Part One
Section 1
INTRODUCTION TO
BUSINESS
RESEARCH METHOD
What is Research?
Re + search = research
 Various definitions by various authors
 A process of searching for answers (i.e.
process of discovery)

 What
do you want to know?
 How do know?
Cont…What is Research?
A structured, organized, and systematic
process
 Scientific (following certain rules,
norms, conventions and traditions)

1 Introduction to Research

1.1What is research?
 Research
is the process of finding
solutions to a problem after a
thorough study and analysis of
the situational factors.
1.2.What is business research?
Research provides the needed information
that guides managers to make informed
decisions to successfully deal with
problems.
 The information provided could be the
result of a careful analysis of data
gathered firsthand or of data that are
already available (in the company).

The hallmarks of scientific research
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Purposiveness
Rigor
Testability
Replicability
Precision and confidence
Objectivity
Generalizability
Parsimony
Hallmarks of Scientific Research
1.
Purposiveness

It has to start with a definite aim or
purpose.
 The focus is on increasing employee
commitment.
 Increase employee commitment will
translate into less turnover, less
absenteeism and increased performance
levels.
 Thus it has a purposive focus.
2. Rigor
A good theoretical base and sound methodological
design would add rigor to the purposive study.
 Rigor adds carefulness, and the degree of exactitude
in research.
Example:
A manager asks 10-12 employees how to increase the
level of commitment. If solely on the basis of their
responses the manager reaches several conclusions
on how employee commitment can be increases, the
whole approach to the investigation would be
unscientific. :

3. Testability
After random selection manager and researcher
develops certain hypothesis on how manager employee
commitment can be enhanced, then these can be tested
by applying certain statistical tests to the data collected
for the purpose.
The researcher might hypothesize that
those employees who perceive greater
opportunities
for
participation
in
decision making would have a higher
level of commitment.
4. Replicability
It means that it can be used again if
similar circumstances prevails.
Example:
The study concludes that participation in
decision making is one of the most important
factors that influences the commitment, we
will place more faith and credence in these
finding and apply in similar situations. To the
extent that this does happen, we will gain
confidence in the scientific nature of our
research.
5. Precision
and Confidence
Precision


Precision refers to the closeness of the findings to “reality”
based on a sample.
It reflects the degree of accuracy and exactitude of the
results of the sample.
Example: If a supervisor estimated the number of
production days lost during the year due to
absenteeism at between 30 and 40, as against the
actual of 35, the precision of my estimation more
favorably than if he has indicated that the loss of
production days was somewhere between 20 and 50.
Confidence
 Confidence
refers to the probability that
our estimations are correct.
 That is, it is not merely enough to be
precise, but it is also important that we
can confidently claim that 95% of the
time our results would be true and
there is only a 5% chance of our being
wrong.
 This is also known as confidence level.
6. Objectivity
The conclusions drawn through the interpretation
of the results of data analysis should be objective;
that is, they should be based on the facts of the
findings derived from actual data, and not on our
subjective or emotional values.
Example: If we had a hypothesis that stated that greater
participation in decision making will increase
organizational commitment and this was not supported
by the results, it makes no sense if the researcher
continues to argue that increased opportunities for
employee participation would still help!
7. Generalizability
It refers to the scope of applicability of the research
findings in one organization setting to other settings.
Example: If a researcher’s findings that participation in
decision making enhances organizational
commitment are found to be true in a variety of
manufacturing, industrial and service organizations,
and not merely in the particular organization studied
by the researcher, then the generalizability of the
findings to other organizational settings in
enhanced. The more generalizable the research, the
greater its usefulness and value.
8. Parsimony
Simplicity in explaining the phenomenon or problems that
occur, and in generating solutions for the problems, is always
preferred to complex research frameworks that consider an
unmanageable number of factors.
For instance, if 2-3 specific variables in the work situation are
identified, which when changed would raise the organizational
commitment of the employees by 45%, that would be more
useful be more useful and valuable to the manager than if it
were recommended that he should change 10 different variables
to increase organizational commitment by 48%.
The Building Blocks of Science in
Research
Deduction and Inductions
Answers to issues can be
found either by the process of
induction or the process of
induction, or by a combination
of the two.
Deduction

Deduction is the process by which we
arrive at a reasoned conclusion by logical
generalization of a known fact.
Example: we know that all high performers are
highly proficient in their jobs.
If John is a high performer, we then conclude that
he is highly proficient in his job
Induction

Induction is a process where we observe
certain phenomena and on this basis
arrive at conclusions.
In other words, in induction we
logically establish a general
proposition based on observed facts.
AIMS OF RESEARCH
The general aims of research are:
 Observe and Describe
 Predict
 Determination of the Causes
 Explain
Read more: http://www.experiment-resources.com/researchprocess.html#ixzz1XywCslzd
The Hypothetico-Deductive
Method
Observation
Observation
is the first stage, in which
one senses that certain changes are
occurring or that some new behaviors,
attitudes and feelings are surfacing in
one’s environment (i.e., the work place).
How does one observe phenomena and
changes in the environment?
Preliminary Information
Gathering:
 It
involves the seeking of information in depth,
of what is observed.
 This could be done by talking informally to
several people in the work setting or to clients
or to other relevant sources, thereby
gathering information on what is happening
and why. (Unstructured interviews)
 Then it is followed by structured interviews.
 Additionally by doing library research or
obtaining information through other sources,
the investigator would identify how such
issues have been tackled in other situations.
Theory Formulation
 It
is an attempt to integrate all the information
in a logical manners, so that the factors
responsible for the problem can be on
conceptualized and tested.
 The theoretical framework formulated is often
guided by experience and intuition.
 In this step the critical variables are identified
and examined as to their contribution or
influence in explaining why the problem
occurs and how it can be solved.
Hypothesizing
 It
is the next logical step after theory
formulation.
 From the theorized network of associations
among the variables, certain testable
hypotheses or educated conjectures can be
generated.
 Hypothesis
testing is called deductive
research. Sometimes, hypotheses that were
not originally formulated do get generated
Further Specific Data
Collection
After
the development of the
hypotheses, data with respect to
each variable in the hypotheses
need to be obtained.
Further data are collected to test
the hypotheses that are
generated in the study.
Data Analysis
Data
gathered are statistically analyzed
to see if the hypotheses that were
generated have been supported.
Co relational method will be used to
analyze and determine the relation ship
of two or more factors in the hypotheses
for example: stock availability and
customer satisfaction.
Deduction
Deduction
is the process of
arriving at conclusions by
interpreting the meaning of
results of the data analysis.
Quali and Quanti
Literature Review
The basic criteria to evaluating information are as follows:
(1) Authority – Who is the author? What are their
credentials?
(2) Accuracy – Are the facts verifiable? Is the
information correct?
(3) Objectivity – What is the purpose? Is there a bias?
(4) Currency – Is the information up-to-date?
(5) Coverage – What is the scope of the information?
What does it focus on?
The Role of Hypotheses
Guide the direction of the study
Identify relevant facts
Suggest most appropriate research
design
Provide framework for organizing
resulting conclusions
Types of Research

Quantitative research
 Testing
a theory
 From theory to data (deductive approach)

Qualitative research
 Developing
a theory
 From data to theory (inductive approach)
QUANTITATIVE vs. QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH
Quantitative
Qualitative
o Numbers
o Words
o Point of view of researcher
o Points of view of participants
o Researcher distant
o Researcher close
o Theory testing
o Theory emergent
o Static
o Process
o Structured
o Unstructured
o Generalization
o Contextual understanding
o Hard, reliable data
o Rich, deep data
o Macro
o Micro
o Behavior
o Meaning
o Artificial setting
o Natural setting
Source: Bryman, A. (2001)
RESEARCH INTEREST IDENTIFICATION






Industry: Banking, Manufacturing, SMEs, Foods,
Retailing.
Market: Competitive, volatile, mature, saturated,
emerging, stagnant
Functions: strategy, Entrepreneurship, marketing,
Production, Management
Macro-economic factors
Country specific: Developing/ Developed countries,
Asian,
Time Frame: Cambodia Strategic Plan (2006-2010)
Lets Practice….
Chapter 1 : Introduction
Research Topic
 Research Title
 Background of the Study
 Problem Statement
 Research Questions
 Research Objectives
 Significance of the Study

Background of the Study
Starting Point of the Study
 General View of Variable
 Stepping Stone to Introduce the Flow of
the Study

What are some of the services found on the
Internet?
instant messaging
e-mail
Web
message board
chat
file transfer
MARKET COMPETITION
AND THE INTERNET
Internet can promote competition and efficiency
in several respects

Transacting on-line provides buyers and sellers
much better information about available prices
for competing goods.
For example, internet prices for books and CDs
tend to be 9 percent to 16 percent lower than
traditional retail prices.
The World Wide Web
What is a wireless portal?



A portal specifically designed for Webenabled handheld computers and
devices
Attempts to provide all information a
wireless user might require
Services include search engines, news,
stock quotes, weather, maps, e-mail,
calendar, instant messaging, and
shopping
Mobile Issues………
http://digilib.itb.ac.id/
Education issues…………..
http://gdl.itb.ac.id/
Background on OSS
OSS Objectives
Guiding Principles
• Reduce total cost of
ownership
• Increase freedom of choice
of software usage
• Increase interoperability
among systems
• Increase growth of ICT
industry
• Increase growth of OSS
user and developer
community
• Reduce digital divide
• Fit for purpose
• Least disruptive to
operations
• Co-existence with other
legacy proprietary systems
• Leverage on existing
facilities, hardware,
software and expertise
• Not driven or controlled by
hardware or software
vendors
Copyright VS OpenSource Issues……..
Comparative Study of
CHIP MANUFACTURING
COMPANY
Review of Previous Study
Previous Study (Author, Year)
 Findings and Conclusions of Previous
Study

Problem Statement

There must always exist some clear rationale for the
hypothesis. Such rationale is typically presented in a
form of “problem statement” which explains what issue
or controversy needs to be resolved within the field of
study.

The “ problem statements’ are included as a subsection
of chapter 1 because they announce the puzzle to be
solved so that the writer’s statement of hypothesis can
go onto make a prediction about the puzzle probable
resolution.
Steps in Selecting a Topic and
Defining a Problem
Identify a topic of interest
Set general
research questions
Specify the
research objectives
Read about the topic
Find out the
research gap
Selecting a Topic / Focus



Topic = Focus
Focus – central concept being examined in a
scholarly study
Topic in IT management, e.g.
 Human
resource management practices in IT
 Equality at IT work
 E-Government
 E-Retail issues
Sources of Topic / Focus
Personal experiences
 Curiosity (based on something in the
media)
 Hot topics
 Personal values
 Everyday life

Sources of Focus
Past studies
 Involves conducting a literature review
 Assumption: Knowledge accumulates (we
learn and build on what others have
done)

 Reading
relevant materials about the topic
THE RESEARCH PROCESS
INTERNET MARKETING
INVOLVEMENT AND
CONSUMER BEHAVIOR
Example of Research Title
The Application of TAM and
Individual Differences to Substantiate
the Usage of Internet Banking
in Malaysia
Research Title Sample…….
The Problem
“The formulation of the problem is
often more essential
than its solution”
Albert Einstein
Problem Definition
The indication of a specific area that will
be clarified by answering some research
questions
 What is the existing gap?

PROBLEM STATEMENT

The rates of usage on the internet banking system in
Malaysia are rather low compared to the western
countries.

Phenomena should be rectified and corrected for the
benefit of the banking industry in Malaysia.
Problem Statement Sample…….
Problem Statement (Example)

Anxiety, frustration, pressure and stress cause
many doctoral degree seeking learners to
abandon doctoral programs. Brown and
Rudenstine (2016) found that over 40% of those
who begin the process never graduate. Long,
Convey, and Chwalek (2015) pointed out that
selecting and developing a dissertation topic is
one of the of important yet difficult steps in
completing a doctoral degree
Problem Statement (Example)
There is a problem in ___________(societal
organization). Despite _________________ (something
that should be happening) ___________ is occurring.
This problem has negatively impacted
____________(victims of problem) because
_________________. A possible cause of this problem
is ___________ Perhaps a study which investigates
___________ by ________(method) could remedy the
situation.
"I hear and I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand"
John Dewey on Experiential Learning.

By now, it is well known to those who study the Internet, and to most
everyone else, that the volume of on-line business to consumer (B2C)
transactions is increasing annually at a very high rate (Meyer, 2004).

However, it is also known that there is considerable resistance among
many Internet users to engage to B2C transactions over the web,
primarily due to concerns about privacy and the trustworthiness of the
Internet (Garson, 2005).

There could be even more B2C activity on the internet if consumer
concerns about privacy and trust could be dealt with successfully
(Amstrong, 2006).

The relationship between beliefs about privacy and trustworthiness and
Internet purchasing is the subject of this paper.

Specifically, how do individual beliefs about privacy and
trustworthiness of the Internet, and attitudes towards purchasing on the
Internet, affect individual intentions to make Internet purchases and
actual purchasing behavior?
Problem Statement Sample…….
Focus to the Problem
1
2
3
4
5
IMPLEMENTATION
PROCUREMENT
6
KNOWLEDGE
SHARING
OWNERSHIP
7
EDUCATION
8
TRAINING
ADOPTION
TECHNOLOGY
Cont…












Management is a culture not a discipline
Leadership essential to good management
Successful manager draws up many theories
Holistic management culture requires strong and dispersed leader
Financing must be part of solution ,not a part of the problem
Financing must be alligned with public interest
Financing must safeguard public interest
Global competition has led the organization to demand higher performance
and business outcomes as they become increasingly cross-functional and
cross cultural
Organizations with the capacity to adapt in the dynamic environment will
successfully maintain their competitive edge.
Communication, technology , transportation and international trade
agreements have made it almost impossible for business to focus primarily
on domestic business environments
Every local product has to fight (branding /positioning?)with international
giants.
Multinational corporation has to give local touch and feel to its product in
response to growing customer awareness and segmentation
Research Questions
Is there….?
 Somehow…?
 To what extend…?
 What is….?
 How….?

Cont…
A fundamental research problem that this study
seeks to investigate is, whether? Therefore, this
study intends to answer the following questions:
1. Is there a relationship between attitude and
internet purchasing?
2. Is there a relationship between subjective norm
and internet purchasing?
3. Somehow an influence of perceived behavioral
control to internet purchasing?

Research Objectives

















To examine the differences
To Indicate the relationship
To determine the influence of
To test the negative impact
To identify the factors that…..
To prove that there are no differences
To provide the evidence
To evaluate the effects of…..
To measure whether there…..
To Compare between 2 variables
To regress the DV and IV
To confirm the importance of
To explain what are the causes of failure
To falsify
To construct
To establish the causes/ the effects,
To predict, to correlate
Research Objectives
Using the theory of planned behavior as its basis,
This study is to identify the relationships among beliefs
about the Internet privacy and trustworthiness,
along with beliefs about perceived behavioral
control and the expectations of important others,
and online purchasing behavior.
OBJECTIVE OF STUDY



Apply the TAM in the context of Internet banking In
Malaysia.
Internet self efficacy as a construct
The understanding of an individual's acceptance
behavior
Research Objectives Sample…….
Significance of the Study
Significance to the Body of
Knowledge/Theoretical Contribution

Significance to the
Practical/Implementation Level

Significant Determinants for
Successful IT/e-Commerce Adoption
Market
Industry
Organization
Stakeholders
User’s Capabilities
Significant Determinants for
Successful IT/e-Commerce Adoption
Market
Competitor’s Activities
Technology Standardization
Government Regulation
Rapid Change of Customer’s Needs
Market Transparency
Significant Determinants for
Successful IT/e-Commerce Adoption
Industry
Scarcity of IT Assets
Network Externalities
Virtual Relationship w/Partners
Business Process Standardization
Significant Determinants for
Successful IT/e-Commerce Adoption
Organization/Firm
Adaptive Business Processes
Strategic Alignment
Flexibility
Innovative Culture/Mood
Resources
Significant Determinants for
Successful IT/e-Commerce Adoption
Stakeholders
Profitable Performances
Financial Value & Competence-focused
Management
Principal Criteria for Stakeholder’s Satisfaction
Significant Determinants for
Successful IT/e-Commerce Adoption
User’s Capabilities
System Interfaces
User’s IT Knowledgement
Acceptance Attitudes
Education and Training
User Experience of IT
Full Research Structure
Chapter 1 : Introduction
 Chapter 2 : Literature Review
 Chapter 3 : Methodology
 Chapter 4 : Findings & Discussions
 Chapter 5 : Conclusions &Recommendations

RESEARCH TIME-LINE
RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT PROGRESS
TASKS
NOVEMBER
DECEMBER
JANUARY
FEBRUARY
MARCH
15 November - 31 December
FINDING TOPIC OF INTEREST
15 November - 31 December
RESEARCH PROPOSAL
QUESTIONNAIRE
DEVELOPMENT
QUESTIONNAIRE DISTRIBUTION
AND DATA COLLECTION
DATA ANALYSIS
REPORT WRITING
1 January - 13 February
15 January - 10 February
1 January - 13 February
15 January - 1011
February
- 28 February
11 - 28 February 1 - 5 March
- 12 March
1 - 5 6March
6 - 12 March
RESEARCH BUDGET
Equipment
Software Installation (SPSS)
USD 10
Material and Supplies
Paper Size A4 (Double A: 80grms) x 2 units
USD 20
Paper Size A4 (Ikip: 70grms) x 2
USD 15
Ink Cartridge (Black)
USD 100
Ink Cartridge (Colour)
USD 120
Communication (mobile phone bill)
USD 150
Stationeries USD 15
Travel
Local Transportation including oil consumption)
USD 100
Services
Photostat (journal and articles)
Photostat (Questionnaire form)
Others
Miscellaneous/Indirect Costs
Grand Total
USD 30
USD 30
USD 110
USD 100
RM 800
Steps in the Research Process
Choose
Topic
Interpret
Data
Focus Research
Question
Analyze
Data
Design
Study
Collect
Data
Inform
Others
Neuman, 1994: 11
The Research Process
Observation
Problem
definition
Theoretical
framework
Generation of
hypotheses
Scientific
research
design
Preliminary
data
gathering
Data
collection,
analysis,
interpretation
Research
objectives/
questions
met?
Sekaran, 2003: 56
Research Format

Main contents:
 Disclaimer,
 Abstract
foreword, etc.
 List of Tables and Figures
 Introduction (Chapter 1)
 Literature Review (Chapter
 Method (Chapter 3)
 Results (Chapter 4)
 Discussion and Conclusion
 References
 Appendices
2)
(Chapter 5)
Research Proposal
Chapter 1 – Introduction
 Chapter 2 – Literature Review
 Chapter 3 – Method

Completed Research

Additional two chapters (at least):
4 – Results
 Chapter 5 – Discussion and conclusion
 Chapter
Chapter 1 - Introduction

Introduction
 Background
of the study
 Statement of the Problem
 Research Questions
 Research Objectives
 Significance of the Study
(7 – 10 pages)
Exercise 1
Identify your research interest and
research field
 Identify your research topic/focus.
 Explain why you choose that particular
topic/focus?
 Why do you think it is important to conduct
a research on that topic?


Prepare Chapter 1