Lecture 2 generating the research idea

GENERATING THE RESEARCH IDEA

Lecture 2 ISD 554: Research Methods

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Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, Research Methods in Business, 4th Edition © Pearson Education Limited 2007

LECTURE OUTLINE

1. Formulating the research topic

2. Statement of research problems,

3. Research questions and research hypothesis,

4. Research objectives,

5. Writing Research proposal.

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THE RESEARCH PROCESS

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1. CHOOSING A RESEARCH TOPIC Choosing a research topic is most exciting.

Choose something that will sustain your interest throughout.

You need to have at least some idea of what you want to do. (most difficult but important part of the research project).

Formulating and clarifying the research topic is the starting point of your research project.

Being clear about this will ensure your ability to choose the most appropriate research strategy and data collection and analysis techniques.

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ATTRIBUTES OF A GOOD RESEARCH TOPIC

Attributes of a research topic do not vary a great deal between universities.

A good research topic is evaluated based on:

1. Capability (is it feasible?)

2. Appropriateness (is it worth it?)

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CAPABILITY AND APPROPRIATENESS

Note the points which apply to you. 1. Am I genuinely interested in the topic?2. Do I already know a lot about a topic?3. Is it a well-trodden area?4. Can I cope with the topic in terms of depth and

breadth?5. Are the resources, e.g. time, facilities, money,

equipment, etc. available?6. Availability of information7. Is the topic appropriate to my degree?8. Is the topic relevant to my career needs?9. Does the topic agree with course regulations?

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GENERATING AND REFINING RESEARCH IDEAS A range of techniques can be used to find and select

a topic. More frequently used techniques are:

1.1. Rational thinkingRational thinking Examining your own strengths and interests Looking at past project titles e.g. MBA theses. Discussions: with friends and tutors are good sources Searching the literature: journals, reports, books

2.2. Creative thinking Creative thinking Keeping a notebook of ideas Exploring personal preferences using past projects Relevance trees: Map of issues and questions under the area of

interest. Brainstorming: problem-solving: List issues, problems and questions

from the broad area.

Using both techniques is recommended.

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SOURCES FOR GENERATING RESEARCH IDEAS/ TOPICS

The following sources may help in generating the initial idea. Reading business and management literature.

Journal articles, books, reports etc. I had like to know more about that!

Topics and examples of interest in class Current events and using the media e.g. TV, press,

radio. Business news on TV3 (Tuesdays); Business Advocacy on

GBC (Thursdays); M’Asem on GBC (Wednesdays) etc. Work experience (part-time students or internships).

Companies expect students to produce consultancy reportsconsultancy reports. Past research reports by students in your university

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REFINING RESEARCH IDEAS A preliminary study preliminary study to gain understanding and be able to

refine ideas by: initial critical review of the literature informal discussion with experts. shadowing employees

Integrating ideas Integrating ideas to have a clear direction and prevent a mismatch between objectives and the final project work by: Jankowicz (2005): ‘Working up and narrowing downWorking up and narrowing down’. Classify idea into its subject area (accounting), then its

field (financial accounting methods), and focus precise aspect(activity-based costing) in which you are interested.

The process of generating and refining ideas is complete when you are able to say ““I had like to do some research on ……”I had like to do some research on ……”

TURNING RESEARCH IDEAS INTO RESEARCH PROJECTS1. Research Problem statement 2. Research questions and hypothesis 3. Research objectives4. Writing the Research proposal

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RESEARCH QUESTIONS (2) Research question: A specific question that guides the

research process. It is the hypothesis of choice that best states the objectives of the research study. It is a more specific management question that must be answered.

Research question(s) are those to which it is possible, in theory at least, to go out and find answers. E.g. Should BankChoice position itself as a modern,

progressive bank or maintain its image as the oldest, most reliable bank in town?

Research questions can be answered by doing research. Your conclusions are drawn from data collected. Good data

depends on the clarity of the research question. The research process that answers the research question provides

the manager with the information necessary for decision making.

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RESEARCH QUESTIONS (3) The research question should be sufficiently involving to

satisfy the required standards

Research questions should not be too easy. E.g., ‘What is the proportion of graduates entering the

civil service who attended public universities?’ Far easier to answer and may not be theory-based.

Research questions should not be too difficult. E.g., ‘Why are graduate from public universities more

likely to enter the civil service than graduates from private universities?’

May be very broad or difficult to gain sufficient access.

Frame your question in simple plain English language. Do not use jargons at this stage. It’s a reflection of your

lack of understanding. E,g., “I am addressing the issues relevant to leveraging human

resource competency to produce turnaround to world-class status and to diagonally integrate professional functionalities.”

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INVESTIGATIVE QUESTIONS (1) Investigative questions Investigative questions are questions the

researcher must answer to satisfactorily arrive at a conclusion about the research questions. It is a further breakdown of a general research

question into more specific questions about which to gather data.

It should be included in your research proposal, for they guide the development of he research design (foundation for creating data collection instrument).

ExampleExample: The lack of deposit growth in bank xyz. RQ:RQ: What is the public’s position regarding financial

services and their use in Ghana? IQs:IQs:

1. What specific financial services are used by the public?2. How attractive are the various services in Ghana?3. What bank-specific and environmental factors influence

a person’s use of a particular service in Ghana?

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INVESTIGATIVE QUESTIONS (2) Research Question (RQ):Research Question (RQ):

What is the bank’s competitive position?

Investigative Questions (IQs):Investigative Questions (IQs):1. What are the geographic patterns of bank xyz

customers and their competitors?2. What demographic differences are revealed among

bank xyz customers and those of the competition?3. What words or phrases does the public (customers

and non-customers) associate wit bank xyz? With bank xyz competitors?

4. How aware is the public of the bank’s promotional efforts?

5. What opinion does the public hold of the bank and its competitors?

6. How does growth in the services compare among competing banks?

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EXAMPLES:EXAMPLES: RESEARCH IDEAS AND THEIR DERIVED FOCUS RESEARCH QUESTIONS

Research idea General focus research questions

Advertising and share pricing How does the running of TV advertising campaign designed to boost the image of a company affect its share price?

Job recruitment via the internet How effective is recruiting for new staff via the internet in comparison with traditional methods?

The use of aromas as a marketing device

In what ways does the use of specific aromas in supermarkets affect buyer behaviour?

The use of internet banking What effect has the growth of Internet Banking has upon the uses customers make of branch facilities?

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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES Use your general focus question as a base

from which you write a set of research objectives.

Research objectives address the purpose of the research. It states what is being planned by the researcher. It flows from the research question, giving specific,

concrete, and achievable goals. Objectives are evidence of researchers’ clear sense of

purpose and direction. It is best to list the objectives from generalgeneral to specificspecific

terms. Verify the consistencyconsistency of your research by

checking to see that each objective is discussed in the research design, data analysis, and results sections of your research report.

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PHRASING RESEARCH QUESTIONS AS RESEARCH OBJECTIVES (ASSESSING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF TEAM BRIEFING IN ORGANISATIONS)

Research question Research objective

1. Why have organisations introduced team briefing?

1. To identify organisations’ objectives for team briefing schemes.

2. How can the effectiveness of team briefing schemes be measured?

2. To establish suitable effectiveness criteria for team briefing schemes.

3. Has team briefing been effective? 3. To describe the extent to which the effectiveness criteria for team briefing have been met.

4. How can the effectiveness of team briefing be explained?

4. a) To determine the factors associated with the effectiveness criteria for team briefing being met.

b) To estimate whether some of those factors are more influential than others

5. Can the explanation be generalised? 5. To develop an explanatory theory that associates certain factors with the effectiveness of team briefing schemes.

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Figure 2.1 Grand, middle range and substantive theories

THE IMPORTANCE OF THEORY IN WRITING RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND OBJECTIVES

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3. WRITING YOUR RESEARCH PROPOSAL Writing a research proposal helps you to

organise your ideas, and can be thought of as a contract between you and the reader.

The content of the research proposal should tell the reader

what the research is intended to do,

why it is necessary to do it,

what it is trying to achieve and

how the proposed research will achieve it.

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THE PURPOSE OF THE RESEARCH PROPOSAL

Organising your ideas Through writing. It clarifies your thoughts.

Convincing your audience Amend your initial idea and convince your tutor

that the proposed research is achievable. Contracting with your ‘client’

Approval implies that your proposal is satisfactory and that you have an appropriate destination and journey plan.

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THE CONTENT OF THE RESEARCH PROPOSAL

Title It should mirror the content of the proposal.

Background States why you think the research is worth the effort. May be expressed in the form of a problem that needs solving. Demonstrate knowledge of the relevant literature. Where does

your work fit into the debate in the literature. Show clear links between previous works and your proposal. Provide an overview of key literature source which you intend

to use.

Research questions and objectives What is it that your research seeks to achieve? Precisely written and lead to observable results. (see Table 2.3)

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THE CONTENT OF THE RESEARCH PROPOSAL Method of the study

It details precisely how you intend to go about achieving your objectives.

Justify your choice of method in line with the objectives. Research design section: method chosen and

reasons for the choice. Explain where you intend to carry the research Coverage, e.g., organisations, sectors of the economy,

etc. Identity of research population (e.g., managers, or TUC

officials) Why you selected that population? Explain the general way in which you will undertake the

research. E.g., questionnaires, interviews, examination of secondary data etc.

Data collection section: detail about how specifically data are collected. E.g., specify survey population and sample size; How you

will distribute questionnaires etc.; How many interviews will be conducted and duration; Statement of Ethical guidelines

Not necessary to include details of questionnaires questions in the proposal.

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THE CONTENT OF THE RESEARCH PROPOSAL Timescale: use a Gantt chart. See figure 2.2

Divide your research plan into stages. Help to decide viability of your research project.

Resources Literature on subject area (journals, books, etc.) IT, software and skills (access to SPSS and NVivo for

data analysis) Access to data (written approval from host

organisations)

References Key literature sources to which you have referred to

in the background section and which relate directly to your work.

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Figure 2.2 Gantt chart for a research project

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CRITERIA FOR EVALUATING RESEARCH PROPOSALS

The extent to which the components of the proposal fit together.

The viability of the proposal.

The absence of preconceived ideas (bias).

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SELF-CHECK QUESTIONS 1. What two criteria are used to evaluate the attribute of a good

research topic?

2. Enumerate the likely sources you can use to generate research ideas and topics. What techniques are frequently involved? Discuss them.

3. You have decided to search the literature to ‘try to come up with some research ideas in your area of specialisation’. How will you go about this?

4. What is a research question? How different or similar is it from hypothesis and research objectives? Discuss.

5. What is a research proposal? Is it beneficial in thesis writing? Give an annotated outline of the content of a research proposal.

6. How would you demonstrate the influence of relevant theory on your research proposal?

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ASSIGNMENT: WRITING YOUR RESEARCH QUESTION

Identify a topic for your research project by working through the techniques recommended above. Within the general topic chosen, identify: a broad “what should be done about X?”

strategic type of question that responds to managerial or organisational issues and concerns and;

one or more research questions that say what you want to find out;

and frame them in simple language understandable to an interested lay person who has asked about your research.

END OF LECTURE 2Next:

Literature Review

Lecture 2 generating the research idea

Technology

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