Applied Research Methods

Lecture 1

Dr. Faryal Razzaq

faryal@szabist-isb.edu.pk
 What is research?
Research is what we do when we have a
question or a problem we want to resolve

But until we have subjected our problem to

rigorous scientific scrutiny, our 'knowledge'
remains little more than guesswork or at best,
intuition.

Therefore research is systematic, formulized

inquiry through a rigorous procedure
“It isn't the things we don’t know that gets
us in trouble. It’s the things we know that
aren't so.”

Artemus Ward
 BUT
Good decisions always depend upon the answers
of the following questions
• Do researcher identify where exactly the problem
lies?
• Do they correctly recognize the relevant factors in
the situation need investigation?
• Do they know what type of information are to be
gathered and how?
• Do they know to make use of the information so
correct?
• And draw appropriate conclusions to make the
right decisions, finally
• Do they know to implement the results of this
process to solve the problem?
 Fundamental Types of Research

Basic Research - generating scientific knowledge for

future use
 Basic Research attempts to expand the limits of
knowledge. It does not directly involve the solution
to a particular pragmatic problem

Applied Research - Undertaken to solve existing

problems
Applied Research is undertaken to answer questions
about specific problems or to make decisions about
a particular course of action or policy.
 Basic Research Example

Is executive success correlated with

high need for achievement?
Are members of highly cohesive work
groups more satisfied than members of
less cohesive work groups?
Do consumers experience cognitive
dissonance in low-involvement situations?
 Applied Research Example

Should McDonald’s add Italian pasta

dinners to its menu?
Business research told McDonald’s it
should not
Should McDonalds add a “Whopper
Stopper” burger to its menu?
Now being researched
 How We do Research?
First priority is to formulate your question

Then figure out how you are going to answer it

How have others answered it?
How does your proposal fit in with what
others have done?
How will you know when you have answered it?

Then you can present your answer

“The formulation of the problem is
often more essential than its
solution.”

Albert Einstein
What is an Argument?
An argument involves
the process of
establishing a claim
and then proving it
with the use of
logical reasoning,
examples, and
research. From the
Latin “arguere” which
means “to make
clear.”
An argument is a claim to persuade
the reader that is supported by
reasons or evidence.

This means that an argument is

different from a statement.
 What warrants make your
reasons relevant to your claim?
Warrants state a general principle of reasoning.
They relate the evidence to the claim it supports
 they are the extended reasons that explain why
we find the evidence convincing.
 Structurally, they connect the evidence to the
claim.
CLAIM
~WARRANT
EVIDENCE
 Questions to Consider in
Evaluating Arguments
1. What are you claiming?
2. What reasons do you have for believing that
claim?
3. On what evidence do you base these reasons?
4. What warrants (principles) make your reasons
relevant to your claim?
5. What would you say to someone who said, “But
what about…?”
From: “Argument in a Nutshell” in The Craft of Argument, concise
ed., by Joseph Williams and Gregory Colomb (New York: Longman,
2003), p. 43.
Every toddler knows that !!
 1. Observation
1. Observation
Broad area of
The research process
Broad area of
research interest
research interest
identified
identified

4.
4.
Theoretical
Theoretical
3. Problem
3. Problem Framework
Definition Framework
Definition 5.5. 6.6.
Research
Researchproblem
problem 7. Data Collection
Variables Generation Scientific
Scientific 7. Data Collection
delineated Variables Generation Analysis, and
delineated clearly ofof Research Analysis, and
clearly Research Interpretation
identified Hypothesis Design
Design Interpretation
identified Hypothesis
and
and
2. Preliminary labelled
labelled
2. Preliminary
Data Gathering
Data Gathering
Interviewing
Interviewing
Literature survey
Literature survey

8. Deduction
8. Deduction
Hypotheses substantiated?
Hypotheses substantiated?
Research question answered?
Research question answered?
 Variable

Variable:
A characteristic that may vary from one subject
to another or for one subject over time.
Example:
Ali is a male who is 38 years old. His age and
gender are variables. His age varies over time but
his gender is fixed.
 Continuous and Discontinuous
Variable

Can the values be divided into fractions?

Discontinuous  Discrete categories.
Categorical. Classificatory.
 Continuous Variables

Continuous variables have an infinite number of

values along a continuum.
Examples of continuous variables include
temperature, age, income, crime rate etc
 Discrete Variables

Instead of a continuum there are distinct

categories.
Examples of discrete variables include gender,
religion, and marital status.
The idea of levels of measurement expands on the
difference between continuous and discrete
variables.
 Explaining X and Y variables
YXvariable
variable
Dependent
Independent
Presumed effect
cause
Response
Stimulus
Predicted to
from
Consequence
Antecedent
Measured
Manipulatedoutcome
Criterion
Predictor
 New
New product
product Stock
Stock market
market
Success
Success price
price
Independent variable Dependant Variable

Quality
Quality of
of user
user
interface System
System usability
usability
interface
Independent variable Dependant Variable
 Data Quality
Qualityof
Database
basedesign
design of
information
information

Independent variable Dependant Variable

 Exploratory study

No information, similar problems solved in the

past.
In such cases extensive preliminary work needs to
be done to gain familiarity with the phenomena in
the situation.
Data gathered by questionnaire and interviews
needs exploratory study in nature.
 Exploratory Research

Secondary data

Experience survey

Pilot studies

2
 Exploratory Research
Initial research conducted to clarify and define
the nature of a problem
Does not provide conclusive evidence
Subsequent research expected
 Exploratory study Examples
Differences in ethical cultural values of
employees working in multinational organizations
of Pakistan and America.

Cosmetic Company want to get information that

how appeal for their products can be increased.
 Means of Exploration
 There are several approaches for exploratory investigation.
 In-depth-interviews (usually conversational rather than structured).
 Participation observation (to perceive firsthand what that participants
in the setting experience).
 Films, photographs, and videotape ( to capture the life of the group
under study).
 Projective techniques and psychological testing (Games, role-play,
projective measures).
 Case Studies.
 Elite Interviewing (Influential and well informed people in an
organization or community).
 Document analysis
 Exploratory study

Means of Exploration

1.Secondary Data Analysis:

first step in the exploratory study is a search of the secondary literature.

Studies made by other researchers for their own purposes represent secondary

data.

It is inefficient to discover through primary data collection or original research..

There are lot many periodicals, journals and books regarding business.

Data from secondary sources help us what need to be done? And also can be a

rich source of hypotheses.

 Means of Exploration

Focus Group
 With origins of sociology this concept is widely used in market
research since the 1980s.
 Start with broad topic and focus in on specific issues
 6 to 10 people
 Relatively homogeneous
 Similar lifestyles and experiences
 Establish a rapport (the moderator)
 Begin with broad topic
 Focus in on specific topic
 Generate discussion and interaction
 Descriptive Research
 The objective of descriptive research is to learn who, when, where and
how of a topic, the study may be simple or complex.
 The purpose is to provide an accurate snapshot of some aspect of the
environment.
 Descriptive study tries to explain relationships among variables.
 It describes the characteristics of a group of employees for example
the age, educational level, job status, and the length of service.
 A study of class in terms of senior or joiner years, gender
composition, age grouping, number of semesters left till graduation,
and number of business courses taken can be describe as descriptive
research.
 Descriptive Research
Describes characteristics of a population or
phenomenon
Some understanding of the nature of the problem
 I keep six honest serving men, (they
taught me all I knew), their names are
what, and why, and when, and how,
and where and who.”
--Rudyard Kipling

3
 Descriptive Research Example
Men’s fragrance market
1/3 size of women’s fragrance market
But growing at a faster pace
Women buy 80 % of men’s fragrances
 Casual Research
 Causal study is how one variable produces changes in another
 Study conducted to establish cause and effect relationship between
two nominal variables.
 Nominal variables: in these variables there are no necessary
relationship among the categories. Age and geographical locations.
 How one variable affects, or is responsible for changes in another
variable.
 Understanding a phenomena in terms of conditional statements of the
some form. If the scale of thermometer lower then the air is more
cooler, is slow speed related to less gasoline oil use.
 When it is necessary to show that one variable causes or determines
the value of other variables.
 Causal Research
Conducted to identify cause and effect
relationships
 Identifying Causality
A causal relationship is impossible to prove.
 Evidence of causality:
 1. The appropriate causal order of events
 2. Concomitant variation--two phenomena vary
together
 3. An absence of alternative plausible explanations
 Good Research
Hallmark of good research (Purposiveness , Rigor,
Testability, Replicability, Reliability, Precision and Confidence,
Generalizability, Parsimony, Objectivity)
Fundamental type of research (Basic, Applied)
Types of research Studies (exploratory, descriptive,
causal)
When to conduct research (time, data, importance of
decision, cost ‹ benefit)
What is a good research study ( purpose defined, detailed
process, planned research design, limitations revealed, ethical,
adequate analysis, unambiguous findings, researcher’s
experience reflected through thesis, justified conclusions)