REVIEW QUESTIONs FOR BRM FINAL EXAM

1. What is research? Research is the careful consideration of study regarding a particular concern
or problem using scientific methods. According to the American sociologist Earl Robert Babbie,
“research is a systematic inquiry to describe, explain, predict, and control the observed
phenomenon. It involves inductive and deductive methods.” What are the keywords of
research? Keywords are words that help indexers and search engines find relevant papers. The
purpose of keywords in research paper is that they help database search engines find your
journal manuscript, thereby enabling readers to find your work easily. Explain the criteria for
good research.
a. The purpose of research or the problem involved should be clearly defined and sharply
limited in terms as explicit as possible. The statement of research problem should have
analysis into its simplest elements ,its scope and limitations and precise prosperities of
the meanings of all words significant to the research. If the researcher failed to do this
adequately , he will raise the doubts in readers' minds .
b. It is important to write the research procedure in sufficient detail to let another
researcher repeat the research unless secrecy is imposed.
c. The design of procedure should plane carefully to gain objective results. Direct
experiments should have satisfactory controls. Direct observations should be recorded
in writing as soon as possible after the event. To diminishing siding in selecting and
recording data ,efforts should be made.
d. The researcher should report with complete explication , demerits in the procedural
design and estimate their effect upon the findings. Some demerits effect on data and
make them unreliable or lack validity .A competent research should be sensitive to the
effects of imperfect design and his experience in analyzing the data should give him a
bases for estimating their influence .
e. An analysis of data should be completely enough to reveal its significance and the
method of analysis used should be appropriate. The validity and reliability of data
should be checked carefully. The data should be classified in a way that the research
reaches a good conclusion. When the statistical methods are used the probability of
errors should be evaluated and the criteria of statistical significance applied.
f. "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." Researchers are often
tempted to expand the bases of exhorting by including personal experiences not
subject to the controls under which the research data were gathered. This tends to
decrease the objectivity of the research and weaken confidence in findings.
g. If the researcher is honest , a greater confidence in the research is warranted .Were it is
possible for the readers of a research report to get an enough information about the
researcher , this criterion would be a good bases for judging the degree of confidence a
piece of research warrants. For this reason, the research should be accompanied by
more information about the researcher.
Or

h. 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.
 i. 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 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.
j. 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.
k. Good research is replicable: This characteristic allows research results to be verified by
replicating the study and thereby building a sound basis for decisions.

2. Explain the differences between applied research (practical research) and basic research
(academic research). Please provide examples of research questions for each of them.

Academic Research Professional Research

Also called as Scholarly Research Seeks to add to a Also called as Applied Research Seeks to find
larger “body of knowledge” solutions to instant problems and issues

Questions tend to be more conceptual Problems tend to be more practical

Theoretically focused Organizationally focused

Findings are generally made public Findings are generally kept private

Results generally spur ideas and questions for Results are generally used internally to make
future research decisions and set up strategy

Assessed through peer review by means of Assessed by client-organization and/or industry

academic discipline standards standards

Shared primarily through academic writings

Shared mainly through internal reports to reveal
(doctoral dissertation, thesis, dissertation research,
results; may also be shared more widely through
scholarly journals, academic conferences &
professional conferences and industry/trade
presentations, academic articles and other
publications (e.g., articles, case studies, etc.)
publications (e.g., books)

3. Describe the exploratory research and descriptive research. Based on your research topic,
describe which research problems should be examined by exploratory research.
 BASIS FOR
EXPLORATORY RESEARCH DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH
COMPARISON

Meaning Exploratory research means a research Descriptive research is research that

conducted for formulating a problem for explore and explain an individual,
more clear investigation. group or a situation.

Objective Discovery of ideas and thoughts. Describe characteristics and

functions.

Overall Design Flexible Rigid

Research process Unstructured Structured

Sampling Non-probability sampling Probability sampling

Statistical Design No pre-planned design for analysis. Pre-planned design for analysis.

4. Briefly describe the steps in a research process.

1. Identify the project topic: A successful research process often begins with a clearly defined
intent for the research project. You can focus on a topic in nearly any field of study, as the
research process broadly applies across all academic and professional fields. The more
precisely you identify the topic for your research, the more effectively you can design a
process in order to conduct your research.
2. Review any available literature: When working on a research project, understanding existing
information related to your topic can be a foundational element of the process. Researching
existing data and writing regarding the topic allows you to identify the need for your
intended research, and it can help provide the information you need in order to design your
research approach effectively in later steps.
3. Submit process for review: When you plan to submit the results of your research process for
formal assessment, such as for a higher education degree project or in professional work,
you may need to submit your process for approval before beginning your research project.
This allows the individuals you will report to the opportunity to examine your intent and
ensure that it meets their standards and specifications. Receiving approval before
continuing with the research process can help you ensure you spend your time wisely and
your project is acceptable
 4. Create an initial hypothesis: Using the information you have gathered, you can form your
initial hypothesis for your research. Your hypothesis represents what you expect to discover
through your research process, based on your previous knowledge and any information you
gathered from your preliminary reading. The research you perform in later steps tests this
hypothesis, in order to confirm or invalidate it based on new information.
5. Design the research approach: Working on a large research project can require careful
planning. Designing your overall research structure is an important step in the process in
order to ensure that you spend your time well. During this phase, you can determine what
resources you will use to further enhance your understanding, as well as any sources of data
or experiments required to further inform you and help you reach an accurate conclusion.
6. Begin gathering data: After creating your designs and any experiments required. You can
organize your data into structures that make it easy to execute it. You can gather new data
and information from your research sources for you to work with it and identify key pieces
for your research process
7. Analyze the results: After sorting all of your information into organized sets, you can begin
performing analysis on it. Through this phase, you examine the data or research in order to
identify new relevant information and how it relates to your original hypothesis and chosen
topic. The goal of analysis is not to find information that supports your original hypothesis
specifically, but to assess all information and come to the most accurate conclusion about
what the information shows.
8. Create your report: Compiling a report once you've reached your conclusions allows you to
sort that information into a format you can share with others. For extensive research
projects, it is common to include an executive summary at the start of a report, which
provides a brief look at the key points for your audience. It's important to check any rules
and guidelines provided to ensure your report complies. This can improve your chances of
having the report accepted and makes it more effective for those reading it by ensuring it
covers the desired points your audience is interested in.
9. Proofread and submit: After completing your report, it is important to take time to
proofread the entire document before formal submission. This allows you to identify any
typos or mistakes that can affect the document's accuracy and provides the last opportunity
to check any logic you used in the development of your report. Doing so may also raise the
overall quality of your report and make it a more effective process.
5. What are the differences between quantitative and qualitative research?
6. What are the differences between positivism and interpretivism? What are the research
methodologies associated with positivism?
Positivism is a sociological approach that states that one should study the human behavior and
society using scientific methodology, as in natural sciences. Interpretivism, on the other hand, is
a sociological approach that states it is important to understand or interpret the beliefs,
motives, and actions of individuals in order to understand social reality. In other words, while
positivists try to treat sociology as a science dealing in numbers and experiments, interpretivists
criticize this approach and say that sociology is not a science and human behavior cannot be
 explained through quantification. Therefore, this is the key difference between positivism and
interpretivism.

Moreover, a further difference between positivism and interpretivism is the research methods
they use. Positivism uses quantitative methods such as statistics, surveys and questionnaires
whereas interpretivism uses qualitative methods such as participant observations and
unstructured interviews.

7. Explain the difference between research methodology and research method.

Methods Methodology
 The objective of methodology is to determine
The objective of methods is to find solution to the
appropriateness of the methods applied with a
research problem.
view to ascertain solution.

Methods are just behavior or tools used to select a Methodology is analysis of all the methods and
research technique. procedures of the investigation.

Methods are applied during the later stage of the Methodologies are applied during the initial
research study. stage of the research process.

It comprises different investigation techniques of the It is a systematic strategy to find solution to the
study. research problem.

Methodology encompasses several techniques

Methods encompasses of carrying out experiments,
used while conducting these experiments,
conducting surveys, tests, etc.
surveys, tests, etc.

8. What are the four types of data? What are their characteristics? Provide an example for each
type of data.

Qualitative Data Type

Qualitative or Categorical Data describes the object under consideration using a finite set of
discrete classes. It means that this type of data can’t be counted or measured easily using
numbers and therefore divided into categories. The gender of a person (male, female, or others)
is a good example of this data type.

These are usually extracted from audio, images, or text medium. Another example can be of a
smartphone brand that provides information about the current rating, the color of the phone,
category of the phone, and so on. All this information can be categorized as Qualitative data.
There are two subcategories under this:

1. Nominal

These are the set of values that don’t possess a natural ordering. Let’s understand this with
some examples. The color of a smartphone can be considered as a nominal data type as we
can’t compare one color with others.

It is not possible to state that ‘Red’ is greater than ‘Blue’. The gender of a person is another one
where we can’t differentiate between male, female, or others. Mobile phone categories
whether it is midrange, budget segment, or premium smartphone is also nominal data type.

Nominal data types in statistics are not quantifiable and cannot be measured through numerical
units. Nominal types of statistical data are valuable while conducting qualitative research as it
extends freedom of opinion to subjects.
2. Ordinal

These types of values have a natural ordering while maintaining their class of values. If we
consider the size of a clothing brand, then we can easily sort them according to their name tag
in the order of small < medium < large. The grading system while marking candidates in a test
can also be considered as an ordinal data type where A+ is better than B grade.

These categories help us deciding which encoding strategy can be applied to which type of data.
Data encoding for Qualitative data is important because machine learning models can’t handle
these values directly and needed to be converted to numerical types as the models are
mathematical in nature.

For nominal data type where there is no comparison among the categories, one-hot encoding
can be applied which is similar to binary coding considering there are in less number and for the
ordinal data type, label encoding can be applied which is a form of integer encoding.

Quantitative Data Type

This data type tries to quantify things and it does by considering numerical values that make it
countable in nature. The price of a smartphone, discount offered, number of ratings on a
product, the frequency of processor of a smartphone, or ram of that particular phone, all these
things fall under the category of Quantitative data types.

The key thing is that there can be an infinite number of values a feature can take. For instance,
the price of a smartphone can vary from x amount to any value and it can be further broken
down based on fractional values. The two subcategories which describe them clearly are:

1. Discrete

The numerical values which fall under are integers or whole numbers are placed under this
category. The number of speakers in the phone, cameras, cores in the processor, the number of
sims supported all these are some of the examples of the discrete data type.

Discrete data types in statistics cannot be measured – it can only be counted as the objects
included in discrete data have a fixed value. The value can be represented in decimal, but it has
to be whole. Discrete data is often identified through charts, including bar charts, pie charts, and
tally charts.

2. Continuous

The fractional numbers are considered as continuous values. These can take the form of the
operating frequency of the processors, the android version of the phone, wifi frequency,
temperature of the cores, and so on.

Unlike discrete data types of data in research, with a whole and fixed value, continuous data can
break down into smaller pieces and can take any value. For example, volatile values such as
 temperature and the weight of a human can be included in the continuous value. Continuous
types of statistical data are represented using a graph that easily reflects value fluctuation by
the highs and lows of the line through a certain period of time.

9. What information should be included in the reference list and the in-text citation, according to
popular reference style (APA or Harvard)?

General tips for creating a list are:

 If you have distinguished between authors with the same name and year of publication in your
citation, you should use the same letter in your reference list to distinguish them, e.g. (Smith,
2017b) will be Smith, S. (2017b) ...
 A reference with one author will appear before a reference with two or more authors if the first
author has the same last name, e.g. Smith, S. (2017b) would appear before Smith, S. and Jones,
A. (2017).
 Multiple references by the same author or creator are listed in chronological order.
 Corporations are listed using the first proper noun of the name, e.g. Royal Academy of Arts
(The).
 If there are two or three authors use "and" in between the names rather than "&".
 For references with four or more authors, include only the first author followed by et al written
in italics. See Journal Article with many authors for an example.
 Author/Editor names should be given in the following format: Surname, Initials. e.g. Smith, F.G.
 The Edition of a book is not included for the first edition, only for later editions, e.g. 2nd edn, 3rd
edn, etc. Edition is abbreviated to edn to distinguish it from the abbreviation for Editor (ed.).
 Certain types of material, such as encyclopedias or dictionaries, may not have a person or
persons as the main author or editor. These can be referenced by the title in italics first, e.g.
 OED online (2017) Oxford: Oxford University Press. Available at: http://www.oed.com
(Accessed: 26 January 2017).
 References for works designated as Anonymous, or works without an author or editor, should
begin with the title in italics instead, followed by the date, e.g.
 A woman in Berlin (2011) Translated by Philip Boehm. London: Virago.
 If no date can be found, then you would use (no date).

 Include the state abbreviation for items published in the United States if it is not obvious where
the location is, e.g. you wouldn't need to include NY after New York, but you would include the
state abbreviation in 'Cambridge, MA.: Harvard University Press' as there is also a Cambridge in
the UK.

If the item is widely known by, or was originally issued under, a title different from that of the
preferred source, the alternative may also be given in brackets if necessary, e.g.
 Browne, J. (2010) Securing a sustainable future for higher education: an independent review of
higher education funding and student finance [The Browne Report].
  If a publisher is not listed or cannot be found, use one of the following (listed in order or
preference):
 Publisher or production company
 Distributor or issuing body
 Printer or manufacturer
 Sponsoring body
 If there is more than one place of publication, only include the most local one in the reference.
 Each reference should end in a full stop unless it is a URL or DOI (a full stop after a URL or DOI
may be presumed to be part of the link and prevent it from working).
 A DOI should be written with the prefix https://doi.org/ followed by the DOI number (adding the
prefix makes it into a URL which will link directly to the item, whereas the DOI number on its
own will only open a browser search of the DOI and doesn't link directly to the item), e.g.

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-5931.2006.00203.x

 For a source with a DOI you don't need to include "Available at" or "(Accessed: date)" in the
reference as a DOI is a stable identifier and will not change, whereas a URL may change or be
deleted so the extra information is needed to clarify where and when you found the source.
 Always write DOI in lower case letters in your references, e.g. doi:
10. Explain the criteria for a good literature review.

Accuracy, authority, objectivity, currency and coverage are the five basic criteria for evaluating
information from any sources.

Questions to ask:

 Is the information reliable?

 Is the information error-free?
Accuracy
 Is the information based on proven facts?
 Can the information be verified against other reliable sources?

 Who is the author?

 Does he or she have the qualifications to speak/write on that topic?
Authority
 Is the author affiliated with a reputable university or organization in
this subject field?

 What is the intended purpose of the information?

Objectivity  Is the information facts or opinions?
 Is the information biased?

 When was the information published?

Currency  Is the information current or out-dated?
 Does currency matter in this topic?
  Does the information covered meet your information needs?
Coverage
 Does it provide basic or in depth coverage?

11. Explain the difference between cross-sectional research and longitudinal research.

Cross-sectional study Longitudinal study

Cross-sectional studies are quick to conduct as Longitudinal studies may vary from a few years
compared to longitudinal studies. to even decades.

A cross-sectional study is conducted at a given A longitudinal study requires a researcher to

point in time. revisit participants of the study at proper
intervals.

Cross-sectional study is conducted with different Longitudinal study is conducted with the same
samples. sample over the years.

Cross-sectional studies cannot pin down cause- Longitudinal study can justify cause-and-effect
and-effect relationship. relationship.

Multiple variables can be studied at a single Only one variable is considered to conduct the
point in time. study.

Cross-sectional study is comparatively cheaper. Since the study goes on for years longitudinal
study tends to get expensive.

12. What is a semi-structural interview? In this type of interview, the interviewer may prepare a list
of questions but won't necessarily ask them all, or touch on them in any particular order.
Instead, interviewers will use these questions to guide the conversation. In some cases, the
interviewer will prepare only a list of general topics to be addressed.
13. Describe and provide examples of four types of scales.

1. Nominal scale of measurement

The nominal scale of measurement defines the identity property of data. This scale has certain
characteristics but doesn’t have any form of numerical meaning. The data can be placed into
categories but can’t be multiplied, divided, added or subtracted from one another. It’s also not
possible to measure the difference between data points.

Examples of nominal data include eye colour and country of birth. Nominal data can be broken
down again into three categories:
Nominal with order: Some nominal data can be sub-categorised in order, such as “cold, warm,
hot and very hot.”

Nominal without order: Nominal data can also be sub-categorised as nominal without order,
such as male and female.

Dichotomous: Dichotomous data is defined by having only two categories or levels, such as “yes’
and ‘no’.

2. Ordinal scale of measurement

The ordinal scale defines data that is placed in a specific order. While each value is ranked,
there’s no information that specifies what differentiates the categories from each other. These
values can’t be added to or subtracted from.

An example of this kind of data would include satisfaction data points in a survey, where ‘one =
happy, two = neutral, and three = unhappy.’ Where someone finished in a race also describes
ordinal data. While first place, second place or third place shows what order the runners
finished in, it doesn’t specify how far the first-place finisher was in front of the second-place
finisher.

3. Interval scale of measurement

The interval scale contains properties of nominal and ordered data, but the difference between
data points can be quantified. This type of data shows both the order of the variables and the
exact differences between the variables. They can be added to or subtracted from each other,
but not multiplied or divided. For example, 40 degrees is not 20 degrees multiplied by two.

This scale is also characterised by the fact that the number zero is an existing variable. In the
ordinal scale, zero means that the data does not exist. In the interval scale, zero has meaning –
for example, if you measure degrees, zero has a temperature.

Data points on the interval scale have the same difference between them. The difference on the
scale between 10 and 20 degrees is the same between 20 and 30 degrees. This scale is used to
quantify the difference between variables, whereas the other two scales are used to describe
qualitative values only. Other examples of interval scales include the year a car was made or the
months of the year.

4. Ratio scale of measurement

Ratio scales of measurement include properties from all four scales of measurement. The data is
nominal and defined by an identity, can be classified in order, contains intervals and can be
broken down into exact value. Weight, height and distance are all examples of ratio variables.
Data in the ratio scale can be added, subtracted, divided and multiplied.
 Ratio scales also differ from interval scales in that the scale has a ‘true zero’. The number zero
means that the data has no value point. An example of this is height or weight, as someone
cannot be zero centimetres tall or weigh zero kilos – or be negative centimetres or negative
kilos. Examples of the use of this scale are calculating shares or sales. Of all types of data on the
scales of measurement, data scientists can do the most with ratio data points.

14. Define validity and reliability in research. Provide examples of validity and reliability in survey
and/or interview research.
Reliability refers to the consistency of a measure (whether the results can be reproduced under
the same conditions).
Validity refers to the accuracy of a measure (whether the results really do represent what they
are supposed to measure).
15. Provide examples of probability and nonprobability sampling.
There are two main methods of sampling: Probability sampling and non-probability sampling. In
probability sampling, respondents are randomly selected to take part in a survey or other mode
of research. For a sample to qualify as a probability sample, each person in a population must
have an equal chance of being selected for a study, and the researcher must know the
probability that an individual will be selected. Probability sampling is the most common form of
sampling for public opinion studies, election polling, and other studies in which results will be
applied to a wider population. This is the case whether or not the wider population is very large,
such as the population of an entire country, or small, such as young females living in a specific
town.
Non-probability sampling is when a sample is created through a non-random process. This could
include a researcher sending a survey link to their friends or stopping people on the street. This
type of sampling would also include any targeted research that intentionally samples from
specific lists such as aid beneficiaries, or participants in a specific training course. Non-
probability samples are often used during the exploratory stage of a research project, and in
qualitative research, which is more subjective than quantitative research, but are also used for
research with specific target populations in mind, such as farmers that grow maize.
16. What is sampling in qualitative and quantitative research? How are they different?