MB0034 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

ASSIGNMENT SET I

PREPARED BY NADARAJAH KIRUBAHARAN ROLL NO: 540911328

MB0034 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

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INDEX

1. Examples and explanation of different research, a) Exploratory research b) Descriptive research b) c) Diagnostic research d) Evaluation research.

2. Explanation of a) Null and alternative hypothesis b) Type 1 and type 2 error c) Two tailed and one tailed test d) Parametric and non-parametric tests.

3. Difference between a causal relationship and correlation and Explanation

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4.

Factors that affect the choice of a sampling technique. Characteristics of a good sample.

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5. Secondary and primary sources data collection explanation.

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6. Case Study: market survey on behalf of a leading Newspaper That is keen to increase its circulation in City.

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Q1. Give examples of specific situations that would call for the following types of research, explaining why a) Exploratory research b) Descriptive research c) Diagnostic research d) Evaluation research.

Answer: Research may be classified crudely according to its major intent or the methods. Accord-ing to the intent, research may be classified as: Basic (aka fundamental or pure) research is driven by a scientist's curiosity or interest in a scien-tific question. The main motivation is to expand man's knowledge, not to create or invent some-thing. There is no obvious commercial value to the discoveries that result from basic research. For example, basic science investigations probe for answers to questions such as: How did the universe begin? What are protons, neutrons, and electrons composed of? How do slime molds reproduce? What is the specific genetic code of the fruit fly? Most scientists believe that a basic, fundamental understanding of all branches of science isneeded in order for progress to take place. In other words, basic research lays down the founda-tion for the applied science that follows. If basic work is done first, then applied spin-offs ofteneventually result from this research. As Dr. George Smoot of LBNL says, "People cannot foreseethe future well enough to predict what's going to develop from basic research. If we only did ap-plied research, we would still be making better spears." Applied research is designed to solve practical problems of the modern world, rather than to acquire knowledge for knowledge's sake. One might say that the goal of the applied scientist is to improve the human condition. For example, applied researchers may investigate ways to: Improve agricultural crop production Treat or cure a specific disease Improve the energy efficiency of homes, offices, or modes of transportation. Some scientists feel that the time has come for a shift in emphasis away from purely basic re-search and toward applied science. This trend, they feel, is necessitated by the problems resulting from global overpopulation, pollution, and the overuse of the earth's natural resources.

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 a ) Exploratory Research
Exploratory research provides insights into and comprehension of an issue or situation. Its should draw definitive conclusions only with extreme caution. Exploratory research is a type of research conducted because a problem has not been clearly defined. Exploratory research helps determine the best research design, data collection method and selection of subjects. Given its fundamental nature, exploratory research often concludes that a perceived problem does not actually exist. Exploratory research often relies on secondary research such as reviewing available literatureand/or data, or qualitative approaches such as informal discussions with consumers, employees,management or competitors, and more formal approaches through in-depth interviews, focus groups, projective methods, case studies or pilot studies. The Internet allows for research me-thods that are more interactive in nature: E.g.,RSSfeeds efficiently supply researchers with up-to-date information; major search engine search results may be sent by email to researchers byservices such asGoogle Alerts; comprehensive search results are tracked over lengthy periods of time by services such asGoogle Trends; and Web sites may be created to attract worldwidefeedback on any subject. The results of exploratory research are not usually useful for decision-making by themselves, butthey can provide significant insight into a given situation. Although the results of qualitative re-search can give some indication as to the "why", "how" and "when" something occurs, it cannottell us "how often" or "how many."Exploratory research is not typically generalizable to the populationat large..

b) Descriptive Research
Descriptive research , also known as statistical research, describes data and characteristics aboutthe population or phenomenon being studied. Descriptive research answers the questions who,what, where, when and how. Although the data description is factual, accurate and systematic, the research cannot describewhat caused a situation. Thus, descriptive research cannot be used to create a causal relationship,where one variable affects another. In other words, descriptive research can be said to have a lowrequirement for internal validity. The description is used for frequencies, averages and other statistical calculations. Often the bestapproach, prior to writing descriptive research, is to conduct a survey investigation. Qualitativeresearch often has the aim of description and researchers may follow-up with examinations of why the observations exist and what the implications of the findings are. In short descriptive research deals with everything that can be counted and studied. But there arealways restrictions to that. Your research must have an impact to the life of the people aroundyou. For example, finding the most frequent disease that affects the children of a town. The read-er of the research will know what to do to prevent that disease thus; more people will live ahealthy life.

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 c) Diagnostic Study
It is similar to descriptive study but with a different focus. It is directed towards discoveringwhat is happening, why it is happening and what can be done about. It aims at identifying thecauses of a problem and the possible solutions for it. It may also be concerned with discoveringand testing whether certain variables are associated. This type of research requires prior knowledge of the problem, its thorough formulation, clearcut definition of the given population, ade-quate methods for collecting accurate information, precise measurement of variables, statisticalanalysis and test of significance.

d) Evaluation Studies
It is a type of applied research. It is made for assessing the effectiveness of social or economicprogrammes implemented or for assessing the impact of developmental projects on the development of the project area. It is thus directed to assess or appraise the quality and quantity of anactivity and its performance, and to specify its attributes and conditions required for its success.It is concerned with causal relationships and is more actively guided by hypothesis. It is con-cerned also with change over time. .

Q2. In the context of hypothesis testing, briefly explain the difference between a) Null

and alternative hypothesis b) Type 1 and type 2 error c) Two tailed and one tailed test d) Pa-rametric and non parametric test.

Answer: Some basic concepts in the context of testing of hypotheses are explained below

a)Null Hypothesis and Alternative Hypothesis :

In the context of statistical analysis, we often talk null and alternative hypothesis. If we are tocompare method A with method B about its superiority and if we proceed on the assumption thatboth methods are equally good, then this assumption is termed as null hypothesis. As againstthis, we may think that the method A is superior, it is alternative hypothesis. Symbolically pre-sented as: Null hypothesis =H0 and Alternative hypothesis =Ha Suppose we want to test the hypothesis that the population mean is equal to the hypothesis mean(H0) = 100. Then we would say that the null hypotheses are that the population mean is equalto the hypothesized mean 100and symbolical we an express as:H0: = H0=100

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If our sample results do not support these null hypotheses, we should conclude that something else is true. What we conclude rejecting the null hypothesis is known as alternative hypothesis. If we acceptH0,then we are rejecting Ha and if we reject H0, then we are accepting Ha. For H0: =H0=100, we may consider three possible alternative hypotheses as follows: Alternative Hypo-thesis Ha: H0 Ha: >H0 Ha: < H0 To be read as follows (The alternative hypothesis is that the population mean is not equalto 100i.e., it may be more or less 100) (The alternative hypothesis is that the population mean is greater than 100) (The alternative hypothesis is that the population mean is less than100)

The null hypothesis and the alternative hypothesis are chosen before the sample is drawn (theresearcher must avoid the error of deriving hypothesis from the data he collects and testing the hypothesis from the same data). In the choice of null hypothesis, the following considerations areusually kept in view: Alternative hypothesis is usually the one which wishes to prove and the null hypothesis are ones that wish to disprove. Thus a null hypothesis represents the hypothesis we are trying to reject, the alternative hypothesis represents all other possibilities. If the rejection of a certain hypothesis when it is actually true involves great risk, it is taken as null hypothesis because then the probability of rejecting it when it is true is (the level of significance) which is chosen very small. Null hypothesis should always be specific hypothesis i.e., it should not state about or approximately a certain value. Generally, in hypothesis testing we proceed on the basis of null hypothesis, keeping thealternative hypothesis in view.Why so? The answer is that on assumption that null hypo-thesis is true, one can assign the probabilities to different possible sample results, but thiscannot be done if we proceed with alternative hypothesis.Hence the use of null hypothe-sis (at times also known as statistical hypothesis) is quite frequent.

b. Type I error and type II error.

In the context of testing of hypothesis there are basically two types of errors that researchers make. We may reject H0 when H0 is true & we may accept H0 when it is not true. The former is known as Type I & the later is known as Type II. In other words, Type I error mean rejection of hypothesis which should have been accepted & Type II error means accepting of hypothesis which should have been rejected. Type I error is donated by (alpha), also called as level of sig-nificance of test; and Type II error is donated by (beta).

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H0(true) Ho(false)

Accept H0 Correct decision Type II error ( error)

Decision Reject H0 Type I error ( error) Correct decision

The probability of Type I error is usually determined in advance and is understood as the level of significance of testing the hypothesis. If type I error is fixed at 5%, it means there are about chances in 100 that we will reject H0. When H0 is true.We can control type I error just by fixing itat a lower level. For instance, if we fix it at 1%, we will say that the maximum probability of committing type I error would only be 0.01. But with a fixed sample size, n when we try to reduce type I error, the probability of committing type II error increases. Both types of errors can not be reduced simultaneously. There is a trade-off in business situations, decision-makers decide the appropriate level of type I error by examining the costs of penalties attached to both types of errors. If type I error involves time & trouble of reworking a batch of chemicals that should have been accepted, where as type II error means taking a chance that an entire group of users of this chemicals compound will be poisoned, then in such a situation one should prefer a type I error to a type II error means taking a chance that an entire group of users of this chemicals compound will be poisoned, then in such a situation one should prefer a type II error. As a result one must set very high level for type I error in one test-ing techniques of a given hypothesis. Hence, in testing of hypothesis, one must make all possibleeffort to strike an adequate balance between Type I & Type II error.

C. One tailed and two tailed test

In the context of hypothesis testing these two terms are quite important and must be clearly understood. A two-tailed test rejects the null hypothesis if, say, the sample mean is significantly higher or lower than the hypnotized value of the mean of the population. Such a test in appropriate when we have H 0 : = H0 and Ha: H0 which may >H0 or <H0. If significancelevel is % and the two-tailed test to be applied, the probability of the rejection area will be 0.05(equally split on both tails of curve as0.025) and that of the acceptance region will be 0.95. If wetake = 100 and if our sample mean deviates significantly from , in that case we shall accept the null hypothesis. But there are situations when only one-tailed test is considered appropriate.A one-tailed test would be used when we are to test, say, whether the population mean in either lower than or higher than some hypothesized value. Two-Tailed Test A two-tailed t-test divides a in half, placing half in the each tail. The null hypothesis in this caseis a particular value, and there are two alternative hypotheses, one positive and one negative. Thecritical value of t, tcrit, is written with both a plus and minus sign ( ). For example, the criticalvalue of t when there are ten degrees of freedom (df=10) and a is

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set to .05,is tcrit= 2.228. The sampling distribution model used in a two-tailed t-test is illustrated below:

One-Tailed Test There are really two different one-tailed t-tests, one for each tail. In a one-tailed t-test, all thearea associated with a is placed in either one tail or the other. Selection of the tail depends uponwhich direction t obs would be (+ or -) if the results of the experiment came out as expected. Theselection of the tail must be made before the experiment is conducted and analyzed. A one-tailed t-test in the positive direction is illustrated below:

The value tcrit would be positive. For example when a is set to .

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05 with ten degrees of freedom(df=10), tcritwould be equal to +1.812.crit would be equal to +1.812 A one-tailed t-test in the negative direction is illustrated below:

The value tcrit would be negative. For example, when a is set to . 05 with ten degrees of freedom(df=10), tcritwould be equal to -1.812. Comparison of One and Two-tailed t-tests 1. If t OBS= 3.37, then significance would be found in the two-tailed and the positive one-tailed t-tests. The one-tailed t-test in the negative direction would not be significant, because wasplaced in the wrong tail. This is the danger of a one-tailed t-test. 2. If tOBS= -1.92, then significance would only be found in the negative one-tailed t-test. If the correct direction is selected, it can be seen that one is more likely to reject the null hypothesis. The significance test is said to have greater power in this case. The selection of a one or two-tailed t-test must be made before the experiment is performed. It isnot "cricket" to find a that tOBS= -1.92, and then say "I really meant to do a one-tailed t-test."Because reviewers of articles submitted for publication are sometimes suspicious when a one-tailed t-test is done, the recommendation is that if there is any doubt, a two-tailed test should be done.

d) Parametric and non parametric test The hypothesis testing determines the validity of the assumption (technically described as nullhypothesis) with a view to choose between the conflicting hypotheses about the value of thepopulation hypothesis about the value of the population of a population parameter. H ypothesistesting 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 knownas tests of significance) for the purpose of testing of hypothesis which can be classified as:
1.Parametric tests or standard tests of hypothesis ; 2.Non Parametric test or distribution free test of the hypothesis. Parametric tests usually assume certain properties of the parent population from which we drawsamples. Assumption like observations come from a normal population, sample size is large, assumptions about the population parameters like mean, variants etc must
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hold good before para-metric test can be used. But there are situation when the researcher cannot or does not want to make assumptions. In such situations we use statistical methods for testing hypothesis which are called non parametric tests because such tests do not depend on any assumption about the para-meters of parent population. Besides, most non-parametric test assumes only nominal or original data, where as parametric test require measurement equivalent to at least an interval scale. As aresult non-parametric test needs more observation than a parametric test to achieve the same sizeof Type I & Type II error.

Q3. Explain the difference between a causal relationship and correlation, with an example of each. What are the possible reasons for a correlation between two variables?
Answer: Economic & business variables are related. For instance, demand & supply of a commodity is related to its price. Demand for a commodity increases as price falls. Demand for a commodity decreases as its price rises.We say demand & price are inversely related or negativelycorrelated. But sellers supply more of a commodity when its price rises. Supply of the commodi-ty decreases when its price falls. We say supply & price are directly related or positively co-related. Thus, correlation indicates the relationship between two such variables in which changesin the value of one variable is accompanies with a change in the value of other variable. According to L.R.Connor, if two or more quantities vary in sympathy so that movements in theone tend to be accompanied by corresponding movements in the others(s) they are said to be correlated. W.I.King defined Correlation means that between two series or groups of data, there existssome casual connection. The definitions make it clear that the term correlation refers to the study of relationship betweentwo or more variables. Correlation is a statistical device, which studies the relationship betweentwo variables. If two variables are said to be correlated, change in the value of one variable re-sults in a corresponding change in the value of the other variable. Heights & weights of a groupof people, age of husbands & wives etc., are examples of bi-variant data that change together.

Correlation and Causation

Although, the term correlation is used in the sense of mutual dependence of two or more variable, it is not always necessary that they have cause & effect relation. Even a high degree of correlation between two variables does not necessarily indicate a cause & effect relationship between them.
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There are a number of different ways in which correlation and causation can become confused.One is called the "Neglect of Common Cause." Also sometimes called "Joint Effect," this occurswhen someone assumes that one event caused another when, in fact, they are both really effectsof some Third event. This third event is the "common cause" of the other two. For example: 1. Every time I eat chocolate, it gives me acne. The speaker above observes a strong correlation between eating chocolate and suffering from acne, drawing the conclusion that the former causes the latter. What is ignored, however, is the possibility that both are caused by something else perhaps this person suffers from anxiety and stress. The stress causes him to eat chocolate, but at the same time causes acne to break out. This will lead to the two occurring very close in time, even though one isn't actually causing the other. Many times a fallacy like the one in the statement above occurs in assertions based upon statistical evidence, for example: 2. Recent studies have proven that watching too much violence on television leads to peoplebeing violent in real life. Although it may indeed be true that viewing acts of violence can make a person more susceptible to committing violence, the above statement ignores crucial factors which might have a causal influence on both. For example, both increasing violence on television and increasing violence insociety might be caused by changing economic circumstances or something else entirely. Thus,the above cannot be regarded as a sound position until other such possible common causes have been ruled out first (which, incidentally, may have indeed been done as part of the study, but this would have to be made explicit for the statement to be valid). Here is another, more amusing instance where such an error can be made: 3. Researchers at the Aabo Akademi found that Finns who speak the language of their Nordic neighbors were up to 25 percent less likely to fall ill than those who do not. Should we conclude from this that learning how to speak Swedish will help improve our health? Or perhaps that it is only Finns who can receive health benefits from speaking Norwegian? Non-sense - there is nothing about the Swedish language which can make a person healthier.What we need to look for are common causes of both being multilingual and of having better health at least in Finland. The neglect of Common Cause can be found in many political debates as well: 4. Most drug use occurs among the poor - this is because poverty causes people to engage inrisky behavior, like abusing narcotics. Now, perhaps the above position is true or at least has a grain of truth in it, but it fails to address the possibility that a third factor is responsible for both of those listed. One might be able to effectively argue that racial discrimination makes a person feel hopeless

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this, in turn, may not only increase the chances of that person being poor, but might also incline them to seek escape in drugs. This fallacy has also found a home in quite a few religious debates: 5. Morality in this nation has worsened at the same time that adherence to traditional Christian beliefs has declined. Obviously, the latter has caused the former, so encouraging Christianity will ensure a return to traditional moral standards. In the above example, it is assumed that the correlation between dropping standards of moralityand weakening adherence to traditional Christianity means that the latter is the cause of the former. This position ignores, however, the possibility of some third event being the cause for both.Thus, for example, it may be that growing diversity in society has weakened the bonds of all traditional institutions - including both religion and moral standards. Simplistic explanations like the above make it easy to propose simplistic solutions, but they cannot be accepted until alternatives like possible common causes have been addressed. Correlation between two variables can be due to following reasons:

Cause & effect relationship: Heat & temperature are cause & effect variable. Heat is thecause of temperature.Higher the heat, higher will be the temperature.
Both the correlated variables are being affected by a third variable. For instance, price of rice & price of sugar are affected by rainfall.Here there may not be any cause & effectrelation between price of rice & price of sugar. Related variable may be mutually affecting each other so that none of them is either acause or an effect. Demand may be the result of price. There are cases when price risedue to increased demand. The correlation may be due to chance. For instance, a small sample may show correlation between wages & productivity. That is higher wage leading to lower productivity. In real life it need not be true. Such correlation is due to chance. There might be a situation of nonsense or spurious correlation between and two variables.For instance, relationship between number of divorces & television exports may be correlated. There cannot be any relationship between divorce & exports of television. The above points make it clear that correlation is only a statistical relationship & it does not nec-essarily signify a cause & effect relationship between the variable.

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Q4. Briefly explain any two factors that affect the choice of a sampling technique. What arethe characteristics of a good sample?
Answer: The decision process of sampling is complicated one. The researcher has to first identifythe limiting factor or factors and must judiciously balance the conflicting factors. Factors that affect choice of sample

The size of the population : If the population to be studied is quite large, sampling is warranted.However, the size is a relative matter.Whether a population is large or smalldepends upon the nature of the study, the purpose for which it is undertaken, and the timeand other resources available for it. Amount of funds budgeted for the study : Sampling is opted when the amount of mon-ey budgeted is smaller than the anticipated cost of census survey. Facilities: The extent of facilities available staff, access to computer facility and acces-sibility to population elements in another factor to be considered in deciding to sampleor not.When the availability of these facilities is limited, sampling is preferable. Time: The time limit within the study should be completed in another important factor tobe considered in deciding the question of sample survey. This, in fact, is a primary reasonfor using sampling by academic and marketing researchers.
Characteristics of a good sample : The characteristics of a good sample are described below:

Representative ness:
A sample must be representative of the population. Probabilitysampling technique yield representative sample.

Accuracy:
Accuracy is defined as the degree to which bias is absent from the sample.An accurate sample is the one which exactly represents the population.

Precision:
The sample must yield precise estimate. Precision is measured by standard er-ror.
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 Size:
A good sample must be adequate in size in order to be reliable.

Q5. Select any topic for research and explain how you will use both secondary and primary sources to gather the required information? Answer: For performing research on the literacy levels among families, the primary and secondary sources of data can be used very effectively. More specifically the primary sources of data collection is suggested in this regard. Because personal data or data related to human beings consist of: 1.Demographic and socio-economic characteristics of individuals: Age, sex, race, social class, religion, marital status, education, occupation income, family size, location of the household life style etc. 2.Behavioral variables: Attitudes, opinions, awareness, knowledge, practice, intentions, etc.

3.Organizational data consist of data relating to an organizations origin, ownership, objec-tives, resources, functions, performance and growth. 4.Territorial data are related to geophysical characteristics, resource endowment, population, occupational pattern infrastructure degree of development, etc. of spatial divisions like villages, cities, talluks, districts, state and the nation. The data serve as the bases or raw materials for analysis. Without an analysis of factual data, nospecific inferences can be drawn on the questions under study. Inferences based on imagination or guess work cannot provide correct answers to research questions. The relevance, adequacyand reliability of data determine the quality of the findings of a study. Data form the basis for testing the hypothesis formulated in a study. Data also provide the facts and figures required for constructing measurement scales and tables, which are analyzed with statistical techniques. Inferences on the results of statistical analysis and tests of significance provide the answers to research questions. Thus, the scientific process of measurements, analysis, testing and inferences depends on the availability of relevant data and their accuracy. Hence,the importance of data for any research studies.

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The sources of data may be classified into (a) primary sources and (b) secondary sources. Primary Sources of Data: Primary sources are original sources from which the researcher directly collects data that havenot been previously collected e.g.., collection of data directly by the researcher on brand aware-ness, brand preference, brand loyalty and other aspects of consumer behaviour from a sample of consumers by interviewing them,. Primary data are first hand information collected through vari-ous methods such as observation, interviewing, mailing etc. Advantage of Primary Data 1.It is original source of data 2.It is possible to capture the changes occurring in the course of time. 3.It flexible to the advantage of researcher. 4.Extensive research study is based of primary data Disadvantage of Primary Data 1.Primary data is expensive to obtain 2.It is time consuming 3.It requires extensive research personnel who are skilled. 4.It is difficult to administer. Methods of Collecting Primary Data: Primary data are directly collected by the researcher from their original sources. In this case, the researcher can collect the required date precisely according to his research needs, he can collect them when he wants them and in the form he needs them. But the collection of primary data is costly and time consuming. Yet, for several types of social science research required data are not available from secondary sources and they have to be directly gathered from the primary sources.In such cases where the available data are inappropriate, inadequate or obsolete, primary data have to be gathered. They include: socio econom-ic surveys, social anthropological studies of rural communities and tribal communities, sociological studies of social problems and social institutions. Marketing research, leadership studies,opinion polls, attitudinal surveys, readership, radio listening and T.V. viewing surveys, knowledge-awareness practice (KAP) studies, farm managements studies, business management studies etc. There are various methods of data collection. A Method is different from a Tool while a method refers to the way or mode of gathering data, a tool is an instruments used for the
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method. For example, a schedule is used for interviewing. The important methods are (a) observation, (b) interviewing,(c) mail survey,(d)experimentation,(e) simulation and (f) projective tech-nique. Each of these methods is discussed in detail in the subsequent sections in the later chapters. Secondary Sources of Data : These are sources containing data which have been collected and compiled for another purpose. The secondary sources consists of readily compendia and already compiled statistical statements and reports whose data may be used by researchers for their studies e.g., census reports , annual reports and financial statements of companies, Statistical state-ment, Reports of Government Departments, Annual reports of currency and finance published by the Reserve Bank of India, Statistical statements relating to Co-operatives and Regional Banks,published by the NABARD, Reports of the National sample survey Organization, Reports of trade associations, publications of international organizations such as UNO, IMF, World Bank,ILO,WHO, etc., Trade and Financial journals newspapers etc. Secondary sources consist of not only published records and reports, but also unpublished records. The latter category includes various records and registers maintained by the firms andorganizations, e.g., accounting and financial records, personnel records, register of members, mi-nutes of meetings, inventory records etc. Features of Secondary Sources Though secondary sources are diverse and consist of all sorts of materials, they have certaincommon characteristics.

First, they are readymade and readily available, and do not require the trouble of
constructingtools and administering them.

Second, they consist of data which a researcher has no original control over
collection and classi-fication. Both the form and the content of secondary sources are shaped by others. Clearly, this isa feature which can limit the research value of secondary sources. Finally, secondary sources are not limited in time and space. That is, the researcher using themneed not have been present when and where they were gathered. Use of Secondary Data: The second data may be used in three ways by a researcher.

First, some specific information from secondary sources may be used for reference purpose. For example, the general statistical information in the number of cooperative credit societies in the country, their coverage of villages, their capital structure, volume of business etc., may be taken from published reports and quoted as background information in a study on the evaluation of performance of cooperative credit societies in a selected district/state.
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 Second, secondary data may be used as bench marks against which the findings of research maybe tested, e.g., the findings of a local or regional survey may be compared with the national averages; the performance indicators of a particular bank may be tested against the corresponding indicators of the banking industry as a whole; and so on. Finally, secondary data may be used as the sole source of information for a research project.Such studies as securities Market Behaviour, Financial Analysis of companies, Trade in credit allocation in commercial banks, sociological studies on crimes, historical studies, and the like,depend primarily on secondary data. Year books, statistical reports of government departments,report of public organizations of Bureau of Public Enterprises, Censes Reports etc, serve as major data sources for such research studies
Advantages of Secondary Data Secondary sources have some advantages:

Secondary data, if available can be secured quickly and cheaply. Once their source of documents and reports are located, collection of data is just matter of desk work. Eventhe tediousness of copying the data from the source can now be avoided, thanks to Xeroxing facilities.
Wider geographical area and longer reference period may be covered without much cost.Thus, the use of secondary data extends the researchers space and time reach.

The use of secondary data broadens the data base from which scientific generalizationscan be made.
Environmental and cultural settings are required for the study.

The use of secondary data enables a researcher to verify the findings bases on Primary data. It readily meets the need for additional empirical support. The researcher need not wait the time when additional primary data can be collected.
Disadvantages of Secondary Data The use of a secondary data has its own limitations.

The most important limitation is the available data may not meet our specific needs.The definitions adopted by those who collected those data may be different; units of measure may not match; and time periods may also be different. The available data may not be as accurate as desired. To assess their accuracy we need toknow how the data were collected.
The secondary data are not up-to-date and become obsolete when they appear

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in print,because of time lag in producing them. For example, population census data are published tow or three years later after compilation, and no new figures will be available for another ten years.

Finally, information about the whereabouts of sources may not be available to all socialscientists. Even if the location of the source is known, the accessibility depends primarilyon proximity. For example, most of the unpublished official records and compilations arelocated in the capital city, and they are not within the easy reach of researchers based infar off places.

Evaluation of Secondary Data

When a researcher wants to use secondary data for his research, he should evaluate them before deciding to use them.

1.Data Pertinence
The first consideration in evaluation is to examine the pertinence of the available second-ary data to the research problem under study. The following questions should be considered. What are the definitions and classifications employed? Are they consistent ? What are the measurements of variables used?What is the degree to which they conform to the requirements of our research? What is the coverage of the secondary data in terms of topic and time? Does this coverage fit the needs of our research? On the basis of above consideration, the pertinence of the secondary data to the research on hand should be determined, as a researcher who is imaginative and flexible may be able to redefine his research problem so as to make use of otherwise unusable available data.

2.Data Quality
If the researcher is convinced about the available secondary data for his needs, the next step is to examine the quality of the data. The quality of data refers to their accuracy, reliability and completeness. The assurance and reliability of the available secondary data depends on the organiza-tion which collected them and the purpose for which they were collected. What is the authority and prestige of the organization? Is it well recognized? Is it noted for reliability? It is capable of collecting reliable data? Does it use trained and well qualified investigators? The answers to these questions determine the degree of confidence we can have in the data and their accuracy. Itis important to go to the original source of the secondary data rather than to use an immediate source which has quoted from the original. Then only, the researcher can review the cautionaryands other comments that were made in the original source. 3.Data Completeness
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The completeness refers to the actual coverage of the published data. This depends on the methodology and sampling design adopted by the original organization. Is the methodology sound?Is the sample size small or large? Is the sampling method appropriate? Answers to these questions may indicate the appropriateness and adequacy of the data for the problem under study. Thequestion of possible bias should also be examined. Whether the purpose for which the originalorganization collected the data had a particular orientation? Has the study been made to promotethe organizations own interest? How the study was conducted? These are important clues. The researcher must be on guard when the source does not report the methodology and sampling design. Then it is not possible to determine the adequacy of the secondary data for the researchersstudy.

Q 6. Case Study: You are engaged to carry out a market survey on behalf of a leading Newspaper that is keen to increase its circulation in Bangalore City, in order to ascertain reader habits and interests. Develop a title for the study; define the research problem and the objectives or questions to be answered by the study

Answer Generally, there is a significant relationship between the race or ethnic group and the language medium of the newspapers. Generally, Kannada newspapers are mostly read by the kannadigas respondents, Tamil newspapers by the tamilians etc. However, there is no significant relationship in the readership of English newspapers whereby they are read by all the ethnicgroups. Title: Readers habits and interests in Bangalore Research Problem: To ascertain the reader habits and interests and to increase news paper circulation in BangaloreCity Objectives or questions to be answered: 1. Have you read an entire book in the last 12 months? a. Yes.b. No.

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2. How much time do you spend reading web pages each day? a. I dont read web pages. b. Less than two hours. c. Two to four hours. d. Five or more hours.

3. Where do you read?Check all that apply. a. In school. b. On the bus. c. In a car or truck. d. In bed. e. At the computer.f. In the bathroom. g. In the kitchen or family room. h. At the library.

4. Have you ever pretended that you read a book when you hadnt? a. Yes. b. No.

5. Why do you usually read a book? a. Because I think I should. b. Because it was assigned to me. c. Because I am interested in the topic or author. d. I dont read books.

6. Have you ever pretended that you read a web page when you hadnt? a. Yes.b. No.

7. What is the last book that you read? If you havent read a book, write Not Applica-ble. a. Yes. b. No.

8..Is being able to read is important? a. Yes.b. No

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