Master of Business Administration- MBA Semester 3 MB00 50 Research Methodology - 4 Credits (Book ID: B1206) a.

. Explain the types of research. b. What is the significance of research in social and business sciences?
Pure Research It is undertaken for the sake of knowledge without any intention to apply it in practice, e.g., Einsteins theory of relativity, Newtons contributions, Galileos contribution, etc. It is also known as basic or fundamental research Applied Research It is carried on to find solution to a real-life problem requiring an action or policy decision. Exploratory Research It is also known as formularize research. It is preliminary study of an unfamiliar problem about which the researcher has little or no knowledge. It is ill-structured and much less focused on pre-determined objectives Descriptive Study It is a fact-finding investigation with adequate interpretation. It is the simplest type of research. It is more specific than an exploratory research Diagnostic Study It is similar to descriptive study but with a different focus. It is directed towards discovering what is happening, why it is happening and what can be done about Evaluation Studies It is a type of applied research. It is made for assessing the effectiveness of social or economic programmer implemented or for assessing the impact of developmental projects on the development of the project area Action Research It is a type of evaluation study. It is a concurrent evaluation study of an action programmer launched for solving a problem for improving an exiting situation.

Significance of research in social and business sciences According to a famous Hudson Maxim, All progress is born of inquiry. Doubt is often better than overconfidence, for it leads to inquiry, and inquiry leads to invention. It brings out the significance of research, increased amounts of which makes progress possible. Research encourages scientific and inductive thinking, besides promoting the development of logical habits of thinking and organization. The role of research in applied economics in the context of an economy or business is greatly increasing in modern times. The increasingly complex nature of government and business has raised the use of research in solving operational problems. Government budget formulation, for example, depends particularly on the analysis of needs and desires of the people, and the availability of revenues, which requires research. Research helps to formulate alternative policies, in addition to examining the consequences of these alternatives.. Collection of statistical information though not a routine task, involves various research problems. Therefore, large staff of research technicians or experts is engaged by the government these days to undertake this work. Thus, research as a tool of government economic policy formulation involves three distinct stages of operation which are as follows: Investigation of economic structure through continual compilation of facts Diagnoses of events that are taking place and the analysis of the forces underlying them; and The prognosis, i.e., the prediction of future developments

What is meant by validity? How does it differ from reliability and what are its types? Validity
A measurement scale may be considered to be valid if it effectively measures a specific property or characteristic that it intends to measure.The question of validity does not arise in the case of measurement of physical characteristics such as length, weight and height. This is because the measurement is direct and can be done through standard measuring devices. On the other hand, the measurement of abstract characteristics such as motivation and attitudes is more indirect and therefore poses the problem of validity. In such cases, there must be some evidence to prove that the measurement scale actually measures what it is supposed to measure. Such evidence is generally gathered through the application of statistical techniques. Reliability

This refers to the ability of a measuring scale to provide consistent and accurate results. To give a simple example, a weighing machine may be said to be reliable if the same reading is given every time the same object is weighed. There are two dimensions of reliability stability and equivalence or non-variability. Stability refers to consistency of results with repeated measurements of the same object, as in the weighing machine example. Non variability refers to consistency at a given point of time among different investigators and samples of items. Reliability can be improved in three ways 1) By reducing the external sources of variation. This in turn can be achieved by standardizing the conditions under which measurement is carried out, by employing trained investigators and by providing standard instructions. 2) By making the measuring instrument more consistent internally, through an analysis of the different items 3) By adding more number of items to the measuring instrument, in order to increase the probability of more accurate measurement.

a. Why literature survey is important in research? b. What are the criteria of good research problem?

Frequently, an exploratory study is concerned with an area of subject matter in which explicit hypothesis have not yet been formulated. The researchers task then is to review the available material with an eye on the possibilities of developing hypothesis from it. In some areas of the subject matter, hypothesis may have been stated by previous research workers. The researcher has to take stock of these various hypotheses with a view to evaluating their usefulness for further research and to consider whether they suggest any new hypothesis. Sociological journals, economic reviews, the bulletin of abstracts of current social sciences research, directory of doctoral dissertation accepted by universities etc afford a rich store of valuable clues. In addition to these general sources, some governmental agencies and voluntary organizations publish listings of summaries of research in their special fields of service. Professional organizations, research groups and voluntary organizations are a constant source of information about unpublished works in their special fields. Criteria of Good Research Problem Horton and Hunt have given following characteristics of scientific research: 1. Verifiable evidence: That is factual observations which other observers can see and check.

2. Accuracy: That is describing what really exists. It means truth or correctness of a statement or describing things exactly as they are and avoiding jumping to unwarranted conclusions either by exaggeration or fantasizing. 3. Precision: That is making it as exact as necessary, or giving exact number or measurement. This avoids colourful literature and vague meanings. 4. Systematization: That is attempting to find all the relevant data, or collecting data in a systematic and organized way so that the conclusions drawn are reliable. Data based on casual recollections are generally incomplete and give unreliable judgments and conclusions. 5. Objectivity: That is free being from all biases and vested interests. It means observation is unaffected by the observers values, beliefs and preferences to the extent possible and he is able to see and accept facts as they are, not as he might wish them to be. 6. Recording: That is jotting down complete details as quickly as possible. Since human memory is fallible, all data collected are recorded. 7. Controlling conditions: That is controlling all variables except one and then attempting to examine what happens when that variable is varied. This is the basic technique in all scientific experimentation allowing one variable to vary while holding all other variables constant. 8. Training investigators: That is imparting necessary knowledge to investigators to make them understand what to look for, how to interpret in and avoid inaccurate data collection.

Explain the procedure for Testing Hypothesis.

Procedure for Testing Hypothesis To test a hypothesis means to tell (on the basis of the data researcher has collected) whether or not the hypothesis seems to be valid. In hypothesis testing the main question is: whether the null hypothesis or not to accept the null hypothesis? Procedure for hypothesis testing refers to all those steps that we undertake for making a choice between the two actions i.e., rejection and acceptance of a null hypothesis. The various steps involved in hypothesis testing are stated below

The hypothesis testing determines the validity of the assumption (technically described as null hypothesis) with a view to choose between the conflicting hypotheses about the value of the population hypothesis about the value of the population of a population parameter. Hypothesis testing helps to secede on the basis of a sample data, whether a hypothesis about the population is likely to be true or false. Statisticians have developed several tests of hypothesis (also known as tests of significance) for the purpose of testing of hypothesis which can be classified as: c test or distribution free test of the hypothesis

a. Explain the components of a research design. b. Briefly explain the different types of research designs.

Components of Research Design It is important to be familiar with the important concepts relating to research design. They are: 1. Dependent and Independent variables: A magnitude that varies is known as a variable. The concept may assume different quantitative values, like height, weight, income, etc. Qualitative variables are not quantifiable in the strictest sense of objectivity. However, the qualitative phenomena may also be quantified in terms of the presence or absence of the attribute considered 2. Extraneous variable: The independent variables which are not directly related to the purpose of the study but affect the dependent variable are known as extraneous variables. For instance, assume that a researcher wants to test the hypothesis that there is relationship between childrens school performance and their self-concepts, in which case the latter is an independent variable and the former, the dependent variable 3. Control: One of the most important features of a good research design is to minimize the effect of extraneous variable. Technically, the term control is used when a researcher designs the study in such a manner that it minimizes the effects of extraneous independent variables. The term control is used in experimental research to reflect the restrain in experimental conditions 4. Confounded relationship: The relationship between dependent and independent variables is said to be confounded by an extraneous variable, when the dependent variable is not free from its effects.

Different Research Designs There are a number of crucial research choices, various writers advance different classification schemes, some of which are: 1. Experimental, historical and inferential designs (American Marketing Association). 2. Exploratory, descriptive and causal designs (Selltiz, Jahoda, Deutsch and Cook). 3. Experimental, and expost fact (Kerlinger) 4. Historical method, and case and clinical studies (Goode and Scates) . Sample surveys, field studies, experiments in field settings, and laboratory experiments (Festinger and Katz) 6. Exploratory, descriptive and experimental studies (Body and Westfall) 7. Exploratory, descriptive and casual (Green and Tull) 8. Experimental, quasi-experimental designs (Nachmias and Nachmias) 9. True experimental, quasi-experimental and non-experimental designs (Smith). 10. Experimental, pre-experimental, quasi-experimental designs and Survey Research (Kidder and Judd). These different categorizations exist, because research design is a complex concept. In fact, there are different perspectives from which any given study can be viewed. They are: The degree of formulation of the problem (the study may be exploratory or formalized) The topical scope-breadth and depth-of the study(a case or a statistical study) The research environment: field setting or laboratory (survey, laboratory experiment) The time dimension(one-time or longitudinal) The mode of data collection (observational or survey) The manipulation of the variables under study (experimental or expost facto) 7. The nature of the relationship among variables (descriptive or causal)

a. What are the assumptions of Case Study Method? b. Explain the Sampling process.
Assumptions of Case Study Method Case study would depend upon wit, commonsense and imagination of the person doing the case study. The investigator makes up his procedure as he goes along.
If the life history has been written in the first person, it must be as complete and coherent as possible. Life histories should have been written for knowledgeable persons. It is advisable to supplement case data by observational, statistical and historical data since these provide standards for assessing the reliability and consistency of the case material. Efforts should be made to ascertain the reliability of life history data through examining the internal consistency of the material. A judicious combination of techniques of data collection is a prerequisite for securing data that are culturally meaningful and scientifically significant.

The decision process of sampling is complicated one. The researcher has to first identify the limiting factor or factors and must judiciously balance the conflicting factors. The various criteria governing the choice of the sampling technique: Purpose of the Survey: What does the researcher aim at? If he intends to generalize the findings based on the sample survey to the population, then an appropriate probability sampling method must be selected. Measurability: The application of statistical inference theory requires computation of the sampling error from the sample itself. Probability samples only allow such computation. Degree of Precision: The desired level of precision as one of the criteria of sampling method selection. Where a high degree of precision of results is desired, probability sampling should be used. Information about Population: How much information is available about the population to be studied? Where no list of population and no information about its nature are available, it is difficult to apply a probability sampling method. The Nature of the Population: In terms of the variables to be studied, is the population homogenous or heterogeneous? In the case of a homogenous population,

Geographical Area of the Study and the Size of the Population: If the area covered by a survey is very large and the size of the population is quite large, multi-stage cluster sampling would be appropriate Financial resources: If the available finance is limited, it may become necessary to choose a less costly sampling plan like multistage cluster sampling or even quota sampling as a compromise. Time Limitation: The time limit within which the research project should be completed restricts the choice of a sampling method