Business research : an informal guide / Rick C. Farr, Paul R. Timm.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Farr, Rick C.

Contributor:

Timm, Paul R.

Series:

Fifty-Minute series.

A fifty-Minute series book

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Industrial management--Research--Handbooks, manuals, etc.

Industrial management.

Business--Research--Handbooks, manuals, etc.

Business.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (118 p.)

Place of Publication:

Menlo Park, Calif. : Crisp Publications, 1994.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Focuses on primary research, and developing skills needed to find answers to business questions.

Contents:

TITLE

COPYRIGHT

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

CONTENTS

PREFACE

PART 1 Research Basics

THE IMPORTANCE OF RESEARCH

Research Skills Build Your Career Value

THE PURPOSE OF RESEARCH

THE NATURE AND SCOPE OF BUSINESS RESEARCH

RESEARCH CAN BE CLASSIFIED AS PRIMARY OR SECONDARY

RESEARCH CAN ALSO BE CLASSIFIED AS BASIC OR APPLIED

PROBLEMS FOR PRIMARY, APPLIED RESEARCH

I. Marketing

II. Finance

III. Manufacturing

IV. Personnel

GROUND RULES FOR THE BUSINESS RESEARCHER

1. Always Know What You Are Researching

2. Always Test a Research Model

3. Never Use Only One Information-Gathering Technique

4. Use the KISS Principle

5. If Necessary, Hire a Professional

6. Make the Decision

PART 2 Using a Research Model

THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD

A BASIC MODEL FOR PRIMARY RESEARCH

1. State the Problem

Phrasing a Researchable Problem

Operational Definitions

Looking for Relationships (in all the right places)

2. Check Secondary Sources

3. Do Primary Research

4. Make a Decision

5. Check the Outcomes

PART 3 Observation Techniques

OBSERVATION IN RESEARCH

Advantages of Observation Techniques

Disadvantages of the Observation Technique

GUIDELINES FOR EFFECTIVE OBSERVATION

SPECIFIC OBSERVATION TECHNIQUES

Time and Motion Studies

Behavioral Frequency Counts

Reports and Other Written Documents

Tallying Observation Behaviors

Observed Behaviors

Case Study: What's Going On Here?

Case Study Review

PART 4 Surveys

UNDERSTANDING SURVEYS

Advantages to the Survey Technique

Disadvantages of the Survey Technique

PRELIMINARY FACTORS NECESSARY FOR EFFECTIVE SURVEYS

HOW TO GET A RANDOM SAMPLE

QUESTIONNAIRE DESIGN AND SURVEY ADMINISTRATION

STEP 1: Determine the Information Wanted and Types of Questions Required

STEP 2: Draft and Develop the Questions.

STEP 3: Test the Questions

STEP 4: Develop the Complete Questionnaire

STEP 5: Determine the Sample Size You Need

Administering the Survey Questionnaire

Administer to a Group

MAIL THE SURVEY

SURVEY APPLICATIONS IN BUSINESS RESEARCH

CHECKLISTS

MAIL QUESTIONNAIRES

Attitude Survey

PART 5 Interview Techniques

THE INTERVIEW PROCESS

Interview Design

Constructing the Interview

Structured and Unstructured Interviews:

Open-ended and Closed-ended Questions:

Pretesting Is Necessary

Use Good Questioning Techniques

COMMENCING THE INTERVIEW

CONDUCTING THE INTERVIEW

Using Audio and Video Tape

CONCLUDING THE INTERVIEW

COMPILING THE DATA AND ANALYZING THE RESULTS

INTERVIEW FORMATS

Face-to-Face

Advantages

Disadvantages

Telephone Interviewing Technique

Group Interview

Panels

Focus Groups

Nominal Group

8-Step Nominal Group Process

PART 6 Experiments and Tests

EFFECTIVE TESTS AND EXPERIMENTS

ADVANTAGES

DISADVANTAGES

THE GAME IS TO CONTROL THE VARIABLES

IN SEARCH OF VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY

It's All In the Design

The Solution to Validity and Reliability

A FINAL THOUGHT

APPENDIX A Sample Research Instrument

ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION QUESTIONNAIRE SURVEY

Instructions

PLEASE MARK ONLY ONE RESPONSE TO EACH QUESTION

Receiving Information from Others

Instructions for Questions 1 through 26

Sending Information to Others

Instructions for Questions 27 through 40

Follow-up on Information Sent

Instructions for Questions 41 through 50

Sources of Information

Instructions for Questions 51 through 68

Timeliness of Information Received from Key Sources

Instructions for Questions 69 to 74.

Organizational Communication Relationships

Instructions for Questions 75 through 93

Organizational Outcomes

Instructions for Questions 94 through 106

Channels of Communication

Instructions for Questions 107 through 122

COMMUNICATION AUDIT COMMUNICATIVE EXPERIENCE FORM

BACKGROUND INFORMATION.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

ISBN:

1-4175-2184-8

OCLC:

228064286