A Power Point Presentation on

“RESEARCH DESIGN”
 RESEARCH DESIGN
•The research design is the master plan specifying the
methods and procedures for collecting and analyzing the
needed information.
•Three traditional categories of research design-:
–Exploratory
–Descriptive
–Casual

•The choice of the most appropriate design depends largely

on the objectives of the research and how much is known
about the problem and these objectives.
 EXPLORATORY RESEARCH
• Exploratory research is a type of research
conducted for a problem that has not been
clearly defined.
• To gain background information about the
general nature of the research problem.
• The researcher does not know much about the
problem and needs additional information or
desires new or more recent information.
• To develop HYPOTHESES or QUESTIONS TO
BE ANSWERED.
• A variety of methods are available to
conduct exploratory research:
• Secondary Data Analysis
• Experience Surveys
• Case Analysis
• Focus Groups
• Projective Techniques
• Internet (Google Alerts, Google Trends, RSS
Feeds)
 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH
• Describes the various characteristics of
the phenomenon being studied.
• Provide answers to questions of who,
what, where, when, and how?
• Two basic classifications:
• Cross-sectional studies
– Involve observation of all of a population, or a
representative subset(sample), at a defined time.
– Sample Surveys, Online Research Surveys
• Longitudinal studies
– A correlational research study that involves repeated
observations of the same items(sample) over long periods of
time.
– Cohort Studies sample a cohort, (defined as a group
experiencing some event) in a selected time period, and
studying them at intervals through time(long term intervals).
– Panel Studies sample a panel, and the same panel is asked
to respond periodically, usually at regular intervals.
– Longitudinal data used for:
• Market tracking
• Brand-switching
• Attitude and image checks
 CAUSAL RESEARCH
• Causal Research explores the effect of
one thing on another and more
specifically, the effect of one variable on
another.

• It involves the measuring of the CAUSE

and EFFECT Relationship between two
variables X and Y.
• There has to be proper recognition of the X and
Y variables and their nature, i.e. either being
Dependent variable, Independent variable or
Extraneous variable.

• Independent variables: those over which the researcher

has control and wishes to manipulate i.e. package size, ad
copy, price.
• Dependent variables: those over which the researcher has
little to no direct control, but has a strong interest in testing
i.e. sales, profit, market share.
• Extraneous variables: those that may effect a dependent
variable but are not independent variables.