INTRODUCTION TO BUSINESS RESEARCH Lecture Outline • Definition of Research • Nature of Research • Purpose of Research • Types of Research THE NATURE AND TYPES OF RESEARCH What is research? • It is a systematic investigation into and study of materials, sources, phenomenon, etc., in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions. • An endeavour to discover new or collate old facts etc. by the scientific study of a subject or by a course of critical investigation. [Oxford Concise Dictionary] • The systematic, rigorous investigation of a situation or problem in order to generate new knowledge or validate existing knowledge. What is business research? • Business research is defined as the systematic and objective process of generating information for aid in making business decisions. • The application of scientific method in searching for the truth about business phenomena. • These activities include defining business opportunities and problems, generating and evaluating ideas, monitoring performance, and understanding the business process (Zikmund, 2010, p5). The Scientific Method and Research • Science… • a body of established knowledge • the observation, identification, investigation, and theoretical explanation of natural phenomenon The Scientific Method and Research • Scientific Method… • involves the principles and processes regarded as characteristic of or necessary for scientific investigation • process or approach to generating valid and trustworthy knowledge The Scientific Method and Research • Research… • the application of the scientific method • a systematic process of collecting and logically analyzing information (data) • Research Methods (Methodology)… • the ways one collects and analyzes data • methods developed for acquiring trustworthy knowledge via reliable and valid procedures UNIVERSITY OF CAPE COAST CAPE COAST - GHANA Importance of Business and Management Research Expands your knowledge base – increase your knowledge New information and discoveries Building your ideas, opinion and credibility Helps you identify the most unique and/or important themes (narrow your scope) Helps you sift through low-quality and high-quality information Helps with personal/professional problem-solving Raise awareness (with facts) of issues like climate change, racial discrimination, gender inequality etc. Encourages curiosity PURPOSES AND TYPES OF RESEARCH Purposes of research 1) Exploratory Research 2) Descriptive Research 3) Explanatory Research Exploratory • Exploratory research is undertaken to explore an area where little is known or to investigate the possibilities of undertaking a particular research study. • It seeks to merely explore the research questions and does not intend to offer final and conclusive solutions to existing problems. • It is conducted in order to determine the nature of the problem and not intended to provide conclusive evidence, but helps us to have a better understanding of the problem. • This type of research is usually conducted to study a problem that has not been clearly defined yet. • Exploratory research is a research conducted for a problem that has not been studied more clearly, intended to establish priorities, develop operational definitions and improve thefinal research design. • Exploratory research helps determine the best research design, datacollection method and selection of subjects. • Examples of Exploratory Research. Exploratory research tries to understand a subject of study in a preliminary way. Research designs for exploratory work usually depend on direct observation of a small selection of what is to be studied, for example, drinking behavior. • Purpose of Exploratory Research. • Exploratory studies are also referred to as formulative research studies. • The primary objective or purpose of exploratory research design is that of formulating a problem for more precise investigation or of developing the working hypothesis from an operational perspective. • Some of the more popular methods of exploratory research design include literature searches, depth interviews, focus groups, and case analyses. Descriptive • Descriptive research attempts to describe systematically a situation, problem, phenomenon, service or programme, or provides information about say, the living condition of a community or describes attitudes towards an issue. • Descriptive research is used to describe characteristics of a population or phenomenon being studied. • It answers questions about what, when, where and who and not why the characteristics occurred. • Descriptive research refers to research that provides an accurate portrayal of characteristics of a particular individual, situation, or group. It helps to; • discover new meaning, • describe what exists, • determine the frequency with which something occurs, and categorizing information. • It is informational in character Explanatory • Explanatory research is defined as an attempt to connect ideas to understand cause and effect, meaning researchers want to explain what is going on. • Explanatory research attempts to clarify why and how there is a relationship between two or more aspects of a situation or phenomenon. • We begin exploring something new with exploratory research. Then, we conduct descriptive research to increase our knowledge of it. Lastly, we need to explain it. PURPOSES OF RESEARCH PURPOSE AIMS EXPLORATORY -To explore a new topic/issue in order to learn about it -To satisfy the researcher’s curiosity and desire for better understanding, -To test the feasibility of undertaking a more extensive study -Addresses the "what" question: "what is this phenomena really about?" DESCRIPTIVE -To describe situations and events -To present a picture of the specific details (or gather info) of a situation, social setting, or relationship -Focus on `who,' `what,' `when,' `where,' and `how' but not why? EXPLANATORY SOURCES -Experience surveys -Secondary data analysis -Case studies -Pilot studies -Focus groups or small group discussions -data-gathering techniques -surveys -field research -content analysis -To know "why," to explain things, looks for causes and reasons -Builds on exploratory and descriptive research and goes on to identify the reasons for something that occurs. -To extend a theory or principle to new areas, new All of the above issues, new topics -To provide evidence to support or refute an explanation or prediction. -To test a theory's predictions or principle EXAMPLES Study on what employpreneurship is all about Labor Force Surveys, Population Census, (including race/ethnicity, age, sex, household size, income, etc.) and Educational surveys For example, reporting the turnover rates of different industries is descriptive. Identifying the variables that explain why some industries have higher turnover rates than others involves explanation. TYPES OF RESEARCH On a broader perspective, all researches can be classified into two: • Qualitative Research • Quantitative Research QUALITATIVE RESEARCH • Qualitative research is research dealing with phenomena that are difficult or impossible to quantify mathematically, such as beliefs, meanings, attributes, and symbols • Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human behaviour and the reasons that govern such behaviour. The qualitative method investigates the why and how of decision making, not just what, where, when. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH Advantages • It enables more complex aspects of a persons experience to be studied • Fewer restriction or assumptions are placed on the data to be collected. • Not everything can be quantified, or quantified easily, Individuals can be studied in more depth • Good for exploratory research and hypothesis generation • The participants are able to provide data in their own words and in their own way. Disadvantages • It is more difficult to determine the validity and reliability of linguistic data • there is more subjectivity involved in analysing the data. • “Data overload” – open-ended questions can sometimes create lots of data, which can take along time to analyse! • Time consuming QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH • Quantitative research refers to the systematic empirical investigation of any phenomena via statistical, mathematical or computational techniques. The objective of quantitative research is to develop and employ mathematical models, theories and/or hypotheses pertaining to phenomena. Quantitative research generally use scientific methods, which can include: • • • • • • The generation of models, theories and hypotheses The development of instruments and methods for measurement Experimental control and manipulation of variables Collection of empirical data Modelling and analysis of data Evaluation of results QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH Advantages • Quantitative research allows the researcher to measure and analyse data. • The researcher is more objective about the findings of the research. • Quantitative research can be used to test hypotheses in experiments because of its ability to measure data using statistics. Disadvantages • The main disadvantage of quantitative research is the context of the study or experiment is ignored. • Quantitative research does not study things in a natural setting or discuss the meaning things have for different people. • A large sample of the population must be studied for more accurate results OTHER TYPES OF RESEARCH APPLIED RESEARCH Applied research refers to scientific study and research that seeks to solve practical problems. Applied research is used to find solutions to everyday problems, cure illness, and develop innovative technologies, rather than to acquire knowledge for knowledge's sake. For example, applied researchers may investigate ways to: • Improve the profitability of a company • Treat or cure occupational stress • Improve the energy efficiency of offices or modes of transportation. BASIC RESEARCH Basic (fundamental or pure ) research is driven by a scientist's curiosity or interest in a scientific question. The main motivation is to expand man's knowledge, not to create or invent something. There is no obvious commercial value to the discoveries that result from basic research. For example, basic science investigations probe for answers to questions such as: • How did the universe begin? • What are the drivers of employee turnover? CORRELATIONAL RESEARCH • Correlational research refers to the systematic investigation or statistical study of relationships among two or more variables. • It seeks to establish a relation/association/correlation between two or more variables. • For example, to test the hypothesis “ Listening to music lowers productivity” ETHNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH • Ethnographic research refers to the investigation of a culture through an indepth study of the members of that culture; it involves the systematic collection, description, and analysis of data for development of theories of cultural behaviour. • It studies people, ethnic groups and other ethnic formations, their ethno genesis, composition, resettlement, social welfare characteristics, as well as their material and spiritual culture. • Data collection is often done through participant observation, interviews, questionnaires, etc. • The purpose of ethnographic research is to understand what is happening naturally in the setting and to interpret the data gathered to see what implications could be drawn from the data. EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH • Experimental research is an objective, systematic, controlled investigation for the purpose of predicting and controlling phenomena and examining probability and causality among selected variables. • The simplest experimental design includes two variables and two groups of participants. • The two variables(Independent versus Dependent variables). • The IV is the predictor variable whereas the DV is the outcome variable. • Researchers manipulate and control the IV to study it's effect on the DV. • The two groups of participants (Control versus Experimental group). • Before beginning the experiment, the researcher (randomly) assigns his/her sample to two different groups: the control group and the experimental (treatment group or clinical group). • The control group receives no manipulation of the IV (no treatment), whereas the experimental group receives the manipulation of the IV QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH • A quasi-experiment is an empirical study used to estimate the causal impact of an intervention on its target population. • Quasi-experimental research shares similarities with the traditional experimental design or randomized controlled trial, but they specifically lack the element of random assignment to treatment or control. • Instead, quasi-experimental designs typically allow the researcher to control the assignment to the treatment condition, but using some criterion other than random assignment (e.g., an eligibility cutoff mark). GROUNDED THEORY RESEARCH • Grounded theory research is a systematic methodology in the social sciences involving the construction of theory through the analysis of data.; it involves formulation, testing, and reformulation of propositions until a theory is developed. • Grounded theory is a research method that operates almost in a reverse fashion from traditional research and at first may appear to be in contradiction to the scientific method. Four stages: 1. Codes-Identifying anchors that allow the key points of the data to be gathered 2. Concepts-Collections of codes of similar content that allows the data to be grouped 3. Categories-Broad groups of similar concepts that are used to generate a theory 4. Theory-A collection of explanations that explain the subject of the research (hypotheses) HISTORICAL RESEARCH • Historical research is the process of systematically examining past events to give an account of what has happened in the past. Application • Historical research can show patterns that occurred in the past and over time which can help us to see where we came from and what kinds of solutions we have used in the past. • Understanding this can add perspective to how we examine current events and business practices. PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH • Phenomenological research is an inductive, descriptive research approach developed from phenomenological philosophy; its aim is to describe an experience as it is actually lived by a person. • Phenomenology is concerned with the study of experience from the perspective of the individual. It is based on a paradigm of personal knowledge and subjectivity and emphasise the importance of personal perspective and interpretation. • As such they are powerful for understanding subjective experience, gaining insights into people’s motivations and actions, and cutting through the clutter of taken-for-granted assumptions and conventional wisdom. CASE STUDY RESEARCH • It is an empirical inquiry that investigates a contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context; when the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not clearly evident; and in which multiple sources of evidence are used (Yin, 1984, p. 23) • It is an in depth study of a particular situation rather than a sweeping statistical survey. It is a method used to narrow down a very broad field of research into one easily researchable topic. • Case studies aim to analyze specific issues within the boundaries of a specific environment, situation or organization. • Case studies are a popular research method in business area. Case studies aim to analyze specific issues within the boundaries of a specific environment, situation or organization. ... Example: “An investigation into the reasons of the global financial and economic crisis of 2008 – 2010.” THE END
