Questions and Answers of Research Methods For Business Students

14.4 The ‘road map’ you announced in the introduction may not now be correct. The previews and summaries at the beginning and end of the relevant chapters may need changing. A more serious
14.3 Academic writing is often difficult to understand. This is not usually because the subject matter is complex or the thoughts profound. It is because the writer thinks it necessary to write in an
14.2 It will demonstrate good practice in two respects. First it will demonstrate that you have evaluated your research design. Second it will help you to evaluate how you would alter this design if
14.1 This is easier said than done. Start by going through your results chapter, continually asking yourself ‘Did I find this out?’ You will probably weed out a lot of things that you have
4 Even if you think you aren’t nervous, why is practising a presentation in front of a critical friend a good idea?
3 In what ways might ‘telling them what you’re going to say, saying it, and then telling them what you’ve just said’ have helped Clare’s audience?
2 What advice would you give Clare in relation to interacting with her audience more effectively?
1 In what way did starting with the eight boxes limit or help Clare’s planning of her presentation?
• being rigorous in your use of the procedures that are advocated in order to be able to produce a research report that contains findings that are sufficiently ‘grounded’ to substantiate the
• recognising the relationships between the principal categories that have emerged from this grounded approach in order to develop an explanatory theory;
• understanding how negative cases broaden (or threaten) your emerging explanation;
• seeking to verify apparent relationships against the actual data that you have collected;
• recognising the relationships between categories and rearranging these into a hierarchical form, with the emergence of subcategories;
• recognising significant themes and issues during early analysis to help you to consider where data collection should be focused in the future;
• working with smaller rather than larger units of data;
13.5 The main implications of using an inductive analytical approach for the process of qualitative analysis are likely to be related to: • managing and categorising a large number of code labels,
• The use of literature and the theory within it will shape the data collection questions that you wish to ask those who participate in your research project. • You will be able to commence data
13.4 There are a number of implications of using a deductive analytical approach for the way in which you conduct the process of qualitative analysis: • You will be in a position to commence your
13.3 A deductive analytical approach is one where you will seek to use existing theory to shape the approach that you adopt to the qualitative research process and to aspects of data analysis. An
13.2 You will generate three broad types of data that you will need to retain and file as the result of undertaking qualitative research. The first of these may be referred to as raw data files.
13.1 There are a number of reasons why we may describe qualitative analysis as an ‘interactive process’. Analysis needs to occur during the collection of data as well as after it. This helps to
3 What methods of data analysis could Jessica use for each of these types of data you have identified?
2 Undertake your own search using online databases discussed in Chapter 8 and search engines such as Google or Bing for possible data to answer Jessica’s research question. Make notes about each
1 Jessica has already obtained statistical, visual and textual material including visual images of employees, and recruitment adverts (combining text and imagery). What other secondary data could she
12.8 a These quantitative data are of different magnitudes. Therefore, the most appropriate technique to compare these data is index numbers. The index numbers for the two companies are: EJ
examples for regression illustrate a dependent and one or more independent variables.
12.7 Your answer needs to emphasise that correlation analysis is used to establish whether a change in one variable is accompanied by a change in another. In contrast, regression analysis is used to
12.6 The probability of a chi square value of 2.845 with 9 degrees of freedom occurring by chance alone for these data is 0.970. This means that statistically the association between students’
12.5 a The first thing you need to do is to establish the data type. As it is numerical, you could theoretically use all three measures of central tendency and both the standard deviation and
12.4 a You would probably use a scatter graph in which number of donations would be the dependent variable and number of viewers reached by the advertisement the independent variable. b This would
12.3 a Park Trading Company – Income and Expenditure 2004–12. b Your diagram (it is hoped) emphasises the upward trends of expenditure and (to a lesser extent) income. It also highlights the
12.2 a There is no one correct answer to this question as the number of variables will depend on the method used to code these descriptive data. If you choose the multiple-response method, five
12.1 a The variables are ‘income’, ‘expenditure’ and ‘year’. There is no real need for a separate case identifier as the variable ‘year’ can also fulfil this function. Each case
4 What data would Rebecca need and what sort of analysis could Rebecca do in order to take her research further as her project tutor suggests such as seeing how different aspects of the supply chain
3 Comment on Rebecca’s analysis and the assumptions she has made. What are the implications of this for the validity and reliability of her findings?
2 With regard to Rebecca’s research question, what would you conclude from these results about the importance of distance travelled as opposed to type of vehicle used?
1 Explain what the t -test results in Figures. C12.4 and C12.5 mean, stating an appropriate hypothesis and null hypothesis for each.
• identify the main issues that you need to consider when preparing quantitative data for analysis and when analysing these data by computer; • recognise different types of data and understand
• to ensure that you have the same understanding of the wording of individual questions as the respondents; • to check that respondents have no problems in answering questions; for example: •
11.8 Despite the time constraints, pilot testing is essential to your methodology for the following reasons: • to find out how long the questionnaire takes to complete; • to check that
11.7 Although the precise wording of your answer is likely to differ, it would probably be something like the letter below.
lifestyles, opinions and likely future purchases of adult consumers. Your telephone number has been selected at random. The questions I need to ask you will take about 15 minutes. If you have any
11.6 Although the precise wording of your answer is likely to differ, it would probably be something like this: Good morning/afternoon/evening. My name is ____ from JJ Consumer Research. We are doing
11.5 When translating your questionnaire you will need to ensure that: • the precise meaning of individual words is kept (lexical equivalence); • the meanings of groups of words and phrases that
11.4 a Please complete the following statement by ticking the phrase that matches your feelings most closely . . . I feel children’s book clubs are . . . . . . a very good idea 5 . . . a good
11.3 Although your answer is unlikely to be precisely the same, the completed table of data requirements below should enable you to check you are on the right lines.
11.2 a i Opinion data: the question is asking how the respondent feels about the use of nil hours contracts by employees. ii Behaviour data: the question is asking about the concrete experience of
11.1 When you: • wanted to check that the person whom you wished to answer the questions had actually answered the questions; • have sufficient resources to devote to delivery and collection and
5 How could Thomas have redesigned his research to increase his questionnaire response rate?
4 What possible factors should Thomas consider as reasons for non-completion of his online questionnaire?
3 What are the possible disadvantages of using an online questionnaire sent to students’ university email address?
2 What mistake might Thomas have made in his assumption that because students were more technologically orientated now than in the past they would be willing to complete his questionnaire online?
1 Would the data Thomas collected from the third-year students have enabled him to test his four hypotheses?
10.6 There are several areas where you need to develop and demonstrate competence in relation to the conduct of semi-structured and in-depth research interviews. These areas are: • opening the
10.5 Key issues to consider include the following: • planning to minimise the occurrence of forms of bias where these are within your control, related to interviewer bias, interviewee bias and
10.4 Perhaps it will be wise to say that you understand his position. You realise that any approach to research calls for particular types of competence. Your previous answer touching on interviewee
10.3 Certainly politely! Your response needs to show that you are aware of the issues relating to reliability, bias and generalisability that might arise. It would be useful to discuss how these
10.2 Reasons that suggest the use of interviews include: • the exploratory or explanatory nature of your research; • situations where it will be significant to establish personal contact, in
10.1 The type of interview that is likely to be used in each of these situations is as follows: A standardised and structured interview where the aim is to develop response patterns from the views of
4 Do you think Anthony is right to be concerned about ‘talking too much’ in his interview? Give reasons for your answer.
3 What does the interpretive research paradigm have to say about truth and subjectivity in research?
2 What is the difference between bias and subjectivity?
1 Why do you think Anthony’s supervisor thought the interview went very well?
9.4 Clearly, there are some question marks about the coding schedule in Figure 9.2 . There does appear to be some overlap in the behavioural categories covered in the schedule. For example, it could
9.3 This is a difficult one. The question of status may be a factor. However, this would depend on your relationship with the staff. If you are, say, of similar age and have an open, friendly, ‘one
9.2 The research question is very broad. It allows you plenty of scope to discover a host of interesting things about the world of the trainee accountant. Without doubt, one of the things you will
9.1 It may be as well to suggest to her that she start her attendance at meetings with an unstructured approach in order to simply get the ‘feel’ of what is happening. She should make notes of
5 Comment on the validity and reliability of the data Siphiwe has collected.
4 To what extent do you feel Siphiwe’s presence in the shop could have affected the behaviour of the shoppers?
3 Do you consider Siphiwe’s observations were of any value? Give reasons for your answer.
2 Do you think it was ethical for Siphiwe to use covert observation?
1 Given Siphiwe’s research question, do you think the observation method she used was the best option? Give reasons for your answer.
8.4 a The data are unlikely to be reliable. b Your judgement should be based on a combination of the following reasons: • Initial examination of the report reveals that it is an internally
8.3 a The secondary data required for this research question relate to organisations’ employee relocation policies. The research question assumes that these sorts of data are likely to be available
8.2 The arguments you have listed should focus on the following issues: • The study suggested by the research question requires historical data so that changes that have already happened can be
8.1 Although it would be impossible to list all possible situations, the key features that should appear in your examples are listed below: • to compare findings from your primary data; • to
4 Is there scope for me to undertake an empirically based master’s project on theme parks and emotional labour using only secondary data? If so, what kind of secondary data might be available that
3 Can I use data from personal blogs and unoffi cial websites which expose grievances felt by employees?
2 Can I (Jessica) just interview employees about their emotional labour at the local theme park without asking the theme park’s permission?
1 What’s the difference between primary and secondary data, and what sort of secondary data could be relevant for the research project?
4 What limitations would Liam need to concede in his write-up?
3 How might Liam write up his case study, in terms of a structure?
2 In terms of his coding procedure, Liam opted to annotate the documents by hand. How else might he have done the coding in a more systematic and transparent manner?
1 How might Liam have got around the various subscription paywalls on certain media websites that prevented him from accessing their material?
• be able to identify threats related to validity and reliability for each type of observation and appreciate how to reduce these.
8.4 a The data are unlikely to be reliable. b Your judgement should be based on a combination of the following reasons: • Initial examination of the report reveals that it is an internally
8.3 a The secondary data required for this research question relate to organisations’ employee relocation policies. The research question assumes that these sorts of data are likely to be available
8.2 The arguments you have listed should focus on the following issues: • The study suggested by the research question requires historical data so that changes that have already happened can be
8.1 Although it would be impossible to list all possible situations, the key features that should appear in your examples are listed below: • to compare findings from your primary data; • to
4 Is there scope for me to undertake an empirically based master’s project on theme parks and emotional labour using only secondary data? If so, what kind of secondary data might be available that
3 Can I use data from personal blogs and unoffi cial websites which expose grievances felt by employees?
2 Can I (Jessica) just interview employees about their emotional labour at the local theme park without asking the theme park’s permission?
1 What’s the difference between primary and secondary data, and what sort of secondary data could be relevant for the research project?
• apply the knowledge, skills and understanding gained to your own research project.
7.7 a Either snowball sampling as it would be difficult to identify members of the desired population or, possibly, convenience sampling because of initial difficulties in finding members of the
7.6 a Prior to deciding on your quota you will need to consider the possible inclusion of residents who are aged under 16 in your quota. Often in such research projects residents aged under 5 (and
7.5 a If you assume that there are at least 100,000 managing directors of small to mediumsized organisations from which to select your sample, you will need to interview approximately 380 to make
7.4 a Your answer will depend on the random number you select as the starting point for your systematic sample. However, the process you followed to select your sample is likely to be similar to that
7.3 a Your answer will depend on the random numbers you selected. However, the process you follow to select the samples is likely to be similar to that outlined. Starting at randomly selected points,
7.2 Your draft of Lisa’s tutor’s reply is unlikely to be worded the same way as the one below. However, it should contain the same key points: From: “tutor’s name” To: Sent: today’s date

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