0192i - ppt1 - r2

Course: 0192I - Research Methodology

Introduction to Research MethodologyWeek 1

REFERENCES

Zikmund, Babin, Carr, and Griffin. (2009). Business Research Methods. 8th edition. Thomson South-Western. ISBN : 978-0324320626.

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(1) INTRODUCTION(1) INTRODUCTION

• This chapter focuses on the relationship between business research and managerial decision making.

• Business success is determined directly by the quality of decisions made by key personnel.


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Researchers contribute to decision making in several key ways•Helping to better define the current situation•Defining the firm—determining how consumers, competitors, and employees view the firm•Providing ideas for enhancing current business practices•Identifying new strategic directions•Testing ideas that will assist in implementing business strategies for the firm•Examining how correct a certain business theory is in a given situation


INTRODUCTIONINTRODUCTION

• The student may seek out data, usually in the form of advice provided by parents, guidance counselors, other students, or various media sources. These data may be critical in reaching decisions.

• Indeed, the answers to each of these questions shape a student’s future, influence the way he or she is viewed by others, and ultimately determine how successful he or she will be.


Go College?? Or Not go to College??

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Likewise, businesses face decisions that shape the

future of the organization, its employees, and its

customers. In each case, the decisions are brought

about as the firm either seeks to capitalize on some

opportunity or to reduce any potential negative

impacts related to some business problem.


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• A business opportunity is a situation that makes some potential competitive advantage possible. The discovery of some underserved segment presents such an opportunity.

• A business problem is a situation that makes some significant negative consequence more likely.

• A decision making is the process of developing and deciding among alternative ways of resolving a problem or choosing from among alternative opportunities.

• A symptomp is observable cues that serve as a signal of a problem because they are caused by that problem.



• Complete certainty means that the decision maker has all information needed to make an optimal decision.

• Uncertainty means that the manager grasps the general nature of desired objectives, but the information about alternatives is incomplete.

• Ambiguity means that the nature of the problem itself is unclear


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• Business research can be classified on the basis of either technique or purpose.

• The following section introduces the three types of business research:

1. Exploratory2. Descriptive3. Causal


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(2) TYPES OF BUSINESS RESEARCH(2) TYPES OF BUSINESS RESEARCH

• Exploratory research is conducted to clarify ambiguous situations or discover potential business opportunities.

• As the name implies, the major purpose of descriptive research is to describe characteristics of objects, people, groups, organizations, or environments.

• Causal research seeks to identify cause-and-effect relationships. When something causes an effect, it means it brings it about or makes it happen. The effect is the outcome.


TYPES OF BUSINESS RESEARCHTYPES OF BUSINESS RESEARCH

• Ideally, managers want to know how a change in one event will change another event of interest. As an example, how will implementing a new employee training program change job performance?

• Causal research attempts to establish that when we do one thing, another thing will follow. A causal inference is just such a conclusion.

Three critical pieces of causal evidence are:

1. Temporal Sequence

2. Concomitant Variance

3. Nonspurious Association



• Temporal sequence deals with the time order of events. In other

words, having an appropriate causal order of events, or temporal

sequence, is one criterion for causality.

• Concomitant variation occurs when two events “covary” or

“correlate,” meaning they vary systematically.

• Nonspurious association means any covariation between a cause

and an effect is true, rather than due to some other variable.



In summary, causal research should do all of the following:

1.Establish the appropriate causal order or sequence of

events.

2.Measure the concomitant variation between the

presumed cause and the presumed effect.

3.Examine the possibility of spuriousness by considering the

presence of alternative plausible causal factors.



• Absolute causality means the cause is necessary and

sufficient to bring about the effect.

• Conditional causality means that a cause is necessary but

not sufficient to bring about an effect.

• Contributory causality is the weakest form of causality, but

it is still a useful concept


Degrees of Causality


• Business experiments hold the greatest potential for establishing cause-and-effect relationships.

• An experiment is a carefully controlled study in which the researcher manipulates a proposed cause and observes any corresponding change in the proposed effect. An experimental variable represents the proposed cause and is controlled by the researcher by manipulating it.

• Manipulation means that the researcher alters the level of the variable in specific increments.

• A test-market is an experiment that is conducted within actual business conditions.


Experiments


So, which form of research—exploratory, descriptive, or causal—is appropriate for the current situation?




(3) STAGES IN THE RESEARCH PROCESS(3) STAGES IN THE RESEARCH PROCESS

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1. List five ways that business research can contribute to effective

business decision making.

2. Define business opportunity, business problem, and symptoms. Give

an example of each as it applies to a university business school.

QUESTIONSQUESTIONS

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3. Consider the following list, and indicate and explain whether each best fits the definition of a problem, opportunity, or symptom:

a. A 12.5 percent decrease in store traffic for a children’s shoestore in a medium-sized city mall.b. Walmart’s stock price has decreased 25 percent between

2007 and 2009.

QUESTIONSQUESTIONS

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c. A furniture manufacturer and retailer in North Carolina reads a research report indicating consumer trends toward Australian Jara and Kari wood. The export of these products is very limited and very expensive.

d. Marlboro reads a research report written by the U.S. FDA. It indicates that the number of cigarette smokers in sub-Saharan Africa is expected to increase dramatically over the next decade.

QUESTIONSQUESTIONS

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0192i - ppt1 - r2

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