Business

Research Methods
Chapter 01:
Introduction to Business Research
 Business Research Defined

Research: Research is an organized, systematic, data

based scientific enquiry or investigation into a specific
problem, undertaken with the objective of finding
answer or solutions to it. The main objective of research
is to find out the truth which unknown/hidden and
which has not been discovered yet.

Business research: The application of the scientific

method in searching for the truth about business
phenomena. These activities include defining business
opportunities and problems, generating and evaluating
ideas, monitoring performance, and understanding the
business process.
 Business Research Types

Descriptive vs. Analytical

Applied vs. Fundamental/Basic

Quantitative vs. Qualitative

Conceptual vs. Empirical

Exploratory vs. Casual

 Scientific Method

 The scientific method is the way researchers go

about using knowledge and evidence to reach
objective conclusions about the real world.
 Basic Postulate/conditions of Scientific Method

 It relies on empirical evidence;

 It utilizes relevant concepts;
 It is committed to only objective considerations;
 It presupposes ethical neutrality, i.e., it aims at nothing but
making only adequate and correct statements about
population objects;
 It results into probabilistic predictions;
 Its methodology is made known to all concerned for critical
scrutiny are for use in testing the conclusions through
replication;
 It aims at formulating most general axioms or what can be
termed as scientific theories.
 Characteristics of Scientific Method

1. Accurate classification of facts

2. Observation of the relation between facts and their
sequence
3. Self-criticism and cross-examination
4. Discovery of scientific laws by the aid of creative
imagination
 Research Process Is Cyclical

1. Research begins with a problem: an unanswered question in the

mind of the researcher.
2. Research sees the goal in a clear statement of the problem.
3. Research subdivides the problems into appropriate sub-problems.
Each sub-problem seeks guidance through an appropriate
hypothesis.
4. Research posits tentative solution to the problem through
appropriate hypothesis.
5. Research looks for facts directed by the hypotheses and guided by
the problem.
6. Research interprets the meaning of the facts which leads to a
resolution of the problem, thus confirming or rejecting the
hypotheses and providing an answer to the question which began
the research cycle.
Research Process Is Cyclical
 Determining When to Conduct
Business Research (Determinant of
Business Research)
 Time constraints
 Availability of data
 Nature of the decision
 Benefits versus costs
 Value versus Costs

 Potential Value of a Business Research Effort Should

Exceed Its Estimated Costs
 Cross-functional Teams

 Cross-functional teams are composed of

individuals from various organizational departments
such as engineering, production, finance, and
marketing who share a common purpose.
 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 researcher should report with complete frankness, flaws in
procedural design and estimate their effects upon the findings.
4. The design of the research should be carefully planned to yield results
that are as objective as possible.
5. Data should be sufficiently adequate.
6. Conclusion should be confined.