences in order to improve readability.
 Focus on one idea per sentence and emphasize the most important element. The
most important agents should be used as a subject. Avoid using first person
pronouns ('I', 'we') as well as personal experience in academic writing.
 Eliminate redundancies and avoid unnecessary repetition of words.
7) Tenses and structures
 Give preference to active verb forms and impersonal constructions in the simple
present
Reduce the number of nouns and, if appropriate, try to replace nouns with their verb form.
Too many nominalizations (use of nouns instead of verbs) may produce a text which is
difficult to read.
Guidelines for Effective Documentation/Report
Research report is a channel of communicating the research findings to the readers of the
report. A good research report is one which does this task efficiently and effectively. As such
it must be prepared keeping the following precautions in view:
 While determining the length of the report, one should keep in view the fact that it
should be long enough to cover the subject but short enough to maintain interest.
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 A research report should not be dull; it should be such as to sustain reader’s interest.
 Abstract terminology and technical jargon should be avoided in a research report.
 Objective of the study, the nature of the problem, the methods employed and the
analysis techniques adopted must all be clearly stated in the beginning of the report
in the form of introduction.
 Readers are often interested in acquiring a quick knowledge of the main findings and
as such the report must provide a ready availability of the findings. For this purpose,
charts, graphs and the statistical tables may be used for the various results in the
main report in addition to the summary of important findings.
 The layout of the report should be well thought out and must be appropriate and in
accordance with the objective of the research problem.
 The reports should be free from grammatical mistakes and must be prepared strictly
in accordance with the techniques of composition of report-writing such as the use
of quotations, footnotes, documentation, proper punctuation and use of
abbreviations in footnotes and the like.
 A research report should show originality and should necessarily be an attempt to
solve some intellectual problem. It must contribute to the solution of a problem and
must add to the store of knowledge.
 Appendices should be enlisted in respect of all the technical data in the report.
 Bibliography of sources consulted is a must for a good report and must necessarily
be given.
Questions
3 Marks
1) What is Editing of Data?
2) What is Coding of Data?
3) What is Classification of Data?
4) What do you mean by Validation Analysis?
5) What is Interpretation?
6) What is a Report?
7 Marks
1) Explain different types of Classifications
2) Why Interpretation important in research?
3) What are the different Techniques of Interpretation?
4) What are the Precautions to be taken while interpreting the data?
6) Explain Nature of Oral Presentation
7) What are the different types of research reports?
8) How Effectively research can use the Graphic representation?
9) How language that can be incorporated in Reports
10) Explain Guidelines for Effective Documentation or research Report
10 Marks
1) What are the Steps involved in Writing Scientific Report
2) Explain Layout of Written Reports
3) List out the Contents of the Research/Technical Report
4) What are the Mechanics of Writing a Research Report?
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Module-6
Advanced Excel and Real time Application
Introduction
A spreadsheet is a configuration of rows and columns. Rows are horizontal vectors while
columns are vertical vectors. A spreadsheet is also known as a worksheet. It is used to
record, calculate and compare numerical or financial data. Each value can either be an
independent (i.e. basic) value or it may be derived on the basis of values of other variables.
The derived value is the outcome of an arithmetic expression and/or a function (i.e. a
formula). Spreadsheet application (sometimes referred to simply as spreadsheet) is a
computer program that allows us to add (i.e. enter) and process data. We shall understand
spreadsheet with the help of MS-Excel (or simply, Excel), which is one of the Microsoft Office
Suite of software.
Understanding the Excel Program Screen (Excel 2010)
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Using Lookup Functions VLOOKUP and H Look Up

VLOOKUP
The VLOOKUP function looks up information in a worksheet. The VLOOKUP searches
vertically down the left most column of a cell range until it finds the value you specify. When
it finds the specified value, it then looks across the row and returns the value in column you
specify. The VLOOKUP function works a lot like looking up a number in a phonebook: first
you look down the phonebook until you find the person’s name, then you look across to
retrieve the person’s phone number.
It’s important to understand that VLOOKUP only looks down the column that is farthest left
in the specified cell range. In then looks across the row.
Procedure
 Click the Insert Function button on the Formula bar. The Insert Function dialog box
appears.
 Click the or select a category list arrow and select Lookup and Reference. Functions
that fall under this category are shown in the Select a function box.
 Select VLOOKUP in the Select a function box and click OK. The Function Arguments
dialog box appears.
 Enter the required arguments for the VLOOKUP function.
 Other Ways to Use the VLOOKUP Function in a Formula: Write the formula using the
syntax =VLOOKUP (lookup_value,table_array, col_index_num)
The syntax for the VLOOKUP function.
The Function Arguments for the VLOOKUP function.
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HLOOKUP
HLOOKUP in Excel stands for ‘Horizontal Lookup’. It is a function that makes Excel search for
a certain value in a row (the so called ‘table array’), in order to return a value from a
different row in the same column. The HLOOKUP function is similar to the VLOOKUP
function, except it searches horizontal from left to right across the top row of a cell range
until it finds the value you specify. When it finds the specified value, it then looks down the
column to find the specified value. Because of the way data is typically structured, VLOOKUP
is much more powerful than HLOOKUP.
Syntax: HLOOKUP([value], [range], [row number], [false or true])
The Function Arguments for the HLOOKUP function
Sorting in MS Excel
Sorting data in MS Excel rearranges the rows based on the contents of a particular column.
You may want to sort a table to put names in alphabetical order. Or, maybe you want to sort
data by Amount from smallest to largest or largest to smallest.
To Sort the data, follow the steps mentioned below.
 Select the Column by which you want to sort data.
 Choose Data Tab » Sort Below dialog appears.
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 If you want to sort data based on a selected column, Choose Continue with
the selection or if you want sorting based on other columns, choose Expand
Selection.
 You can Sort based on the below Conditions.
o Values − Alphabetically or numerically.
o Cell Color − Based on Color of Cell.
o Font Color − Based on Font color.
o Cell Icon − Based on Cell Icon.
 Clicking Ok will sort the data.
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Sorting option is also available from the Home Tab. Choose Home Tab » Sort & Filter. You can
see the same dialog to sort records.
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Filters in MS Excel
Filtering data in MS Excel refers to displaying only the rows that meet certain conditions. (The
other rows gets hidden.)
Using the store data, if you are interested in seeing data where Shoe Size is 36, then you can
set filter to do this. Follow the below mentioned steps to do this.
 Place a cursor on the Header Row.
 Choose Data Tab » Filter to set filter.
 Click the drop-down arrow in the Area Row Header and remove the check
mark from Select All, which unselects everything.
 Then select the check mark for Size 36 which will filter the data and displays
data of Shoe Size 36.
 Some of the row numbers are missing; these rows contain the filtered
(hidden) data.
 There is drop-down arrow in the Area column now shows a different graphic —
an icon that indicates the column is filtered.
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Using Multiple Filters

You can filter the records by multiple conditions i.e. by multiple column values. Suppose
after size 36 is filtered, you need to have the filter where color is equal to Coffee. After
setting filter for Shoe Size, choose Color column and then set filter for color.
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CONCATENATE Function
The Microsoft Excel CONCATENATE function allows you to join 2 or more strings together.
The CONCATENATE function is a built-in function in Excel that is categorized as a String/Text
Function. It can be used as a worksheet function (WS) in Excel. As a worksheet function, the
CONCATENATE function can be entered as part of a formula in a cell of a worksheet.
Example (as Worksheet Function):
Based on the Excel spreadsheet above, the following CONCATENATE examples would return:
=CONCATENATE(A2,B2,C2,D2)
Result: "EFGH"
Result: "5678"
Result: "abc123"
Result: "TechOnTheNet.com"
=CONCATENATE(A5," is great")
Result: "TechOnTheNet is great"
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Concatenate Space Characters

When you are concatenating values together, you might want to add space characters to
separate your concatenated values. Otherwise, you might get a long string with the
concatenated values running together. This makes it very difficult to read the results.
Let's look at an easy example.
Based on the Excel spreadsheet above, we can concatenate a space character within the
CONCATENATE function as follows:
=CONCATENATE(A2," ",B2)
Result: "DigMinecraft.com website"
Conditional Formatting
MS Excel 2010 Conditional Formatting feature enables you to format a range of values so that
the values outside certain limits, are automatically formatted.
Choose Home Tab » Style group » Conditional Formatting dropdown.
Various Conditional Formatting Options
 Highlight Cells Rules − It opens a continuation menu with various options for
defining the formatting rules that highlight the cells in the cell selection that
contain certain values, text, or dates, or that have values greater or less than
a particular value, or that fall within a certain ranges of values.
Suppose you want to find cell with Amount 0 and Mark them as red.Choose Range of cell »
Home Tab » Conditional Formatting DropDown » Highlight Cell Rules » Equal To.
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After Clicking ok, the cells with value zero are marked as red.
 Top/Bottom Rules − It opens a continuation menu with various options for

defining the formatting rules that highlight the top and bottom values,
percentages, and above and below average values in the cell selection.
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Suppose you want to highlight the top 10% rows you can do this with these Top/Bottom rules.
 Data Bars − It opens a palette with different color data bars that you can
apply to the cell selection to indicate their values relative to each other by
clicking the data bar thumbnail.
With this conditional Formatting data Bars will appear in each cell.
 Color Scales − It opens a palette with different three- and two-colored scales
that you can apply to the cell selection to indicate their values relative to each
other by clicking the color scale thumbnail.
See the below screenshot with Color Scales, conditional formatting applied.
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 Icon Sets − It opens a palette with different sets of icons that you can apply to
the cell selection to indicate their values relative to each other by clicking the
icon set.
See the below screenshot with Icon Sets conditional formatting applied.
 New Rule − It opens the New Formatting Rule dialog box, where you define a
custom conditional formatting rule to apply to the cell selection.
 Clear Rules − It opens a continuation menu, where you can remove the
conditional formatting rules for the cell selection by clicking the Selected Cells
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option, for the entire worksheet by clicking the Entire Sheet option, or for just
the current data table by clicking the This Table option.
 Manage Rules − It opens the Conditional Formatting Rules Manager dialog
box, where you edit and delete particular rules as well as adjust their rule
precedence by moving them up or down in the Rules list box.
Pivot Tables
A pivot table is essentially a dynamic summary report generated from a database. The
database can reside in a worksheet (in the form of a table) or in an external data file. A pivot
table can help transform endless rows and columns of numbers into a meaningful
presentation of the data. Pivot tables are very powerful tool for summarized analysis of the
data.
Pivot tables are available under Insert tab » PivotTable dropdown » PivotTable.
Pivot Table Example
Now, let us see Pivot table with the help of example. Suppose you have huge data of voters
and you want to see the summarized data of voter Information per party, then you can use
the Pivot table for it. Choose Insert tab » Pivot Table to insert pivot table. MS Excel selects
the data of the table. You can select the pivot table location as existing sheet or new sheet.
This will generate the Pivot table pane as shown below. You have various options available
in the Pivot table pane. You can select fields for the generated pivot table.
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 Column labels − A field that has a column orientation in the pivot table. Each
item in the field occupies a column.
 Report Filter − You can set the filter for the report as year, then data gets
filtered as per the year.
 Row labels − A field that has a row orientation in the pivot table. Each item in
the field occupies a row.
 Values area − The cells in a pivot table that contain the summary data. Excel
offers several ways to summarize the data (sum, average, count, and so on).
After giving input fields to the pivot table, it generates the pivot table with the data as shown
below.
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Pivot Charts
A pivot chart is a graphical representation of a data summary, displayed in a pivot table. A
pivot chart is always based on a pivot table. Although Excel lets you create a pivot table and
a pivot chart at the same time, you can’t create a pivot chart without a pivot table. All Excel
charting features are available in a pivot chart.
Pivot charts are available under Insert tab » PivotTable dropdown » PivotChart.
Pivot Chart Example
Now, let us see Pivot table with the help of an example. Suppose you have huge data of
voters and you want to see the summarized view of the data of voter Information per party
in the form of charts, then you can use the Pivot chart for it. Choose Insert tab » Pivot Chart
to insert the pivot table.
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MS Excel selects the data of the table. You can select the pivot chart location as an existing
sheet or a new sheet. Pivot chart depends on automatically created pivot table by the MS
Excel. You can generate the pivot chart in the below screen-shot.
107
IF Function
he Microsoft Excel IF function returns one value if the condition is TRUE, or another value if
the condition is FALSE.
The IF function is a built-in function in Excel that is categorized as a Logical Function. It can
be used as a worksheet function (WS) in Excel. As a worksheet function, the IF function can
be entered as part of a formula in a cell of a worksheet.
Syntax
The syntax for the IF function in Microsoft Excel is:
IF( condition, value_if_true, [value_if_false] )
Parameters or Arguments
condition
The value that you want to test.
value_if_true
It is the value that is returned if condition evaluates to TRUE.
value_if_false
Optional. It is the value that is returned if condition evaluates to FALSE.
Example (as Worksheet Function)
Let's explore how to use the IF function as a worksheet function in Microsoft Excel.
Based on the Excel spreadsheet above, the following IF examples would return:
=IF(B2<10, "Reorder", "")
Result: "Reorder"
=IF(A2="Apples", "Equal", "Not Equal")

Result: "Equal"
=IF(B3>=20, 12, 0)
Result: 12
Combining the IF function with Other Logical Functions

Quite often, you will need to specify more complex conditions when writing your formula in
Excel. You can combine the IF function with other logical functions such as AND, OR, etc.
Let's explore this further.
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AND function
The IF function can be combined with the AND function to allow you to test for multiple
conditions. When using the AND function, all conditions within the AND function must be
TRUE for the condition to be met. This comes in very handy in Excel formulas.
Based on the spreadsheet above, you can combine the IF function with the AND function as
follows:
=IF(AND(A2="Anderson",B2>80), "MVP", "regular")
Result: "MVP"
=IF(AND(B2>=80,B2<=100), "Great Score", "Not Bad")

Result: "Great Score"
=IF(AND(B3>=80,B3<=100), "Great Score", "Not Bad")

Result: "Not Bad"
=IF(AND(A2="Anderson",A3="Smith",A4="Johnson"), 100, 50)

Result: 100
=IF(AND(A2="Anderson",A3="Smith",A4="Parker"), 100, 50)

Result: 50
In the examples above, all conditions within the AND function must be TRUE for the condition
to be met.
OR function
The IF function can be combined with the OR function to allow you to test for multiple
conditions. But in this case, only one or more of the conditions within the OR function needs
to be TRUE for the condition to be met.
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Based on the spreadsheet above, you can combine the IF function with the OR function as
follows:
=IF(OR(A2="Apples",A2="Oranges"), "Fruit", "Other")
Result: "Fruit"
=IF(OR(A4="Apples",A4="Oranges"),"Fruit","Other")
Result: "Other"
=IF(OR(A4="Bananas",B4>=100), 999, "N/A")

Result: 999
=IF(OR(A2="Apples",A3="Apples",A4="Apples"), "Fruit", "Other")

Result: "Fruit"
In the examples above, only one of the conditions within the OR function must be TRUE for
the condition to be met.
Let's take a look at one more example that involves ranges of percentages.
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Based on the spreadsheet above, we would have the following formula in cell D2:
=IF(OR(B2>=5%,B2<=-5%),"investigate","")
Result: "investigate"
This IF function would return "investigate" if the value in cell B2 was either below -5% or
above 5%. Since -6% is below -5%, it will return "investigate" as the result. We have copied
this formula into cells D3 through D9 to show you the results that would be returned.
For example, in cell D3, we would have the following formula:
=IF(OR(B3>=5%,B3<=-5%),"investigate","")
Result: "investigate"
This formula would also return "investigate" but this time, it is because the value in cell B3 is
greater than 5%.
Nested IF Functions
The IF function is a built-in function in Excel that is categorized as a Logical Function. It can
be used as a worksheet function (WS) in Excel. As a worksheet function, the IF function can
be entered as part of a formula in a cell of a worksheet.
It is possible to nest multiple IF functions within one Excel formula. You can nest up to
7 IF functions to create a complex IF THEN ELSE statement.
TIP: If you have Excel 2016, try the new IFS function instead of nesting multiple IF functions.
Syntax
The syntax for the nesting the IF function is:
IF( condition1, value_if_true1, IF( condition2, value_if_true2, value_if_false2 ))
Example (as Worksheet Function)

Let's look at an example to see how you would use a nested IF and explore how to use the
nested IF function as a worksheet function in Microsoft Excel:
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Based on the Excel spreadsheet above, the following Nested IF examples would return:
=IF(A1="10x12",120,IF(A1="8x8",64,IF(A1="6x6",36)))
Result: 120
=IF(A2="10x12",120,IF(A2="8x8",64,IF(A2="6x6",36)))
Result: 64
=IF(A3="10x12",120,IF(A3="8x8",64,IF(A3="6x6",36)))
Result: 36
Charts
A chart is a visual representation of numeric values. Charts (also known as graphs) have
been an integral part of spreadsheets. Charts generated by early spreadsheet products were
quite crude, but thy have improved significantly over the years. Excel provides you with the
tools to create a wide variety of highly customizable charts. Displaying data in a well-
conceived chart can make your numbers more understandable. Because a chart presents a
picture, charts are particularly useful for summarizing a series of numbers and their
interrelationships. Types of Charts
There are various chart types available in MS Excel as shown in the below screen-shot.
 Column − Column chart shows data changes over a period of time or illustrates
comparisons among items.
 Bar − A bar chart illustrates comparisons among individual items.
 Pie − A pie chart shows the size of items that make up a data series,
proportional to the sum of the items. It always shows only one data series
and is useful when you want to emphasize a significant element in the data.
 Line − A line chart shows trends in data at equal intervals.
 Area − An area chart emphasizes the magnitude of change over time.
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 X Y Scatter − An xy (scatter) chart shows the relationships among the numeric

values in several data series, or plots two groups of numbers as one series of
xy coordinates.
 Stock − This chart type is most often used for stock price data, but can also be
used for scientific data (for example, to indicate temperature changes).
 Surface − A surface chart is useful when you want to find the optimum
combinations between two sets of data. As in a topographic map, colors and
patterns indicate areas that are in the same range of values.
 Doughnut − Like a pie chart, a doughnut chart shows the relationship of parts
to a whole; however, it can contain more than one data series.
 Bubble − Data that is arranged in columns on a worksheet, so that x values
are listed in the first column and corresponding y values and bubble size
values are listed in adjacent columns, can be plotted in a bubble chart.
 Radar − A radar chart compares the aggregate values of a number of data
series.
Creating Chart
To create charts for the data by below mentioned steps.
 Select the data for which you want to create the chart.
 Choose Insert Tab » Select the chart or click on the Chart group to see
various chart types.
 Select the chart of your choice and click OK to generate the chart.
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Editing Chart
You can edit the chart at any time after you have created it.
 You can select the different data for chart input with Right click on chart »
Select data. Selecting new data will generate the chart as per the new data, as
shown in the below screen-shot.
 You can change the X axis of the chart by giving different inputs to X-axis of
chart.
 You can change the Y axis of chart by giving different inputs to Y-axis of chart.
Using Excel for Statistical Analysis

MS Excel is one of the most commonly used tools for data analysis. The convenience of use
and cost are two very important reasons why most data professionals prefer using Excel for
statistical data analysis. However, using Excel for statistical analysis requires clarity of
thought, data analysis knowledge, and strong decision-making skills.
Whether you are performing statistical analysis using Excel 2010 or Excel 2013, you need to
have a clear understanding of charts and pivot tables. Most data analysts using Excel for
statistical analysis depend largely on these two Excel features. Having knowledge of the
essential statistics for data analysis using Excel answers is a plus.Remember to install Data
Analysis ToolPak if you are using Excel for statistical data analysis.
Using Excel for Statistical Analysis: Pivot Tables
A PivotTable is an Excel tool for summarizing a list into a simple format. It helps you analyze
all the data in your worksheet so as to make better business decisions. Excel can help you by
recommending, and then, automatically creating PivotTables, which are a great way to
summarize, analyze, explore, and present your data.
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A pivot table may be used as an interactive data summarization tool to automatically

condense large datasets into a separate, concise table. You can use it to create an
informative summary of a large dataset or make regional comparisons between brand sales.
You can create PivotTables from lists, as you define which fields should be arranged in
columns, which fields should become rows, and what data you wish to summarize.
Using Excel for Statistical Analysis: Descriptive Statistics
Descriptive Statistics tool in the Data Analysis add-in can be used on an existing data set to
get up to 16 different descriptive statistics, without having to enter a single function on the
worksheet. Descriptive Statistics gives you a general idea of trends in your data including:
1. The mean, mode, median and range
2. Variance and standard deviation
3. Skewness
4. Sample Variance
5. Kurtosis and Skewness
6. Count, maximum and minimum
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Descriptive Statistics is useful because it allows you to take a large amount of data and
summarize it. For example, you may want to represent the incomes of a community. Instead
of showing it on an excel, you may summarize it, it becomes useful: an average wage, or a
median income, is much easier to understand and then analyze the data.
116
You can find descriptive analysis by going to Excel→ Data→ Data Analysis → Descriptive
statistics. It is the most basic set of analysis that can be performed on any data set.
Using Excel for Statistical Analysis: ANOVA (Analysis of Variance)
Analysis of variance (ANOVA) is a statistical technique that is used to check if the means of
two or more groups are significantly different from each other. ANOVA checks the impact of
one or more factors by comparing the means of different samples.
ANOVA method in Excel shows whether the mean of two or more data set is significantly
different from each other or not. In other words, ANOVA analyses two or more groups
simultaneously and finds out whether any relationship is there among the groups of data set
or not.
For example, you may use ANOVA if you want to analyze the traffic of three different cities
and find out which one is more efficient in handling the traffic (or if there are no significant
differences among the traffic).
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You will find three types of ANOVA in Excel:

1. ANOVA single factor
2. ANOVA two factor with replication
3. ANOVA two factor without replication
If you have three groups of datasets and want to check whether there is any significant
difference between these groups or not, you can use ANOVA single factor. If the P-value in
the ANOVA summary table is greater than 0.05, you can say that there is a significant
difference between the groups.
Using Excel for Statistical Analysis: Moving Average
Moving Average, another great tool for those using Excel for statistical analysis, is ideal for
time series data such as stock price, weather report, attendance in class, etc. Moving
Average is used extensively in stock price as a technical indicator. If you want to predict the
stock price of today, the last ten days’ data would be more relevant than the last 1 year.
You may, simply plot the moving average of the stock having a 10-day period and then
predict the estimated price. The same rule may be applied for predicting the temperature of
a city. The recent temperature of a city can be calculated by taking the average of the last
few weeks rather than the last few months.
Using Excel for Statistical Analysis: Rank and Percentile
The Rank and Percentile, another popular Excel features used for data analysis, is useful for
finding the rank of all the values in a list. The best part of using the Rank and Percentile
feature is that the percentile is also added to the output table.
The percentile is a percentage that indicates the proportion of the list which is below a given
number. It calculates the ranking and percentile in the data set. For example, if you are
managing a business of several products and want to find out which product is contributing
to a higher revenue, you can use this rank method in Excel.
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In the left table, we have our data on the revenues of different products. And we want to
rank this data of products based on their revenue. With the help of rank and percentile, we
can get the table shown on the right. You can observe that now the data is sorted and
respective rank is also marked with each data.
Percentile shows the category in which the data belongs, such as the top 50%, top 30%, etc.
In the summary table, the rank of product 7 is 4. As the total number of data is 7, we can
easily say that it belongs to the top 50% of the data.
Using Excel for Statistical Analysis: Regression
Regression is one of the best features in Excel. It is widely used for using Excel for statistical
data analysis. Regression is a process of establishing a relationship among many variables; to
establish a relationship between dependent variables and independent variables.
Regression is great for use for using Excel for statistical data analysis. You, may, for example,
want to see if there is an increase in the revenue of the product, which is not due to the
increase in the advertisement.
If you performing statistical analysis using Excel 2010, Regression Analysis is the best way of
mathematically sorting out which of those variables does indeed have an impact. It answers
the questions: Which factors matter most? Which can we ignore? How do those factors
interact with each other? And, perhaps most importantly, how certain are we about all of
these factors?
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These factors are more commonly known as variables. You may have your dependent or
independent variables. In order to conduct a regression analysis, you gather the data on the
variables in question.
You may take all of your monthly sales numbers, the past five years and any data on the
independent variables you may find useful. You may, for example, find out the average
monthly rainfall for the past five years as well.
Using Excel for Statistical Analysis: Random Number Generator
If you are using Excel for statistical data analysis, on a regular basis, Random Number
Generator must be your top choice for generating a series of random numbers. This simple
function in Excel gives you more flexibility in the random number generation process. It
gives you more control over the generated data.
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A random number is one that is drawn from a set of possible values, each of which is equally
probable. In statistics, this is called a uniform distribution, because the distribution of
probabilities for each number is uniform (i.e., the same) across the range of possible values.
For example, a good (unloaded) die has the probability 1/6 of rolling a one, 1/6 of rolling a
two and so on. Hence, the probability of each of the six numbers coming up is exactly the
same, so we say any roll of our die has a uniform distribution.
When discussing a sequence of random numbers, each number drawn must be statistically
independent of the others. This means that drawing one value doesn’t make that value less
likely to occur again. This is exactly the case with our unloaded die: If you roll a six, that
doesn’t mean the chance of rolling another six changes.
Two very essential statistics for data analysis using Excel:

1. The function RANDBETWEEN returns a random integer number
2. The function RAND () returns a random real number of a uniform distribution. It will
be less than 1 and greater than or equal to 0.
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Using Excel for Statistical Analysis: Sampling

Sampling is one of the most readily preferred Excel tools if you are using Excel for statistical
data analysis. This option is used for creating samples from a huge population. You can
randomly select data from the dataset or select every nth item from the set.
For example, if you may want to measure the effectiveness of female call center employee
in a call center, you can use this tool to randomly select few data every month and listen to
their recorded calls and give a rating based on the selected call.
Questions
3 Marks
1) What is VLOOKUP?
2) How HLOOKUP function can be used in MS Excel?
3) What is CONCATENATE Function?
4) What is Pivot Table?
5) Listout different descriptive statistics can be performed using Excel?
7 Marks
1) How VLOOKUP function can be used
2) How Pivot Tables cab be used in Excel?
3) How IF Function can be used in MS Excel?
4) How Nested If Function can be used in MS Excel?
10 Marks
1) How Sorting of data can be done in MS Excel?
2) How filtering can be used in MS Excel?
3) How Conditional formatting can be used in MS Excel?
4) How MS Excel Can be used for Statistical Analysis?
122

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Research Methodology (22MBA23)

Research Methodology 20MBA23

2) To portray accurately the characteristics of a particular individual, situation or a

 It aims at formulating most general axioms or what can be termed as scientific

Steps in Research Process

2) Extensive Literature Survey: Once the problem is formulated, a brief summary of it

Research Application in business decisions

c) Organizational Planning and Development: This includes culture assessment—either

1) Exploratory Research Design

2) Conclusive Research Design

5) Research hypothesis: When a prediction or a hypothesised relationship is to be tested by

(II) Formal experimental designs:

b) Random replications design: The limitation of the two-group randomized design is

6) What is Pre-experimental Research Design

7) What is Quasi-experimental Research Design

1) Define the Target Population

time. An element is the

6) Validate the sample

f) the universe with a reasonable level of confidence.

I. Collection of Secondary Data

Criteria for Evaluating Secondary Data

Advantages of Secondary Data

 Detailed probing of the individual.

 Internet interview - Internet or Web surveys use ‘hypertext mark-up language’

articles, television and radio programs, can be considered as examples.

 Trace analysis - It is an approach in which data collection is based on physical traces

Questionnaire Design Process

1) Specify the information needed

a) Is the question necessary?

d) Can the Respondent Articulate?

 Multiple-choice questions: In multiple-choice questions, the researcher provides a

d) Avoid leading or biasing questions

Do you think that Americans should buy imported automobiles?

7. Only Objective Questions: The questions should be objective. It should be based on

be placed according to its quantification. In other words, a scale is a continuous spectrum or

1) Comparative scaling procedures

b) Paired comparison scaling

c) Constant sum scaling

a) Continuous rating scale

b) Itemized rating scale

B2) Semantic differential scale

B3) Stapel scale

Other Scaling Techniques

As the name suggests, in test-retest reliability measurement, same respondents are

b) Interpretation leads to the establishment of explanatory concepts that can serve as a

causation and the

e. Data collection from secondary sources

2) Abbreviations and contractions

Using Lookup Functions VLOOKUP and H Look Up

The Function Arguments for the VLOOKUP function.

 Clicking Ok will sort the data.

Using Multiple Filters

Example (as Worksheet Function):

Concatenate Space Characters

 Top/Bottom Rules − It opens a continuation menu with various options for

=IF(A2="Apples", "Equal", "Not Equal")

Combining the IF function with Other Logical Functions

=IF(AND(B2>=80,B2<=100), "Great Score", "Not Bad")

=IF(AND(B3>=80,B3<=100), "Great Score", "Not Bad")

=IF(AND(A2="Anderson",A3="Smith",A4="Johnson"), 100, 50)

=IF(AND(A2="Anderson",A3="Smith",A4="Parker"), 100, 50)

=IF(OR(A4="Bananas",B4>=100), 999, "N/A")

=IF(OR(A2="Apples",A3="Apples",A4="Apples"), "Fruit", "Other")

Example (as Worksheet Function)