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Research Methodology and Statistical Analysis
Unit – I
Introduction to Research - Types of Research, Research Process-Conceptualization of
variables and Measurement – Types and measurement of variables – Reliability and
validity in measurement of variables- sources of error in measurement- Ethics in business
research.
1.1 Research
Research is a part of any systematic knowledge. It has occupied the realm of human understanding in some form or the other from times immemorial. The thirst for new areas of knowledge and the human urge for solutions to the problems, has developed a faculty for search and research and re-research in him/her. Research has now become an integral part of all the areas of human activity. Research in common parlance refers to a search for knowledge. It is an endeavor to discover answers to problems (of intellectual and practical nature) through the application of scientific methods. Research, thus, is essentially a systematic inquiry seeking facts (truths) through objective, verifiable methods in order to discover the relationship among them and to deduce from them broad conclusions. It is thus a method of critical thinking. It is imperative that any type of organization in the globalised environment needs systematic supply of information coupled with tools of analysis for making sound decisions which involve minimum risk. In this Unit, we will discuss at length the need and significance of research, types and methods of research, and the research process. The Random House Dictionary of the English language defines the term ‘Research’ as a diligent and systematic inquiry or investigation into a subject in order to discover or revise facts, theories, and applications, etc. This definition explains that research involves acquisition of knowledge. Research means search for truth. Truth means the quality of being in agreement with reality or facts. It also means an established or verified fact. To do research is to get nearer to truth, to understand the reality. Research is the pursuit of truth with the help of study, observation, comparison and experimentation. In other words, the search for knowledge through objective and systematic method of finding solution to a problem/answer to a question is research. There is no guarantee that the researcher will always come out with a solution or answer. Even then, to put it in Karl Pearson’s words “there is no short cut to truth… no way to gain knowledge of the universe except through the gate way of scientific method”.
Some definitions of Research:
L.V. Redman and A.V.H. Mory in their book on “The Romance of Research” defined research as “a systematized effort to gain new knowledge”. “Research is a scientific and systematic search for pertinent information on a specific topic” (C.R. Kothari, Research Methodology - Methods and Techniques) “A careful investigation or inquiry specially through search for new facts in any branch of knowledge” (Advanced learners Dictionary of current English) Research refers to a process of enunciating the problem, formulating a hypothesis, collecting the facts or data, analyzing the same, and reaching certain conclusions either in the form of solution to the problem enunciated or in certain generalizations for some theoretical formulation. D. Slesinger and M. Stephenson in the Encyclopedia of Social Sciences defined research as: “Manipulation of things, concepts or symbols for the purpose of generalizing and to extend, correct or verify knowledge, whether that knowledge aids in the construction of a theory or in the practice of an art”. Research is conducted with a purpose to:
- Identify potential and new customers
- Understand existing customers
- Set pragmatic goals
- Develop productive market strategies
- Address business challenges
- Put together a business expansion plan
- Identify new business opportunities To understand the term ‘research’ clearly and comprehensively let us analyze the above definition. i) Research is manipulation of things, concepts or symbols
- Manipulation means purposeful handling,
- Things means objects like balls, rats, vaccine,
- Concepts mean the terms designating the things and their perceptions about which science tries to make sense. Examples: velocity, acceleration, wealth, income.
- Symbols may be signs indicating +, – , ÷, ×, x , σ, σ, etc.
- Manipulation of a ball or vaccine means when the ball is kept on different degrees of incline how and at what speed does it move? When the vaccine is used, not used, used with different gaps, used in different quantities (doses) what are the effects?
principle. Induction involves a passage from observed to unobserved. It involves two processes - observation and generalization. For example, if it is observed in a number of cases that when price increases less is purchased. Therefore, the generalization is “ when price increases demand falls”. Deduction , on the other hand, is a way of making a particular inference from a generalization. Deduction is a movement of knowledge from a general rule to a particular case. For example, ‘All men are mortal’ is a general rule. Ranjit is a man. Therefore, from the general rule it can be deduced that Ranjit is also mortal’. Similarly, All M.Com. degree holders are eligible for Ph.D. in Commerce is a general statement. Praneeth is a M.Com. degree holder. Therefore, it can be deduced that Praneeth is eligible for Ph.D. in Commerce. Empirical studies have a great potential, for they lead to inductions and deductions. Research enables one to develop theories and principles, on the one hand, and to arrive at generalizations on the other. Both are aids to acquisition of knowledge. 1.3 SIGNIFICANCE OF RESEARCH IN BUSINESS Research is the process of systematic and in depth study or search for a solution to a problem or an answer to a question backed by collection, compilation, presentation, analysis and interpretation of relevant details, data and information. It is also a systematic endeavor to discover valuable facts or relationships. Research may involve careful enquiry or experimentation and result in discovery or invention. There cannot be any research which does not increase knowledge which may be useful to different people in different ways. Let us see the need for research to business organizations and their managers and how it is useful to them. i. Industrial and economic activities have assumed huge dimensions. The size of modern business organizations indicates that managerial and administrative decisions can affect vast quantities of capital and a large number of people. Trial and error methods are not appreciated, as mistakes can be tremendously costly. Decisions must be quick but accurate and timely and should be objective i.e. based on facts and realities. In this back drop business decisions now a days are mostly influenced by research and research findings. Thus, research helps in quick and objective decisions. ii. Research, being a fact-finding process, significantly influences business decisions. The business management is interested in choosing that course of action which is most effective in attaining the goals of the organization. Research not only provides facts and figures to support business decisions but also enables the business to choose one which is best. iii. A considerable number of business problems are now given quantitative treatment with some degree of success with the help of operations research. Research into management problems may result in certain conclusions by means of logical analysis which the decision maker may use for his action or solution.
iv. Research plays a significant role in the identification of a new project, project feasibility and project implementation. v. Research helps the management to discharge its managerial functions of planning, forecasting, coordinating, motivating, controlling and evaluation effectively. vi. vi) Research facilitates the process of thinking, analysing, evaluating and interpreting of the business environment and of various business situations and business alternatives. So as to be helpful in the formulation of business policy and strategy. vii. Research and Development ( R & D) helps discovery and invention. Developing new products or modifying the existing products, discovering new uses, new markets etc., is a continuous process in business. viii. The role of research in functional areas like production, finance, human resource management, marketing need not be over emphasized. Research not only establishes relationships between different variables in each of these functional areas, but also between these various functional areas. ix. Research is a must in the production area. Product development, new and better ways of producing goods, invention of new technologies, cost reduction, improving product quality, work simplification, performance improvement, process improvement etc., are some of the prominent areas of research in the production area. x. The purchase/material department uses research to frame alternative suitable policies regarding where to buy, when to buy, how much to buy, and at what price to buy. xi. Closely linked with production function is marketing function. Market research and marketing research provide a major part of marketing information which influences the inventory level and production level. Marketing research studies include problems and opportunities in the market, product preference, sales forecasting, advertising effectiveness, product distribution, after sales service etc., xii. In the area of financial management, maintaining liquidity, profitability through proper funds management and assets management is essential. Optimum capital mix, matching of funds inflows and outflows, cash flow forecasting, cost control, pricing etc., require some sort of research and analysis. Financial institutions also (banking and non-banking) have found it essential to set up research division for the purpose of collecting and analysing data both for their internal purpose and for making indepth studies on economic conditions of business and people. xiii. In the area of human resource management personnel policies have to be guided by research. An individual’s motivation to work is associated with his needs and their satisfaction. An effective Human Resource Manager is one who can identify the needs of his work force and formulate personnel policies to satisfy the same so that they can be motivated to contribute their best to the attainment of organizational goals. Job design, job analysis, job assignment, scheduling work breaks etc., have to be based on investigation and analysis. xiv. Finally, research in business is a must to continuously update its attitudes, approaches, products goals, methods, and machinery in accordance with the changing environment in which it operates.
type, hence there will be overlapping. It must be remembered that good research uses a number of types, methods, & techniques. Hence rigid classification is impossible. The following is only an attempt to classify research into different types. i) According to the Branch of Knowledge Different Branches of knowledge may broadly be divided into two: a) Life and physical sciences such as Botany, Zoology, Physics and Chemistry. b) Social Sciences such as Political Science, Public Administration, Economics, Sociology, Commerce and Management. Research in these fields is also broadly referred to as life and physical science research and social science research. Business education covers both Commerce and Management, which are part of Social sciences. Business research is a broad term which covers many areas. The research carried out, in these areas, is called management research, production research, personnel research, financial management research, accounting research, Marketing research etc. Management research includes various functions of management such as planning, organizing, staffing, communicating, coordinating, motivating, controlling. Various motivational theories are the result of research. Production (also called manufacturing) research focuses more on materials and equipment rather than on human aspects. It covers various aspects such as new and better ways of producing goods, inventing new technologies, reducing costs, improving product quality. Research in personnel management may range from very simple problems to highly complex problems of all types. It is primarily concerned with the human aspects of the business such as personnel policies, job requirements, job evaluation, recruitment, selection, placement, training and development, promotion and transfer, morale and attitudes, wage and salary administration, industrial relations. Basic research in this field would be valuable as human behaviour affects organizational behaviour and productivity. Research in Financial Management includes financial institutions, financing instruments (egs. shares, debentures), financial markets (capital market, money market, primary market, secondary market), financial services (egs. merchant banking, discounting, factoring), financial analysis (e.g. investment analysis, ratio analysis, funds flow / cash flow analysis) etc.,
Accounting research though narrow in its scope, but is a highly significant area of business management. Accounting information is used as a basis for reports to the management, shareholders, investors, tax authorities, regulatory bodies and other interested parties. Areas for accounting research include inventory valuation, depreciation accounting, generally accepted accounting principles, accounting standards, corporate reporting etc. Marketing research deals with product development and distribution problems, marketing institutions, marketing policies and practices, consumer behaviour, advertising and sales promotion, sales management and after sales service etc. Marketing research is one of the very popular areas and also a well established one. Marketing research includes market potentials, sales forecasting, product testing, sales analysis, market surveys, test marketing, consumer behaviour studies, marketing information system etc. Business policy research is basically the research with policy implications. The results of such studies are used as indices for policy formulation and implementation. Business history research is concerned with the past. For example, how was trade and commerce during the Moghul regime. ii) According to the Nature of Data A simple dichotomous classification of research is Quantitative research and Qualitative research / non-quantitative. Quantitative research is variables based where as qualitative research is attributes based. Quantitative research is based on measurement / quantification of the phenomenon under study. In other words, it is data based and hence more objective and more popular. Qualitative research is based on the subjective assessment of attributes, motives, opinions, desires, preferences, behaviour etc. Research in such a situation is a function of researcher’s insights and impressions. iii) According to the Coverage According to the number of units covered it can be Macro study or Micro study. Macro study is a study of the whole where as Micro study is a study of the part. For example, working capital management in State Road Transport Corporations in India is a macro study where as Working Capital Management in Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation is a micro study. iv)According to Utility or Application Depending upon the use of research results i.e., whether it is contributing to the theory building or problem solving, research can be Basic or Applied. Basic research is called pure / theoretical / fundamental research. Basic research includes original investigations for the advancement of knowledge that does not have specific objectives to answer problems of sponsoring agencies. Applied research also called Action research , constitutes research activities on problems posed by sponsoring agencies for the purpose of contributing to the solution of these problems.
➢ Explanatory: Causal or explanatory research is conducted to understand the impact of specific changes in existing standard procedures. Running experiments is the most popular form. For example, a study that is conducted to understand the effect of rebranding on customer loyalty. 1.6 BUSINESS RESEARCH PROCESS Research process consists of series of actions or steps necessary to effectively carry out research and the desired sequencing of these steps. The chart shown in Figure well illustrates a research process. The chart indicates that the research process consists of a number of closely related activities.
Step 1: Identify and defining the Research Problem: The first step in the process is to identify a problem or develop a research question. The research problem may be something the agency identifies as a problem, some knowledge or information that is needed by the agency or the desire to identify a recreation trend nationally. However, the research problem comes up with the ongoing phenomenon or issues. Formulate Your Question: ➢ Your research may start as a general idea or a specific question, statement or thesis. ➢ Know what you want to focus on before you begin. A research problem is a statement about an area of concern, a condition to be improved, a difficulty to be eliminated, or a troubling question that exists in scholarly literature, in theory, or in practice that points to the need for meaningful understanding and deliberate investigation. In some social science disciplines the research problem is typically posed in the form of a question. A research problem does not state how to do something, offer a vague or broad proposition, or present a value question. Step 2: Review the Literature : Once the research problem is identified and defined, the next step is to review the existing research. The researcher must learn more about the topic under investigation. To do this, the researcher must review the literature related to the research problem. This step provides foundational knowledge about the problem area. The review of literature also educates the researcher about what studies have been conducted in the past, how these studies were conducted, and the conclusions in the problem area. Get Background Information ➢ Read about your topic using websites or encyclopedias. ➢ It introduces you to the topic, helps you to focus on its key elements and can help you decide to broaden or narrow your focus. ➢ These sources often include bibliographies that you can “piggyback” to find more sources on your topic. Step 3: Formulating a Hypothesis In this step, the researcher makes the problem precise. ➢ The research work is topic focused and refined. ➢ Then the researcher steps forward to how the problem would be approached? The nature of the research problem can decide to formulate a definite hypothesis. ➢ A hypothesis is tested. Effective research work formulates a hypothesis in such a way that collected factual data will provide evidence that either supports or disproves them. Formulation of Hypothesis in Research will make you more expert. ➢ In the end, the hypothesis turns into a practical theory. NULL (Ho) ALTERNATIVE (Ha) In order to develop working hypotheses researcher should adopt the following approach
So, when you collect data, you need to know the effective techniques of data collection in order to gather necessary and relevant information with regard to research. Step 6: Preparing Research Results Now work out the implications of the data you gathered. Your challenges are not over yet. Rather problems might just begin! It is hardly easy to clear out the implications of the gathered materials. While it is possible to clarify the research questions, some investigations are less conclusive. So, interpret your research results in order to report the findings. No matter what kind of research you are doing, there comes a moment when your head is full of ideas that originated from your analysis. Ideally, you’ll write them down as they come to you. Now you need to convert the mass of those elements and ideas into a written text that makes sense to the reader and can do justice to your quest. Step 7: Reporting Research Findings The final step of the research process outline is to report the research findings. Describe the significance of the research study. Work out how do they relate to the previous research findings. Usually, the research report published as a journal article or book. This is the last stage in terms of the individual research project. Mostly, a research report discusses questions that remained unanswered & suggest further research in the future in general. EXAMPLE: ➢ The problem that the action has identified is childhood obesity, which is a local problem and concern within the community. This serves as the focus of the study. ➢ In the obesity study, the review of literature enables the programmer to discover horrifying statistics related to the long-term effects of childhood obesity in terms of health issues, death rates, and projected medical costs. In addition, the programmer finds several articles and information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that describe the benefits of walking 10,000 steps a day. The information discovered during this step helps the programmer fully understand the magnitude of the problem, recognize the future consequences of obesity, and identify a strategy to combat obesity (i.e., walking). ➢ The systems analyst has decided that the purpose of the study is to determine if walking 10 thousand steps a day for 3 days a week will recover the individual’s health. This purpose is more narrowly focused and researchable than the original problem. ➢ In the obesity study, the concept of individual’s health• can be well-defined in hundreds of ways, for example physical, emotional, or spiritual health. In this study, the individual’s health is defined as physical health.
➢ The idea of physical health may also be defined and measured in several ways. In this case, the systems analyst decides to more narrowly define individual health to refer to the zones of weight, percentage of body fat, and cholesterol. ➢ In our example, the systems analyst has identified the population of the study as children ages 10 to 13 years. This narrower population makes the study more manageable and controllable in terms of time and resources. ➢ The study cannot probably include every 10- to 13-year-old child in the community, so a smaller group is used to represent the population. The investigator develops the plan for the walking program, demonstrating what data will be collected, when and how the data be collected, who collect the data, and how the data be analyzed. The instrumentation plan specifies all the steps that must be finalized for the study. This confirms that the systems analyst has carefully thought through all these decisions and that she provides a step-by-step plan to be tracked in the study. ➢ In the obesity study, the systems analyst will be collecting data on the definite variables: weight, percentage of body fat, cholesterol levels, and the number of days the person walked a total of 10 thousand steps during the class. ➢ The investigator collects these data at the starting session and at the closing session of the program. These two sets of data are essential to determine the effect of the walking program on weight, body fat, and cholesterol level. Once the data are composed on the variables, the investigator is ready to move to the last step of the process that is data analysis. ➢ In the obesity study, the investigator relates the measurements of weight, percentage of body fat, and cholesterol that were taken at the 1st meeting of the topics to the measurements of the same variables at the final program session.
Likert 50 repondents YES 25 No 25 SA 10 A 5 NANDA 5 DA15 SDA The level of measurement refers to the relationship among the values that are assigned to the attributes, feelings or opinions for a variable. For example, the variable ‘whether the taste of fast food is good’ has a number of attributes, namely, very good, good, neither good nor bad, bad and very bad. For the purpose of analysing the results of this variable, we may assign the values 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 to the five attributes respectively. The level of measurement describes the relationship among these five values. Here, we are simply using the numbers as shorter placeholders for the lengthier text terms. We don’t mean that higher values mean ‘more’ of something or lower values mean ‘less’ of something. We don’t assume that ‘good’ which has a value of 2 is twice of ‘very good’ which has a value of 1. We don’t even assume that ‘very good’ which is assigned the value ‘1’ has more preference than ‘good’ which is assigned the value ‘2’. We simply use the values as a shorter name for the attributes, opinions, or feelings. The assigned values of attributes allow the researcher more scope for further processing of data and statistical analysis. Typically, there are four levels of measurement scales or methods of assigning numbers: (a) Nominal scale, (b) Ordinal scale, (c) Interval scale and (d) Ratio scale.
For example, labelling men as ‘1’ and women as ‘2’ which is the most common way of labelling gender for data recording purpose does not mean women are ‘twice something or other’ than men. Nor it suggests that men are somehow ‘better’ than women. Another example of nominal scale is to classify the respondent’s income into three groups: the highest income as group 1. The middle income as group 2, and the low-income as group 3. The nominal scale is often referred to as a categorical scale. The assigned numbers have no arithmetic properties and act only as labels. The only statistical operation that can be performed on nominal scales is a frequency count. We cannot determine an average except mode. In designing and developing a questionnaire, it is important that the response categories must include all possible responses. In order to have an exhaustive number of responses, you might have to include a category such as ‘others’, ‘uncertain’, ‘don’t know’, or ‘can’t remember’ so that the respondents will not distort their information by forcing their responses in one of the categories provided. Also, you should be careful and be sure that the categories provided are mutually exclusive so that they do not overlap or get duplicated in any way. b) Ordinal Scale involves the ranking of items along the continuum of the characteristic being scaled. In this scale, the items are classified according to whether they have more or less of a characteristic.
For example, you may wish to ask the TV viewers to rank the TV channels according to their preference and the responses may look like this as given below: The main characteristic of the ordinal scale is that the categories have a logical or ordered relationship. This type of scale permits the measurement of degrees of difference, (that is, ‘more’ or ‘less’) but not the specific amount of differences (that is, how much ‘more’ or ‘less’). This scale is very common in marketing, satisfaction and attitudinal research. Another example is that a fast food home delivery shop may wish to ask its customers: Suppose respondent X gave the response ‘Excellent’ and respondent Y gave the response ‘Good’, we may say that respondent X thought that the service provided better than respondent Y to be thought. But we don’t know how much better and even we can’t say that both respondents have the same understanding of what constitutes ‘good service’. In marketing research, ordinal scales are used to measure relative attitudes, opinions, and preferences. Here we rank the attitudes, opinions and preferences from best to worst or from worst to best. However, the amount of difference between the ranks cannot be found out. Using ordinal scale data, we can perform statistical analysis like Median and Mode, but not the Mean. C) Interval Scale is a scale in which the numbers are used to rank attributes such that numerically equal distances on the scale represent equal distance in the characteristic being measured. An interval scale contains all the information of an ordinal scale, but it also one allows to compare the difference/distance between attributes.
