Business Research Process

Author(s):  
James A. Muncy ◽  
Alice M. Muncy

Business research is conducted by both businesspeople, who have informational needs, and scholars, whose field of study is business. Though some of the specifics as to how research is conducted differs between scholarly research and applied research, the general process they follow is the same. Business research is conducted in five stages. The first stage is problem formation where the objectives of the research are established. The second stage is research design. In this stage, the researcher identifies the variables of interest and possible relationships among those variables, decides on the appropriate data source and measurement approach, and plans the sampling methodology. It is also within the research design stage that the role that time will play in the study is determined. The third stage is data collection. Researchers must decide whether to outsource the data collection process or collect the data themselves. Also, data quality issues must be addressed in the collection of the data. The fourth stage is data analysis. The data must be prepared and cleaned. Statistical packages or programs such as SAS, SPSS, STATA, and R are used to analyze quantitative data. In the cases of qualitative data, coding, artificial intelligence, and/or interpretive analysis is employed. The fifth stage is the presentation of results. In applied business research, the results are typically limited in their distribution and they must be addressed to the immediate problem at hand. In scholarly business research, the results are intended to be widely distributed through journals, books, and conferences. As a means of quality control, scholarly research usually goes through a double-blind review process before it is published.

2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (01) ◽  
pp. 219-223
Author(s):  
R. Choquet ◽  
C. Daniel ◽  

Summary Objectives: To summarize key contributions to current research in the field of Clinical Research Informatics (CRI) and to select best papers published in 2015. Method: A bibliographic search using a combination of MeSH and free terms search over PubMed on Clinical Research Informatics (CRI) was performed followed by a double-blind review in order to select a list of candidate best papers to be then peer-reviewed by external reviewers. A consensus meeting between the two section editors and the editorial team was finally organized to conclude on the selection of best papers. Results: Among the 579 returned papers published in the past year in the various areas of Clinical Research Informatics (CRI) - i) methods supporting clinical research, ii) data sharing and interoperability, iii) re-use of healthcare data for research, iv) patient recruitment and engagement, v) data privacy, security and regulatory issues and vi) policy and perspectives - the full review process selected four best papers. The first selected paper evaluates the capability of the Clinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium (CDISC) Operational Data Model (ODM) to support the representation of case report forms (in both the design stage and with patient level data) during a complete clinical study lifecycle. The second selected paper describes a prototype for secondary use of electronic health records data captured in non-standardized text. The third selected paper presents a privacy preserving electronic health record linkage tool and the last selected paper describes how big data use in US relies on access to health information governed by varying and often misunderstood legal requirements and ethical considerations. Conclusions: A major trend in the 2015 publications is the analysis of observational, “nonexperimental” information and the potential biases and confounding factors hidden in the data that will have to be carefully taken into account to validate new predictive models. In addiction, researchers have to understand complicated and sometimes contradictory legal requirements and to consider ethical obligations in order to balance privacy and promoting discovery.


This chapter describes the strategy and the research design used in the present research process followed in the book. It begins with an overview of the research approach adopted, details the sources of data and outlines the procedures used for collection of data. Later, it describes the design of the measurement instrument used for data collection. It also provides a brief profile of the responding companies and describes the variables and the constructs used in the measurement of these variables. The chapter concludes with a brief description of the tools used for data analysis in the book.


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 94
Author(s):  
Iman Soleh ◽  
Mahesa El Gasani ◽  
Mazeinda Al Biruni ◽  
Tari Purwanti

The creation of a play entitled “Tanah Ode Kampung Kami” have several stages, starting from determining the issue and the ideas, conducting research, implementing the method of collective writing text, and finally becomes a show. The research process is a way of organizing and understanding the main problem of a play, i.e. the land, so it would be able to be implemented as a drama script collectively in theatrical performances. Collective text aims to make actors and directors have the same perception of a predetermined theme. This study uses a qualitative research design with data collection methods in the form of observations and interviews. The conclusion of this study is that the collective text method used in the “Tanah Ode Kampung Kami” script is used to harmonize the ideas that were built together so that it becomes a complete text which is the result of collaborative thinking between the elements involved in the process of making the script.


Author(s):  
Robert P. Gephart ◽  
Rohny Saylors

Qualitative research designs provide future-oriented plans for undertaking research. Designs should describe how to effectively address and answer a specific research question using qualitative data and qualitative analysis techniques. Designs connect research objectives to observations, data, methods, interpretations, and research outcomes. Qualitative research designs focus initially on collecting data to provide a naturalistic view of social phenomena and understand the meaning the social world holds from the point of view of social actors in real settings. The outcomes of qualitative research designs are situated narratives of peoples’ activities in real settings, reasoned explanations of behavior, discoveries of new phenomena, and creating and testing of theories. A three-level framework can be used to describe the layers of qualitative research design and conceptualize its multifaceted nature. Note, however, that qualitative research is a flexible and not fixed process, unlike conventional positivist research designs that are unchanged after data collection commences. Flexibility provides qualitative research with the capacity to alter foci during the research process and make new and emerging discoveries. The first or methods layer of the research design process uses social science methods to rigorously describe organizational phenomena and provide evidence that is useful for explaining phenomena and developing theory. Description is done using empirical research methods for data collection including case studies, interviews, participant observation, ethnography, and collection of texts, records, and documents. The second or methodological layer of research design offers three formal logical strategies to analyze data and address research questions: (a) induction to answer descriptive “what” questions; (b) deduction and hypothesis testing to address theory oriented “why” questions; and (c) abduction to understand questions about what, how, and why phenomena occur. The third or social science paradigm layer of research design is formed by broad social science traditions and approaches that reflect distinct theoretical epistemologies—theories of knowledge—and diverse empirical research practices. These perspectives include positivism, interpretive induction, and interpretive abduction (interpretive science). There are also scholarly research perspectives that reflect on and challenge or seek to change management thinking and practice, rather than producing rigorous empirical research or evidence based findings. These perspectives include critical research, postmodern research, and organization development. Three additional issues are important to future qualitative research designs. First, there is renewed interest in the value of covert research undertaken without the informed consent of participants. Second, there is an ongoing discussion of the best style to use for reporting qualitative research. Third, there are new ways to integrate qualitative and quantitative data. These are needed to better address the interplay of qualitative and quantitative phenomena that are both found in everyday discourse, a phenomenon that has been overlooked.


Author(s):  
Anthony Kwame Harrison

Chapter 2 demystifies practices of ethnographic research by discussing the balance between structure and serendipity surrounding its design. The author pursues this in two ways: first, by discussing the dynamic mode of structured improvisation through which ethnographers perform their research and, second, by introducing a framework for ethnographic decision-making—based on the concept of social science sampling—which highlights many of the major considerations affecting the research choices ethnographers make. Through this discussion, the author illustrates the complementary strategic and improvisational imperatives that in-the-field ethnographers embody. The second part of the chapter is organized around several key phases of the research process including (a) the choice of a research topic; (b) decisions regarding research settings; (c) aspects of data collection—including expanding on the first chapter’s discussions of positionality, fieldnote writing, and interviewing; and (d) techniques and sensibilities through which researchers analyze their data.


2020 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
pp. 160940691989592 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph Webb ◽  
Val Williams ◽  
Marina Gall ◽  
Sandra Dowling

It is increasingly recognized that people living with dementia should be included in qualitative research that foregrounds their voices, but traditional research approaches can leave less room for flexibility than is necessary. This article builds on others who have examined the challenges and rewards of the qualitative research process with people living with dementia. With reference to a specific project on communication and dementia, the research design adaptations needed at each step to turn a “misfit” into a “fit” are examined. Misfitting, as a concept related to social practice theories, is used to argue the need for a coproduced and flexible approach to research design and data collection. Recommendations include being willing to adapt research methods, data collection locations, and aims of the project to fit participants’ competencies, preferences, and realities; spending sufficient time getting to get to know staff and potential participants to build relationships; working round care practices and routines to minimize disruption; and using observational/visual methods can help include people living with dementia at each stage. People with dementia require researchers in the field to be creative in their methods, reflexive in their approach, and person-centered in their goals. Those adaptations can fundamentally change the ways in which the social practice of research is shaped.


Author(s):  
Anne-Laure Mahé ◽  
Theodore McLauchlin

This chapter describes operationalization, which refers to the intellectual operations the researcher undertakes to decide how to observe a concept in reality. This is a crucial step of the research process, as many concepts in the social sciences are too abstract to be immediately observed. The most important criteria of a successful operationalization are consequently the consistency between each step of the research design, from theory formation to data collection, and the degree to which the indicators effectively allow the researcher to gather observations that work well in the context under study. One way to synthesize these points is that operationalization should enable the researcher to respect the principle of double adequacy. First, the researcher’s conceptual argument and the operationalized data should correspond. Second, there is a need for adequacy between those data and the ‘reference reality’.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 434-442
Author(s):  
Michelle Allgood

Individuals with disabilities (both physical and cognitive) constitute 15% of the global population and 25% of U.S. citizens. However, public administration has not given explicit thought to how current research methods and other data collection processes or tools might exclude individuals with disabilities. This lack of attention to research methods and instruments might impose barriers and limit access to participation for individuals with disabilities who would otherwise meet the requirements for participation within the research design. This omission undermines social equity, a critical pillar of public administration, by systematically excluding individuals with disabilities from the research process. Equitable research ensures that scholars are not excluding participants from the research while obtaining insights from the ‘relevant population.’ Current exclusionary practices raise several questions that are addressed in this essay including: (1) What are the implications of equitable access in electronic research? (2) What are the barriers of access for individuals with disabilities who want to participate in research, like surveys conducted through an electronic delivery system? and (3) What would an equitable data collection and research design look like?


Author(s):  
Samuel Ayodeji Omolawal

Delegation of responsibilities constitutes a very important ingredient of good leadership in organisations and is critical to competence development of workers. However, experience shows that many leaders are unwilling to delegate responsibilities to their subordinates for a number of reasons. This study was therefore designed to investigate delegation of responsibilities as a tool for competence development of subordinates in selected organisations in Ibadan metropolis. The study, anchored on Elkem’s model, was descriptive and adopted survey research design with a combination of both quantitative and qualitative approaches. It was conducted on 206 respondents randomly selected from 20 public and private organisations in Ibadan. Questionnaire and IDI were instruments of data collection, while the data collected were analysed using both quantitative and qualitative techniques. The study showed that respondents perceived delegation of responsibilities as a vital tool for developing, equipping and motivating subordinates; and that it had positive effects on subordinates’ performance (X2 = 11.14, p-value = 0.001). The study also revealed that lack of confidence in subordinates (79%), level of skill and competence (66%), organisational climate (68%) and bureaucracy (58%) were barriers to delegation of responsibilities. Delegation of responsibilities is a cost-free way of enhancing competence development of subordinates in organisations, and should therefore, be encouraged among leaders irrespective of their levels.


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