7S MSIN0014 Refining Your Research Question ? Behavioural Science Your research question! The necessity of a focused approach Big ideas are great! BUT, you can’t test them all at once A simple research proposal you can actually test > a complex research proposal that you can’t test Think of the simplest, most basic, “baby step” way of approaching your research question A lot of decisions need to be made and a lot of details need to be crystal clear Section 1 – Introduction What are you trying to accomplish? Why does it matter to managers? Why does it matter to scholars? Focus on the most important and compelling arguments. 1a. Research question Pick an outcome (just one!) Most students find it easiest to look at a quantifiable outcome (i.e., conduct quantitative research). Examples: number of emails sent in a day, responses to a questionnaire about job satisfaction, total number of sales, etc. Pick a predictor (just one!) Most students find it easiest to propose a simple two-condition experimental design Examples: sending employees an informational email (vs. not), giving employees a monetary reward (vs. not), asking managers to read an article about your research focus (vs. an article about something else) 1a. Research question Be as specific as possible! Revisit 2S slides for guidance on how to refine For example, “productivity” isn’t a great outcome variable because there are a million ways to conceptualize and measure productivity “How do bonuses impact productivity?” -> “Does giving a £10 gift card (vs. not) to baristas before a shift increase the average speed of coffee making during that shift?” “How does awareness of implicit bias impact discrimination in hiring?” -> “Does asking hiring managers in tech to read an academic article about implicit racial bias (vs. an academic article about road traffic) decrease discrimination on a fictitious hiring exercise afterwards?” 1b. Managerial relevance and impact Why does this matter? Hopefully, this will be obvious, but state it plainly and clearly If you are situating your research in a specific context (e.g., industry or profession; this helps with overall specificity), make that clear here If you feel you’re forced to study something less important than your original idea, that’s normal, remember this is just a first step! 1c. Literature review What are the “headlines” from the existing literature? Length may vary, but it will be a fraction of a standard lit review If you used a particular paper or several as inspiration, how is your approach different and how does that add value beyond what we know? Section 2 – Theoretical model What are the variables you’ll be testing? How are these variables related theoretically? 2a. Outcome Briefly describe your outcome variable Ensure it meets the SMART criteria (see 2S slides) Ensure it’s clear how you would measure this Offer more detail than in your research question, but you can save fine-grain specifics (e.g., individual survey questions) for 3b (Methods) 2b. Predictor Briefly describe your predictor and why (theoretically) it should impact your outcome variable If doing an experiment (most students), how would you manipulate this? Having a simple experimental design will allow you to rule out confounds, but you should note if there are any you can’t avoid Offer more detail than in your research question, but you can save finegrain specifics (e.g., verbatim examples of manipulations) for 3b (Methods) 2c. Mechanism (Mediator variable) What is a plausible mediator (i.e., what answers the question “Why should your predictor impact your outcome?”) Briefly explain your reasoning You may think of multiple mediators, but you’ll probably only have space to write about one 2d. Moderator variable What is a plausible moderator (i.e., what answers the question “When or for whom should your predictor impact your outcome?”) Briefly explain your reasoning You may think of multiple moderators , but you’ll probably only have space to write about one Section 3 – Research plan What exactly would your proposed study look like in practice? Again, the simpler the design, the more likely it is you can actually test it! 3a. Hypotheses Present both your null (there is no effect of your predictor on your outcome) & alternate (there is an effect of your predictor on your outcome) hypotheses (see 2L for examples) Most (basically all) proposals won’t have space to tackle more than this one set of hypotheses 3b. Methods What would your study look like in practice? Is your description clear enough that someone would be able to conduct your research without returning to you for clarification? Don’t worry about specifying sample size or the exact statistical tests you would need to run 3c. Feasibility and limitations How confident are you that you could run your study as proposed? What might go wrong? Conduct a “pre-mortem” What tradeoffs have you made (e.g., sacrificing realism for control and simplicity)? What questions should you research next? (e.g., your big ideas) Overarching advice The necessary length of each section will vary case by case Aim to write using as few words as you possibly can -> Be concise Be ruthless in your editing When in doubt, take the simpler route Peer feedback Pair up and take turns sharing your progress so far If you don’t understand exactly what your discussion partner is talking about, push them for more detail Looking ahead Next lecture – Ethics in Behavioural Science Read “A New Model for Ethical Leadership” & “The Ethics of Nudging” and watch “Is There a Reproducibility Crisis in Science?” Next seminar – Module Wrap-Up Individual Research Proposal due March 23rd at 1 pm This seminar’s attendance code: [INSERT HERE]