Research methods – Deductive / quantitative

Structure Deductive Formulating a hypothesis Testing the hypothesis Quantitative Survey design and sampling Questionnaire design

Empirical vs theoretical research Empirical research is based on the results of observation or experiment only Theoretical studies the subject through the writings of others, reflects on these ideas and uses intellectual capabilities to construct a new explanation of the situation (a theory) Empirical research is the dominant paradigm in business and management

Deduction vs induction Deductive Deduce theory / hypothesis Express hypothesis – variables and measurement Testing hypothesis – experiment or enquiry Examining outcome of enquiry Modifying / confirming theory Need for replication & reliability Generalisation Normally Quantitative Inductive Theory follows data Observation to understand and categorise phenomena Interpretation of complex social world Concerned with context in which events take place Normally Qualitative

Formulating a hypothesis Read the literature and existing research What are the variables? What are the relationships? How can they be measured? What are your theories? Formulate into hypotheses Devise ways of testing hypotheses – collect empirical evidence Experiment Survey

Testing the hypothesis Information gathering Numerical evidence – sales figures, observations, responses Direct evidence collection – researcher in direct contact Indirect evidence collection – postal questionnaire, email

Survey Widely used in business and management research Associated with deductive approach Often based on questionnaire Requires sampling techniques Interviews and observation can also be used

Sampling Census – collection of data about / from every member of a group (population) Sampling is used when survey of entire population is impracticable in terms of: Size of population Finance Time

Population, sample and individual cases (full set of cases) Sample Case or element

Questionnaires Used in surveys but can be part of experiment or case study Can be part of structured interview Alternatives are observation, semi structured interview Poor for exploratory or highly qualitative research Good for descriptive or explanatory research

Choice of questionnaire I Influenced by: Characteristics of respondents from whom you wish to collect data Importance of reaching a particular respondent Importance of respondents answers not being distorted Types of questions you need to ask to collect your data Number of questions you need to ask to collect your data

Choice of questionnaire II Time available to complete data collection Financial resources required for method Availability of interviewers to assist Ease of automating data entry

Determining what data to collect To identify what data are relevant you must: Review the literature Discuss with tutors and friends Determine whether research is: Explanatory – requires data to test theories or Descriptive – relevant data The key data will relate to: Variables Independent – cause changes in dependent Dependent – change in response to independent Extraneous – cause changes in dependent variables but are external Relationships – between variables

Variables Four types of variables about which data can be collected through questionnaires: Attitude – how respondents feel about something Belief – what respondents believe is true or false Behaviour – what respondents do Attribute – details about respondents characteristics e.g. age, sex, income etc

Types of question Closed – provide a number of choices from which the respondent can choose Open – allow respondents to answer freely

Closed questions Advantages Disadvantages Types Simple and quick to answer Allow easy comparison Can often be quantified Disadvantages Poor for qualitative data Do not give ‘rich’ data Types List – choose from list Category – place into a category Ranking – place in order Scale – give value (e.g. Likert) Quantity – number is given as answer Grid – same scale used for a group of questions

Open Used: Disadvantages In semi-structured interviews To gain ‘rich’ data Disadvantages Difficult to measure Can be difficult to compare

General questionnaire design guidelines Clear introduction – purpose, background Clear layout Ordering of questions Grouping of questions Coding of questions

Administering questionnaires How to increase rate of response: Incentives Anonymity Pre call Follow-up calls Personal collection

Summary Remember surveys and questionnaires: Can be used for deductive or inductive research Can be used to gather quantitative or qualitative data