Study guide
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY IN
INDUSTRIAL ECONOMICS
IY2596, 7,5 credits
Introduction
The research methodology in industrial economics provides students with knowledge of theories
of science and research methodology for both qualitative and quantitative studies in industrial
economics. This includes formulating research problems, process selection and design of the
research approach and design, and critically evaluating different research designs. The student will,
after this course, have acquired the knowledge of how to conduct and report a scientific study.
The course covers formulating research problems and questions firmly based on previous research.
The course also covers the application of and motivation of research strategies and scientific
induction/deduction and syntheses enclosing both quantitative and qualitative methods.
Nowadays, in the era of technological advancement and automation, students need to become
familiar with computer-aided programs for doing their research, thus, in this course, the application
of software for both qualitative and qualitative is discussed, and students will learn how to use
them in practice. NVivo, a qualitative data analysis software developed by QSR, and STATA, a
general-purpose statistical software package designed by StataCorp, are respectively selected for
qualitative and quantitative data analysis.
Learning Activities
We will use and combine several learning activities, mainly:
Lectures on specific topics
There are lectures dealing with more specific topics. These lectures will either be online –
according to the schedule – or recorded in advance and uploaded on Canvas. We might also
use lectures from other scholars and universities, which are available on the internet.
Written Assignments
Students need to complete three compulsory assignments during the course, which help
them to understand the qualitative and quantitative research methodology. Two of them
should be done as group assignments, and the last one (take-home exam) should be
individual.
Labs, Workshops, and Tutorials
In connection with some of the assignments, there will be labs, workshops, and tutorials
where you can discuss and understand related issues. In the topic lab, we work in groups to
define and finetune our topics. In the Nvivo workshop, we apply the software in practice to
analyze qualitative data systematically. For STATA, the tutorials are provided for students
who want to use the software for their quantitative data analysis.
Own reading
The students’ own work and readings are, of course, very important for the successful
completion of the course. Each student is responsible for following the reading instructions,
taking part in information and material on Canvas, and being well-prepared for assignments
and discussions.
Question forums
There will be question forums where students can ask questions about the course content.
Other students are encouraged to participate in the forums and to give their views on the
questions asked. The purpose of the question forums is to support the student in her/his
own work and reading.
Learning Outcomes
At the end of this course, the student shall be able to fulfill the following learning outcomes:
Knowledge and understanding
On completion of the course, the students will be able to:
ª Understand the common concepts and definitions, and explain what research is
and how they should approach it
ª Have a general knowledge of research design in the naturalism, positivism, and
pragmatist paradigms and their underlying philosophical meanings applicable in
industrial economics and management.
ª Have theoretical and practical knowledge about how to plan, conduct, analyze
and present qualitative and quantitative research in industrial economics and
management.
ª Have knowledge about research methods and ethics
ª present and argue their results and findings in a scientific way
Competence and skills
On completion of the course, the student will be able to:
ª Discuss the common concepts and definitions and explain how to plan and start
scientific research
ª Analyze and discuss the relationship between philosophy, theory of science, and
various scientific Paradigms.
ª Analyze and discuss the foundations of research design in the naturalistic and
positivistic research paradigms, as well as their pros and cons
ª Critically assess different research designs and methods and analyze strengths and
weaknesses, as well as problematize their applicability
ª Identify and define problems related to the collection of data and prepare tests of
hypotheses
ª Analyze collected data with adequate statistical methods
ª Conduct statistical data analysis and test of hypotheses with statistical software
ª Present research methodology in a scientific adequate way
ª Understand the basis of analysis of qualitative data
ª Understand how to write scientific reports based on the content of the course
ª Understand how to use statistical software relevant to the course
Judgment and approach
On completion of the course, the student will be able to:
ª Critically assess and analyze research design in the various research paradigms and
assess
ª Identify and formulate different problems related to industrial economics and
management and define an appropriate approach to deal with them
ª describe and explain limitations and assumptions in hypothesis tests
ª describe and explain the limitations of qualitative research analysis
Instructors
Mojtaba Hosseini
Course manager, teacher, and examiner.
Responsible for the introduction (Module 1), research
process (Module 2), qualitative methods (Module 3),
Scientific Writing (Module 6), Topic Lab, and Nvivo
Workshop.
mojtaba.hosseini@bth.se
Anupama Unnikrishnan
Teacher and examiner.
Responsible for quantitative methods and statistics
(Modules 4 and 5).
anupama.unnikrishnan@bth.se
Examinations
The examination consists of three compulsory assignments:
Written report 1, 1,5 credits
A written report which describes the design and implementation of a minor qualitative study.
The assignment is performed in groups of 3-5 students. We will be involved in the formation
of groups. Grades: Pass/Fail
Written report 2, 1,5 credits
A written report which summarizes the results of a quantitative and statistical assignment.
The assignment is performed in groups of 3-5 students. We will be involved in the formation
of groups. Grades: Pass/Fail
Take-home examination, 4,5 credits
An individual assignment in which the presentation and argumentation of chosen research
methods in two scientific articles are analyzed and reflected upon, with the support of central
method concepts and perspectives. Grades: A-F.
Instructions for the assignments will be posted on Canvas well in advance.
Course literature and other materials of instruction
Ghuari, Peter, Gronhaug, Kjell (latest edition). Research methods in business studies. Prentice Hall
A selection of articles was provided by the course instructor.