MANAGEMENT 3220: Marketing Research
Spring 2003, TTh 9:25- 10:40
Instructor: Dr. Mike Basil
Phone: 329-2075
Text:
Office: E518
Hours: TTh 11:00-noon
Email: michael.basil@uleth.ca
Malohotra (2002). Basic Marketing Research. Prentice Hall.
Course Description:
The class is designed to make you more knowledgeable about the nature of research by
acquainting you with the methods that are used to generate knowledge about marketing
products or services. These research methods are used in product development, pricing,
placement and promotions. Because the methods are also applied in all of the “sciences,”
understanding them will help you read and better understand a variety of information sources
including studies, newspaper articles, and expert opinions.
We will start with an overview of ways of knowing. Then we will cover the development of
research methods, starting with some examples in the "hard sciences" such as astronomy,
medicine, chemistry, and biology. We will focus on the "social science" empirical approach as it
is applied in marketing. Our primary concern is how to make use of focus groups, surveys and
lab experiments to provide the best possible information to marketers. We will also examine
methods of data collection, how to control extraneous factors, designing research, and how data
are analyzed. There is no better way to learn than doing, so the group project will give you
practical experience in carrying out your own study. You may even want to submit the report
of this research to a regional academic conference. You should come away with a better
understanding of the primary techniques used to gather data – observation, focus groups,
surveys and experiments. You should be able to understand how and when to apply each of
these. I hope that this information will make you a more informed citizen, help you land a job
as a research assistant, allow you to read research articles, and understand what researchers do.
Objectives of the course:
1. An understanding of the scientific method
2. Familiarity with observational, qualitative, survey, and experimental procedures
3. An understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of each approach
4. Understanding principal statistical techniques and their application
5. The ability to understand published literature
Grading will be based on:
Exams (2 - 15% each)
30%
Group project (10%, 20%)
30%
Research reviews (15%, 15%) 30%
Participation:
10%
Communication:
I encourage you to talk with me about any issues related to class. If you cannot make it to office
hours, set an appointment with me outside of office hours. You can call, talk to me before or
after class, or e-mail me. I check my e-mail often, so this is an efficient way to communicate.
MANAGEMENT 3220: Marketing Research
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Exams
There will be two multiple choice exams. Questions will be drawn from book and lecture.
Anything that is covered both in the book and in lecture is fair game. Anything that is in both
is likely to be important, and, therefore, on the exam.
Group research project
Each student will participate in a group research project. This will involve some library
research, designing the study, collecting the data, analyzing the data, and presenting the results
in written form. Examples of project include examining the viability of a new product, sports
attendance, perceptions of film trailers, or other projects that have real-world applications.
Proposals
Each group will need to develop a written research proposal. All proposals should be based on
a review of the literature. Applied proposals also require some discussions with the company.
These help find out what needs to be studied. As we will discuss in class, developing a solid
understanding of what need to be studied is half the battle. These proposals should tell us
what it is we need to observe and how best to observe it. The proposals must be presented to
me in written form by February 27. I will make suggestions on the proposals that I believe will
make the research more practical and theoretically interesting.
Data collection
After the proposals are approved, groups will collect data. The quality of the sample will be
evaluated (a random sample of people in Lethbridge is generally stronger than a group of
people living on your floor at the U of L). A more limited sample can still be valid, however,
depending on the goal of the project. Use the reasoning and logic from class.
Data analysis
Each group will be expected to perform the data analysis strategy that is appropriate for their
data. Although most of these will be performed in Excel, more advanced techniques may
require the use of SPSS, software that is available on many Faculty of Management computers.
Reports
After the results are analyzed, groups will be expected to prepare a written report of their
research. This 20-page report must be prepared according to the standard procedures in the
field. The instructions for how to prepare the report are given in the text.
I hope that at least some of these projects will be submitted to regional academic conferences.
A conference paper is a wonderful thing to put on your resume. It'll give you a nice idea of
what graduate school is about, and, if you are interested, will be the kind of thing that they will
evaluate highly. A conference paper is also the kind of thing that can distinguish you from
other job candidates and show that you have a good understanding of the research.
Participation
Each group member will evaluate each other on the quality and quantity of their contribution.
The individual participation scores will make part of the project grade.
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Research reviews
To gain more familiarity with research reports, you will be given 2 research reports over the
course of the semester. You will need to read these reports and provide a short written
summary of the research. Papers will be graded on content (breadth, accuracy, innovativeness)
and form (spelling, grammar). These need only be one (single-spaced memo style) or two
(double-spaced academic style) pages in length.
The first assignment examines the methods section.
1. What research method was used?
2. What was the independent variable(s)?
3. What was the dependent variable(s)?
4. Why did the researchers choose the research method they did?
5. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the research method?
The second assignment will focus on examining the results section.
1. What was the independent variable(s)? What was the level of measurement for each?
2. What was the dependent variable(s)? What was the level of measurement for each?
3. What statistic or statistics did the researcher use?
4. Was it appropriate to the level of measurement (why or why not)?
5. Are there any other statistics that might have been appropriate or more appropriate?
Class Participation.
Your participation grade will be evaluated according to "four Ps."
1. Presence: The textbook provides information, but class is designed to supplement it.
2. Participation: Presence is important, but active learning is better. Make sure to do
the assigned reading before class and actively participate in class discussion.
3. Perceptiveness: Participation is good, but insightful participation is even better.
Perceptive and intelligent comments relate class to situations outside of class.
4. Professionalism: Work with others in a polite, professional manner and
demonstrate a positive attitude.
Another operationalization of your participation mark is:
A: Ideas are substantive, insightful and provide a useful direction for the class. If this
person wasn’t here, the quality of the discussions would be diminished significantly.
B: Ideas are usually substantive, insightful, and provide a useful direction for the class.
If this person were not here, the quality of the discussion would be diminished.
C: Ideas offered are sometimes substantive, useful, and offer a good direction. If this
person were not here, the quality of the discussions would be slightly diminished.
D: This person contributes little to the class discussions. If this person were not here,
the quality of the discussions would not be significantly changed.
F: Contributions are generally irrelevant, distracting, repetitious, obvious, or confusing.
If this person were not here, time would be saved for more constructive discussion.
MANAGEMENT 3220: Marketing Research
Schedule [with reading assignments]
January 6 - Theories and ways of knowing [no reading]
8 - Approaches to marketing research [Chapter 1]
13 - Defining the research problem [Chapter 2]
15 - Research design [Chapter 3]
21 - Secondary research [Chapter 4]
23 - Research examples or case [Chapter 5]
28 - Qualitative Research [Chapter 6]
30 - Observational research [Chapter 7]
February 4 - Survey research [Chapter 7]
6 - Experiments [Chapter 8]
11 - Case
13 - Exam #1
25 - Measurement [Chapter 9]
27 - Questionnaire design [Chapter 11]
Group project proposals due
March 4 - Sampling [Chapter 12]
6 - Editing and Coding [Chapter 15]
Research review #1 due
11 - Univariate and descriptive statistics [Chapter 15]
13 - The logic of statistics [Chapter 16]
18 - Tests of association - Chi-square [Chapter 16]
20 - Comparisons of means - t-tests and ANOVA [Chapter 17]
25 - Correlation and regression [Chapter 18]
27 - Multivariate analysis [Chapter 18]
April 1 - Case
3 - Statistics Review
Research review #2 due
8 - Presenting the results [Chapter 19]
10 - Exam #2
14 - Group project report due
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