Business Research Methods
CHAPTER 1
Practical Business Research: An Overview
Student Quiz Recommended Responses
Look at these only after you have completed the whole quiz.
Question 1
Put a Y (for ‘Yes’) against each of the following statements that you believe to be true:
a) In practical business research the sole objective is to address an issue of importance
to practising managers
b) Practical business research is about collecting and interpreting information to inform
decisions
c) If it isn’t systematic, it isn’t research
d) The only difference between academic and practical research is whether the research
is carried out in a real organisation.
Responses to:
a) No. This may be true in some cases, but the researcher may also be seeking to
develop ideas that will be useful beyond the immediate context.
b) Yes, it is about this, although sometimes more than this, and sometimes may be
directed towards developing understanding as much as specific decisions.
c) Yes – although the ‘systems’ may differ widely.
d) No. Some academic research is carried out in real orgaisations. The more
significant distinction is whether the primary objective is theoretical or practical.
Question 2
Put a Y (for ‘Yes’) against each of the following statements that you agree with:
a) A research method is simply an approach for collecting data
b) To be an effective researcher all you need to learn is how to use a range of research
methods
c) Once you have mastered the appropriate skills to use these methods, you will be
equally effective as a practical or an academic researcher
d) The main point of the stories in the book is to make it more interesting to read.
Responses to:
a) Yes.
b) No: this is necessary but not sufficient. You also need a range of thinking skills
associated with problem definition, research planning and argument.
c) No – because b) is untrue, you may not be effective at all, and because some of the
diagnostic and client relationship skills may be different, you may not even be equally
ineffective.
d) No. This may be a useful function, but their main purpose is to sensitise you to issues
in real contexts.
Question 3
Put a Y (for ‘Yes’) against each of the following statements that you agree with:
a) A theory is any concept, construct or framework which helps you think about a
business situation
b) A simple concept may be as useful as a more complex framework
c) All theory is used to make predictions
d) A theory is no use unless it is written down
Responses to:
a) No – a theory is more narrowly defined. This is the more general definition for
‘theory’.
b) Yes.
c) Arguably, no. This refers to the definition of ‘a theory’. rather than ‘theory’. But
much theory, tacit as well as explicit, does serve to generate predictions, although in
either case some of the predictions may also be tacit.
d) No: tacit theory may have its dangers, but it is normally immensely useful.
Question 4
Put a Y (for ‘Yes’) against each of the following statements that you agree with:
a) Theory is useful to prove a point
b) Tacit theory helps us to be decisive
c) It is impossible to do research unless you have a theory to start with
d) The main point of theory is to suggest good practice
Responses to:
a) No – theory is not fact, merely supposition, and proves nothing.
b) Yes.
c) No. While theory can be a great starting point for research, you will see later that
some research methods are designed to start from observations rather than theory.
d) No – it can do this (although it is worth being cautious about any such suggestions),
but it has many other equally – or more – important purposes.
Question 5
Put a Y (for ‘Yes’) against each of the following statements that you agree with:
a) You should always check the relevance of a theory to the context in which you wish
to apply it
b) It is important to be critical of new theories but once a theory is widely accepted it
can be applied without question
c) Any theory represents a huge amount of experience, research and learning
d) Only academics should question theory
Responses to:
a) Yes.
b) No – it is always worth taking a critical approach to theory, partly because of a) and
the untruth of c).
c) No. While this is often true, sadly some people theorise on the basis of extremely
limited evidence and experience. You need to question a theory’s evidence base and
logic, as well as its relevance.
d) No – anyone who uses theory should adopt a critical approach.
Question 6
Put a Y (for ‘Yes’) against each of the following statements that you agree with:
a) Students or consultants need to be respectful of the knowledge of their clients
b) The purpose of evidence is to support claims; unless you are making a claim, you do
not need evidence to support decisions
c) Practical business researchers need to focus on evidence: theory is secondary
d) It is only important decisions that need to be underpinned by evidence
Responses to:
a) No. Although it is important to treat clients and other organisational stakeholders
with respect, even senior and highly experience managers may claim as ‘knowledge’
something that is only assumption and not actually the case. It is important to
challenge the evidence base for such ‘knowledge’.
b) No – at least on one level. The first part is true, but it is hard to think of a decision
not based on some sort of an argument, and ‘claim’ refers to the end point of an
argument. Thus a decision to spend money is based on a ‘claim’ that it would be in the
organisation’s interest to commit to this particular expenditure. You could argue that
this means that the answer is Yes, so you are correct if this was how you were thinking.
c) No – or again, only partly true. The first statement is true, but whereas theorybuilding may be a secondary objective (if an objective at all), making good use of
theory to inform evidence collection is of primary importance.
d) No – if you believe in rational decision-making. But the cost of evidence collection
needs to be less than the cost of a wrong decision.
Question 7
Put a Y (for ‘Yes’) against each of the following statements that you agree with:
a) The purpose of research is to generate reliable evidence and draw trustworthy
conclusions
b) Credibility with clients and other stakeholders is important
c) You should use as much ‘management-speak’ in your dealings with clients as
possible, to enhance your credibility
d) A key stage in the research process is formulating research questions
e) There is a neat underlying logic to the research process
Responses to:
a) Yes.
b) Yes – both your personal credibility and the credibility of your conclusions.
c) No: jargon can impede communication, and jargon used wrongly can harm your
credibility.
d) Yes.
e) Yes – although it is usually underlying rather than apparent in practical research.
Question 8
Put a Y (for ‘Yes’) against each of the following statements that you agree with:
a) Because business research is so complex, it is important to work out a clear plan for
your investigative activities in advance, and stick to it!
b) If you want to be able to write an orderly dissertation or research paper, you need to
do your research in a similarly orderly fashion
c) A messy research process is a sign of messy thinking
d) It is OK to ‘bend’ the truth in order to write up a messy research process into
something more coherent
Responses to:
a) No. This very complexity means that it is impossible to understand the situation fully
without some initial research, and although a plan is important, you will need to be
flexible in how you implement it if initial research generates iinsights.
b) No: although you need to work thoughtfully and systematically, ‘writing research’
and ‘doing research’ are not equivalent.
c) No – it is inevitable, and a sign of flexible thinking.
d) Yes – provided such ‘bending’ is in the interests of coherence and does not involve
untruths or misleading the reader.