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UNIT I

1. What do you mean research?

 Research refers to search for knowledge. It is an art of scientific investigation.
 A research is a detailed plan of indicating the methods and procedures to be used for
collecting and analyzing data on a given subject and reporting results.
2. Define research.

According to Redman and Mory, "Research is a systematized effort to gain new knowledge".

3. Define Business Research.

According to Clifford Woody “Research comprises defining and redefining problems, formulating
hypothesis or suggested solutions; collecting, organizing and evaluating data; making deductions and
reaching conclusions; and at last carefully testing the conclusions to determine whether they fit the
formulated hypothesis”.
4. Differentiate Qualitative versus Quantitative Data Analysis.

Basis of Difference Qualitative Data Analysis Quantitative Data Analysis

Occurrence Qualitative analysis occurs Quantitative analysis occurs only
simultaneously with data collection. after data collection is finished.
Methodology Qualitative analysis may vary methods Methods of quantitative analysis
depending on the situations. are determined in advance as part of
the study design.
5. List out Limitations of Research / Business Research?

 Time Constraints
 Availability of Data is not possible always
 Cooperation of Management and Employees is not guaranteed
6. What is applied research?

Applied Research aims at finding a solution for an immediate problem facing by the
society/an industrial/business organization.

Eg: Research done to improve agriculture crop production

7. What is an Empirical research?

 Empirical research is a data based research coming up with conclusion which is capable of
being verified by observation or experiment.
 It is otherwise called as experimental research.
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8. Differ Pure/Basic/fundamental Research vs Applied Research

Pure/Basic Research Applied Research
Aims to illustrate the theory by enriching the Aims to solve a problem by enriching the field
basis of a discipline of application of a discipline.
Tries to say why things happen. Tries to say how things can be changed.

9. Write the difference between Research methods & Research methodology

Research Methods Research Methodology

It aims at finding solutions to research It aims at the employment of the correct

problems procedures to find out solutions.

It is the end of any scientific or non-scientific It is the beginning of any scientific or

research. non-scientific research

10. Define ‘Alternative hypotheses. Nov / Dec 2010

 The alternative hypothesis is denoted by H1 or Ha , is the hypothesis that sample observations

are influenced by some non-random cause.
 An alternative hypothesis states the statistical significance between two variables.

11. Define null hypothesis. Nov / Dec 2010.

 It is a hypothesis that states that there is no statistical significance between the two
variables in the hypothesis. It is the hypothesis that the researcher is trying to disprove.

12. What is hypothesis / Research Hypothesis?

 Hypothesis is a statement of assumption about certain characteristics of a population.
 It is an unproven proposition that tentatively explains certain outcome of a research or
experiment..
 There are two types of hypothesis, they are: The Null and Alternative Hypothesis.

13. What is the role of theory in research?

 Provides a conceptual model for delimiting the scope of the study.-

 Helps in the selection of variables or identification of classes of data to be collected.
14. Define Diagnostic research.

Diagnostic research studies the determination of frequency with which something occurs

or its association with something else.

15. Differentiate Descriptive research from Analytical research.(Apr/May 2015)

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Descriptive Research Analytical Research

Descriptive research is description of the state of In this research, researcher has to use facts or
affairs as it exists at present. information already available.

It includes surveys and fact-finding enquiries It includes literary research, public opinion,
scientific trials and Meta-analysis.

16. What is a research problem?/ Define Research problem. April/May – 2008

 A research problem is a statement about an area of concern, a condition to be improved upon,
a difficulty to be eliminated, or a troubling question to the need for meaningful understanding.
 It is the demarcation of a problem area within a certain context involving the WHO or WHAT,
the WHERE, the WHEN and the WHY of the problem situation

17. Define-descriptive Research/ Descriptive method.

 Descriptive research includes surveys and fact finding enquiries. The main of this research is
to provide description of the state of affairs as it exists at present.

 This research is otherwise called as Ex post facto research. He has no control over variables .

UNIT -2
1. What is a research design?
A detailed plan of research indicating the methods and procedures to be used for collecting and
analyzing data on a given subject and reporting results.

2. Define a research design? April / May 2011

According to Kerlinger, "Research design is the plan, structure, & strategy of investigation
conceived so as to obtain answers to research questions and to control variance".

3.What are the Types of research design?

 Exploratory research design
 Causal research design
 Descriptive research design and
 Experimental research design
4. What is meant by Validity? What are its types? Nov/Dec 2011

Validity is the most critical criterion and indicates the degree to which an instrument measures
what it is suppose to measure. Validity can be classified into three major forms viz.,
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 Content validity,
 Criterion-related validity
Predictive Validity
Concurrent Validity
 Construct validity.

5. Define a variable.
A variable is defined as a characteristics that can be manipulated or observed and can take on
different values, either quantitatively or qualitatively .E.g- Family, income, age, gender, etc .

6.What are the different types of variables?

 Dependent and Independent variables
 Experimental and Measured Variables
 Quantitative and Qualitative variables
 Categorical and Numerical variables.
7. Define scaling.( May / June 2014)
A scale is a tool or mechanism by which individuals are distinguished as to how they differ from
one another on the variables of interest to our study.

8. What is rating scale?(Apr/May 2015)

 Rating Scale is a scale normally used to measure the respondent's attitude towards an object,
his preference or dislike toward some attribute, and the degree to which an object contains a
particular attribute.
 These ratings may be in such forms as “like-dislike”, “excellent—good—average—below
average—poor”, points.

9. What do you mean nominal scale?

A scale in which numbers are used only to identify or categories objects or events without ordering
the categories

10. What do you mean interval scale?

A scale of measurement in which the distances among the numbers correspond to the distances
among the objects or events in respect of the characteristic being measured; intervals between
numbers are taken as equal.

11. What do you mean Ratio scale?

A scale of measurement in which items are ranked so that numerically equal scale distances
represent equal distances in the attribute being measured.
12.Explain the term ‘reliability’. Nov / Dec 2010
Reliability is the degree to which measures are free from error and, therefore, yield
consistent results.

13. What are the various types of reliability? June – 2010

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 Inter-rater Reliability: Different people, same test.

 Test-retest Reliability: Same people, different times.

 Parallel-forms Reliability: Different people, same time, different test.

 Internal consistency Reliability: Different questions, same construct.

14. Write the difference between Nominal and Ordinal Scale. Give Example each.(Nov/Dec 2015)

Nominal Scale Ordinal Scale

Values or observations can be assigned a code in
the form of a number where the numbers are
simply labels.
You can count but not order or measure
nominal data
Examples: Sex, and eye colour.
Values or observations can be ranked (put in
order) or have a rating scale attached.
You can count and order, but not measure,
ordinal data.
Example: house numbers and swimming level.

15. What do you mean TAT?

Thematic Apperception Test- It is a projective technique that presents a series of pictures to
research subjects and asks them to provide a description of or a story about the pictures.
16. What is Content Validity? (Apr/May 2015)
 The content validity refers to the extent to which a measuring instrument provides adequate
coverage of the investigative questions guiding the study. Determination of content validity is
judgmental
17.Differentiate validity and reliability. (May/June 2013)

Validity Reliability
Validity is focused more on how strong the Reliability is more on the consistency of a
outcome of the program was. measurement.
Reliability is easier to determine Validity has more analysis just to know how
valid a thing is.
Reliability is determined by tests and internal Validity has four types, which are the conclusion,
consistency internal validity, construct validity, and external
validity.

UNIT 3
1. What is primary data?
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Primary data are original sources from which the researcher directly collects data that
has not been previously collected. Primary data are first-hand information collected through
various methods such as observation, interviewing, mailing.
2. What is secondary data?

These are sources containing data which have been collected already, and compiled for
another purpose in the form records ect . Secondary sources consist of not only published records and
reports, but also unpublished records.
3. Define questionnaire.

A questionnaire is a pre-formulated set of questions to which respondents record their answers

usually within rather closely defined alternatives.
4. Define sampling design.

A sample design is a definite plan for obtaining a sample from the sampling frame. Sampling
design is method or technique the researcher adopts in selecting the sampling units from the frame or
population
5. Define sampling plan.

A sampling plan is a detailed outline of which measurements will be taken at what times, on
which material, in what manner, and by whom.
6. Define sampling.
A finite part of a population or a subset of a set of sampling units, selected by some process,
usually by deliberate selection with the object of investigating the properties of the parent population or set
is called a sample.
7. What do you mean by sample size?
The sample size of a statistical sample is the number of observations that constitute it. It is typically
denoted n, a positive integer (natural number).
8. Define Snow – ball sampling. April/May 2008

 It is a special non-probability method used when the desired sample characteristic is rare.
 It may be extremely difficult or cost prohibitive to locate respondents in these situations.
 Snowball sampling relies on referrals from initial subjects to generate additional subjects.
Eg: Friends of Friends
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9. Compare primary data collection and secondary data collection

Basis Primary data Secondary data

Cost factor The cost of obtaining primary data Secondary data is typically available for free
is typically more or for the subscription fee to the database
magazine or journal
Time factor Time taken is long period Short period of time is involved

10. What is Quota Sampling?

The sample sizes called quotas are established for each stratum. Field-workers are then instructed to
conduct interviews with the designated quotas, with the identification of individual respondents being
left to the field-workers. A convenience sample is drawn for each cell until the quota is met. (Similar to
stratified sampling)
11. Define observation.

Observation is an activity of a person which senses and assimilates the knowledge of the
phenomenon or the recording of data using instrument'
12.Define survey.

Survey means a planned effort the desired information from a representative sample of the
relevant population generally known as respondents.

UNIT – 4
1. What is meant by Multiple ANOVA?

Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) is simply an ANOVA with several dependent variables.
That is to say, ANOVA tests for the difference in means between two or more groups, while MANOVA
tests for the difference in two or more vectors of means.

2. What is type I and type II error?

Type I error
A type I error occurs when one rejects the null hypothesis when it is true. The probability of a type I
error is the level of significance of the test of hypothesis, and is denoted by *alpha*.

Type II error
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A type II error occurs when one rejects the alternative hypothesis (fails to reject the null
hypothesis) when the alternative hypothesis is true. The probability of a type II error is denoted by
*beta*.

3. List down any two widely used statistical software for data analysis.

(i) SPSS (ii) SAS (iii) STATA.

4. What is MDS?
Multi-Dimensional Scaling (MDS) is a class of procedures for representing
perceptions and preferences of respondents spatially by means of a visual display.
Perceived or psychological relationships among stimuli are represented as geometric
relationships among points in a multidimensional space.

5. What is Discriminant Analysis?

Discriminant function analysis is a statistical analysis to predict a  categorical dependent variable 

(called a grouping variable) by one or more continuous or binary independent variables (called predictor

variables).

6. What is Coding? Illustrate with an example

 Coding is an analytical process in which data, in both quantitative form (such as questionnaires results) or
qualitative (such as interview transcripts) is categorized to facilitate analysis.

  Coding means the transformation of data into a form understandable by computer software.

7. Define factor loading. Nov/Dec 2012
The correlation between the original variables and the factors, and the key to understanding the
nature of a particular factor. They are simple correlations between the variables and the factors.

8. Define- Face Validity.

A form of content validity that is determined entirely by judgment of 'non-experts' such as respondents or
executives.

9. What is cluster analysis?

Cluster analysis or clustering is the task of grouping a set of objects in such a way that objects
in the same group (called cluster) are more similar (in some sense or another) to each other than to
those in other groups (clusters).
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10.Distinguish between R2 and adjusted R2 June 2011

R2 Adjusted R2
R-squared measures the proportion of the Adjusted R-squared adjusts the statistic based on
variation in your dependent variable (Y) explained the number of independent variables in the model.
by your independent variables (X) for a linear
regression model.
11.Why is eigen value considered as important? June – 2010

 Eigen value is otherwise called as latent root .When we take the sum of squared values of factor
loadings relating to a factor, then such sum is referred to as Eigen Value or latent root.
 Eigen value indicates the relative importance of each factor in accounting for the particular set of
variables being analyzed.
12. What does R2 represent? (Or )Define Co-efficient of determination.

In statistics, the coefficient of determination is denoted R2 and pronounced R squared, whose

main purpose is either the prediction of future outcomes or the testing of hypotheses, on the basis of
other related information.

UNIT -5

1. What do you mean by Research report?

Research report is a written document specifying the purpose, scope, objective(s), hypotheses,
methodology, findings, citations and finally recommendations of a research project to others.
2. Define synopsis. June 2011, define the synopsis. April/May – 2008

 A synopsis is a brief summary of the major points of a subject or written work or story,
either as prose or as a table; an abridgment or condensation of a work.
 Brief condensation, outline, or summary of the main points of an articles, book, or plan. Unlike
an abstract, a synopsis maintains the point by point sequence of the salient ideas.
3. Write notes on ( a) Foot notes (b) Bibliography

(a)Footnotes:

 Footnotes are placed at the bottom of the page on which the reference or quotation
which they identify supplement ends.
 Footnotes are always typed in single space though they are divided from one another by
double space.
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(b) Bibliography :

 The bibliography contains the detailed information on books, journals and other materials' showing
the title of the books/ reports' used in the preparation of the reports, names of authors, publishers, the
year of publication and, if possible, the page numbers.

Basis of Findings Conclusions

Differences
Objective Findings result from either a
research tool, or from data
provided by researcher that can
be categorized.
Conclusions are the product of the data that has
been categorized as it related to the dominance
of the actions used as the mechanics of
researchers.

Characteristics A finding is what researcher A conclusion is what assumptions or opinions

have actually discovered in the research is making about that, or what the
research. researcher are able to prove.

4. How do findings differ from conclusions in research report?

5. List the ethics need to be maintained in research? (Nov/Dec 2015)

i)Honesty ii)Objectivity iii)Integrity iv)Carefulness v)Openness vi)Respect for Intellectual Property
vii)Confidentiality viii)Responsible Publication and Mentoring ix)Respect for colleagues x)Social
Responsibility xi)Legality and Human Subjects Protection
6. What is referencing?
Referencing is a standardised method of formatting the information sources you have used in your
assignments or written work. Any given referencing style serves two purposes:
1 .acknowledges the source 2..allows the reader to trace the source.
7. What are the contents of executive Summary?
In most documents, the executive summary is the first section of the document appearing after the
table of contents and before the introduction.
8. What is the table of contents? Nov / Dec 2010

The Table of contents is an outline of the order of the chapters, sections and sub-sections with their
respective pages' If report includes a number of charts, figures, tables, maps, diagrams and graphs etc., a
separate table for each category would immediately follow the table of contents.
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9. What are the types of report?

 Technical Report
 Popular report
 Interim Report
 Summary Report
 Alogrithmic Research Report