Descriptive Research

SI’s Fading Jeans and Market

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As of now, SI’s is a leading global apparel company, with sales in more than 110 countries. It
has been a long standing company with over 150 years of being in the clothing industry. While
one may think this long history can only results in good things. SI’s heritage has its worst
enemy. Philip Marinau, the President and Chief Operating officer for SI’S Strauss Co., had to
work hard to revamp Strauss antique image and make the brand appealing to younger
generation in order to boost its declining sales. In the last five years, Philip saw worldwide
sales drop 40 per cent, losing market share to competitors like the Gap and trendier ones
such as Calvin Klein, Tommy Highflier and Diesel. Another problem to Philip came from store
brand jeans such as JC Penny’s Arizona brand jeans or the Gaps in-house brand which have
changed their image and launched an assault on big brand name like Strauss Co. These store
brand jeans along with other store label jeans, now target the teenage market with cutting
edge advertising. The industry experts claims that brand has lost about 50 per cent of the
younger consumer market worldwide during last couple of years.
If you are Philip, what type of research would you
want to conduct to understand the reasons of
decline in sales and appropriate strategy of sales
recovery?
 Mini Case

Customer Preference, Motivation and

Patronage towards a Departmental Store: A
Study on Westside
 Research Questions
1. What criteria do households use when selecting
department stores?
2. Which stores are patronized when shopping for
specific product categories?
3. What is the demographic and psychological
profile of the customers of Westside? Does it
differ from the profile of customers of competing
stores?
Descriptive Research
•What is the Descriptive Research?
This type of research involves either identifying the characteristics of
an observed phenomenon or exploring possible correlations among
two or more. It primarily concerned with finding out “what is”, solving
the problems through the interoperation of the data that has been
gathered, (answering the questions who, what, where...)

• Descriptive“ what is the current situation?”

– Numerical data gathered through tests, surveys, observations,
interviews
– variables are not manipulated but are measured as they occur
– Subgroups may be compared on some measure
– Two or more variables of a group may be correlated
– Doesn’t attempt to identify cause of differences or relationships

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Descriptive Research
•What the Descriptive Research can be used for?
Descriptive studies have an important role in social science research,
such as business, government, public health, sociology and education
research.

• Can be applied to investigate questions such as:

– Do Consumers hold favorable attitudes toward using Kindle in
schools?
– What kind of products are preferred by consumers living in
countryside?
– How have the TV watching behaviour changed over the last 10 years?
– Is there a relationship between experience with multimedia
computers and contents on facebook page?
– What is the relationship between employee motivation and
distribution efficiency in a given territory?

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 Overview of Descriptive Research
• Focused towards the present
– Gathering information and describing the current
situation
– May or may not involve hypothesis testing
• Answers the question “What is?”
• Many types of research fall within this
classification
 Types of Descriptive Research

• Survey
– Longitudinal approach
– Cross-sectional approach
• Case Study
• Observational (a.k.a. qualitative)
 Survey Research Methodology
In survey research, respondents answer through surveys
or questionnairesIn survey research, respondents answer through
surveys or questionnaires or pollsIn survey research, respondents
answer through surveys or questionnaires or polls. They are a
popular research tool to collect feedback from respondents. A
study to gather useful data should have the right survey questions.
It should be a balanced mix of open-ended questionsIn survey
research, respondents answer through surveys
or questionnaires or polls. They are a popular research tool to
collect feedback from respondents. A study to gather useful data
should have the right survey questions. It should be a balanced
mix of open-ended questions and close ended-questions. The
survey method can be conducted online or offline, making it the
go-to option for descriptive research where the sample size is
 Census vs Survey
A survey which obtains responses from the
entire population is called a census
 General Survey
Data Collection Methods

• Interviews
• Questionnaires
 Interview Methods
• Phone interview
– Common in marketing research
• Personal interview
– Applicable if the sample is small and accessible
– Structured, semi-structured, or unstructured interview
– Recording of information

• An interview schedule or guide contains the questions to be

read to the respondent during an interview as well as a place
for recording the answers
 Questionnaires
• A questionnaire is a self-report instrument that is
generally mailed or handed to the respondent to
complete with no help from the researcher
– Administered questionnaire
• Respondents are directly given the questionnaire
– Distributed questionnaire
• Questionnaire is mailed or electronically delivered
• Majority of survey research in social sciences
uses a questionnaire as data-collection technique
 Survey Research Errors
• Information obtained from a survey depends on the questions
that are asked, on how the respondents react to the
questions, and on what respondents choose to reveal about
themselves
• Researchers are somewhat limited in their ability to assess
the quality of the findings since there is usually no way of
checking the accuracy or truthfulness of the responses
• Gathering meaningful information is difficult because survey
research is particularly susceptible to two types of errors:
– Nonsampling errors
– Sampling errors
 Nonsampling Errors
Nonsampling errors have several sources including
any differences in the way the researcher and the
respondents interpret questions, the inability or
unwillingness of the respondents to provide correct
or honest information, mistakes made when
recording or coding the responses, and missing
responses
– controlling response errors when subjects provide incorrect or false
information is particularly difficult since they depend on the behavior of
the respondents, something that is beyond the control of the researcher
– controlling processing and data collection errors can be largely controlled
by the researcher
 Sampling Errors
Sampling errors are those errors resulting from
any differences between the data obtained from
the sample, and the data that would have been
obtained from the complete population
– this is the type of error made from inferring a population characteristic
based on a sample
 Case Study
involve in-depth research and study of individuals or groups.
Case studies lead to a hypothesis and widen a further scope of
studying a phenomenon. However, case studies should not be
used to determine cause and effect as they can’t make accurate
predictions because there could be a bias on the researcher’s
part. The other reason why case studies are not a reliable way of
conducting descriptive research is that there could be an atypical
respondent in the survey. Describing them leads to weak
generalizations and moving away from external validity.
Observation
 Observation Methods Structured Versus Unstructured
Observation
• For structured observation, the researcher specifies in
detail what is to be observed and how the
measurements are to be recorded, e.g., an auditor
performing inventory analysis in a store.

• In unstructured observation, the observer monitors all

aspects of the phenomenon that seem relevant to the
problem at hand, e.g., observing children playing with
new toys.
 Observation Methods Disguised Versus Undisguised
Observation

• In disguised observation, the respondents are unaware

that they are being observed. Disguise may be
accomplished by using one-way mirrors, hidden
cameras, or inconspicuous mechanical devices.
Observers may be disguised as shoppers or sales clerks.

• In undisguised observation, the respondents are aware

that they are under observation.
 Observation Methods
Natural Versus Contrived Observation

• Natural observation involves observing behavior as it

takes places in the environment. For example, one
could observe the behavior of respondents eating fast
food at Mic Mac.

• In contrived observation, respondents' behavior is

observed in an artificial environment, such as a test
kitchen.
 A Classification of Observation Methods

Classifying
Observation
Methods

Observation Methods

Personal Mechanical Audit Content Trace

Observation Observation Analysis Analysis
 Observation Methods: Personal
Observation
• A researcher observes actual behavior as it occurs.
• The observer does not attempt to manipulate the
phenomenon being observed but merely records
what takes place.
• For example, a researcher might record traffic counts
and observe traffic flows in a department store.
 Observation Methods: Mechanical
Observation
Do not require respondents' direct
participation.
– The AC Nielsen audimeter
– Turnstiles that record the number of people entering or leaving
a building.
– On-site cameras (still, motion picture, or video)
– Optical scanners in supermarkets

Do require respondent involvement.

– Eye-tracking monitors
– Pupilometers
– Psychogalvanometers
– Voice pitch analyzers
– Devices measuring response latency
 Observation Methods: Audit
• The researcher collects data by examining physical records
or performing inventory analysis.
• Data are collected personally by the researcher.
• The data are based upon counts, usually of physical
objects.
• Retail and wholesale audits conducted by marketing
research suppliers.
 Observation Methods: Content
Analysis
• The objective, systematic, and quantitative description
of the manifest content of a communication.
• The unit of analysis may be words, characters
(individuals or objects), themes (propositions), space
and time measures (length or duration of the message),
or topics (subject of the message).
• Analytical categories for classifying the units are
developed and the communication is broken down
according to prescribed rules.
 Observation Methods: Trace
Analysis
Data collection is based on physical traces, or
evidence, of past behavior.
■ The selective erosion of tiles in a museum indexed by the replacement
rate was used to determine the relative popularity of exhibits.
■ The number of different fingerprints on a page was used to gauge the
readership of various advertisements in a magazine.
■ The position of the radio dials in cars brought in for service was used
to estimate share of listening audience of various radio stations.
■ The age and condition of cars in a parking lot were used to assess the
affluence of customers.
■ The magazines people donated to charity were used to determine
people's favorite magazines.
■ Internet visitors leave traces which can be analyzed to examine
browsing and usage behavior by using cookies.
 A Comparative Evaluation of Observation
Methods
Criteria Personal Mechanical Audit Content Trace
Observation Observation Analysis Analysis Analysis

Degree of structure Low Low to high High High Medium

Degree of disguise Medium Low to high Low High High
Ability to observe High Low to high High Medium Low
in natural setting
Observation bias High Low Low Medium Medium
Analysis bias High Low to Low Low Medium
Medium
General remarks Most Can be Expensive Limited to Method of
flexible intrusive commu- last resort
nications
 Relative Advantages of Observation
• They permit measurement of actual behavior
rather than reports of intended or preferred
behavior.
• There is no reporting bias, and potential bias
caused by the interviewer and the interviewing
process is eliminated or reduced.
• Certain types of data can be collected only by
observation.
• If the observed phenomenon occurs frequently or
is of short duration, observational methods may
be cheaper and faster than survey methods.
A state Government education department
intends to procure a knowledge management
software for its students, teachers and non
teaching staff. The concerned deptt. is
interested to understand the attitude and
perception of all stakeholders towards this
software. How would you design this study?
Parental Influence on Student’s Career Choice
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFaJsZcrz_0

TEDX TALK LINK ON OBSERVATION