Slide 2.
Lecture 2
Formulating and clarifying the research topic
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.2
Formulating and clarifying your research
topic
The important steps
• Identifying the attributes of a good research topic
• Generating ideas that help you select a suitable
topic
• Turning ideas into clear research questions and
objectives
• Writing your research proposal
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.3
Attributes of a good research topic (1)
Capability: is it feasible?
• Are you fascinated by the topic?
• Do you have the necessary research skills?
• Can you complete the project in the time available?
• Will the research still be current when you finish?
• Do you have sufficient financial and other resources?
• Will you be able to gain access to data?
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.4
Attributes of a good research topic (2)
Appropriateness: is it worthwhile?
• Will the examining institute's standards be met?
• Does the the topic contain issues with clear links to
theory?
• Are the research questions and objectives clearly
stated?
• Will the proposed research provide fresh insights into the
topic?
• Are the findings likely to be symmetrical?
• Does the research topic match your career goals?
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.5
Attributes of a good research topic (3)
And - (if relevant)
Does the topic relate clearly to an idea
you were given -
possibly by your organisation ?
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.6
Generating research ideas
Useful Techniques
Rational thinking Creative thinking
• Examining your own strength • Keeping a notebook of your
and interests ideas
• Examining staff research • Exploring personal preferences
interests using past projects
• Looking at past project titles • Exploring relevance to business
• Discussions using the literature
• Searching the literatures • Relevance tree
• Canning the media • brainstorming
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.7
Relevance Tree
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.8
Relevance Tree
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.9
Refining research ideas
• Using the Delphi Technique
• Conducting a preliminary study
• Continually testing out your ideas
• Integrating ideas
• Refining topics given to you by your organisation
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.10
More frequently used techniques for
generating and refining research
ideas
• Rational thinking
• Examining your own strengths - It is important that you choose a topic in which
you are likely to do well and, if possible, already have some academic knowledge.
• Looking at past project titles - A common way of doing this is to scan a list of past
project titles for anything that captures your imagination.
• Discussion - Colleagues, friends and university tutors are all good sources of
possible project ideas.
• Searching the literature - These include reading articles in academic and
professional journals; reports; or books.
• Creative thinking
• Keeping a notebook of ideas and interests - All this involves is simply noting
down any interesting research ideas as you think of them and, of equal
importance, what sparked off your thought.
• Exploring personal preferences using past projects -Select few projects that you
like, note down your first thoughts, What appeals to you about the project, What
is good about the project, Why is the project good etc.
• Relevance trees - you start with a broad concept from which you generate
further (usually more specific) topics
• Brainstorming - a problem-solving technique on many business and management
courses, can also be used to generate and refine research ideas.
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.11
Writing research questions
Write research questions that are
• Consistent with expected standards
• Able to produce clear conclusions
• At the right level ( not too difficult )
• Not too descriptive
• Use the ‘Goldilocks Test’ : too big, too small, too hot,
just right
Clough and Nutbrown (2002)
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.12
Turning ideas into research projects (1)
Examples of research ideas
and their derived focus questions
Table 2.2 Examples of research ideas and their derived focus research
questions
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.13
Turning ideas into research projects (2)
Useful techniques
• Start with a general focus question
• Use the ‘Russian Doll’ principle to reach the essence of
the question
• Discuss areas of interest with your tutor
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.14
Turning ideas into research projects (3)
Writing clear research objectives
• Check your examining body’s preferences for
stated objectives
• Use a general focus question to achieve precise
objectives
Saunders et al. (2009)
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.15
Turning ideas into research projects (4)
Include SMART Personal objectives
S pecific
M easurable
A chievable
R ealistic
T imely
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.16
The importance of theory
• Asking for opinions and gathering facts – 'what' questions
(descriptive research)
• Using questions that go beyond description and require
analysis – 'why' questions
Phillips and Pugh (2005)
In order to:
Explain phenomena Analyse relationships
Predict outcomes Compare and generalise
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.17
Threefold typology of theories
Grand, middle range and substantive theories
Creswell (2002)
Figure 2.1 Grand, middle-range and substantive theories
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.18
Writing your research proposal
Purposes of the research proposal
• To organise your ideas
• To convince your audience
• To contract with your client (your tutor or
commercial client)
• To meet ethical requirements
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.19
Content of your research proposal (1)
• Title - likely to change during the process
• Background - context within the literature
• Research questions and objectives - what you
seek to achieve
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.20
Content of your research proposal (2)
• Method - can be in two parts: research design and
data collection
• Timescale and Resources - (finance, data access,
equipment)
• References - include some key literature sources
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.21
Gantt chart to illustrate Timescale
of your research project (just an
example)
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.22
Evaluating research proposals
• How the components of the proposal fit together
• Viability of the proposal
• Absence of preconceived ideas
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.23
PROGRESSING YOUR RESEARCH
PROJECT - From research ideas to a
research proposal
• If you have not been given a research idea, consider the techniques
available for generating and refining research ideas. Choose a
selection of those with which you feel most comfortable, making
sure to include both rational and creative thinking techniques. Use
these to try to generate a research idea or ideas.
• Evaluate your research ideas
• Refine your research ideas using a selection of the techniques
available for generating and refining research ideas.
• Use your research idea to write a general focus research question.
Where possible this should be a ‘why?’ or a ‘how?’ rather than a
‘what?’ question
• Use the general focus research question to write more detailed
research questions and your research objectives.
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
Slide 2.24
PROGRESSING YOUR RESEARCH
PROJECT - From research ideas to a
research proposal
• Write your research proposal making sure it includes a clear title and
sections on:
• the background to your research;
• your research questions and objectives;
• the method you intend to use;
• the timescale for your research;
• the resources you require;
• references to any literature to which you have referred.
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods for Business Students, 5th Edition, © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill 2009
