Business Research Methods Essay

1. Distinguish among the following sets of items, and suggest the significance of each in a research context: a. Concept and construct – A concept is a generally accepted collection of meanings or characteristics that are concrete whereas a construct is image or idea invented for a particular theory or research problem; a construct is an abstract concept. To successfully perform a research, we must form common ground; hence, the need for concepts and constructs. b. Deduction and induction – a deduction is a conclusive inference while an induction is a conclusion from one or more pieces of evidence. c. Operational definition and dictionary definition – an operational definition is a definition based on measurement criteria that have empirical reference while a dictionary definition is based on synonyms. d. Concept and variable – a concept is a generally accepted collection of meanings or characteristics associated with certain events while a variable is value or set of values related to a property being studied. e. Hypothesis and proposition – A hypothesis is a is a declarative statement that states a belief while a proposition is a statement about concepts that may be regarded as true or false. f. Theory and model – a theory is a set of systematically inter-related concepts, definitions and propositions that are advanced to explain and predict phenomena while a model is a representation of a system that is constructed to study some aspect of the system. g. Scientific method and scientific attitude – The scientific method deals with rationalism and empiricism: formal structured proofs and observable, concrete data; the scientific attitude deals with curiosity 2. Describe the characteristics of the scientific method a. Direct observation of phenomena b. Clearly defined variables, methods and procedures c. Empirically testable hypotheses d. The ability to rule rival hypotheses e. Statistical justification f. Self-correcting process 3. What are the differences among the research approaches (and thinking styles) that guide the predominant kinds of studies done in operations research, marketing, finance and/or organizational behaviour? – There are six different styles of thinking: Postulational – rational and idealistic, Self-evident truth – fairly rational and idealistic, Method of authority – fairly rational and idealistic, Literary – informal and interpretative, Untested opinion – Very informal and fairly idealistic and finally, there is the scientific method which is empirical and rational. 4. Here are some terms commonly found in a management setting. Are they concepts or constructs? Give two different operational definitions for each. a. First-line supervisor – concept; person directly in charge of line workers; person reporting to unit manager b. Employee morale – construct; that which is measured by how an employee feels toward the job; that which is measured by how often an employee reports for work on time c. Assembly line – concept; area where the items are assembled; area where line workers spend most of their day d. Overdue account – concept; account balance that is past 30 days; an account where the amount owed is past 60 and less than 25% has been paid toward the balance. e. Line management – concept; person to whom all line supervisors report; head of each functional area f. Leadership – construct; quality defined by how many persons emulate this person; quality defined by a rating by asking persons how good a leader is the subject under study g. Price-earnings ratio – concept; the measure of how much an incumbent makes in reference to an average in the same job position; the amount someone makes in reference to others in similar jobs, having similar education and experience and within similar industries, in the same region. h. Union democracy- construct; the measure of how people say they have a say in the union; the measure of how the union heads have proceeded to do what the majority of the members asked. i. Ethical standards – construct; the value tha t an employee places on a variable; the untested opinion of how employees feel about the ethics within a company on a scale of 1-10. 5. In your company’s management development program, there was a heated discussion between some people who claimed: â€Å"Theory is impractical and thus no good†, and others who claimed: â€Å"Good theory is the most practical approach to problems†. What position would you take and why? – I would take neither side. Both statements have their value and can be argued at length. In support of the first statement: this falls into one of two categories: untested opinion or self-evident truth. Some say that theory is the opposite of fact and does not form a practical approach to problems, for solutions require facts. In support of the second statement: theory forms a systematic set of concepts, definitions and propositions that are advanced to explain and predict phenomena. Therefore, theory can be used as a good starting point for factual explanations. In my opinion, good theory and fact-based rationale are necessary; a good balance of both is required. 6. An automobile manufacturer observes the demand for its brand (DV) increasing per capita income increases (IV). Sales increases also follow low interest rates (MV), which ease credit conditions. Buyer purchase behaviour is seen to be dependent on age (IVV) and gender (IVV). Other factors influencing sales appear to fluctuate almost randomly (competitor advertising (EV), competitor dealer discounts (EV), introductions of new competitive models (EV)). a. If sales and per capita income are positively related, classify all variables as dependent, independent, moderating, extraneous or intervening. b. Comment on the utility of a model based on the hypothesis – DV depends directly on IV. MV is a secondary independent variable affecting the DV. The EVs are used to show variables that occur randomly or those that can be safely ignored. The IVVs are used to show variables that theoretically affect the DV, but have not actually been empirically in the study. 7. You observer the following condition: â€Å"Our female sales representative have lower customer defections than do our male sales representatives†. a. Propose the concepts and constructs you may use to study this phenomena – concepts and constructs: male definition; female definition; customer; customer defections (construct) b. How might any of these concepts/constructs be related to explanatory hypotheses? – the explanatory, or casual hypothesis, of female reps having lower customer defections than male reps can be tested by using research questions, built from concepts, constructs and definitions 8. You are the office manager of a large firm. Your company prides itself on its high quality customer service. Lately complaints have surfaced that an increased number of calls are being misrouted and dropped. Yesterday, when passing by the main reception area, you noticed the receptionist fiddling with his hearing aid. In the process, a call came in and would have gone unanswered if not for your intervention. The particular receptionist had earned a poor review for the last 3 months. Your inclination is to urge this 20-year employee to retire or to fire him. You know the individual is well liked and is seen as a fixture in the company. a. Pose several hypotheses that might account for dropped or misrouted calls. – the employee is too old to handle the load; employee cannot afford a proper hearing aid, the lack of which causes problems in directing calls properly, or answering calls in a timely manner; there is a problem with the phone routing system; there is a problem with the main phone at the call desk. b. Using the double movement of reflective thought, show how you would test these hypotheses – fact: calls are being misrouted; induction: why are calls not reaching their proper destination; hypothesis: any of the above; deduction: calls will be misrouted if the operator’s h earing aid is mal-functioning. 9. The Institute of Transport Engineers, a nationwide trade association with thousands of members, was dissatisfied with the way that State Farm arrived at its dangerous intersection list. a. If the ITE were to conduct a study of its own, what constructs and concepts would they define differently? – concepts and constructs defined differently: dangerous intersection; crash claim b. What hypotheses would ITE formulate to guide its version of the dangerous intersection study? – dangerous intersections have already been identified by engineers; dangerous intersections lack certain security features; dangerous intersections have a high volume of accidents 10. Identify and classify all the variables in the army’s â€Å"dud-shell† research – a. Dud shell (DV) b. Shell that explodes (IV) c. Persons coming into contact (EV) 11. What was Myra’s hypothesis for the army’s dud-shell research? What was the army’s hypothesis? – She believed that the dud-shell was incorrectly defined; she hypothesized that the dud-shells defined by the army were not all dud-shells, but were comprised of both dud-shells and shells that have a delayed exploding time; Myra’s hypothesis was: Civilians were coming in contact with potentially dangerous shells that could explode when manipulated. The army’s hypothesis was: shells that did not explode on impact were inert. 12. Graph your inductions and deductions in the following statements. If there are gaps, supply what is needed to make them complete arguments. a. Repeated studies indicate that economic conditions vary with – and lag 6 to 12 months behind – changes in the national money supply. Therefore, we may conclude that money is the basic economic variable. – induction: what causes economic conditions to vary; deduction: available money causes an alteration in economic conditions. b. Research studies show that heavy smokers have a higher rate of lung cancer than no smokers; therefore, heavy smoking causes lung cancer. – induction: does smoking increase the risk of lung cancer? Deduction: smoking does increase the risk of lung cancer. c. Show me a person who goes to church regularly and I will show you a reliable worker. – induction: what makes a reliable worker? Deduction: a regular church patron makes a reliable worker.