MB0050, RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

1. Define business research and explain the process of research?

 Definition of Research
 Explanation of the steps in a research study 2+8=10

Answer:
Different scholars have interpreted the term ‘research’ in many ways. For instance, Fred Kerlinger
(1986) stated that ‘Scientific research is a systematic, controlled and critical investigation of
propositions about various phenomena.’ Grinnell (1993) has simplified the debate and stated ‘The word
research is composed of two syllables, ‘re’ and ‘search’.

Process of research:-
The management dilemma
Any research starts with the need and desire to know more. This is essentially the management
dilemma. It could be the researcher himself or herself or it could be a business manager who gets the
study by done by a researcher. The need might be purely academic (basic or fundamental research) or
there might be an immediate business decision that requires an effective and workable solution (applied
research).

Defining the research problem

This is the first and the most critical step of the research journey. For example, a soft drink
manufacturer who is making and selling aerated drinks now wants to expand his business. He wants to
know whether moving into bottled water would be a better idea or he should look at fruit juice based
drinks. Thus, a comprehensive and detailed survey of the bottled water as well as the fruit juice market
will have to be done. He will also have to decide whether he wants to know consumer acceptance of a
new drink. Thus, there has to be complete clarity in the mind of the researcher regarding the
information he must collect.

Formulating the research hypotheses

In the model, we have drawn broken lines to link defining the research problem stage to the hypotheses
formulation stage. The reason is that every research study might not always begin with a hypothesis; in
fact, the task of the study might be to collect detailed data that might lead to, at the end of the study,
some indicative hypotheses to be tested in subsequent research.
Developing the research proposal
Once the management dilemma has been converted into a defined problem and a working hypothesis,
the next step is to develop a plan of investigation. This is called the research proposal. The reason for
its placement before the other stages is that before you begin the actual research study in order to
answer the research question you need to spell out the research problem, the scope and the objectives of
the study and the operational plan for achieving this. The proposal is a flexible contract about the
proposed methodology and once it is made and accepted, the research is ready to begin.

Research design formulation

Based on the orientation of the research, i.e., exploratory, descriptive or causal, the researcher has a
number of techniques for addressing the stated objectives. These are termed in research as research
designs. The main task of the design is to explain how the research problem will be investigated. There
are different kinds of designs available to you while doing a research.

Sampling design
It is not always possible to study the entire population. Thus, one goes about studying a small and
representative sub-group of the population. This sub-group is referred to as the sample of the study.
There are different techniques available for selecting the group based on certain assumptions. The most
important criteria for this selection would be the representativeness of the sample selected from the
population under study.

Planning and collecting the data for research

In the model, we have placed planning and collecting data for research as proceeding simultaneously
with the sampling plan. The reason for this is that the sampling plan helps in identifying the group to be
studied and the data collection plan helps in obtaining information from the specified population. The
data collection methods may be classified into secondary and primary data methods. Primary data is
original and collected first hand for the problem under study. There are a number of primary data
methods available to the researcher like interviews, focus group discussions, personal/telephonic
interviews/mail surveys and questionnaires.

Data refining and preparation for analysis

Once the data is collected, it must be refined and processed in order to answer the research question(s)
and test the formulated hypotheses (if any). This stage requires editing of the data for any omissions
and irregularities. Then it is coded and tabulated in a manner in which it can be subjected to statistical
testing. In case of data that is subjective and qualitative, the information collected has to be post coded
i.e. after the data has been collected.

Data analysis and interpretation of findings

This stage requires selecting the analytical tools for testing the obtained information. There are a
number of statistical techniques available to the researcher—frequency analysis, percentages,
arithmetic mean, t-test and chi square analysis. These will be explained in the later units. Once the data
has been analysed and summarized, linking the results with the research objectives and stating clearly
the implications of the study is the most important task of the researcher.

The research report and implications for the manager’s dilemma

The report preparation, from the problem formulation to the interpretation, is the final part of the
research process. As we stated earlier, business research is directed towards answering the question
‘what are the implications for the corporate world?’ Thus, in this step, the researcher’s expertise in
analysing, interpreting and recommending, is very important. This report has to give complete details
about everything that was done right from problem formulation, to the methodology followed to the
conclusions ending of the study.

Q2 Discuss descriptive research designs? Explain the different kinds of descriptive research
designs.
 Meaning of Descriptive Research designs
 Kinds of Descriptive research designs 5+5=10

Answer:
Descriptive research design is a scientific method which involves observing and describing the
behavior of a subject without influencing it in any way. As the name implies, the objective of
descriptive research studies is to provide a comprehensive and detailed explanation of the phenomena
under study. The intended objective might be to give a detailed sketch or profile of the respondent
population being studied. For example, to design an advertising and sales promotion campaign for
high-end watches, a marketer would require a holistic profile of the population that buys such luxury
products. Thus a descriptive study, (which generates data on who, what, when, where, why and how of
luxury accessory brand purchase) would be the design necessary to fulfil the research objectives.
Descriptive research thus are conclusive studies. However, they lack the precision and accuracy of
experimental designs, yet it lends itself to a wide range of situations and is more frequently used in
business research.
Based on the time period of the collection of the research information, descriptive research is further
subdivided into two categories: cross-sectional studies and longitudinal studies.

Cross-sectional Studies
As the name suggests, cross-sectional studies involve a slice of the population. Just as in scientific
experiments one takes a cross-section of the leaf or the cheek cells to study the cell structure under the
microscope, similarly one takes a current subdivision of the population and studies the nature of the
relevant variables being investigated.
There are two essential characteristics of cross-sectional studies:
• The cross-sectional study is carried out at a single moment in time and thus the applicability is most
relevant for a specific period.
• Secondly, these studies are carried out on a section of respondents from the population units under
study (e.g., organizational employees, voters, consumers, industry sectors). This sample is under
consideration and under investigation only for the time coordinate of the study. There are also
situations in which the population being studied is not of a homogeneous nature but composed of
different groups.

Longitudinal Studies
A single sample of the identified population that is studied over a longer period of time is termed as a
longitudinal study design. A panel of consumers specifically chosen to study their grocery purchase
pattern is an example of a longitudinal design. There are certain distinguishing features of the same:
• The study involves the selection of a representative panel, or a group of individuals that typically
represent the population under study.
• The second feature involves the repeated measurement of the group over fixed intervals of time. This
measurement is specifically made for the variables under study.
• A distinguishing and mandatory feature of the design is that once the sample is selected, it needs to
stay constant over the period of the study. That means the number of panel members has to be the
same. Thus, in case a panel member due to some reason leaves the panel, it is critical to replace him/her
with a representative member from the population understudy.

Longitudinal study using the same section of respondents thus provides more accurate data than one
using a series of different samples. These kinds of panels are defined as true panels and the ones using a
different group every time are called omnibus panels. The advantages of a true panel are that it has a
more committed sample group that is likely to tolerate extended or long data collecting sessions.
Secondly, the profile information is a one-time task and need not be collected every time. Thus, a
useful respondent time can be spent on collecting some research-specific information.
Kinds of Descriptive Research Design:-

There are three main types of descriptive methods:

1. Observational Method

With the observational method (sometimes referred to as field observation) animal and human behavior
is closely observed. There are two main categories of the observational method — naturalistic
observation and laboratory observation.

The biggest advantage of the naturalistic method of research is that researchers view participants in
their natural environments. This leads to greater ecological validity than laboratory observation,
proponents say.

Laboratory observations are usually less time-consuming and cheaper than naturalistic observations.

2. Case Study Method

Case study research involves an in-depth study of an individual or group of indviduals. Case studies
often lead to testable hypotheses and allow us to study rare phenomena. Case studies should not be
used to determine cause and effect, and they have limited use for making accurate predictions.

3. Survey Method

In survey method research, participants answer questions administered through interviews or

questionnaires. After participants answer the questions, researchers describe the responses given. In
order for the survey to be both reliable and valid it is important that the questions are constructed
properly. Questions should be written so they are clear and easy to comprehend.

Q3 Discuss four types of measurements scales with appropriate examples.

 Nominal
 Ordinal
 Interval
 Ratio 2.5+2.5+2.5+2.5=10

Answer:
Types of measurements scales
Nominal scale: This is the lowest level of measurement. Here, numbers are assigned for the purpose of
identification of the objects. Any object which is assigned a higher number is in no way superior to the
one which is assigned a lower number. Each number is assigned to only one object and each object has
only one number assigned to it. It may be noted that the objects are divided into mutually exclusive and
collectively exhaustive categories

Ordinal scale: This is the next higher level of measurement than the nominal scale measurement. One
of the limitations of the nominal scale measurements is that we cannot say whether the assigned
number to an object is higher or lower than the one assigned to another option. The ordinal scale
measurement takes care of this limitation. An ordinal scale measurement tells whether an object has
more or less of characteristics than some other objects. However, it cannot answer how much more or
how much less.

Interval scale: The interval scale measurement is the next higher level of measurement. It takes care of
the limitation of the ordinal scale measurement where the difference between the score on the ordinal
scale does not have any meaningful interpretation. In the interval scale the difference of the score on
the scale has meaningful interpretation. It is assumed that the respondent is able to answer the questions
on a continuum scale. The mathematical form of the data on the interval scale may be written as
Y = a + b X Where a ≠ 0

Ratio scale: This is the highest level of measurement and takes care of the limitations of the interval
scale measurement, where the ratio of the measurements on the scale does not have a meaningful
interpretation. The ratio scale measurement can be converted into interval, ordinal and nominal scale.
But the other way round is not possible. The mathematical form of the ratio scale data is given by Y = b
X. In this case, there is a natural zero (origin), whereas in the interval scale we had an arbitrary zero.
Examples of the ratio scale data are weight, distance travelled, income and sales of a company, to
mention a few. All the mathematical operations can be carried out using the ratio scale data. In addition
to the statistical analysis mentioned in the interval, the ordinal and the nominal scale data, one can
compute coefficient of variation, geometric mean and harmonic mean using the ratio scale
measurement.

Q4 Differentiate between the Stratified random sampling and Systematic sampling.

a. stratified random sampling
b. systematic sampling 5+5=10

Answer:

a. Stratified random sampling

Under this sampling design, the entire population (universe) is divided into strata (groups), which are
mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive. By mutually exclusive, it is meant that if an element
belongs to one stratum, it cannot belong to any other stratum. Strata are collectively exhaustive if all
the elements of various strata put together completely cover all the elements of the population. The
elements are selected using a simple random sampling independently from each group.

There are two reasons for using a stratified random sampling rather than simple random sampling. One
is that the researchers are often interested in obtaining data about the component parts of a universe.
For example, the researcher may be interested in knowing the average monthly sales of cell phones in
‘large’, ‘medium’ and ‘small’ stores. In such a case, separate sampling from within each stratum would
be called for. The second reason for using a stratified random sampling is that it is more efficient as
compared to a simple random sampling. This is because dividing the population into various strata
increases the representativeness of the sampling as the elements of each stratum are homogeneous to
each other.

b. Systematic sampling
Systematic sampling takes care of the limitation of the simple random sampling that the sample may
not be a representative one. In this design, the entire population is arranged in a particular order. The
order could be the calendar dates or the elements of a population arranged in an ascending or a
descending order of the magnitude which may be assumed as random. List of subjects arranged in the
alphabetical order could also be used and they are usually assumed to be random in order. Once this is
done, the steps followed in the systematic sampling design are as follows:
• First of all, a sampling interval given by K = N/n is calculated, where N = the size of the population
and n = the size of the sample. It is seen that the sampling interval K should be an integer. If it is not, it
is rounded off to make it an integer.
• A random number is selected from 1 to K. Let us call it C.
• The first element to be selected from the ordered population would be C, the next element would be C
+ K and the subsequent one would be C + 2K and so on till a sample of size n is selected.

This way we can get representation from all the classes in the population and overcome the limitations
of the simple random sampling. To take an example, assume that there are 1,000 grocery shops in a
small town. These shops could be arranged in an ascending order of their sales, with the first shop
having the smallest sales and the last shop having the highest sales. If it is decided to take a sample of
50 shops, then our sampling interval K will be equal to 1000 ÷ 50 = 20. Now we select a random
number from 1 to 20. Suppose the chosen number is 10. This means that the shop number 10 will be
selected first and then shop number 10 + 20 = 30 and the next one would be 10 + (2 × 20) = 50 and so
on till all the 50 shops are selected. This way we can get a representative sample in the sense that it will
contain small, medium and large shops. It may be noted that in a systematic sampling the first unit of
the sample is selected at random (probability sampling design) and having chosen this, we have no
control over the subsequent units of sample (non-probability sampling). Because of this, this design at
times is called mixed sampling.

Q5 Distinguish between coding closed-ended structured questions and coding open-ended

structured questions
 Coding Closed-ended
 Coding Open-ended

Answer:
Coding Closed-ended Structured Questions
The method of coding for structured questions is easier as the response categories are decided in
advance. The coding method to be followed for different kinds of questions is discussed below.
Dichotomous questions: For dichotomous questions, which are on a nominal scale, the responses can
be binary, for example:
Do you eat ready-to-eat food? Yes = 1; no = 0.
This means if someone eats ready- to- eat food he/she will be given a score of 1 and if not, then 0.
Ranking questions: For ranking questions where there are multiple objects to be ranked, the person
will have to make multiple columns, with column numbers equaling the number of objects to be
ranked.
Checklists/multiple responses: In questions that permit a large number of responses, each possible
response option should be assigned a separate column.
Scaled questions: For questions that are on a scale, usually an interval scale, the question/statement
will have a single column and the coding instruction would indicate what number needs to be allocated
for the response options given in the scale.
Missing values: It is advisable to use a standard format for signifying a nonresponse or a missing
value.

Coding Open-ended Structured Questions

The coding of open-ended questions is quite difficult as the respondents’ exact answers are noted on the
questionnaire. Then the researcher (either individually or as a team) looks for patterns and assigns a
category code. The following example is an open ended question If you think lean management was a
success so far, please specify three most significant reasons that have contributed to its success in your
opinion. People gave different answers. Thus, based upon the responses obtained, for the above
question, the following post–code book was created:
Col.No. Variable Name Coding Variable
Instructions Name
63 Improvement at workplace by eliminating Yes = 1 X 63a
waste. No = 0
64 To meet increasing demands of Yes = 1 X 63b
customers No = 0
65 To improve quality Yes = 1 X 63c
No = 0
66 To achieve corporate goal Yes = 1 X 63d
No = 0

Q6. Explain the Structure of the Research Report. What are the guidelines for effective report
writing?
[Explanation of the Structure of the Research Report-5
Guidelines for effective report writing-5]

Answer:
Whatever the type of report, the reporting requires a structured format and by and large, the process is
standardized. As stated above, the major difference amongst the types of reports is that all the elements
that make a research report would be present only in a detailed technical report. Usage of theoretical
and technical jargon would be higher in the technical report and visual presentation of data would be
higher in the management report. As can be observed, the preliminary section includes the title page,
followed by the letter of authorization, acknowledgements, executive summary and the table of
contents. Then come the background section, which includes the problem statement, introduction, study
background, scope and objectives of the study and the review of literature (depends on the purpose).
This is followed by the methodology section, which, as stated earlier, is again specific to the technical
report. This is followed by the findings section and then come the conclusions. The technical report
would have a detailed bibliography at the end. In the management report, the sequencing of the report
might be reversed to suit the needs of the decision-maker, as here the reader needs to review and absorb
the findings. Thus, the last section on interpretation of findings would be presented immediately after
the study objectives and a short reporting on methodology could be presented in the appendix.

Guidelines for effective report writing

 Clear report mandate: While writing the research problem statement and study background,
the writer needs to be absolutely clear in terms of why and how the problem was formulated.
 Clearly designed methodology: Any research study has its unique orientation and scope and
thus has a specific and customized research design, sampling and data collection plan. In
researches, that are not completely transparent on the set of procedures, one cannot be
absolutely confident of the findings and resulting conclusions.
 Clear representation of findings: Complete honesty and transparency in stating the treatment
of data and editing of missing or contrary data is extremely critical. Representativeness of study
finding: A good research report is also explicit in terms of extent and scope of the results
obtained, and in terms of the applicability of findings. Thus, some guidelines should be kept in
mind while writing the report.
 Command over the medium: A correct and effective language of communication is critical in
putting ideas and objectives in the vernacular of the reader/decision-maker.
 Phrasing protocol: There is a debate about whether or not one makes use of personal pronoun
while reporting. The use of personal pronoun such as ‘I think…..’ or ‘in my opinion…..’ lends a
subjectivity and personalization of judgement. Thus, the tone of the reporting should be neutral.
 Simplicity of approach: Along with grammatically and structurally correct language, care must
be taken to avoid technical jargon as far as possible. In case it is important to use certain
terminology, then, definition of these terms can be provided in the glossary of terms at the end
of the report.
 Report formatting and presentation: In terms of paper quality, page margins and font style
and size, a professional standard should be maintained. The font style must be uniform
throughout the report. The topics, subtopics, headings and subheadings must be construed in the
same manner throughout the report. The researcher can provide data relief and variation by
adequately supplementing the text with graphs and figures.