COURSE OUTLINES

Unit I

Definition and Applications of Business Research

Unit II

Research Design

Unit III

Sampling

Unit IV Introduction to Hypothesis Testing

1

LITERATURE REVIEW

2

LITERATURE REVIEW

After defining a problem, the researcher has to do literature survey

connected with the problem

Literature survey is a collection of research publications,

books and other documents related to the defined problem.

Why Literature Review??

To Prevent Duplication of work

To find out what others have learnt and reported

To further refine your problem statement

Increase knowledge of various types of methodologies that

could be useful in your study

Give arguments in support of your research

Reasons for reviewing the literature

1. Bring clarity and focus to your research problem 2. Improve your methodology 3. Broaden your knowledge base in your research area

Procedure for reviewing the literature

Search for existing literature Review the literature selected Develop a theoretical framework Develop a conceptual framework Write up the literature reviewed

SOUCES OF LITERATURE REVIEW

Literature Review

Journals/ Published

Articles

Review Articles

Advanced level

books

Proceedings of

Conferences/workshops

Internet

Community and District/

provisional level information.

National Level information through

national Libraries, premier

research institutes, Department of

Statistics.

Information from Ministries,

bilateral and multilateral

organisations (Eg: WHO, World

Bank, UN organisations)

Published/ Unpublished thesis.

THE THREE KEY POINTS OF A LITERATURE

REVIEW

Tell me what the research says (theory).

Tell me how the research was carried out

(methodology).

Tell me what is missing, ie the gap that your

research intends to fill.

6

You need a good literature review because it:

demonstrates that you know the field.

justifies the reason for your research.

allows you to establish your theoretical framework

and methodological focus. Even if you are

proposing a new theory or a new method, you are

doing so in relation to what has been done.

The literature review becomes your springboard for

the whole thesis

7

WRITING THE INTRODUCTION

In the introduction, you should:

Define or identify the general topic, issue, or area of concern, thus

providing an appropriate context for reviewing the literature.

Point out overall trends in what has been published about the topic;

or conflicts in theory, methodology, evidence, and conclusions; or

gaps in research and scholarship; or a single problem or new

perspective of immediate interest.

Establish the writer's reason (point of view) for reviewing the

literature; explain the criteria to be used in analyzing and comparing

literature and the organization of the review (sequence); and, when

necessary, state why certain literature is or is not included (scope).

8

FINDING AND DEFINING A RESEARCH PROBLEM

you need to start by identifying a question that

demands an answer, or

A need that requires a resolution, or a riddle

that seeks a solution, which can be developed

into a research problem: the heart of the

research project

9

DEFINING RESEARCH PROBLEM

The first and foremost step in research

process

Selection of the problem

Defining the problem

Formulating the problem

Researcher must know: What a problem is?

It is like the identification of a destination before undertaking a journey.

WHAT IS A RESEARCH PROBLEM?

A research problem is one which requires

a researcher to find out the best solutions

for the given problem, i,e., to find out by

which course of action the objectives can

be attained optimally in the context of a

given environment. There are several

factors which may result in making the

problem complicated. For instance, the

environment.

Research problem is like the foundation of

a building

SELECTING THE PROBLEM

IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS

1-Subject must not have been overdone

(it will be a difficult task to throw any new

light in such a case.)

2-Subject must not be Controversial

3-Problem should not be too narrow or too

vague

The subject should be familiar and feasible

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

The importance of the subject,

the qualifications and the training of a

researcher,

the costs involved,

the time factor

The selection of a problem must be preceded

by a preliminary study.

IDENTIFYING A RESEARCH TOPIC AND PROBLEM

Theory Of One’s

Interest

Daily Life Problems

Technological

Changes Recent Trends

Unexplored Areas

This is the most crucial step

“Confusion is often but a step towards clarity”

Most research in the humanities revolves around four “P” s.

Interest: select a topic that really interest you

Magnitude: researcher should have sufficient knowledge about

the research process to be able to visualise the work involved in

completing the proposed the study.

Measurement of concepts: make sure you are clear about its indicators and their measurement.

Level of expertise: make sure you have an adequate level of

expertise for the task you are proposing.

Relevance : select a topic that is of relevance to you as a

professional.

Availability of data : before finalizing your topic make sure your secondary data are available.

Ethical issues: how the ethical issues can affect the study

population and how ethical problems can be overcome should be

thoroughly examined at the problem formulation stage.

In choosing a research problem, the two crucial determinants to

keep in mind are:

Your interest in the subject area; and Manageability of the study within you own constraints

Steps Identify broad area of interest in your academic/professional field Dissect the broad area into sub-areas Select a sub-area or areas in which you would like to conduct your research Raise research questions that you would like to answer

through your study Formulate objectives Assess Double check

The formulation of objectives Objectives are the goals you set to attain in your study

Objectives should be listed under two headings: •Main objectives and sub-objectives

The main objective is an overall statement of the thrust of your study The sub-objectives are the specific aspects of the topic that you want to investigate within the main framework of your study.

PROBLEM TREE – KEEP ASKING WHY?

Low Labor Productivity

Low Land Productivity

Unskilled Labor

Water Scarcity

Unsuitable Crops

Poor Soil

Inefficient Irrigation

Lack of crop varieties adapted to climate

Inefficient Water harvesting Unsuitable Climate

Farming Patterns do not Return nutrients

Farmers can’t afford fertilizers

Farmers unaware of best practices

Study on

Ensuring

Food Safety

and Security

Some examples:

To find out the number of children living below the poverty line in Sri Lanka To ascertain the impact of immigration on family roles among immigrants To measure the effectiveness of a retraining

program designed to help young people

DEFINING AND FORMULATION OF PROBLEM

“Defining the Problem is more important than its solution !”

Research Question:

Is Television more effective in increasing the performance level of students?

Specify Variable!

Performance and Effectiveness

Research Study:

To study the effectiveness of Television on the performance of school students aged 9-19 of XYZ school

STEPS INVOLVED IN RESEARCH PROCESS

• Selection of a Research Topic

• Definition of a Research Problem

• Literature survey and Reference collection

• Assessment of current status of the topic chosen

• Formulation of hypothesis

• Research Design

• Actual investigation- Collect Data

• Data Analysis- Test Hypothesis

• Interpretation of Result

• Report Making