PMGT 6202: BUSINESS RESEARCH METHODS

Introduction
Professor Dr. Mohammad Rafiul Azam Khan, Department of Management Studies, BRUR
 Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
TEXT BOOK
C.R. Kothari;
Research Methodology:
Methods and Techniques
Second Revised Edition
REFERENCE BOOK
Uma Sekaram
Research Methodology for Business

Donald R. Cooper and Pamela S. Scindler

Business Research Methods

W. G. Zikmund
Business Research Methods
Research: Definition
Research
Re — once more, afresh, anew
— back; with the return to a previous
state
Search — look through or go over thoroughly to
look for something
— examine to find anything concealed
research is a movement from the unknown to the
known.
It is a voyage of discovery.
Research is a careful investigation or inquiry,
especially through the search for new facts in any
branch of knowledge.
- The Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current
English

Research is a systematized effort to gain new

knowledge.
- Redman and Mory
Research is a scientific and systematic search
for pertinent/important information on a specific
topic.
Research is the art of scientific investigation.
 Research is an
ORGANIZED and
SYSTEMATIC way
of FINDING
ANSWERS to
QUESTIONS.
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 SYSTEMATIC
Research is systematic because there is a
definite set of procedures and steps that you
will follow. There are certain things in the
research process which are always done in
order to get the most accurate results.

 ORGANIZED

There is a structure or method in going

about doing research. It is a planned
procedure, not a spontaneous one. It is
focused and limited to a specific scope.
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  QUESTIONS
Questions are central to the research. If there is no
question, then the answer is of no use. Research is
focused on relevant, useful, and important questions.
Without a question, research has no focus, drive, or
purpose.

 FINDING ANSWERS

Answers is the end of all research. Whether it is the

answer to a hypothesis or even a simple question,
research is successful when we find answers.
Sometimes the answer is no, but it is still an answer.
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Research Methodology
It may be understood as a science of studying
how research is done scientifically. In it, we study
the various steps that are generally adopted by
researchers in studying his/her research
problems, along with the logic behind them.
Purpose of Research

The purpose of research is to discover answers to

questions through the application of scientific
procedures. The main aim of the research is to
find out the truth which is hidden and which has
not been discovered as yet.
Though each research study has its own specific
purpose, we may think of research objectives as
falling into a number of following broad
groupings:
 To gain familiarity with a phenomenon or to achieve
new insights into it (studies with this object in view are
termed exploratory research studies).
 To reveal accurately the characteristics of a particular
individual, situation, or group (studies with this object
in view are known as descriptive research studies).
 To determine the frequency with which something
occurs or with which it is associated with something
else (studies with this object in view are known as
diagnostic research studies)
 To test a hypothesis of a causal relationship between
variables (such studies are known as hypothesis-testing
research studies).
Motivation in Research
What makes people to undertake research? This is a
question of fundamental importance. The possible motives
for doing research may be either one or more of the
following:
1. Desire to get a research degree along with its
significant benefits.
2. Desire to face the challenge in solving unsolved
problems, i.e., concern over practical problems,
initiates research.
3. Desire to get the intellectual joy of doing some creative
work.
4. Desire to be of service to society.
Types of Research
Basic types of research:
a. Fundamental vs. Applied Research
b. Descriptive vs. Analytical Research
c. Quantitative vs. Qualitative Research
d. Conceptual vs. Empirical Research
Fundamental Research
 Fundamental research means experimental or theoretical
work undertaken primarily to acquire new knowledge of
the underlying foundations of phenomena and observable
facts without any direct practical application or use in
view.
 Known as basic or pure research.
 It does not usually generate findings that have immediate
applications at a practical level.
 Fundamental research is driven by curiosity and the
desire to expand knowledge in a specific research area.
 Fundamental research is mainly concerned with
generalizations and with the formulation of a theory.
 This type of research makes a specific contribution to
the academic body of knowledge in the research area.
 Fundamental studies tend to make generalizations about
the phenomenon, and the philosophy of this type of study
can be explained as ‘gathering knowledge for the sake of
knowledge.’
 Fundamental researches aim to answer the questions of
why, what, or how, and they tend to contribute to the
pool of fundamental knowledge in the research area.
 For example, development of research methods,
propagation of new theories, and conduction of academic
research studies.
Applied Research
 Applied Research aims at finding solution for an
immediate practical problem facing a society or an
industry/ business organizations.
 Known as a decisional research.
 Attempts to use existing knowledge to resolve the current
problem.
 Applied research is usually launched by a company,
agency, or individual in order to address a specific
problem.
Example
 What are the customer needs, expectations, and
problems associated with new offerings by a particular
business entity?
 A study into how to improve customer retention levels for
nationalized banks in Bangladesh.
 An investigation into ways to improve employee
motivation in RDA, Bangladesh.
Descriptive Research
 Descriptive research includes surveys and fact-finding
inquiries of different kinds.
 The major purpose of descriptive research is the
description of the state of affairs as it exists at present.
 The main characteristic of this method is that the
researcher has no control over the variables; he can only
report what has happened or what is happening.
 Attempts by researchers to discover causes even when
they cannot control the variables.
 There is no control over variables in descriptive research.
 For example, frequency of shopping, preferences of
people, or similar data.
Analytical Research
 In analytical research, the researcher has to use facts or
information already available and analyze these to make
a critical evaluation of the material.
 A variety of people, including students, doctors, and
psychologists, use analytical research during studies to
find the most relevant information.
 Examples
 How conjugal life affects the TV viewing habits of
housewives.
 Impact of Facebooking habit on teenagers.
Quantitative Research
 Quantitative research describes, infers, and resolves
problems using quantity or numbers.
 Emphasis is placed on the collection of numerical data,
the summary of those data, and the drawing of
inferences from the data.
Qualitative Research
 Qualitative research is concerned with qualitative
phenomena, i.e., phenomena relating to or involving
quality or kind.
 Qualitative research is especially important in the
behavioral sciences, where the aim is to discover the
underlying motives of human behavior.
 There are several sources of qualitative data, including
archival records, artifacts, participant observation (which
can be either covert or overt), interviews, and focus
groups.
 For instance, when we are interested in investigating
the reasons for human behavior (i.e., why people think or
Conceptual Research
 Related to some abstract ideas or theory.
 Used by philosophers and thinkers to develop new
concepts or re-interpret existing ones.
 The conceptual researcher sits at his desk with a pen in
hand and tries to solve these problems by thinking
about them.
Empirical Research
 Empirical research is the experimental method, which is a
systematic and scientific approach to research in which the
researcher manipulates one or more variables and controls and
measures any change in other variables.
 Empirical research relies on experience or observation alone,
often without due regard for system and theory.
 It is data-based research, coming up with conclusions that are
capable of being verified by observation or experiment.
 We can also call it an experimental type of research.
 In such research, the researcher must first provide himself with a
working hypothesis or guess the probable results. He then works
to get enough facts (data) to prove or disprove his hypothesis.
 Empirical research is appropriate when proof is sought that
Research Process
Before embarking on the details of research methodology
and techniques, it seems appropriate to present a brief
overview of the research process.
The research process consists of a series of actions or
steps necessary to effectively carry out research and the
desired sequencing of these steps.
However, the following order concerning various steps
provides a useful procedural guideline regarding the
research process:
1. Formulating the research problem
2. Extensive literature survey
3. Developing the hypothesis
a. Discussions with colleagues and experts about the
problem, its origin, and the objectives in seeking a
solution.
b. Examination of data and records, if available,
concerning the problem for possible trends,
peculiarities, and other clues.
c. Review of similar studies in the area or of the studies
on similar problems.
d. Exploratory personal investigation involves original
field interviews on a limited scale with interested
parties and individuals with a view to secure greater
insight into the practical aspects of the problem.
4. Preparing the research design
The preparation of the research design, appropriate for a
particular research problem, involves usually the
consideration of the following:
a. The means of obtaining the information.
b. The availability and skills of the researcher and his staff
(if any).
c. Explanation of the way in which selected means of
obtaining information will be organized and the reasoning
leading to the selection.
d. The time available for research; and
e. The cost factor relating to research, i.e., the finance
available for the purpose.
5. Determining sample design
a. Deliberate sampling
b. Simple random sampling
c. Systematic sampling
d. Stratified sampling
e. Quota sampling
f. Cluster sampling and area sampling
g. Multi-stage sampling
h. Sequential sampling
6. Collecting the data
a. Questionnaire survey
b. Interviewing
c. Observation
d. Focus grouped discussion
e. Document review
7. Execution of the project
8. Analysis of data
a. Coding
b. Editing
c. Tabulating
9. Hypothesis testing
a. Test of hypothesis (Chi-square test, t-test, z-test, F- test,
etc.)
b. Multiple regression analysis
c. Factor analysis
d. SEM, etc.
10.Generalizations and interpretations, and
11.Preparation of the report or presentation of the
results, i.e., formal write-up of conclusions
reached.
a. The preliminary pages
Acknowledgement
Foreword/ Abstract
Table of contents
b. The main text
Introduction
Summary of findings
Main report
Conclusion
c. The end matter.
Appendices
Bibliography
RESEARCH PROCESS FLOW CHART
FF
FF
Review concepts
Define and theories Design research
Formulate Collect data
research (including
Review previous hypotheses (Execution)
problem sample design)
research findings
F

Analyze data
(Test hypothesis
if any)

Interpret
F
and report
F Feed back FF Feed forward
Criteria of Good Research
1. The purpose of the research should be clearly defined,
and common concepts be used.
2. The research procedure used should be described in
sufficient detail to permit another researcher to repeat
the research for further advancement, keeping the
continuity of what has already been attained.
3. The procedural design of the research should be
carefully planned to yield results that are as objective
as possible.
4. The researcher should report with complete frankness,
flaws in procedural design and estimate their effects
upon the findings.
5. The analysis of data should be sufficiently adequate to
reveal its significance and the methods of analysis used
should be appropriate. The validity and reliability of the
data should be checked carefully.
6. Conclusions should be confined to those justified by the
data of the research and limited to those for which the
data provide an adequate basis.
7. Greater confidence in research is warranted if the
researcher is experienced, has a good reputation in
research, and is a person of integrity.
In other words, we can state the qualities of good research
as under:
1. Good research is systematic
2. Good research is logical
3. Good research is empirical
4. Good research is replicable
Problems Encountered by Researchers
1. The lack of scientific training in the methodology of
research.
2. There is insufficient interaction between the university
research departments on one side and business
establishments, government departments, and research
institutions on the other side.
3. Most of the business units in our country do not have
the confidence that the material supplied by them to
researchers will not be misused, and as such, they are
often reluctant to supply the needed information to
researchers.
4. Research studies overlapping one another are
5. There does not exist a code of conduct for researchers
and inter-university and interdepartmental rivalries are
also quite common.
6. Many researchers in our country also face the difficulty
of adequate and timely secretarial assistance, including
computer assistance.
7. Library management and functioning are not
satisfactory in many places, and much of the time and
energy of researchers are spent in tracing out the books,
journals, reports, etc., rather than in tracing out relevant
material from them.
8. There is also the problem that many of our libraries are
not able to get copies of old and new Acts/Rules, reports,
9. There may, at times, be the problem of conceptualization
and also problems relating to the process of data
collection and related things.
10.There is also the difficulty of timely availability of
published data from various government and other
agencies doing this job in our country.
THANK
YOU