BUSINESS RESEARCH CH-1

The Nature of
METHODS Research
By the end of this chapter,
you should be able to:
 Define and describe the importance of educational
research
 Describe the six steps in the process of research
 Identify the characteristics of quantitative and
qualitative research in the six steps
 Identify the type of research designs associated with
quantitative and qualitative research
 Discuss important ethical issues in conducting
research
 Recognize skills needed to design and conduct
research
What Is Research?

 The researcher poses a question.

 The researcher collects data to answer
the question.
 The researcher presents an answer to
the question.
Importance of Research
 Reason 1: Research adds to our
knowledge.
 Addresses gaps in knowledge
 Expands knowledge
 Replicates knowledge
 Adds voices of individuals to knowledge
Importance of Research (cont’d)
 Reason 2: Research helps improve
practice.
 Educators gain new ideas for their job.
 Educators gain new insights into approaches.
 Educators can connect with other educators.
Importance of Research (cont’d)
 Reason 3: Research helps inform policy
debates.
 Research allows people to weigh different
perspectives on issues.
 Research enables people to make informed
decisions regarding policy.
Problems with Research Today
 Contradictory or vague findings
 Questionable data
 Unclear statements about the intent
of the study
 Lack of full disclosure of the data
collection procedure
 Inarticulate rendering of the
research problem
 Objectives of research
oTo gain familiarity with a phenomenon or to achieve new insights into it
(studies with this object in view are termed as exploratory or formulative
research studies);

oToportray accurately the characteristics of a particular individual,

situation or a group (studies with this object in view are known as
descriptive research studies);

oTo determine the frequency with which something occurs or with which
it is associated with something else (studies with this object in view are
known as diagnostic research studies);
 Motivation of research
Desire to get a research degree along with its consequential
benefits;

Desire to face the challenge in solving the unsolved problems, i.e.,

concern over practical problems initiates research;

 Desire to get intellectual joy of doing some creative work;

 Desire to be of service to society;

 Desire to get respectability.

 Significance of research (for decision making)
Throws light on risks and uncertainty
Identify alternative courses of action
Helps in economic use of resources
Helps in project identification
Solves investment, pricing and allocation problems
Solves decision making issues in human resource
Solves various operational and planning problems of business and
industry
Provides the basis for all government policies in our economic system.
Others
 CRITERIA OF A GOOD RESEARCH

 Purpose clearly defined.

 Research process detailed.
 Research design thoroughly planned.
 High ethical standards applied.
 Disclosing Limitations.
 Adequate analysis for decision maker’s needs.
 Findings presented unambiguously.
 Conclusions justified.
 Researcher’s experience reflected.
 QUALITIES OF A GOOD RESEARCH

 Systematic
 Logical
 Empirical
 Replicable
 Creative
 Use of multiple methods
The Process of Research
Identify the
Research Problem
Report
and Review the
Evaluate Research Literature

Analyze and Specify a

Interpret Research
Data Purpose
Collect Data
 THE SIX STEPS IN THE PROCESS OFRESEARCH
1. Identifying a research problem
2. Reviewing the literature
3. Specifying a purpose for research
4. Collecting data
5. Analyzing and interpreting the data
6. Reporting and evaluating research
 THE SIX STEPS IN THE PROCESS OFRESEARCH
1. Identifying a research problem
• Consists of;
• specifying an issue to study
• developing a justification for studying it, and
• suggesting the importance of the study for select
audiences that will read the report.
• By specifying a "problem," you limit the subject matter
and focus attention on a specific aspect of study.
 THE SIX STEPS IN THE PROCESS OF RESEARCH

1. Identifying a research problem

2. Reviewing the literature
• It means locating summaries, books, journals, and indexed
publications on a topic; selectively choosing which
literature to include in your review; and then
summarizing the literature in a written report.
 THE SIX STEPS IN THE PROCESS OFRESEARCH
1. Identifying a research problem
2. Reviewing the literature
3. Specifying a purpose for research
• it consists of
• identifying the major intent or objective for a study and
• narrowing it into specific research questions or
hypotheses.
• The purpose statement contains the major focus of the
study, the participants in the study, and the location or
site of the inquiry. This purpose statement is then
narrowed to research questions or predictions that you
plan to answer in your research study.
 THE SIX STEPS IN THE PROCESS OF RESEARCH

1. Identifying a research problem

2. Reviewing the literature
3. Specifying a purpose for research
4. Collecting data
• Identifying & Selecting individuals to study
• Obtaining permissions
• Gathering information by asking people questions
or observing their behaviors
 THE SIX STEPS IN THE PROCESS OFRESEARCH
1. Identifying a research problem
2. Reviewing the literature
3. Specifying a purpose for research
4. Collecting data
5. Analyzing and interpreting the data
 Breaking down the data
 Representing the data
 Explaining the data
 THE SIX STEPS IN THE PROCESS OFRESEARCH
1. Identifying a research problem
2. Reviewing the literature
3. Specifying a purpose for research
4. Collecting data
5. Analyzing and interpreting the data
6. Reporting and evaluating research
🢝 Deciding on audiences
🢝 Structuring the report
🢝 Writing the report sensitively
 RESEARCH PROCESS

Research Problem

Literature Review

Research Questions Questions

Quantitative Research Qualitative Research

Research Designs

Quantitative Designs Combined Designs Qualitative Designs

-Experimental -Mixed methods -Grounded theory
-Correlational -Action research -Ethnography
-Survey -Narrative

Sampling Instruments/Pr
N Data Analysis Interpretation
otocols

Discussion, Conclusions, Limitations, Future Research

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF QUANTITATIVE
AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH CHARACTERISTICS
 Describing a research problem through a description of
trends or a need for an explanation of the relationship
among variables
 Providing a major role for the literature through suggesting
the research questions to be asked and justifying the
research problem and creating a need for the direction
 (purpose statement and research questions or
hypotheses) of the study
 Creating purpose statements, research questions,
and hypotheses that are specific, narrow,
measurable, and observable
 QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH CHARACTERISTICS

•Collecting numeric data from a large number of people using

instruments with preset questions and responses

•Analyzing trends, comparing groups, or relating variables using

statistical analysis and interpreting results by comparing them
with prior predictions and past research

•Writing the research report using standard, fixed

structures and evaluation criteria and taking an objective,
unbiased approach
 QUALITATIVE RESEARCH CHARACTERISTICS
In qualitative research, we see different major characteristics
at each stage of the research
process:
•Exploring a problem and developing a detailed understanding
of a central phenomenon
•Having the literature review play a minor role but justify
the problem
• Stating the purpose and research questions in an open-ended
way to capture the participants' experiences
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH CHARACTERISTICS
In qualitative research, we see different major characteristics
at each stage of the research process:
•Collecting data based on words (e.g., from interviews) or
from images (e.g., photographs) from a small number of
individuals so that the participants' views are obtained
•Analyzing the data for description and themes using text
analysis and interpreting the larger meaning of the findings
•Writing the report using flexible, emerging structures
and evaluative criteria and including the researchers'
subjective reflexivity and bias
 TYPES OF RESEARCH

Descriptive vs Analytical Research

Descriptive Research is a fact finding investigation which is
aimed at describing the characteristics of individual, situation or a
group (or) describing the state of affairs as it exists at present.

Analytical Research is primarily concerned with testing hypothesis

and specifying and interpreting relationships, by analyzing the facts
or information already available.
 Applied vs Fundamental Research

Applied Research or Action Research is carried out to find

solution to a real life problem requiring an action or policy decision.

Fundamental Research which is also known as basic or pure

research is undertaken for the sake of knowledge without any
intention to apply it in practice. It is undertaken out of intellectual
curiosity and is not necessarily problem-oriented.
 Quantitative vs Qualitative Research

Quantitative Research is employed for measuring

the quantity or amount of a particular phenomena by the use
of statistical analysis.

Qualitative Research is a non-quantitative type

of analysis which is aimed at finding out the quality of a
particular phenomenon.
 Conceptual vs Empirical Research

Conceptual Research is generally used by

philosophers and thinkers to develop new concepts or to
reinterpret existing ones.

Empirical Research is a data based research

which depends on experience or observation alone. It is
aimed at coming up with conclusions without due regard
for system and theory.
 Some other types of research..

 One-time Research – Research confined to a single

time period.
 Longitudinal Research – Research carried on over
several time periods.
 Diagnostic Research – It is also called clinical research
which aims at identifying the causes of a problem, frequency
with which it occurs and the possible solutions for it.
 Exploratory Research – It is the preliminary study of an
unfamiliar problem, about which the researcher has little or
no knowledge. It is aimed to gain familiarity with the
problem, to generate new ideas or to make a precise
formulation of the problem. Hence it is also known as
formulative research.
Conti..
 Experimental Research – It is designed to assess the effect of
one particular variable on a phenomenon by keeping the other
variables constant or controlled.

 Historical Research – It is the study of past records and other

information sources, with a view to find the origin and
development of a phenomenon and to discover the trends in the
past, in order to understand the present and to anticipate the
future.