SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Course Outline and Delivery Plan

BUS 213/ACS 313/ MIS 213 A RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Course Description
This course introduces students to basic descriptive and inferential statistics, research principles,
sampling designs, survey methodologies, and simple experimental and quasi-experimental designs.
Learning Outcomes
The course will:
1. Equip the students with the foundations of research problem formulation & Writing (documentation).
2. Enable the students to learn the methods and techniques of doing research
3. Equip the students with the necessary skills for analysing research data and research problem
presentation.
4. Enable the students to examine the research process both from the academic and applied perspective
5. Enable the students to conduct research on their own and to evaluate the quality and relevance of
research reports
Contact Hours
Tuesdays & Thursdays 12.45 P.M. to 3.25 P.M., SB 306
Prerequisite(s)
STA 212
COURSE OUTLINE
Research Design, Sampling, Measurement & Scaling, Data Collection, Processing & Analysis,
Interpretation and Report Writing

Course Delivery Plan

Session 1
26th May 2015

Meaning and purpose of research

Objectives of Research
Types of Research
Significance/ Purpose of Research

Session 2
28th May 2015

Important Concepts related to Research Design

Different Types of Research Designs

Session 3
2nd June 2015

Steps in the Research Process

Characteristics of a Good Research
Problems encountered by Researchers.

Session 4
4th June 2015
Session 5
9th June 2015

Types of Data

Selecting of the Research Problems

Importance and scope of Literature Review
Conceptual framework
Activity: Developing Research Proposal

Session 6
11th June 2015

Measurement and Scaling Techniques

Activity: Developing Research Proposal

Session 7
16th June 2015
Session 8
18th June 2015

CAT 1
Sampling:
Census vs. sample survey
Implication of sample design
Approaches to sampling
Determining the sample size
Activity: Developing Research Proposal

Session 9
23rd June 2015

Data Collection Tools: Questionnaire, Interview Schedule, Observation

Schedule

Session 10
25th June 2015
Session 11
30th June 2015
Session 12
2nd July 2015
Session 13
7th July 2015
Session 14
9th July 2015

Activity: Construction of Data Collection Tools

Activity: Proposal Defence

Activity: Data Collection

Activity: Data Collection

CAT 2

Session 15
14th July 2015
Session 16
16th July 2015
Session 17
21st July 2015
Session 18
23rd July 2015

Activity: Processing, Analysis and Interpretation of Data

Layout of the Research Report
Activity: Report Writing

Presentation of Term Project

Presentation of Term Project

Course Delivery Methodology

A combination of lecture, discussions, case study, library research, and reporting.
Lectures will be used to introduce material on the formal aspects of the module.
Instructional Material/Equipment
Textbooks, White board, Handouts and library resources.
Handouts will be provided occasionally for core topics. It must be noted that handouts are not sufficient by
their very nature and the student will be required to generously supplement handout material.
Academic Assessment
Type
Examination
Coursework
CAT 1 (Supervised CAT)
CAT 2 (Supervised CAT)
Assignments
Term Paper

Weighting (%)
60
40
5
5
5
25
40
100 %

Total
Course Materials
Textbooks for the Course

1. Mark Saunders, Phillip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill: Research Methods for Business Students, 2nd
Edition, Prentice Hall 2000
2. Cooper Donald and William Emory: Business Research Methods, 5th Edition, Irwin 1995.
.
Textbooks and Journals for Further Reading
1.
Gupta C.B. and Gupta, V (1987): An introduction to Statistical Methods, Vikas
Publishing House, 17th Revised Edition.
2.
Terrel S.C. and Deniel, W. W. (1979) Business Statistics Basic Concepts and Methodology.
2nd Edition, Houghton Mifflin Company Boston.
3.
Kress George: Marketing Research, 3rd Edition, Prentice Hall Intern, 1985
4.
Dillon W.R., T.J. Madden and N.H. Firtle: Marketing Research in a Marketing Environment,
2nd Edition. Irwin, 1990.

5.
6.
7.

Umma Sekeran: Research Methods for Business a Skill Building approach, 2nd Edition,
John Wiley and Sons, 1992.
Mugenda, O.M. and A.A. Mugenda: Research Methods Quantitative and Qualitative
Approaches, Africa Centre for Technology Studies, 1999.
Churchill, Gilbert A. Jr.: Marketing Research: Methodological Foundation, 5th edition, the
Dryen Press, 1997.

Policies
Classes
1. Punctuality is fundamental.
2. Active participation in class discussions is encouraged
3. Let us refrain from signing the attendance register on behalf of colleagues who are not present
Assignments and/or Course Work
1. Plagiarism is a serious offence. If detected in any form in course work and assignments, the following
will apply:
a. In partial or non-serious cases (such as not citing whole word-for-word quotes), half the total
possible marks of the assignment are duly struck off.
b. In serious cases (such as whole duplication of a paper), a zero policy will apply i.e., all
offending assignments will be awarded a mark of zero.
Note: The level of seriousness referred to above is at the discretion of the lecturer. Appeals are
certainly possible through the relevant channels
2. Notwithstanding the above, collaboration in course work is certainly encouraged as this promotes
team spirit and group synergy as long as originality is preserved.
Course Instructor
Name:
Email address:
Cellphone:
Time and place available for consultations.

Mercy Kanini Njagi

mnjagi@daystar.ac.ke
0722-714749
Tuesdays 3.45 P.M. to 4.45 P.M., SBE 230