ASSIGNMENT COVER

REGION: BULAWAYO PROGRAMME: BCOMM MARKETING

INTAKE: 33

FULL NAME OF STUDENT: NOMSA DUBE PIN: P1140670R

MAILING ADDRESS: 28 HOGARTH CRESCENT ROMNEY PARK

CONTACT TELEPHONE/CELL: 0777576206 ID. NO.: 35-006606 H35

COURSE NAME: BUSINESS RESEACH METHODS COURSE CODE:

BBFH404

ASSIGNMENT NO. 1 DUE DATE: 30 SEPTEMBER 2022

ASSIGNMENT TITLE: QUESTION 1 AND 2

MARKER’S COMMENTS:
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

OVERALL MARK: _____________ MARKER’S NAME: ________________________

MARKER’S SIGNATURE: _______________________________ DATE: ___________

QUESTION 1:
Evaluate the usefulness of a research proposal in any field of study. Support your
answers with business examples from an organisation of your choice (25marks)

Introduction

According to Bush and Harter (1980), a research proposal is a document that describes the
essential features of a study to be conducted in the future, as well as the strategy detailing
how the research inquiry may be logically and successfully accomplished. It is a structured
presentation of what the researcher plans to do and how in terms of looking forward to what a
researcher intends to do in future. The proposal lays out the problem for research, describes
exactly how the research will be conducted and gives an outline in precise detail of also the
resources the researcher will use to achieve the desired results (Leedey & Omro, 2010). It
deals with the ideas of the researcher, what needs to be done, sets objectives, methodology,
how much time is feasible for the study and how the research findings will be reported. A
research proposal is a summary or the plan for conducting a research and makes the
researcher's intentions to do some research work. Below, the usefulness of a research
proposal will be evaluated.

Usefulness of a research proposal

According to Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill (2003), the proposal provides the following
details;
 The research problem
The research proposal is intended to clarify the nature of the problem to be investigated. It
provides clarity as to the key issue to be researched, which is the main issue and why there is
a need to do a research (Boyd, Westfall & Stasch, 2005). One might notice that without any
problem identified, the existence of a research is null and void. For example, in the context of
Econet where the organization was experiencing declining sales especially in voice, data and
SMS traffic, the need of research rose which needed a detailed description of the business
problem and the research problem. The research problem helps in identifying new insight,
characteristics of the issue and assists in identifying exactly what you want to answer at the
end (Grant & Osanloo, 2014). The proposal, with the research problem, will clarify to the
reader why the researcher is doing research and what needs to be solved hence the reason
why the research proposal is useful in research.

 Justification for the study

According to Sudheesh, Duggappa, and Nethra (2016), the research proposal provides a
justification for the main research project by clearly indicating the contributions which the
findings of the research will bring. These include and are not limited to; adding to the body of
knowledge in academa, helping the student to graduate, helping the company to see the
problem clearly and so on. It indicates possible contribution to a specific context or area of
study. For instance, Econet’s problem would focus on researching on marketing techniques
and sales techniques areas. It also convinces the research supervisor, committee or university
that the proposed research is suitable for the requirement of degree program, company or
organisation and manageable given the time and resource constraints.

 Background to the study

The background gives the company the context which is surrounding the story behind a story.
It helps paint a bigger picture and highlights various factors that have driven a need to look
for answers using the research. It should highlight the knowledge gaps. It opens up the
context and setting of what is really happening out there up to now. In a business context, it
should allow the commissioning organisation to see that the researcher understands the bigger
picture and other circumstances surrounding the problem or opportunity (Crowe, Cresswell,
Robertson, Huby, Avery, & Sheikh, 2011). Hence the background forms part of the
introduction of the story behind the problem and how it relates to the organization. It
therefore makes the proposal very important.

 Research Objectives
The proposal provides the objectives on what the research intends to achieve (Boyd, Westfall
& Stasch, 2005). These point out the exact areas that need to be attended to so to guide the
entire research project. It is through the proposal that these are identified from the research
problem and research questions developed from these, including hypothesis. These objectives
are in most cases split into two being the main objectives and sub objectives. These
objectives bring forward clearly what a study needs to answer. For Econet, these objectives
might focus on the reasons why sales decline, and look at strategies that may help alleviate
those challenges.

 Time line
The proposal will give us the timeline of how long the research is going to take. In a business
context, certain decision might need to be implemented within a certain period and therefore
the proposal will outline the feasibility of this outline (Watt, 2014). It will specify the work
plan. For example, Econet will specify the timeline to ensure that the research is completed
within a specified time before important factors change significantly hence the need for the
proposal to state so. In the event they are planning to launch a new product, this research
would have highlighted the time constraints.

 Budget
The proposal makes it clear on how much the research will cost. It will inform Econet how
much to budget for the project. It will also help Econet evaluate and choose less expensive
options and methods to conduct the study since it clearly details expenses involved such as
stationery, transport costs, interview costs, charges from the researchers and so on. This
detailed cost outline will help the company evaluate if the study fits into the available budget
and make adjustments if need be.

 Limitations and delimitations

The proposal also outlines anything that will affect the research’s success. This could be the
scope of the study, the timeline or the area studied. This helps in coming up with plans to
limit the effects of these limitations in time. For example, if Econet’s research study focuses
on Bulawayo alone, then that is a limitation. In academic research, other limitations to a study
can be funds which may be limited. Even in business, Econet might not have the finances to
conduct a huge research project. Eventually, the proposal would estimate these which makes
it very useful.

 Ethical considerations
The proposal also clearly outlines everything that will be done so that it is done in the most
ethical manner possible. It outlines the steps the researcher will take to remain ethical such as
informed consent, and maintaining strict confidentiality. The proposal also informs the
company on the steps to be taken to ensure that the research is aligned to ethical principles.
For instance, it can attest to the researcher going for informed consent, no invasion of privacy
to the individual, ensuring protection of participants from harm and many more (Babie,
2017).
 Validity and reliability
Reliability is the extent to which repetition of study would result in the same data and
conclusion (Chiang, 2015). The proposal clearly highlights the steps to be taken to ensure the
research measures what it has to measure in terms of the preciseness or accuracy (Mohajan,
2017). It helps ensure that there is certainty and that the results that will come out as desired.
For instance, an example proposing a pilot study to test questionnaires would be a tool to
ensure validity and reliability of a study hence the proposal will propose this.

 Credentials
The proposal can inform us about the credentials of the agency, and their experience
(Johnson-Sheehan, 2008). They highlight their track record and traceable references, as most
companies do not have their own research department or enough resources but rather rely on
agencies. In business context, this assists in the selection choice as a company might want to
use the best available agency to produce the best results. The proposal shows the importance
of this.

Conclusion
The research proposal is a document that is forward looking and loos at providing a
framework for a research project. It is useful in clearly projecting the various elements that
are important to decision makers which helps with the decision of whether not to go ahead
with the project or to go ahead. It also shows clarity as to the various elements that will be
involved.
QUESTION 2
Discuss the policy of academic dishonesty (25 marks)

Introduction

Academic dishonesty is referred to as committing or making a contribution to dishonest acts

by those engaged in learning, teaching, research, and any other related academic activities,
and this applies not only just to students, but rather everyone in the academia (Cizek, 2003;
Whitley Grand & Spinel, 2002). Bachore (2016) notes that this practice is most often
considered to be a very serious offence weather committed intentionally or otherwise. Other
scholars however seem to argue that most students view this academic practice as normal
behaviour when in actual fact it is a violation of academic integrity emanating from
dishonesty or misconduct (Hughes & Eaton, 2022). It is therefore crucial to ensure that
policies are put in place so as to avoid harm not only to students and lecturers, but also
academic institutions, professional bodies, and even organisations.

TYPES OF ACADEMIC DISHONESTY THAT NEED TO BE COVERED BY THE

POLICY

The policy of academic dishonesty is indeed necessary and important in the research field. It
allows for the creation of honest and credible research that is based on sound scientific
evidence. It allows for research practitioners to be able to fully ensure that students and
research professional add to the body of knowledge and contribute to growth of many
professions, individuals, institutions as well as organisations thereby benefitting society as a
whole (Darling-Hammond, Flook, Cook-Harvey, Barron & Osher, 2020). These policies on
dishonesty are meant to avoid the following ills and their undesirable outcomes.
 1. Cheating
This involves the unauthorised use of information, materials, sources, practices and otherwise
in completing any form of academic activity (Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2003). For
example, a student allowing another student to copy from his or her work is considered form
of facilitation to or contributing to cheating. It also extends to using sources that extend
beyond those recommended or authorised by the lecturer. Engaging in any behaviour
prohibited by an academic body as well as having a student submit work done by other
students as if it their own is part of cheating. These practices are damaging to the research
profession as the authenticity of a student’s academic competency becomes questionable. The
student or researcher that engages in such acts will ultimately have a false academic
achievement record.

2. Plagiarism
Plagiarism involves a researcher using another scholar ,researcher's work and passing it as
their own , without acknowledging who the actual source is .This material may include but is
not limited to ,use of ideas or concepts that may be written down ,use of notes written by
others, recorded information and getting some ideas from computerised programs without
acknowledging the source or author as the originator of the work. There are basically four
common forms of plagiarism in accordance to Jones (2007), which are the following;

 Unauthorised an or unacknowledged collaborative work

This occurs when one researcher fails to acknowledge the work done with others together
(Babie, 2017). This is mostly collaborative work which is work done by people as a group
and accordingly, all authors must be acknowledged. For example when there are three
authors contributing to a particular study, the idea of acknowledging some and leaving others
automatically surmounts to plagiarism. These policies therefore are critical in attempting to
ensure that research work is scientific and based on bringing in new knowledge (Resnik,
2020). It is important to acknowledge the articles of scholars working together not only for
academic and professional reasons but also as a matter of maintaining the standards and
credibility of the research profession.

 Attempting to pass of work belonging to others as your own

This is a severe form of violations to academic integrity since it amounts to having an in
genuine study. The whole notion of research is to fill in gaps of knowledge and contribute to
the knowledge bank of society (Qi, Xuejiao & WangChen, 2020). Such conduct therefore
means that a student or researcher has contributed absolutely nothing and therefore the study
is irrelevant. The effect is that someone will be prejudiced and at the same time the student or
researcher claims credit for what is not rightfully theirs thereby impacting on their academic
growth and development.

 The use of text that is not properly paraphrased

This involves paraphrasing wrongly on work which can be considered as a form of copying
(Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2003). The whole notion of paraphrasing is to show that
someone or a student has learnt from someone’s work and is therefore able to produce a
different view. This means that in the context of students, the student has not leant anything
and simply regurgitates someone else‘s work. The idea of education is to learn from others
and not copy or memorise theory.

 The use of text that is properly paraphrased but improperly cited

This emanates from properly paraphrasing someone's idea or work but then failing to provide
proper citation (Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2003). The fact that someone has paraphrased
someone's idea does not mean it becomes their idea since it is necessary to acknowledge the
original source. This is a type of cheating in which someone adopts another person's ideas as
their own without acknowledging the source or at least obtaining permission from the author
(Soiferman, 2016). For example, to copy and paste material from a website into ones’ own
document without proper citation.

3. Fabrication or falsification
This involves altering information or reporting results that are different from the findings
obtained from a particular study (Barkie, 2019). It also includes unauthorised alteration of
information, creation or alteration of information in an academic document. For example,
when a researcher or student artificially creates data when actually it should have been
collected from an actual experiment. It can also extend to making up a source of information
that does not exist. Falsification on the other hand involves deliberately altering or changing
results to suit one's needs in a research or another academic exercise. This misrepresenting
results to one’s own research through modification of research data to show a non-existent
correlation that would support a preferred hypothesis means that research work becomes
invalid and kills the integrity of the research profession.

4. Tampering

This involves stopping other researchers from accessing information by destroying or

damaging educational materials (Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2003). This also includes
gaining or using unauthorised computer data, and the subsequent alteration of computer data.
It can also extend to a form of sabotage through damaging or destroying library materials or
resources and preventing use by others.

5. Sabotage
Sabotage involves disrupting or destroying another person's work so that the other person
cannot complete an academic activity successfully. It is a form of malpractice since for
instance destroying another person's work is considered sabotage. Moreover, failure to
contribute to a team project can also be considered as academic sabotage. Meek (2012) adds
that abuse and destruction of materials which would end in a student not being able to use
them amounts to academic dishonesty.

6. Ensuring ethical compliance

The policy on academic dishonesty is also very crucial in ensuring that researchers in any
field are capable of following sound ethical principles anchored on the universal set of
research principles. Babie (2017) states that these include the following in accordance with:

- Informed consent
Respondents have to be informed on the nature and purpose of the study prior to
participation.
 - No harm to participants
Research should not harm subjects in any way both mentally and physically

- Privacy and confidentiality

The rights of subjects to privacy has to be respected at all times. There in formation should be
kept confidential as per the privacy laws

- Conflict
The researcher has to make it possible for there to be no conflict with the respondents during
the time of undertaking the research

- Respondent rights
The respondent has a right to refuse to participate in the study, to answer certain questions
or withdraw from the study at any time.

Conclusion

Academic dishonesty is both a curse and an evil to the profession, it limits the ability of
students to reach their full potential as they tend to take unnecessary short cuts likely to
impact on them in future. Not only is it harmful to students, but it also hurts the reputation of
academic institutions as well as the research profession in general. Having such policies in
place can go a long way in alleviating this challenge which is very rampant and a thorny issue
to the profession.
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