1st Note

Business Research Methods study Material
1. Research is defined as a systematic inquiry aimed at

providing information to solve managerial problems.
The term systematic inquiry refers to research as
being systematic as distinct from a process of
chance or fortuitous discovery. The term systematic
can also be related to the scientific method the idea
being that research is the process of inquiry conducted
in the best or at least most appropriate !ay. "o!ever
the concept of systematic inquiry is !ide enough to
encompass different approaches to conducting research
and does not restrict the scope of research to a
particular methodological paradigm. #t includes
descriptive research and does not restrict research to
studies !hich are $guided by theory and hypotheses
about presumed relations.% &istinctions can be made
bet!een applied and pure or basic research but both
are research. 'uestions arise !hen various people
begin to provide their o!n definitions !hich in some
!ay restrict the meaning of research to specific
approaches to specific topics or to the use of specific
procedures. The present authors are no e(ception in
this. )hile it is difficult to say !hat is al!ays right and
!hat is al!ays !rong it is important to recogni*e that
different definitions have values and !hat is
appropriate depends upon individual circumstances.
+ot!ithstanding these limits one can define !hat is
properly called business research and !hat can in
given cases be ,udged either to be good or bad
research.
-. .pplied research starts !ith a practical problem/
solving focus. . particular management decision must
be made and applied research involves collecting
information specific to that manager0s decision. 1ure
research is involved !ith collecting information that
might be used by a variety of managers. #t strives to
ans!er the broader 2!hat if32 question. .pplied
research might as4 05hould !e institute a commission
compensation system for 5afe6o0s sales personnel70
)here pure research !ould as48 0#f an aggressive sales
approach is desired !hat percent of compensation
should be based on commission and !hat percent on
salary7 #f a high level of post/sale customer service is
desired !hat percent of compensation should be based
on commission and !hat percent on salary70
Making Research Decisions
9. To choose either option the "R manager must first
determine the goals of the motivation program in terms
of desired attitudes and behavior. The "R manager
needs to 4no! the current motivation level of the
employees and the incentives or penalties that !ould
motivate them to adopt desired attitudes and behavior.
To purchase a motivation program the "R manager
must identify programs that match the companys
motivation goals as !ell s build criteria to later
evaluate the program. :ach of these tas4s could
involve one or more research pro,ects.
;. There may be a conflict bet!een the individuals role
of investigator and manager. The manager is li4ely to
favor findings that spea4 !ell for the continuation and
possible e(pansion of the operation or recommend
changes that conform to the managers preconceived
thoughts !ishes or future goals. #ssues of e(pansion
and compression of manufacturing units involve
comple( human problems of the lay/off and
redeployment of colleagues. )ith a managers past
human associations becoming a factor ob,ectivity can
be sacrificed. #t is advantageous to identify e(ecutives
!ho are distanced from a particular situation and as4
them to research it so that a clash of personal and
corporate interests is avoided. This has often been the
reason !hy independent corporate planning and
research divisions are assigned research pro,ects
instead of managers in the field. .s a researcher one is
called upon to gather and ob,ectively !eigh all
information and report the results of findings regardless
of the course of action favored by the findings. The
manager can be honest and !ell intentioned !ith a
desire to be totally ob,ective but even !ith the best of
intentions biases emerge and ob,ectivity is in doubt.
<. .ny number of research ideas might be proposed for
each of these. 5ome are8
a. )hen the management decision problem is 4no!n8
=1> Manager a full service restaurant
ReportingMonthly employee turnover
percentages for ma,or full service restaurants in
the city
DescriptionTypes of ,ob/related interaction for
different categories of employees
ExplanatoryReasons for resignations and
terminations
Prediction. forecast for the ne(t years
turnover based on changes in salaries incentives
and other conditions of employment
=-> "ead of an academic department
Reporting?isting of research methods
te(tboo4s used in top t!enty schools
Description@5tudent satisfaction !ith different
te(tboo4s
Explanatory5tudy to e(amine the relationship
bet!een student e(amination performance and
te(t boo4 use =the use of particular boo4s may be
positively related to better learning and
e(amination performance>
Prediction@5tudent enrollment as predicted by
boo4 choice and average course grades a!arded
in the past
b. )hen the management decision problem has not yet
been specified8
=1> Manager at a restaurant
Reporting.n inventory study to determine
!hat dishes and flat!are need to be replaced.
Description@an observation study of frequent
diners as to age gender and !hether they dine
alone in pairs or in groups.
Explanation5urvey of people !ho do not buy
appeti*ers or desserts as to !hy they do not buy.
Prediction.nalysis of restaurant patronage
patterns to determine staffing needs for the ne(t
month.
=-> 1lant manager at a shoe factory
Reporting@&evelopment of an accident statistics
summary.
Description.nalysis of quality control defects
discovered at final inspection station by shift and
assembly line.
Explanation.nalysis of high absentee
employees by demographic and other measures to
determine the cause of absenteeism.
Prediction&etermination of the effect on
assembly line output of the elimination of
!aterproof boots from the product mi(.
=9> &irector of Big BrothersABig 5isers in charge
of sponsor recruiting
Reporting)ee4ly summary of inquiries and
applications to be a sponsor.
Description.nalysis of applicants by gender
occupation and ethnicity.
Explanationsurvey of sponsor applicants !ho
decline a child !hen assigned to determine !hy
they declined.
Prediction.nalysis of quarterly application
rates for purpose of forecasting total number of
children !ho can be provided !ith a big brother
or sister.
=;> &ata analyst for a survey research firm.
Reporting1eriodic report survey participation
rates among high income households
Description6omparison of participation rates
relative to topic of study.
Explanation.nalysis of participation brea4/off
pints in survey in an effort to determine causes of
participant discontinuation.
Prediction :mployee pro,ections for the data
analyst position for the ne(t calendar year.
=<> "R manager at a university
Reporting. report on employee turnover by
department.
Description:mployee turnover report
classified by department seniority marital status
and so on.
Explanation.n e(periment to determine the
effect on climate of t!o different styles of
management.
Prediction. forecast of staffing needs in
house4eeping and grounds maintenance for the
ne(t five years.
=B> 1roduct manager of Cord :(plorer
Reporting. report on monthly sales.
Description&emographic profiles of buyers of
various models !ithin the :(plorer line.
ExplanationTest mar4eting of strategies that
employ different advertising !eights and price
levels.
Prediction1ro,ection of test mar4eting results
to national sales volume estimates.
=D> Camily services officer for a county
Reporting"istorical record of number of
service incidents.
Description&emographic profile of service
users.
ExplanationReasons for heavy demand shifts
for some services verses others.
Predictive5ervice forecasts from population
gro!th and migration data.
=E> Fffice manager for a pediatrician
ReportingRecord of the number of incoming
patients !ith influen*a.
Description. study categori*ing patients by
ailment categories.
ExplanatoryRelationship bet!een gender and
income and ailment frequency
PredictiveCorecast of number of office visits
for the ne(t one year for every e(isting patient to
determine need to increase number of
e(amination rooms.
B. Many different studies might be helpful in this
situation. 1robably the t!o ma,or lines of investigation
should be on =1> the firms operating inefficiencies and
=-> its future prospects in the industry. #n the first case
the president might request research to determine
!hether the inefficiency is caused by internal
production problems poor organi*ation ineffective cost
controls !ea4 sales management and so on. #t might
be in the form of a company management audit. The
e(amination of the industry and the firms future in it
!ould probably be directed at possible trends in
consumption patterns and distribution systems. )ith
this database the president might then consider possible
changes in company operations that could help them
adapt to these trends.
D. )hen needed the instructor should elaborate on
these points. #n this question understanding of the
concept of morale is important. "o! is it defined7 #s
the definition consistent !ith the literature7 "o! is it
measured7 &oes the measurement operationali*e the
definition7 )hat can !e infer about the
disproportionate sample si*es and their composition7
&oes this suggest that there are only clerical and
e(ecutive employees in the headquarters7 "o! are the
findings from the separate samples treated7 5hould !e
be concerned about the effects of social desirability on
the secretaries responses7 Fther questions on
methodology data analysis and the consultants
credentials can be raised in con,unction !ith the nine
criteria.
E. from the limited e(perience to all situations. This
limits the scope of the study and any method selected
unless the researcher ma4es a deliberate effort to
incorporate other !ays of thin4ing. =-> There is the
constant danger of mi(ing personal motives and
research. #n this situation particular research results can
have employment implications for the manager/
researcher. =9> . common source of bias in using sales
managers as researchers is that they prefer to understate
demand. 5ubsequently sales are achieved more easily
and the manager loo4s better. This tendency also leads
managers to rely on their subordinates as 4ey
information sources or to use quantitative
methodologies that give conservative estimates at the
cost of ob,ectivity.
Bringing Research to Life
G. The student !ould loo4 for the follo!ing in a
proposed research design8
Purpose clearly defined: Research must provide an
estimate of the si*e of the outboard engine mar4et in
sales and units and an estimate of current mar4et share
of all industry participants.
Research process detailed8 . research proposal
including budget !ill be approved before the research is
conducted and the researcher !ill report !ee4ly the on
progress of the process. Research !ill be completed
!ithin 9H days.
Research designed thoroughly planned8 Research !ill
include internal data mining e(tensive secondary data
search of industry specific sources as !ell as
intervie!s !ith industry e(perts.
Limitations frankly revealed8 Research !ill focus
e(clusively on outboard engines of the si*e currently
manufactured or in development.
Highly Ethical standards applied8 :ach estimator used
in the forecasting !ill be confirmed by t!o or more
sources to avoid bias in the calculation.
Adeuate Analysis8 Cootnotes of e(planation of
calculations !ill be presented !ith the findings.
!indings presented unam"iguously8 Cindings !ill be
presented in spreadsheet format !ith pessimistic
e(pected and optimistic forecasts.
#onclusions $ustified8 Recommendations !ill not
include strategies or tactics for e(pansion of company
sales and mar4et share.
Researcher%s experience reflected8 Researcher0s
credentials !ill appear in the process.
1H. Myra revealed her company is interested in
assessing the level of customer satisfaction =or
dissatisfaction> !ith their post/sale servicing of their
Mind)riter laptop computers. This is applied research
of a descriptive nature. Fnce the satisfaction level is
4no!n Myra might find that a predictive study !ould
be of value. #n the proposal development stage Iason
should use his research e(pertise to determine if Myra0s
company !ill be satisfied !ith the li4ely results of a
descriptive study.
11. Cor management to call a meeting requiring
significant travel they are obviously concerned about
something. Management as4s Myra to attend the
meeting !ith her number cruncher !hich !ould imply
that there are numbers of some sort to analy*e. #f they
,ust !anted a benchmar4 study to facilitate continuous
monitoring and subsequent trac4ing of customer
satisfaction such a request !ould be unli4ely to require
such a management meeting. .dditionally Iason
suggests that Myra discern 2!hat facts management has
gathered2. "e obviously believes that facts !ill be
shared at the meeting !ithout anticipating !hat those
facts might be.
1. ..6oncepts and constructs are both abstractions the
former from our perceptions of reality and the latter
from some invention that !e have made. . concept is
a bundle of meanings or characteristics associated
!ith certain ob,ects events situations and the li4e.
6onstructs are images or ideas developed specifically
for theory building or research purposes. 6onstructs
tend to be more abstract and comple( than concepts.
Both are critical to thin4ing and research processes
since one can thin4 only in terms of meanings !e have
adopted. 1recision in concept and constructs is
particularly important in research since !e usually
attempt to measure meaning in some !ay.
B. Both deduction and induction are basic forms of
reasoning. )hile !e may emphasi*e one over the
other from time to time both are necessary for
research thin4ing. &eduction is reasoning from
generali*ations to specifics that flo! logically from
the generali*ations. #f the generali*ations are true and
the deductive form valid the conclusions must also be
true. #nduction is reasoning from specific instances or
observations to some generali*ation that is purported
to e(plain the instances. The specific instances are
evidence and the conclusion is an inference that may
be true.
6. &ictionary definitions are those used in most general
discourse to describe the nature of concepts through
!ord reference to other familiar concepts preferably
at a lo!er abstraction level. Fperational definitions are
established for the purposes of precision in
measurement. )ith them !e attempt to classify
concepts or conditions unambiguously and use them in
measurement. Fperational definitions are essential for
effective research !hile dictionary definitions are
more useful for general discourse purposes.
&.6oncepts are meanings abstracted from our
observationsJ they classify or categori*e ob,ects or
events that have common characteristics beyond a
single observation =see .>. . variable is a concept or
construct to !hich numerals or values are assignedJ
this operationali*ation permits the construct or concept
to be empirically tested. #n informal usage a variable
is often used as a synonym for construct or property
being studied.
:. . proposition is a statement about concepts that can be
evaluated as true or false !hen compared to
observable phenomena. . hypothesis is a proposition
made as a tentative statement configured for empirical
testing. This further distinction permits the
classification of hypotheses for different purposes
e.g. descriptive relational correlational causal etc.
C. . theory is a set of systematically interrelated
concepts constructs definitions and propositions
advanced to e(plain and predict phenomena or facts.
Theories differ from models in that their function is
e(planation and prediction !hereas a models purpose
is representation. . model is a representation of a
system constructed for the purpose of investigating an
aspect of that system or the system as a !hole.
Models are used !ith equal success in applied or
theoretical !or4.
K.The characteristics of the scientific method are
confused in the literature primarily because of the
numerous philosophical perspectives one may ta4e
!hen $doing% science. . second problem stems from
the fact that the emotional characteristics of scientists
do not easily lend themselves to generali*ation. Cor
our purposes ho!ever the scientific method is a
systematic approach involving hypothesi*ing
observing testing and reasoning processes for the
purpose of problem solving or amelioration. The
scientific method may be summari*ed !ith a set of
steps or stages but these only hold for the simplest
problems. #n contrast to the mechanics of the process
the scientific attitude reflects the creative aspects that
enable and sustain the research from preliminary
thin4ing to discovery and on to the culmination of the
pro,ect. #magination curiosity intuition and doubt are
among the predispositions involved. Fne +obel
physicist described this aspect of science as doing
ones utmost !ith no holds barred.
-. The scientific method emphasi*es =1> direct observation
of phenomena =-> clearly defined variables methods
and procedures =9> empirically testable hypotheses =;>
the ability to rule out rival hypotheses =;> statistical
rather than linguistic ,ustification of conclusions and
=B> the self/correcting process. . schematic approach to
the scientific method is found in the section entitled
Reflective Thin4ing and the 5cientific Method. "ere
observation the processes of induction and deduction
and hypotheses testing combine in a systematic !ay as
!e proceed from observations to a critical self
correcting approach to theory development.
9. Mar4eting management organi*ational behavior and
other studies !here the human input is the central focus
tend to!ard empirical solutions to problems and theory
building. :(amples of such studies are =1> media
effectiveness =-> the impact of different incentive
schemes =9> the organi*ational efficiency of different
patterns of organi*ing. Management science operations
research production and associated areas tend to!ard
rationalist approaches. :(amples are =1> linear
programming transportation studies =-> inventory
modeling and cost forecasting =9> production and
machine time scheduling. . quic4 survey of the current
issue of the top t!o or three ,ournals in each field !ill
reveal much about preferred methodologies. Crom this
you may !ish to construct a pie chart on the board
sho!ing the range of research approaches for each
discipline.
;. .. Cirst ?ine 5upervisor =construct>
Fperational definitions8
a. Cor purposes of a given study a first line
supervisor is anyone !ho is on the company
roster !ith a ,ob level of M/1.%
b. .n individual !or4ing in a line function
supervising at least five employees of category
$+/1.%
B. :mployee Morale =construct>
a. &egree of mental satisfaction among employees
as represented by their score on the LMN morale
inventory.
b. Mental satisfaction measured as an equally
!eighted self/report on seven point scales8
Mental satisfaction at home8 :(cellent =1>
.verage =;> 1oor =D>
Mental satisfaction at !or48 :(cellent =1>
.verage =;> 1oor =D>
6. .ssembly ?ine =concept>
a. .n assembly line is any !or4 arrangement that
meets the follo!ing tests8
1. The !or4 consists of performing specific tas4s
in a fi(ed sequence of successive !or4stations.
-. The !or4 at a given station is repetitive.
9. Materials upon !hich !or4 is performed
moved through the sequence to various
!or4stations rather than machines or
!or4ers moving to the material.
b. .n assembly line is any process on the
production floor of building . !here the process
leads to a gross value addition to the product.
&. Fverdue account =construct>
a. .ll accounts receivable that remain unpaid by the
<th day after the invoice date.
b. .ll accounts payable that are overdue from the
due date of payment as applicable based on
terms of credit allo!ed to the vendor.
:. ?ine Management =construct>
a. ?ine management consists of all supervisors
listed in 6ompany .s organi*ation tables !ho
are in the direct chain of command bet!een the
companys president and the production !or4er
sales !or4er or finance !or4er. 5upervisors in
units !hose ma,or functions are to assist other
organi*ation units in their performance are not
line management.
b. .ll personnel =1> assigned annual outcome
targets in the &etailed .ssignment and
.ccountability 5tatement of the .nnual 1lan
1GGE/1GGG =-> e(cluding all personnel !hose
employment classification is $Miscellaneous
support services% in the "uman Resources roster.
C. ?eadership =construct>
a. .n act of leadership shall be recorded !hen any
member of the small groups under observation is8
1. Recogni*ed by group members as their leader
by their submission to hisAher assignments to
specific roles in one of the e(ercises or
-. .grees to hisAher suggestion as to ho! to
proceed in ma4ing assignments.
b. The degree of leadership embodied in a manager
!ould be measured by8
1. The number of e(ecutives of ran4 O and
above reporting to the e(ecutive directly or
indirectly
-. The increase in the number of e(ecutives of
ran4 O and above reporting to the manager
directly or indirectly over the last three years
#n 4eeping !ith management perceptions of
!eight to be assigned to various factors =1>
could be assigned a !eight of BHP and =->
;HP leading to an inde( of leadership.
1ersonnel may be ran4ed on this basis.
K. 1rice/:arnings Ratio =construct>
a. The ratio found by dividing a companys
common stoc4 price =average of the years
closing daily bids or final transaction prices on
the +e! Mor4 5toc4 :(change> by the companys
net profit after ta(es as reported for the calendar
year or fiscal year ending before Iuly of the
follo!ing year.
b. The earlier operational definition may be altered
by redefining the common stoc4 price for
instance by using the data of another stoc4
e(change and profit may be redefined as $gross%
or before ta(es.
". Qnion &emocracy =construct>
a. The condition of union governance in !hich the
ran4 and file members e(ercise the po!er in the
union as measured by responses to the follo!ing
three tests8
1. .re there free and open elections of leaders in
!hich opposition slates are allo!ed free access
to the members7
-. #s there open and free discussion and vote by
ran4 and file members on any contract
approval7
9. #s there an effective ran4/and/file committee
board or other type of organi*ational
arrangement by !hich !or4ers e(ercise
effective oversight of union officials7
b. The condition of union governance !here8
1. .nnual elections are mandatory.
-. :ach member has one vote.
9. . motion !ith <HP of total members support
can call for emergency elections.
#. :thical 5tandards =construct>
a. The ethical standard of the participant is
measured by his or her score on the 5:5T
=5tudents :thical 5tandard Test>.
b. The ethical standard is ,udged by the number of
violations by the participant in the last five
years.
<. The statement that $theory is impractical and thus no
good% illustrates a misconception of the true meaning
of theory. The second quotation is more to the point8
there is nothing so practical as a good theory =Ourt
?e!in> because of the po!er it gives us to e(plain and
predict the target phenomenon.
)e use theory constantly as !e e(plain !hy certain
events occur or !hy one procedure succeeds and
another does not. Theory represents an identification
of 4ey causal relationships !hich e(plain outcomes in
a variety of situations. #t is an effort to e(tract the
essence of relationships ignoring less important
conte(tual factors. The adequacy of a theory comes
from its capacity to e(plain phenomenon in a variety
of conte(ts and situations and this is referred to as its
capacity to $travel.% Fften theories are too simplistic
and therefore lac4 e(planatory po!er across
situations. The solution lies in improving the theory
possibly introducing more variables rather than
re,ecting the central concept.
B. .. Fne scheme for assessing the variables8
6ar 5ales =&R> Buyer gender :R
1er 6apita #ncome =#R> 6ompetitor advertising /
MR
:ase of credit access =:R> 6ompetitor dealer
discounts / MR
lo! interest rates MR #ntroduction of
competitor models / MR
Buyer age :R
6ar 5ales =&R> !ill increase as per capita income
increases =#R> as long as lo! interest =#RR> increase
ease of access to credit among younger =:R> men
=:R> and competitors do not introduce more attractive
models =:R> increase advertising =:R> or increase
their discounts =:R>.
B. Kiven that buyer behavior is fic4le !ith respect
to ego/involved purchases =e.g. car> and given
the number of uncontrollable e(traneous
variables a model based on the above theory is
unli4ely to be relevant for any about of time.
D. There are a variety of ans!ers to this question. Fne
e(ample might be8
.. 6oncepts@sales representative male female
6onstructs@customer defection.
B. Cemale sales representatives !ho are more
culturally supported in establishing and maintaining
relationships e(tend that personal behavior into the
!or4 place.
?o!er customer defections S fe!er current
customers lost at time of contract rene!al resulting
in a smaller customer defection percentage.
6ustomer defection percentage S the number of
customers !ho do not rene! their contract during
the measurement period divided by the total number
of customers at the start of the measurement period.
E. "ypothesis 1@Receptionist misdirects calls due to his
inability to correctly hear the problem as stated by the
caller.
The above hypothesis is induced from the situation
described in the problem. Crom the hypothesis !e must
be able to deduce some other factual conditions implied
by this hypothesis. Cor e(ample8
Cacts 1@The complaints of misdirected calls only
occur !hen the -H/year employee !or4s the
reception des4.
Cact -@. fully hearing employee does not
generate complaints of misdirected calls.
Cact 9@:mployee has requested t!o sic4 days in
the last 9 months for ear/related infections.
"ypothesis -@. faulty s!itch causes the misrouted
calls.
Cact 1@5!itch . is tested by placing several
sample calls and the calls are correctly routed.
Cact -@5!itch B is tested by placing several
sample calls and the calls are misdirected.
G. This question should lead to a lively discussion. #T:
members !ere primarily concerned by 5tate Carms
failure to factor in traffic volume measures =as an
indication of probability of an accident occurring> and
police incident reports =as an indication of severity> in
arriving at their designated dangerous intersections.
a. =1> )hat constitutes an accident7 This is the most
fundamental construct. #s an accident only one in
!hich the police are involved7 Fr is it one in !hich
either personal or property in,ury occurs7 Fr is it
one in !hich medical treatment is delivered7 Fr
maybe an accident is only one !here t!o vehicles
collide in an intersection. =-> .nother construct is
$)hat is an intersection7% 5hould an intersection
have to achieve some base level of traffic to be
considered part of the pool of intersections that are
considered7 =9>Traffic volume is another construct
as it is based on a statistical pro,ection. #n most
instances volume is a sample measure based on
number of cars proceeding through an intersection
during a specified period of time in each of four
directions. The period of time varies based on staff
or equipment used to ma4e the counts. The volume
is li4ely to vary depending on time of day day of
!ee4 and !ee4 of the year as !ell as based on
direction of movement. Most volume counts are
pro,ections based on an actual traffic count of
vehicles moving through an intersection for a short
period =sample> of time. 5o !hile the count may
be a concept proceeding through an intersection is
a construct. =;> .ccident severity is yet another
construct !hich can be defined !ith any number of
additional constructs and concepts. 5hould 5tate
Carm use medical recovery cost and property
damage repair estimates to determine severity or
some other measure li4e loss of life or limb7 :ven
loss of life may become a construct if one
considers that a severe accident might place a
victim in a coma and thus technically alive in
medical terms !hile not functioning in the laymans
eyes.
b. Fne possible hypothesis of #T: is that $a dangerous
intersection is one in !hich the largest percentage
of vehicles moving through an intersection are
involved in a collision !ith another vehicle or an
immovable ob,ect regardless rather an insurance
claim is filed.% .nother hypothesis might be that
$only intersections !ith at least L traffic volume
can be considered dangerous and only then if L
percent of vehicles moving through that intersection
are involved in a collision.% Qltimately #T:
members are responsible for solving intersection
problems@!hether or not such intersections are
brought to their attention by 5tate Carm. 5o students
might also propose hypotheses related to
intersection problems8 $#ntersections !ithout
signals visible for a minimum of <HH yards are more
dangerous than those !ith signals visible for a
minimum of <HH yards.
1H. +umerous variables !ere introduced in the te(t
discussion of BRT?0s .rmy firing range vignette.
.mong these8
2danger2
!arning
=:R/control>
loss of lucrative
mining ,obs =:R>
pro(imity to firing
range =MR>
belief in fate
=MR>
nocturnal
scavenging of
firing range for
copper !ire =&R>
resident education
level =:R/control>
fighter
bombing
!ith active
artillery
=#RR>
post/fire handling
=MR>
speed of impact =#R>
detonation
delay =:R>
price of copper
!ire =:R>
4erosene
lantern
mar4ing
=:R>
profit from
scavenged
materials =#RR>
1H. .rmy0s hypothesis !ithin the te(t discussion8
.n active =non/dud> shell !hen fired from a cannon
=#R> e(plodes on impact =&R>.
. 2dud2 shell !hen fired from a cannon =#R> does
not e(plode on impact =&R>.
Myra0s hypotheses !ithin the te(t discussion8
. 2dud2 shell !hen fired from a cannon =#R> does
not immediately e(plode on impact =&R> and
cannot subsequently be detonated by any means
human or mechanical =#R>. .
?ocal0s conviction that predetermined fate dictates
time and place of death =#R> leads them to
underta4e life/threatening behaviors@scavenging
on the firing range =&R>. #f locals could be !arned
of the danger =#R> of their actions they !ould
change their nocturnal behavior =&R>.
The loss of mining ,obs =#R> leads to acceptance of
higher/ris4 behaviors to earn a family/supporting
income@race/car driving or nocturnal scavenging
=&R> especially due to the pro(imity of the firing
range =MR> and limited education =MR> of the
residents.
.mong residents !ith less than a high school
education =:R/control> the loss of high income
mining ,obs =#R> leads to acceptance of higher/ris4
behaviors to earn a family/supporting income@
race/car driving or nocturnal scavenging =&R>
especially due to the pro(imity of the firing range
=MR>.
Mar4ing $dud% shells !ith 4erosene lanterns for
same/evening detonation =#R> !ill reduce nocturnal
scavenging =&R> among poorly educated local
residents =MR> by eliminating the profit motive for
such behavior =#RR>.
.n increase in the price of salvaged copper !ire
=#R> leads to an increase in scavenging =&R> on the
.rmy firing range.
From Concept to Practice
11... 1. #f money supply is the basic economic variable
then economic condition changes !ill parallel it
!ith a lag.
-. :conomic condition variations lag money supply
by B/1- months.
&nduction
9. Therefore money supply is the basic economic
variable
B. 1. #f smo4ing causes lung cancer heavy smo4ers
!ill have a higher lung cancer rate than non/
smo4ers.
-. "eavy smo4ers do have a higher lung cancer rate.
&nduction
9. "eavy smo4ing causes lung cancer.
6. 1. #f a person goes to church regularly this person is
a reliable !or4er.
-. $Bob% goes to church regularly.
Deduction
9. $Bob% is a reliable !or4er.
+ote8 Three is a valid deduction from the ma,or
premise =1>. The truth of the ma,or and minor
premises may be challenged8 church
attendance and reliability in the !or4place
must be unequivocally connected and $Bob%
must be a person not my dog.
1. )hen !e consider !hether a topic is researchable it is
!ise to note that the ans!er is one of degree. Research
can shed some light on most topics but there are t!o
situations !here research can not provide much help. #n
the first case there are questions relating to $value%
!here fact gathering can not contribute much. Cor
e(ample !e may consider ma4ing a merger offer to
company L and as4 the question $&o !e really !ant to
gro! in this !ay7% Fr $)ill !e be happier ma4ing this
offer rather than an offer to company M7%
. second situation !here research is limited concerns
those questions !here data gathering could be helpful
but our techniques or procedures are inadequate. #n the
merger case for e(ample !e might as4 the question
$)ill the stoc4holders of 6ompany L !elcome our
merger offer7% This type of question is ans!ered if
there is a !ay to get the data before ma4ing the offer.
"o!ever there may be no method to enable us to ma4e
this assessment short of ma4ing the offer. Fr again the
question $)ill the Q.5. &epartment of Iustice fight our
merger plan7% )hile there are no legitimate techniques
to gain certainty about such information research may
provide probable or at least possible clues as to
reactions from stoc4holders government agencies and
other sta4eholders.
-. This question addresses the issue of shortsightedness in
research planning. The use of e(ploration even under
budgetary restraints may ma4e the difference bet!een
terminating the pro,ect early or spending a substantial
sum to rediscover !hat is already 4no!n. The use of
published data and e(perience surveys for e(ample
may permit ans!ering the question changing the
question refining the question or selecting an optimal
methodology// all of !hich are cost saving. )hereas
e(ploration avoids costly mista4es on the front end of
the problem pilot testing identifies methodological
misapplications and measurement problems before data
collection. Both activities add to the cost of the pro,ect
but !ithout them the information may be completely
!ithout value. The failure to do some e(ploration may
result in studying the !rong problem and the failure to
pretest may threaten the validity of the study.
3. #n a study of an inventory management situation the use
of the last years audit as the 4ey database !ould imply
that previous data on inventory levels inventory
mista4es slo! moving and surplus stoc4 is the basis for
decision ma4ing. +ormally such data is used to
evaluate the appropriateness of desired inventory levels
=minimum ma(imum average>. 5imulations are also
possible based on alternative models. The second
proposal uses a study of systems and procedures to
recommend changes. The focus here is procedural
efficiency and the results of ne! procedures are
normally more con,ectural than quantitative data based
approaches.
1rior evaluation is generally difficultJ ho!ever a data/
driven audit based approach can predict or simulate
cost changes for carrying inventories. This is based on
the evaluation of past inventory levels and targeted
inventory levels using revised inventory carrying
norms. The same e(ercise becomes more difficult for a
systems/ and procedure/based approach because it is
far more difficult to impute quantitative cost saving to
procedural changes. )hile e( post facto evaluations
are easier in either case !ith the latter problem this
may be the only form of evaluation possible.
The t!o research options are decision option
alternatives and savings e(pectations computed e(
ante. Fne interesting point is that there is a possibility
that the t!o proposals finally yield similar e(pectations
of savings. "o!ever one of the options may involve a
more ris4y proposition8 a more ris4y proposition
anticipates a greater deviation bet!een the best and
!orst case scenarios even though the savings
e(pectation could be the same. "ere decisions !ould
have to go beyond a decision theory of e(pectations and
the final decision !ould depend on a choice bet!een
ris4 averse and ris4 see4ing behavior.
4. The 1resident of Fa4s #nternational #nc. faces a
management dilemma8 the company is plagued by lo!
productivity. The management question should see4 to
identify the factors that lead to lo! productivity and
identify the strategies that can lead to increases in
productivity. #n this case the 1resident is assuming that
=1> the cause of lo! productivity in the organi*ation is
,ob satisfaction =-> there is a relationship bet!een ,ob
satisfaction and productivity. The latter relationship
even if partially valid may be largely influenced by
moderating and intervening variables. Cor instance
performance or productivity is an outcome of $!or4
input% or effort and this becomes a 4ey intervening
variableJ a similar variable may be absenteeism.
Cocusing on these variables may be important as their
salience may be as high as that of ,ob satisfaction.
Cinally the cause of lo! productivity may not lie in
personnel issues but in other matters such as the plant
equipment materials availability or technology. The
1residents approach biases the results and an
e(ploratory e(ercise to determine possible causes of
lo! productivity is necessary. This may be follo!ed up
by a pilot study to narro! 4ey research questions to
factors that have greater importance !ith respect to
productivity.
5. The editor of 'entlemen(s )aga*ine has as4ed you to
carry out a research study. The maga*ine has been
unsuccessful in attracting advertising revenue from
shoe manufacturers. The shoe manufacturers claim that
mens clothing stores are a small and declining segment
of the mens shoe business. 5ince 'entlemen(s
)aga*ine sells chiefly to mens clothing store
managers the manufacturers have reasoned that it is not
a good advertising medium for their shoes.
The editor disagrees about the si*e and importance of
shoe mar4eting through mens clothing stores. +either
side has much direct evidence on the matter so the
editor as4s you to carry out a study to determine the
facts about these stores as a channel of distribution for
mens shoes. Mou agree to do so and proceed by first
structuring the problem.
1. )anagement +uestion, The problem facing the
maga*ine management is that of e(panding their
advertising revenue. There are a number of !ays
that this might be done and research might help in
many of them. #n this case ho!ever the
management has already decided that the
managements problem is to secure more
advertising from the shoe industry. The researcher
accepted the problem definition as stated.
-. Research +uestion, The research question !as
defined as $.re the actual or potential sales of
mens shoes in mens!ear stores large enough to
represent an advertising opportunity to shoe
manufacturers7%
9. &nvestigative +uestions, Three ma,or investigative
questions !ere proposed8
...re shoe sales important to mens!ear stores7
B. "ave shoe sales been gro!ing in importance in
mens!ear stores and are they e(pected to gro!
in the future7
6. &oes the situation in mens!ear stores present an
advertising opportunity for shoe manufacturers7
#t !as agreed that the only feasible research
design given the available budget !as a national
mail survey. Because of the limited scope of the
study and the problems of population estimation
from a mail survey it !as agreed that the
research study !ould be concerned chiefly !ith
the first t!o questions. The third question !ould
be approached !ithin the limits of the research
design but a full ans!er to this question !ould
require information not available to the
researcher.
To ans!er the ma,or investigative questions
posed above it !as necessary to obtain
information on a number of much more specific
points. These represent investigative sub/
questions that !e must 4no! to ans!er the three
ma,or questions. 1arenthetical statements
attached to them suggest the rationale for
including each question in the study.
&..re shoe sales important to mens!ear stores7
1. )hat percentage of mens!ear stores carry
mens shoes7 =Fne important measure of this is
the channel of distribution and is an indicator
of the importance of shoes to retailers.>
-. )hat percentages of mens!ear store sales
come from shoes7 =. measure of the
importance of shoes to total store operation.>
9. "o! do shoe gross margins compare !ith total
store gross margins7 =.nother measure of shoe
importance to the store and an indicator of
!hether or not shoes are li4ely to secure the
store managements attention.>
;. "o! do spaceAsales ratios compare bet!een
shoe departments and the total store7 =.nother
measure of the contribution of shoes to the
total store volume. .lso a measure of ho!
secure shoes might be as a part of the store
product mi(.>
<. "o! important are shoes as traffic builders
e(tra sales or e(tra business from those !ho
do not buy other merchandise at the time7
=.nother measure of the value of shoes to store
success and an indicator of the mi( security of
shoes.>
:. "ave shoe sales been gro!ing in importance in
mens!ear stores and are they e(pected to gro! in
the future7
1. )hat percentage of the stores has added
e(panded dropped or reduced shoe operations
in the last five years7 =. measure of the
changes in importance of shoes in mens!ear
stores in recent years.>
-. "ave shoe sales gro!n or declined in absolute
dollars in recent years7 .s a percentage of total
store sales7 =Measures of the changes that have
ta4en place in mens!ear stores concerning
shoes.>
)hat are store managers e(pecting in the ne(t
fe! years concerning shoes7 .dd or drop7
Reduce or enlarge7 =. measure of store
operator e(pectations concerning shoes.>
C. &oes the situation in mens!ear stores present an
advertising opportunity for shoe manufacturers7
1. )hat percentage of the mens shoe volume is
sold through mens!ear stores7 =. very crude
measure of the importance of this channel to
the manufacturer. This estimate !ill be
carefully hedged since there is little hope that
the survey can provide an unbiased estimate of
total sales of mens shoes.>
-. "o! important are leased departments in
mens shoes operations in mens!ear stores7 =.
measure of the need for shoe manufacturers to
contact individual store managers to secure
distribution or !hether the approach of a fe!
central buying firms might suffice.>
9. )hat price lines are carried and !hat is the
relative importance of each7 =. measure of the
type of demand for mens shoes represented in
this channel.>
;. )hat is the importance of casual shoes versus
dress shoe sales7 =.nother measure of the type
of shoe demand that prevails in this channel.>
<. )hat brands are carried and !hat is the
relative importance of each brand7 =. measure
of the penetration by various manufacturers as
!ell as a measure of the product characteristics
that are popular in this channel.>
-, )easurement +uestions, The 19 investigative
questions listed under the three ma,or questions
translated into about -H specific measurement
questions that !ere finally as4ed of the participants.
There !ere si( additional classification/type
questions. They differed from the investigative
questions chiefly in !ording and format so as to aid
the participant in replying !ith a minimum of
difficulty and a ma(imum of reliability.
6. .. 5tudents should be as4ed for their suggestions of
!hy sales of beef entrees might be declining. They
should generate many plausible reasons. 5ales of
beef could be do!n due to fear =as suggested> but
might also have decreased due to a shift to fish
chic4en or vegetarian foods. .ny of these
alternative entrees !ould be appropriate choices if
customers are e(periencing increasing concern over
high cholesterol as promoted by the areas medical
community. &eclining sales of beef might also be
due to the closing of a primary beef supplier
causing beef deliveries to be interrupted !ith a
resulting out/of/stoc4 condition occurring. 5ales
could also be do!n due to !aitress suggestions
price incentives on desserts !hich led customers to
reduce the si*e of their entrees or a ne! chef !ho
prefers to use non/beef products for the featured
entrTe. )e need to 4no! more about the internal
situation to move for!ard. )hen did the sales
decline first start7 6an the sales declines be lin4ed
to changes in other internal behaviors7 . survey of
area restaurants if the stimulus is e(ternal might
support the idea of diminished sales of beef but
!ouldnt provide a reason for !hy or a clue ho! to
correct the situation. )hy for e(ample is a survey
of other restaurants better than a survey of the
restaurants customers7 The manager might be
,umping to an un!arranted conclusion that !ould
result in misspent research dollars.
B. :ncourage the students to use the management/
research question hierarchy as a good place to start. Fnce
they do it should be obvious that !hile !e might !ant a
survey of area restaurants beef entrees it is less li4ely
that !e !ill be loo4ing for e(ternal influences and more
li4ely that the manager should be e(amining !hat
proactive actions could be done in his o!n restaurant.
The manager has defined his research question as8 $)hat
e(ternal conditions are influencing beef entrTe sales7%
)hile this is a plausible investigative question to his
study it is unli4ely to help reverse the trend of beef
entrTe sales. Fne of your students should generate the
follo!ing8
Management dilemma8 Beef entrTe sales are
declining7
Management question8 )hat could !e do to
increase beef entrTe sales7 or )hat could !e do
to return beef entrTe sales to their pre/decline
level7
#nherent in the management question is the
need to e(plore !hy beef entrTe sales have
declined. Both internal and e(ternal causes
should be studied. But plausible ideas for ho!
declining beef entrTe sales could be reversed
should be the focus of the e(ploratory research.
Research question8 )hat might !e do to reverse
the trend of declining beef entrTe sales7 5ome
plausible ones might be8 5hould smaller beef
entrTe portions be offered7 5hould a more highly
seasoned beef entrTes be added to the menu7
5hould a lo!er/fat beef supplier be found7
5hould a beef entrTe be a featured special at least
three days a !ee47 :tc.
7. $The #ssue of #ncreasing 6omplaints Regarding 1ost
1urchase 5ervice%
.. Management &ilemma8
. possible problem !ith reference to the management
dilemma :(hibit 9/; in the te(tboo4 defines the
management question as $)hat can be done to improve
the 6omplete6are program for Mind)riter product
repairs and servicing7% #t hereafter develops
corresponding e(ploration and research questions. #n
this question !e ma4e an effort to identify alternative
management problems that cause the management
dilemma and develop corresponding management and
research questions. The management dilemma is
provo4ed by increasing complaints and letters about
post purchase service. This seems to indicate a
deterioration in service quality over time. Fne class of
management questions concerns trou"le shooting or
control situations and if the management dilemma is
vie!ed !ithin this perspective then management
questions e(tend beyond decision choices to improve
service quality. The focus here is the control process
issues of responsibility and accountability and
appropriate procedures to limit the possibility of failure
or deterioration in the quality of service.
B. Management 'uestions8
)hat is the cause for the increase in post
purchase service complaints7
#n terms of systems controls and trouble
shooting !hat should be done to decrease the
number of complaints7
Crom the standpoint of the organi*ation !hich
personnel and !hich stages of the process should
be identified as responsible and accountable for
service quality deterioration7
6. Research 'uestions8
#s the increase in complaints merely an outcome
of the increased volumes in the mar4et or is there
a real deterioration in service quality7
"o! many complaints have occurred at different
stages of the service process and !hat has been
the pattern over time7 =Cor instance the
complaints at the stage of telephone inquiry pic4/
up time repeat complaints delivery delays
initial telephone clarifications after sale etc.>
)hat are the categories of complaints and !hat
has been the pattern of complaints over time7
=6ategories8 complaints regarding soft!are
installation hard!are po!er supply delays
because of8 parts availability late pic4 up late
delivery>
)hat are the e(isting controls in the company
and ho! do they compare to industry norms7
)hat are the norms and control systems
recommended7 =These norms generally relate to
outcome and behavior controls and systems8
6ontrols and norms !ould be norms such as8
percentage of calls !here problems should
be solved on the phone
ma(imum percentage of repeat complaints
average repair time
average delivery time
ma(imum average brea4age allo!ed
average repair cost per laptop
average number of laptops repaired per
technician per day
8. $The Qneven 6ourier 1erformance 1roblem%
)ith regard to the above problem reference to :(hibit
9/9 and 9/; in the te(tboo4 is revealing. :(ploration
has been done at t!o stages stage - and stage ;. .t
stage - there is no e(ploration of the courier problem at
all and the e(ploration is restricted to the product
satisfaction !ith service repair and technical support.
The information obtained lac4s specific focus on
courier and delivery systems. ?i4e!ise even though
the brainstorming at stage - lists uneven courier
performance as a possible problem the only
e(ploration at stage ; is an intervie! !ith $an
independent pac4age company account e(ecutive.%
:(ploration of the uneven courier supply issue has
therefore to start more rigorously and !ith the normal
starting point secondary data analysis.
.. :(ploration .ctivities8
1. :(plore the cost economics and delivery
advantages of different services both couriers
and alternative means of transport =5ource8
Brochures and literature from other courier
companies freight for!arding companies
airlines shipping agenciesJ personal contact may
be made at a later stage>.
-. :(plore the sequence of courier operations8
!aiting time product pic4 up and delivery time
feedbac4 on delivery and the condition of the
product at the time of delivery =5ources8
6omplete 6are records .B6 6ourier
representatives representatives of other courier
companies>.
. 1ost 5ervicing 1ac4aging .lternatives8 #nvestigative
'uestions
5tarting from the base issue of brea4age in delivery the
investigative questions bifurcate since there are t!o
options8
1. Retain a courier service or change to another but
modify pac4ing requirements.
-. 6hange to air transport.
:ach option generates associated investigative
questions. . sample of such questions is given
belo!.
Retain Co!rier Change to "ir #ransport
B :fficiency implications of
the choice7
:fficiency implications of
the choice7
< 6ost implications of =;>7 6ost implications of =;>7
; 1ac4aging modifications
for satisfactory deliveries7
.ny pac4ing changes
needed7
9 )hat are the brea4age
issues !ith courier
companies7
)hat are the brea4age
issues !ith air transport7
- 6hoose a courier
company.
6hoose air transport.
1 Management 'uestion8 "o! should the company
decrease brea4age in post service deliveries7
$%. a. The production manager of a shoe factory
Management &ilemma8 There is a decline in plant
productivity.
Management 'uestion8 "o! do !e increase plant
productivity to bring it bac4 to its former level7
Research 'uestions8 =1> )hat are the factors
impacting productivity and ho! important is each
factor7 =-> )hich are the factors to be focused on to
increase productivity7 =9> "o! does productivity in
this factory compare to industry norms considering
labor and capital productivity7
b. The president of a home healthcare services firm
Management &ilemma8 The firm is e(periencing an
increasing number of complaints regarding health
care service quality.
Management 1roblem8 )hat can be done to
improve service quality7
Research 'uestions8 =1> #s there a real problem in
the quality of service or is the perceived quality of
the service poor7 =-> )hich categories of health
care services are generating the ma,or portion of
complaints7 =9> )hat specific improvements can
improve these services7 =;> )hat may be e(pected
as an outcome of the improvements7
c. The vice president of labor relations for an auto
manufacturer
Management &ilemma8 ?o! productivity and high
absenteeism at the manufacturing plant.
Management 'uestion8 )hat are the causes for lo!
productivity and high absenteeism7
Research 'uestions8 =1> )hat are the causes of lo!
productivity that relate to personnel issues7 =->
)hat are the causes of lo! productivity that relate
to technology or the manufacturing plant7 =9> )hat
are the causes of absenteeism7 =;> #s there an
employee morale problem in the plant and if so
!hat are its ma,or dimensions7
d. The retail advertising manager of a ma,or
metropolitan ne!spaper
Management &ilemma8 5hould advertising rates be
revised7
Management 'uestion8 5hould the advertising rates
be revised by ho! much and !hat gains are
e(pected from the revision7
Research 'uestions8 =1> )hat are the rates of
competing publications7 =-> )hat should the
differentials bet!een rates for different positions
be7 =9> )hat impact !ill a rate increase have on the
demand for advertising7 =;> )hat should the
revised advertising tariff structure be7
e. The chief of police in a ma,or city
Management &ilemma8 . need for more efficient
dispatching of police officers7
Management 'uestion8 )hich are the systems that
have a more efficient dispatch of officers and !hat
are the associated implementation costs7
Research 'uestions8 =1> )hich dispatch systems are
in use in other places !hat are their costs and ho!
is their efficiency7 =-> )hat are the steps and costs
associated !ith the introduction of the three most
efficient alternatives7
11. The students0 ans!ers to this question can focus on
many management problems. 5ome students should be
invited to share their ans!ers to this question and form
the hierarchy. Fther students !ith similar management
dilemmas can assist that student to build a complete
hierarchy. :ach student should start !ith a symptom to
reveal the management dilemma. 5ome e(amples of
management dilemmas that students might use are8
a. !or4ers not reporting for scheduled shifts3e(plore
scheduling
b. high !or4er turnover =losing !or4ers to competitive
firms>3e(plore hiring pay scheduling training
customer service complaints
c. complaints from !or4ers about disproportionate
effort or results not reflected in their pay3e(plore
pay benefits scheduling incentive programs
productivity programs
d. high !aste level !ithin production3e(plore
machinery accuracy and maintenance employee
training pay supervision
e. high level of defect !ithin production3e(plore
machinery accuracy training pay supervision
f. lo! number of customers !ho remember
advertising3e(plore message media timing
1-. The proposal content should include !hat information
they !ant to collect !ith the 9HH intervie!s to ans!er
the management question chosen and ho! they thin4
such research !ill help determine the management
question. Cor e(ample the student might chose the
police chief study ='uestion 1He> on correcting
dispatching problems. They might suggest doing
telephone intervie!s !ith the head dispatching officer
in 9HH police precincts around the country collecting
information on the types of dispatching equipment
used the process that guides the dispatching of officers
to crimes or incidents the average response times etc.
#f a similar process or machinery is used !ithin the
most efficient of the 9HH departments then a
management question about s!itching to that process or
machinery can be raised.
1. . solicited proposal is developed in response to a
request for proposals =RC1>. The proposal is li4ely to
compete against several others for the contract or grant.
.s such it concentrates on a 4no!n problem and
proposes an appropriate research design to address the
problem. The problem statement is brief and to the
point. The research ob,ectives are 4no!n to the client
and are therefore only briefly revie!ed. Most of the
proposal concentrates on the research design and the
distinguishing characteristics of the proposal
=qualifications schedule budget and resources>.
.n unsolicited proposal has the advantage of not
competing against others but the disadvantage of
having to speculate on the ramifications of a problem
facing the firms management. These proposals lay
greater emphasis on the problem statement and the
research ob,ectives. #n addition the qualifications of
the researchers are emphasi*ed. . strongly !orded
results section can convince the recipient of the !orth
of the proposal.
-. Fne possible form !ould include the follo!ing items8
#. 1roblem 5tatement
..&iscussion !ith management
B. &escribe the management problem
6. ?ist sub problems if any
##. Research ob,ectives
..&evelop research questions related to problem
statement above
B. &escribe target population for each research
question
###. ?iterature revie!
..&escription of related research
B. ?isting of relevant statistical sources
#R. Research &esign
..?isting of possible research designs chec4
appropriate design
B. &iscuss !hy particular design is appropriate
R. Results &escription
..&iscuss !ith management the types of results
B. Return to ## if results do not meet e(pectations
R#. Budget / include sign/off from financial
department
R##. 5chedule / revie! !ith management
. form li4e this simplifies the early stages of research
proposal !riting and provides an easy to understand list
for the sponsoring manager. This facilitates
management / researcher communications. #n addition
it ensures that management 4no!s e(actly the type of
research that is being commissioned. #n this !ay the
results obtained !ill be beneficial in solving the
management problem.
9. 5tudent imagination can provide many e(amples that
the authors have not included belo!.
.. Desktop Pu"lishing: &es4top publishing ma4es it
easy to provide professional loo4ing proposals at a
lo! cost. Kraphic possibilities improve the ability
for proposals to sho! the nature of the results. #n
addition !ord processors ma4e it possible for a
$boiler/plate% proposal to be developed. "aving all
the standard modules the boiler/plate proposal is
used !henever a ne! proposal needs to be !ritten
ensuring that the proper form and style are used and
that all of the relevant information is included. 5uch
a proposal authoring tool !ould dramatically reduce
the amount of time it !ould ta4e to develop
proposals.
B. Multimedia computer authoring and display8 These
permit development of a brief for the client so that
actual intervie!ing situations can be e(plored. This
is generally used for the client !ho has already
contracted the researcher and is involved in the
design of the pro,ect. .lthough multimedia
computer systems are currently being used
primarily in training and education ne! uses such
as traveling displays full graphic presentation
techniques and motion picture reproduction e(ist.
Their advantage over traditional video is that
po!erful personal computers can be equipped !ith
multimedia capabilities and still remain portable.
6. Rideo taping and display8 This may be used to sho!
a potential client the types of speciali*ed facilities
you have. #n addition it may be used to demonstrate
the proficiency of intervie!ing staff or to
graphically demonstrate the problem statement or
importance of a study.
;. This list of criteria may ta4e many forms. :(amples of
acceptable ans!ers are presented belo!.
..Mar4et Research
1. 1roblem 5tatementAResearch Fb,ectivesABenefits
<H points
a. the bac4ground of the problem is understood
b. the research ob,ectives are clear and correct
c. the comple(ities of the research are understood
d. the benefits matchAe(ceed managements
e(pectations
-. &esignA.nalysisAResults
-H points
a. the design is e(plained adequately and is
appropriate
b. the researcher has the proper analysis tools at
hisAher disposal
c. results !ill be in a usable form
9. BudgetA5cheduleA5pecial resourcesA'ualification
9H points
a. pro,ect is !ithin budget and on schedule
b. special resources are available
c. researcher qualification is appropriate
B. Advertising effectiveness: 5ame as Mar4et research
e(cept more !eight given to design less to problem
statement research ob,ectives and benefits.
6. Employee opinion surveys: .n internal study large
in scale. :ach of the ma,or modules is included in
the evaluation. . typical point scale may range
bet!een < and -H points for each section !ith more
!eight given to the research design results and
pro,ect management than to the literature revie!
importance and bibliography.
&.#redit card operations: The approach is the same as
Mar4et Research e(cept no special resources are
needed. &esignA.nalysisA Results carry a heavier
!eight ;H pointsJ 1roblem 5tatementA Research
Fb,ectivesABenefits !ould carry a lo!er !eight 9H
points. This is because the problems are relatively
!ell understood and analytic in nature !hereas the
design and analysis are important to insure that the
results are usable by the department store.
:. #omputer service effectiveness at the individual
store level: This is probably an e(ternal study of
moderate si*e. 6onsiderable attention !ould be
given to the problem statement and the research
ob,ectives to ensure that the correct problem is
being researched. .s in :mployee Fpinion 5urveys
each of the modules !ould be included and the
!eights !ould be split bet!een them.
<. .ny number of ,ournal reports can be chosen for this
one. :ach should be evaluated on its o!n merits. .
useful e(ercise is for small groups to critique proposal
outlines. The proposals are distributed !ithout
identification and the group !or4s as a team to prepare
a critique for each of ;/< proposals.
B. .. This is a study !ith ma,or public relations
consequences8 if the effectiveness is perceived to be
minimal the ban4 may stop supporting specific
organi*ations or institute ne! policies governing the
loaning of e(ecutives to boards and community
initiative. .lso information about effectiveness of
community contributions is unli4ely to be available
from a published source although a ban4 trade
association might have e(plored the issue. Met even
given the li4ely decisions and their influence on
company reputation most firms !ould consider this a
small study. The proposal !ould typically be in the
form of a memo to the president detailing the
follo!ing8
1. 1roblem 5tatement .re financial and
manpo!er contributions to community not/for/
profits providing any measurable return to the
ban47
-. Research Fb,ectives /
a. identify ho! perceived value is measured by
various publics
b. define benefits =measurable return> to the
ban4
c. determine time period
d. other related items
9. Research &esign / descriptive
;. Results anticipated
<. 5chedule
B. :quivalent to small/scale internal management
study. 5ee :(hibit ;/9. )hile the firm is
underta4ing this effort to attract a ne! mar4et
segment that might potentially involve the
development of a ne! product the types of
products made by the firm are non/technical and
thus the ris4 is significantly reduced. The firm could
probably develop a portfolio for teachers and test
the strength of the idea by offering it to a small
group of teachers.
6. .n #nternal ?arge/scale 5tudy. )hile at first glance
this study !ould seem to be one based on cost
analyses !ithin a university environment there !ill
be many constituencies to contend !ith. Caculty
!ill have to changes their courses students !ill
have to changes the number of courses they ta4e per
term numerous administrative offices =registration
admissions student accounts library etc.> !ill have
their operations disrupted and reconfigured. .nd
since students rarely have only one choice of !here
to attend the university cannot ma4e this decision
in a vacuum it must evaluate its proposed calendar
in relation to all other colleges in its mar4et
segment and in its physical mar4et.
&. -HH1 mar4ed a year of change in the !orld of
dot.com companies. Many information companies
discovered that advertising !as not sustaining their
operation and that they needed to evaluate ne!
pricing models. 5o a research company that
monitors !eb banner ad effectiveness already has
some grim !riting on their !all8 their mar4et !as
going to shrin4. 5o pricing might not be there only
problem. &ue to the fluctuating environment the
student should approach this study more li4e an
e(ploratory e(ternal study possibly to be follo!ed
by a small/scale or larger/scale study once the
e(ploratory study is passed.
D. The 5eagate 1roposal follo!s the model of the large/
scale contract study !ith some e(ceptions. There is no
clearly noted section e(ecutive summary nor is there a
literature revie!. The pro,ect ob,ectives are fairly
straightfor!ard !hich !ould e(plain the absence of
these sections. The section detailing the qualifications
of the supplier teams provide the information on pro,ect
management facilities and special resources. #t is not
unusual that the measurement instrument is not
includedJ developing it is part of the proposed pro,ect
and the research teams have e(tensive e(perience in the
area of consumer satisfaction research. The level of
detail in the research design and the data analysis is the
strongest clue at to the type of study. These sections are
very e(tensive as they should be given the proposed
cost of the pro,ect =U1;-HHH>. Mour students might
have li4ed to find a glossary of terms. They should be
encouraged to discuss !hether such a glossary !as
necessary and !hat might ,ustify its e(clusion or
includsion. The same could be said of the literature
revie!. )hat !ould it have added7 )hy !as it not
included7 5ome li4ely reasons for e(clusion are a prior
relationship bet!een the parties an understanding of
the bac4ground of the deciding manager specifications
!ithin a RC1 that specifically requested the omission of
these sections.
.bbreviated 5tudent 1roposal !ith 6omments
Pro&'em
. large volume of literature
e(ists concerning feedbac4
and its effects. Many of the
studies are laboratory
e(periments !hose results
have been directed to!ard the
fields of administration and
management. #n a laboratory
setting all variables can be
controlled and therefore the
results of these e(periments
cannot be directly applied to
the daily organi*ational
situations !ith the same level
of effects demonstrated in
e(periments. This research is
designed to supply some
empirical evidence from a
field setting.
(ection hea)ing
&ntroduction should contain a
"road overvie. of the
pro"lem, /his is an overvie.
of the pro"lem .ithout much
context,
/he sources and nature of
feed"ack could "e informally
defined so that logical
linkages can "e made,
5tatement of the 1roblem
This research proposes to
address ho! sources of
feedbac4 influence employee
satisfaction and performance
in the !or4 setting.
Research 'uestions8
1. )hat are the sources of
feedbac4 that influence
/he lack of definition affects
the clarity of the R+s, 0o &+s
are presented, /he third
uestion is an operational
pro"lem for the researcher not
a uestion,
employee satisfaction and
performance7
-. )hat importance do
individuals attach to sources
of feedbac47
9. "o! are satisfaction and
performance measured in the
!or4 setting !hen various
sources of feedbac4 are used7
*mportance of the (t!)+
This research is important
because although !or4 has
been done in the field
additional attention needs to
be given to the application of
this information in the !or4
setting. )ith an increase in
4no!ledge !or4ers should
find it advantageous to 4no!
ho! to effectively increase
motivation and performance
levels in employees through
the use of effective feedbac4
sources. Both intrinsic and
e(trinsic forms of feedbac4
need further investigation. #f
managers can determine !hat
types of feedbac4 are most
effective in their !or4 setting
/here is no evidence in this
paragraph that the .riter(s
assessment of .ork setting
applications of feed"ack
research is correct, !eed"ack
has "een researched to death
and much is kno.n in "oth
intrinsic and extrinsic
categories, /he rationale for
this study does not have a
sound foundation nor is it
logically argued,
they can increase performance
and satisfaction levels in their
organi*ation.
Proposa' Presentation ,!t'ine
1. Fvervie! of the research problem and !hat you e(pect
to accomplish.
-. 5tatement of the problem8
1. Research question=s>
-. #nvestigative questions
9. "ypothesis =if appropriate for the design>
;. .ssumptions =if necessary>
9. #mportanceAbenefits of the research.
;. )hat you discovered from your preliminary loo4 at the
literature.
<. The methods and procedures you anticipate using
=highlights>.
B. "o! you !ill analy*e the data.
6hapter B 8
1.
a. :(ploratory versus formali*ed studies8 :(ploratory
studies tend to have loose structures !ith the
purpose of discovering future tas4s or to develop
future hypotheses and questions for further
research. The goal of a formal research design is
generally specific8 to test hypotheses or ans!er
research questions.
b. :(perimental and e( post facto designs8 #n an
e(perimental design the researcher see4s to study
the effects of variables by controlling and
manipulating them. #n an e( post facto design the
researcher does not influence the variables but
reports on !hat has happened.
c. &escriptive and causal studies8 . descriptive study
is concerned !ith description that is the !ho !hat
!here !hen or ho! much in observations !hereas
in a causal study relationships bet!een variables are
sought to be identified verified and established.
-.
a. . relationship bet!een variables is latent but !hat
is manifest are only the possible effects. .
relationship itself can only be theoretically
postulated. Cor instance a higher income level may
induce the purchase of higher priced cars and this
can be theoretically postulated. Met the data focuses
on a manifest variable =purchase> rather than the
latent psychological processes.
b. #nductive conclusions unli4e deductive
conclusions have no $necessary% connections
bet!een facts and conclusions. Thus the conclusion
of an induction may be simply one e(planation for
an observed fact !hereas the conclusion of a
deduction is the e(planation if the deductions
requirements are met. This means that !hen dealing
!ith causal relationships !e require other more
rigorous devices to assure ourselves that our
probabilistic statements contain the least possible
margin for error. Methods such as e(perimentation
and statistical tests help to improve our confidence
in ascribing cause to inductive conclusions.
c. There may be a correlation in the follo!ing variable
pairs found statistically at a point of time ho!ever
there is no causal relationship bet!een the
variablesJ such correlations are said to be spurious.
#ncreases in productivity 8 #ncreases in stoc4
offerings to the public
&ecreases in ,ob satisfaction 8 &ecreases in the
consumer price inde(
. classic e(ample of spurious correlation is
e(emplified in the fallacious argument8
.ll alcoholic beverages contain !aterJ hence an
e(cessive consumption of !ater leads to the
cirrhosis of the liver.
9.
a. 1timulus2response: )hen you are challenged to
,ustify your position during a management meeting
your pulse rate increases rapidly and you spea4 out
strongly in defense of your position.
b. Property2disposition: Mou are a member of a
minority ethnic group and this ma4es you very
sensitive to ethnic type comments by others.
c. Disposition2"ehavior: Mou have strong opinions
about the degradation of our physical environment
by some industriesJ as a result you are highly
selective in choosing the companies !ith !hom you
intervie! for career opportunities.
d. Property2"ehavior: Mou have gro!n up as a
member of the upper/lo!er social class and no!
follo! the typical consumption practices of that
class.
;. There are virtually an infinite number of possible
e(traneous variables that may confound a causal
relationship. Many are unanticipated and unidentified.
)e also have a limited ability to control more than a
fe! variables. By randomi*ation !e can !ithin
specific limits of variance e(pect to equali*e out the
influence or potential influence of these many
e(traneous variables. )e can ho!ever control for a
fe! variables that are e(pected to be most important.
By so doing !e can assume that they do not confound
our study results.
<.
a. These t!o approaches are similar in their ob,ective
of trying to sho! #R/&R or causal relationships
basically by means of8
1. 5tudying co/variation patterns bet!een variables.
-. &etermining time order relationships.
9. .ttempting to eliminate the confounding effects
of other variables on the #R/&R relationship.
They often use the same data collection and data
manipulation methods. Cor e(ample either may use
intervie!s or observation use certain statistical
methods and the li4e.
b. They differ in their ability to measure causal effects.
#n e(perimental design !e can set up situations
manipulate variables assign participants to
e(posure or control groups and control other
variables. )ith e( post facto research !e must
accept !hat is or !hat has been uncover
comparative groups that have been e(posed and
others !ho have not been e(posed to the $causal%
factor attempt to learn the time order effect after the
fact and attempt to $control% other variables by
various after/the/event statistical or classification
procedures. Kiven these problems it is easily
apparent !hy e(perimental design is the more
po!erful of the t!o methods for causal analysis.
B. . good first step !ould be some e(ploratory research.
This could be initiated by a study of secondary data8
Iournal and ne!spaper articles on hospital
volunteers.
:(tended reference of the references listed in
publications.
1ublications of ma,or hospitals especially those
targeting volunteers.
1ublications relating to the sub,ect of volunteer
training.
"ospital #nternet sites for pages related to
volunteers.
.n #nternet search related to volunteers and
training..
:(ploratory e(pert opinions from8
6oordinators of volunteers in hospitals
Rolunteers in area hospitals.
Research companies that target hospitals and
clinics
Collo! up the secondary data study !ith t!o
secondary data based case studies !hich !ould
possibly parallel the hospitals conte(t in si*e scale
and industry.
. training agency might then be contracted to conduct
a study of volunteer training practices !ithin similar
medical environments. Fbviously other acceptable
designs are possible.
D. a. .n e(ploratory investigation to determine !hat 4ind
of research situation e(ists. 5uch a study might
involve field observation of8
6omplaint summaries to determine the types of
complaints being logged by guests.
:nd/of/year reports citing complaint
summaries from previous years to determine
the magnitude of change in complaints.
"ouse4eeping division reports related to
turnover disciplinary citations to employees
etc.
b. . longitudinal analysis of various indicators related
to house4eeping performance may be available
from company records. 5uch an observational case
approach !ould use time longs employee activity
chec4lists complaint logs etc.
c. . formal cross/sectional survey of guests
registering complaints gathering descriptive data on
situation timing guest attitude purpose of guest
visit guest demographic and economic
characteristics etc.
E. a. The inde( of consumer confidence and the business
cycle8 )hile the relationship bet!een consumer
confidence and the business cycle may be
interdependent the most frequent form has the
consumer confidence as the independent variable
and the business cycle as the dependent variable. #n
fact consumer confidence is usually vie!ed as a
leading indicator of the business cycle. )e might
have as moderating variables the level of
employment actions ta4en by the federal
government in ta( policy and others. :(traneous
variables might include such things as inflation rate
development of e(citing ne! automobile models
the price of gold and changes in the role of the
family in society. +ote that the designation of
moderating and e(traneous variables is often a
matter of choice.
b. ?evel of !or4er output and closeness of supervision
of the !or4er8 The closeness of supervision of the
!or4er implies and is generally accompanied by
behavioral control and guidance on !or4. Both of
these are factors that positively impact the level of
output. 5upervised !or4 leads to higher
productivityJ hence the level of !or4er output may
be regarded as the dependent variable and the
closeness of supervision as the independent or
e(planatory variable. Kuidance at !or4 may be
regarded as the intervening variable.
c. &egree of effort in a class and the students K1.8
The student may postulate that the amount of time
spent reading class material !or4ing te(t e(ercises
and discussing te(t cases !ill lead to a better
understanding of course material regardless of the
students innate intelligence and assuming a high
level of interest due to courses being in their ma,or
and thus !ill result in a better grade for each class
in the ma,or hence a better overall K1.. #n this
theoretical formulation K1. is the dependent
variable and effort is the independent variable
!hile level of intelligence level of understanding
and level of interest are moderating variables.
G. Mind)riters 6omplete6are 5atisfaction 5tudy
The Mind)riter research effort starts from an appraisal
of the management dilemma that in turn stems from an
increasing number of letters and phone complaints
regarding post purchase service. The first effort
=:(hibit 9/; 6hapter 9> is an e(ploratory e(ercise
scanning secondary data such as 16 Maga*ines .nnual
5urvey of 5ervice published customer satisfaction
comparisons and brainstorming after scanning the
complaint letters. The effort is e(ploratory and
primarily descriptive but see4s to identify possible
problems =causality> to later study through formal
methods. .fter a more precise definition of the
management problem =5tage 9 :(hibit 9/;> the ne(t
stage of e(ploration is intervie!s =communication
based not observational> !ith the service manager call
center manager and courier company account
e(ecutive. Collo!ing this a number of research
questions are presented each of !hich could lead to
investigations in specific areas.
The Repair 1rocess 5atisfaction 1roposal under
consideration in this question intends to identify the
overall and component levels of satisfaction !ith
6omplete6are. =1> "o! customer tolerance levels for
repair performance affect overall satisfaction and =->
!hich process components should be immediately
improved. The qualitative e(ploration for this is the
meetings !ith the service manager call center manager
and company account e(ecutive already mentioned.
This is follo!ed up by a self/administered
questionnaire using about 1H questions and a five/point
scale. The methodology is a formal field study
communication based causal =see4ing to identify ho!
consumer satisfaction levels for repair performance
V#RW affect total satisfaction V&RW and cross sectional
=at a point of time.>
1H.
-.hi&it 6/$ criteria (napshot0 (econ) 1-M
Research question
crystalli*ed
Cormal study
Method of data collection #nterrogationAcommunication
1o!er of researcher to
produce effects
:( post facto
1urpose of study &escriptive
Time dimension longitudinal
Topical scope 5tatistical
Research environment Cield setting
Respondents perception of
research activity
+ot disguised
1H. =continued>
(napshot0 2ohn Deere
Research question
crystalli*ed
:(ploratory
and monitoring
produce effects
:( post facto
1urpose of study descriptive
Time dimension 6ross/sectional and
longitudinal
Topical scope 6ase and statistical studies
Research environment Cield and lab settings
research activity
+ot disguised
(napshot0 (mith Barne+
Research question
crystalli*ed
Cormal
produce effects
:( post facto
Time dimension 6ross/sectional
Topical scope 5tatistical study
Research environment Cield
Respondents perception of .ctual routine
research activity
(napshot0 3oo'/"i)
Research question
crystalli*ed
Cormal
produce effects
:( post facto
Time dimension 6ross/sectional
Topical scope 5tatistical
Research environment Cield
research activity
.ctual routine
-.hi&it 6/$ (amp'e Design Criti4!e *nstr!ctions
CRFM8 1rofessor XXXXXXXX
TF8 5tudents in Research Methodology 6ourse
5QBI:6T8 1ro,ect XXXXXXXX
Cor your second research e(ercise please select one of the
,ournals listed belo! for an article of interest to you.
The purpose of your paper is to critique the design of the
chosen article using criteria established in 6hapter B.
6onsider the follo!ing characteristics in !riting your
paper.
Basic -.pectations for 5ork0
5tate the purpose of the critique
?ist the criteria to be used in the critique
&efine the characteristics of the criteria used
&evelop reasonable arguments for decisions on each
criterion
6ite specific instances from the article to support
conclusions
5ummari*e the findings of the critique
-.pectations for a))itiona' 5ork0
1rovide sufficient conte(tual information about the
article =in abstract form overvie! or by incorporation
into critique>
1rovide additional criteria to ,udge the design
&escribe !ea4nessesAstrengths of the design
5ome ,ournals are listed belo!. 5elect a recent issue
=during the last year>8
.cademy of Management Revie!
.dministrative 5cience 'uarterly
Business and 5ociety Revie!
&ecision 5ciences
Cinancial Management
"arvard Business Revie!
#ndustrial and ?abor Relations Revie!
Iournal of .ccountancy
Iournal of .pplied Behavior 5cience
Iournal of .pplied 1sychology
Iournal of Ban4ing and Cinance
Iournal of Cinance
1ersonnel Iournal
Training and &evelopment Iournal
YFther ,ournals may be considered.
-.hi&it 6/6 (amp'e (t!)ent Design Criti4!e 7&+ (!san
R. (ea&er
8
9
The article /he #ommitment of 1ocial 3orkers to
Affirmative Action4 from the Iournal of 5ociology and
5ocial )elfare is an attempt to study the relationship of
several variables concerned !ith affirmative action. The
Te(as chapter of the +ational .ssociation of 5ocial
!or4ers =+.5)ATe(as> !as selected as the population
for the study. 5urveys !ere mailed to ;D; members and
1G9 responded creating a response rate of ;B.9 percent.
Three general study variables !ere selected from !hich
the authors analy*ed the data collected from the study
participants. The first variable concerns the participants
commit to affirmative action. The participants
4no!ledge of affirmative action is another variable.
Cinally the participants !ere as4ed if their e(periences
!ith affirmative action !ere negative or positive. By
dividing the participants into certain groups =se( age
ethnic bac4ground political party ,ob level public or
private institution and community si*e> the researchers
!ere able to determine !hich of these factors had an
effect on the participants e(perience !ith affirmative
action.
The purpose of this critique is to determine !hich
criteria for proper research design are utili*ed in this
particular study on affirmative action e(periences. The
criteria are outlined in Business Research Methods by
:mory and 6ooper =1GG1>. The basic elements of design
*
Used by permission of Ms. Seaber.
criteria and the use of them in this article are described
belo!.
Cirst the degree of problem crystalli*ation must be
addressed. The study may be e(ploratory or formal. .n
e(ploratory study loosely structures the research !ith the
ob,ective of learning !hat ma,or research tas4s are
required. The purpose is to develop hypotheses and
questions to aid in subsequent research efforts. Cormal
research begins !ith a hypothesis or question and the
goal is to test the hypotheses or ans!er the research
questions. This study is a formal study although the
statement of the goal is rather vague. Fn page 1-; of the
article a central question is stated !hich reads8 $to !hat
degree and under !hat circumstances do social !or4ers
in Te(as support the concept and implementation of
affirmative action policies7%
The method of data collection can be monitoring or
interrogation. Monitoring is observational and the
researcher only vie!s the activity or material to be
studied. #nterrogatory studies occur !hen the researcher
actually questions the sub,ects and collects data about the
responses. This article is an e(ample of interrogation8
;D; questionnaires !ere mailed to randomly selected
members of +.5)ATe(as and the researchers gathered
data concerning certain characteristics of the participants
and certain attitudes to!ard affirmative action.
The third criterion for research design concerns the
researcher control of the variablesJ this can be
e(perimental !here the researcher attempts to
manipulate the variables or it can be e( post facto
!here the researcher has no control over the variables
and cannot manipulate them. This particular study is an
e(ample of an e(perimental design since the researchers
are attempting to determine certain characteristics that
may create certain attitudes and certain variables are
used to determine an effect on other variables. .n e(
post facto study !ould merely report that a particular
condition e(isted not a potential reason for the
condition.
The ne(t criterion involves the purpose of the study.
&escriptive studies are used to determine !ho !hat
!here !hen or ho! much. 6ausal studies are used to
determine !hy and to e(plain relationships. This article
is summari*ing a causal study@again the characteristics
of the individuals responding to the questions are
e(pected to determine the response indicated. .n
individual possessing these characteristics !ould be
e(pected to reply to the questionnaire in a certain
manner.
Time dimension can be cross sectional !hen a snapshot
is ta4en from one point in time and the study is only
conducted once or it can be longitudinal !hen the study
is repeated over a period of time. The affirmative action
study is a one/time occurrence ta4en from a randomly
selected group of people and is therefore a cross/
sectional study.
The ne(t criterion is the topical scope. This can be either
statistical !hich is an attempt to determine
characteristics of a population by analy*ing data that is
collected from a representative sample resulting in
quantitative tests of the responses. The topical scope can
also be a case study !hich emphasi*ing a full analysis of
a limited number of events or conditions. 'ualitative
data is relied upon ma4ing it difficult to support or re,ect
a hypothesis. This article describes a statistical study@a
random sample of social !or4ers !as selected and the
results !ere quantitatively calculated by statistical
means resulting in generali*ations about the population.
The Results section =p. 1-H> and the Measures of
.ssociation section =p.19H> describe the particular
statistics utili*ed to analy*e the data collected from the
survey.
The research environment is the ne(t criterion8 field
studies ta4e place under actual environmental conditions
and laboratory studies ta4e place under other conditions
that are not the natural environment and !hich may be
simulated. The affirmative action study is a field study
!hich !as conducted in the natural environment of the
participant.
The final criterion for research design involves the
sub,ects perceptions of the study. )hen people in the
study perceive that the research is being conducted it
may affect the results of the study. The sub,ects are
capable of influencing the outcome of the results by
having 4no!ledge of being studied. #n this study the
participants obviously are a!are of the fact that they are
being studied and although there is no evidence that this
!ill bias the results it is possible that this particular
outcome could occur.
The previous criteria are directly from the te(tboo4
Business Research Methods but obviously there are
other criteria that may serve to describe a research
design. #n this particular case the question can be as4ed8
$6an this study be generali*ed to other locations or is it
li4ely to be specific only to Te(as7% #n my opinion this
study cannot be generali*ed to a population in other
states. Cor instance the minority population in Te(as
may differ greatly from other states resulting from the
states pro(imity to Me(ico. .lso affirmative action may
be approached in a different manner in other states for
various reasons.
.nother criterion that may be useful !ould be to
determine !hether the study focuses upon factual non/
negotiable responses by participants or by opinions of
the participants. This study is a combination of the t!o8
the factual characteristics are described and are then
used to determine the effect on other variables. #n some
cases though it may be important to use only factual
data !hile the ma,ority of studies !ill rely on
participants opinions.
This critique has so far determined the specific
characteristics of the study conducted using social
!or4ers and their attitudes to!ard affirmative action.
The article indicates that this study !as designed !ith
the purpose of describing certain characteristics of
individuals in the Te(as social !or4ers population and to
determine !hether or not they =1> have 4no!ledge of
affirmative action =-> have a commitment to affirmative
action and =9> have been negatively or positively
impacted by affirmative action.
The results indicate that surprisingly having 4no!ledge
of affirmative action is not significantly associated !ith
commitment to affirmative action. #n other !ords
educational efforts to improve commitment to
affirmative action !ould not be effective according to
this survey. .lso a negative commitment usually
corresponded !ith negative e(periences and positive
commitment usually corresponded !ith positive
e(periences. Curthermore those participants !ith
negative or positive e(periences are more li4ely to have
higher scores in the area of 4no!ledge of affirmative
action.
6ommitment to affirmative action !as described as
follo!s8 !omen scored higher than menJ and racial or
ethnic minorities scored higher than non/minorities.
6ommitment !as also affected by political party
affiliation and ,ob position. Rariables that did not affect
commitment included public or private employment
community si*e or level of education.
Fne !ea4ness of this article !as the limited response of
the selected population. .ccording to Rubin and Babbie
in Research Methods for 5ocial )or4 =1GEG> a <H
percent response rate is considered merely $adequate%
for analysis and reporting. )hile a <H percent response
rate !as quoted as $adequate% this survey generated
only a ;B.9 percent response rate. .lso although a
general research question !as stated the actual
predictions and desired outcomes !ere very vague
resulting in some confusion concerning the actual reason
for the study. .nother possible !ea4ness is that !hile
the +.5)ATe(as membership consists of D;.< percent
females and -<.< percent males the actual response rate
!as B-.1 percent female and 9D.G percent male. This
indicates a possible problem concerning
representativeness of the sample.
&espite these potential !ea4nesses the authors did
indicate that this particular study is preliminary and
$designed to identify 4ey issues and to design
instruments !hich !ould be applicable !ith a larger
nationally representative sample% =p. 19;>. They
ac4no!ledge that possible !ea4nesses e(ist and
encourage other researchers to e(pand on the study in
order to develop more information that may be helpful in
determining the problem and solving it.
References
:mory 6. )illiam and &onald R. 6ooper =1GG1>. Business
Research Methods. 6hicago8 #r!in.
Rubin and Babbie =1GEG>. Research Methods for 5ocial
)or48 Belmont 6.8 )ads!orth.
5tout Oaren &. and )illiam :. Buffum =1GG9>. /he
#ommitment of 1ocial 3orkers to Affirmative Action,
Iournal of 5ociology and 5ocial )elfare 1-9/19;.
-.hi&it 6/3 Research Design Paper0 -:a'!ation Form
71ra)!ate (t!)ents9
5tudent8 XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
#n the research design critique the student8
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Level of
Attainment
?o!
"igh
Expectations 5"ased on class example6:
5tated the purpose of the critique 1 - 9 ; <
?isted the criteria to be used in performing
the critique
1 - 9 ; <
&efined the characteristics of the criteria
used
1 - 9 ; <
&eveloped reasonable arguments for
decisions on each criterion
1 - 9 ; <
6ited ample specific instances from the
article to support conclusions
1 - 9 ; <
5ummari*ed the findings of the critique 1 - 9 ; <
Additional #riteria "eyond the
Expectations for this Assignment7
1rovided sufficient conte(tual information
about the article
=in abstract form overvie! or by
incorporation into critique>
1 - 9 ; <
1rovided additional criteria =of herAhis
o!n> to ,udge the design
1 - 9 ; <
&escribed !ea4nessesAstrengths of the
design
1 - 9 ; <
6omments8
Krading scale8
. 5cholarly !or4
./ 5uperior !or4
BZ Rery good !or4
B Kood !or4
B/ &eficient in some areas
6Z &eficient in most areas
YThese may be unrated in some cases because they are
unique to a subset of students.
.. . parameter is a value of a population !hile a statistic
is a similar value based on sample data. Cor
e(ample the population mean is a parameter !hile
a sample mean is a statistic.
B. . population is the total collection of people cases
or other elements !hich !e define and about !hich
!e !ish to ma4e inferences. The sample frame is
the actual pool from !hich !e dra! our sample.
#deally it is the same as the population but it often
differs due to practical considerations of
information availability.
6. Qnrestricted sampling occurs !hen sample
elements are selected individually and directly from
the population at large. Restricted sampling occurs
!hen additional controls are placed on the process
of element selection.
&. The standard deviation is a measure of dispersion of
a distribution. )hen the standard deviation is
calculated for a distribution of sample statistics it is
4no!n as a standard error. Cor e(ample the
standard deviation of the distribution of sample
means is 4no!n as the standard error of the mean.
:. 5imple random sampling is that form of probability
sampling !hich is unrestricted and in !hich each
member of the population has an equal chance of
being selected. 6omple( random sampling is a
probability sampling procedure in !hich selection
of elements is restricted.
C. 6onvenience sampling is nonprobability in nature8
element selection is unrestricted and carried out
usually on the basis of convenience alone.
Purposive sampling is also nonprobability in nature
but involves a deliberate attempt to secure a sample
that conforms to some determined criteria.
K. 5ample accuracy refers to the degree to !hich bias
is absent from the sample. .n accurate sample has
a balance of underestimates and overestimates
among the sample members. 1recision on the other
hand refers to the degree to !hich random error
variance is estimated to e(ist in that sample.
". 5ystematic variance is that variance due to
inaccurate sampling and is indicated by a bias in
sample results. :rror variance refers to the lac4 of
precision in a sample. #t is generally thought of as
that variance !hich remains after all systematic
variance is accounted for.
#. Rariable data parameters are normally computed
from ratio or interval scale data. :(amples are age
length dollars scores etc. The most common
measures of variable data are the arithmetic mean
and the standard deviation. Attri"ute data
parameters are e(pressed in numbers or proportions
of the population or sample that have or do not have
certain characteristics. They are necessary for
nominal data and are !idely used for other scales.
The most frequently used measure of attributes is
the percentage.
I. The mean of the sample is the point estimate and
the best predictor of the un4no!n population mean.
The interval estimate brac4ets the point estimate of
the population mean and reveals the range !herein
any sample mean !ill fall given a specified level of
confidence.
O. . proportionate sample particularly !ithin the
conte(t of stratified sampling is one !here each
stratum is proportionate to its share of the total
population. &isproportionate samples are departures
from proportionate relationships among the strata.
-. .. #f one is interested in ensuring ma(imum precision
and accuracy in a sample then probability sampling
is the choice. )ith it !e can minimi*e biases and
estimate in statistical terms ho! much random
error there is li4ely to be.
+onprobability sampling is more appropriate !hen
probability sampling is not feasible !hen !e do not
need a true cross section of population or !hen
time and money costs required for probability
sampling are too high to be ,ustified.
B. . simple random sample is appropriate !hen there
is a complete population list available and there
appears to be no ,ustification either statistically or
economically for stratifying or clustering.
. stratified random sample is recommended !hen
the researcher desires to8
1. #ncrease a sample0s statistical efficiency
-. provide for separate analysis of sub/
populations or
9. enable different research methods and
procedures to be used in various strata.
6luster sampling is recommended !hen economic
efficiency is a ma,or consideration i.e. there is
some opportunity to reduce costs by sampling in
clusters.
6. The finite population ad,ustment is of value !hen
the sample si*e required to give a certain degree of
precision e(ceeds about < per cent of the population
si*e. The net effect is to reduce the si*e of sample
needed to give the desired degree of precision.
&. . disproportionate stratified sampling design =as
contrasted to the proportionate design> is !arranted
!hen there is evidence to indicate that !ithin
stratum variances differ !idely and the costs of
sampling !ithin these various strata also differ.

9. Mou must determine the si*e of the acceptable interval
range and the degree of confidence you !ish to
have that the population parameter !ill be !ithin
that range.
;. This is an e(ercise in the reading and interpretation of
the table of the proportion of area under the normal
curve =Table C/1 in the .ppendi(>.

.. .ppro(imately 1<.EDP or the area beyond B.9 Z
1s.

B. .ppro(imately BB.DBP B.9 / <.H S 1.9

* S 1.9 S .;999 s
9.H
:ntering :(hibit K/1 and interpolating bet!een 8
S .;9 and .;; !e find that .99-; of the lo!er half of
the distribution e(tends beyond =belo!> .;999 s.
Thus the percent of cases above <.H consists of8
/ all cases in top half of distribution S .<HHH
/ plus a portion of bottom half S .1BDB
=.<HHH/.19-; S .1BDB>
Total .BBD
B
<. . quota sample is appropriate here. ?ogical selection
of data on !hich to stratify the sample are gender of the
concert attendee and musical type since both of these
are reflected in historical data. Qsing the historical data
you could set desired cell proportions based on
popularity of the music =number of concert attendees
for that music type compared to attendees overall>.
5ince data are available by gender you !ould set
intervie! quotas for males and females in proportion to
the importance of each in the total attendee pool.
5tudents should be as4ed ho! far bac4 in the historic
database they !ould reach for information to determine
quotas. 5omeone is li4ely to identify and important
point@that musical tastes change and you should use
caution in using too old of data. 5ome one should also
note that some music is enduring and that it !ouldnt
matter much ho! far bac4 you loo4. Fthers !ill note
that music has generation bias and since age of concert
attendees is not 4no!n that that might influence the
musical type quota. Qltimately the decision !ill
depend on the managers confidence in the historical
data as a good reflection of attendees by type.
B. )hen !e e(amine the issue of sample design and si*e
the follo!ing points emerge8
a. Rariance in populations8 #n case different
technologies are in use for the manufacture of
military and consumer grades of gas4ets
differences in dispersion or the variance of gas4et
thic4ness may be e(pected. #n particular if for the
military grade application greater production
process control is e(ercised a lo!er variance may
be e(pected. "o!ever tentative conclusions on this
may be reached only after estimating a sample
variance for both production runs. The higher the
population variance =or its sample estimate> the
greater the need for a larger sample si*e.
b. +eed for e(actness in specification8 The need for
the accuracy of gas4et thic4ness may be e(pected to
be higher for military applications given the
sensitive nature of the application. 6orrespondingly
the interval range specification !ill be narro!er.
This is a sub,ective evaluation made on technical
grounds. 5tringency in this requirement !ould tend
to increase the required sample si*e.
c. ?evel of confidence8 The degree of confidence
required for the military application !ould be
higher once again based on the argument that the
critical nature of the product implies that !e
2cannot ta4e chances2 or have to use a higher
confidence level.
Ho. the various aspects 5a4 "4 and c6 are com"ined
through a single formula is illustrated "y +uestion
9, /he confidence interval com"ines the
considerations of the interval range and confidence
level,
d. The higher levels of production for the consumer
automobile production runs imply a need for larger
sample si*es. #f the production runs of gas4ets for
the consumer sector are really large =they may be in
millions> sample si*e could be selected based on
the assumption of an infinite population. Fn the
other hand for military applications a smaller
sample is indicated and sample si*e ad,ustment for
this may "e computed using the finite population
ad$ustment4 detailed in +uestion :, /he ad$ustment
is reuired only if the sample is more than ;< of
the population,
5ampling is done as a probability sample either
using a simple random sampling procedure or
possibly a proportionate stratified random sampling
procedure. The latter may be used to create
representation of all shifts or different individuals0
supervision etc. The advantage of creating strata
could be a> subsequent detailed analysis of those
strata that sho! higher levels of inaccuracy b> a
smaller sample si*e !hich could be important in a
situation !here the evaluation and testing
procedures may be destructive. "ere this does not
appear to be the case as 2thic4ness2 measurement
does not destroy the product. "o!ever if there
!ere measurements of a parameter such as 2average
life of gas4et2 to be made the study !ould involve
destruction of the selected items.
D. #n this problem a small sample is used to provide the
estimate of the population dispersion =s S 1H>. #n
addition !e must ma4e sub,ective decisions about the
si*e of interval estimate !e !ish and the degree of
confidence of G<P =a S .H<> and an interval estimate
of U .<H. Then !e need a sample of 1<9G.

$.50 = 1.96
X

X
= .255 =
10
n-1
n S 1<9G
E. The sample si*e estimate should be ad,usted for the fact
that there is a finite population of -<HH. )ith this
ad,ustment !e reduce the needed si*e of sample from
1<9G to G<9.
n S G<9
G. This is a good question to use to discuss the cost
associated !ith accurracy. This problem involves
attributes data. )e !ill assume that the firm has a large
number of technicians since it is a large firm and the
employee pool is unioni*ed. The phrase $an accurate
evaluation% !ould imply that the supervisor !ants a
narro! error interval so !e might use any!here
Z
1P
to
Z
9P. Fne could also assume the supervisor !ants a
high degree of confidence. G<P degree of confidence
=1.GB standard errors> !ould probably be the minimum
the supervisor !ould accept !hile GGP might be !hat
is desired. .lso needed is a measure of population
dispersion. )e must either ma4e such an estimate
based on past data collection =e.g. lets say B<P of
technicians voted in favor of a union during the union
authori*ation election thus indicating dissatisfaction at
some level thus p S.B< ( .9<SH.--D<> or set the
estimate at a p ratio of .-<. This represents the largest
possible percentage value for dispersion =p S S .<>.
)ith this dispersion estimate !e calculate the
ma(imum si*e sample needed. The various ans!ers
based on the above assumptions in this question are
belo!.
;itho!t *nformation on
mora'e
;ith *nformation on
mora'e
G<P confidence level S
1.GBs
p
p ratio of .-<
1recision #nterval S
Z
9P
nS1HBD
1.GBs
p
p ratio of .--D< =p S .B<4
S .9<6
Z
9P
nSGD1
GGP confidence level S
-.<Es
p
p ratio of .-<
Z
9P
nS1E;G
GGP confidence level S
-.<Es
p
p ratio of .--D<
Z
9P
nS1BE9
1.GBs
p
p ratio of .-<
Z
1P
nSGBH;
1.GBs
p
p ratio of .--D< =p S .B<4
S .9<6
Z
1P
nSED;H
GGP confidence level S GGP confidence level S
-.<Es
p
p ratio of .-<
Z
1P
nS1B;;1
-.<Es
p
p ratio of .--D<
Z
1P
nS1<1;;
1H. 5tudents may offer a variety of suggestions for non/
probability sampling some of !hich are more feasible
to e(ecute than others. 5ince Burbidge used a
convenience sample before !ith questionable results at
best a purposive sample should be a logical ne(t step.
Fn the assumption that such potential riders might find
the ne! schedules more appealing than the current
ones 6ityBus !ants to 4no! !here to advertise to tell
non/riders and infrequent riders about the scheduled
changes. 1> 5tudents should offer recommendations for
a purposive ,udgment sample suggesting !here to find
congregations of infrequent riders and non/riders. 5ome
suggestions might include the site of large employers
=e.g. office buildings health/care facilities and
factories> as !ell as other transportation mode
locations =e.g. par4ing facilities commuter train
stations and ferry services>. -> 5omeone is also li4ely
to suggest that a quota sample be ta4en of readers of the
various media being considered for advertising. The
intervie!ers might then screen for current ridership of
6ityBus or for use of other modes of transportation.
This sample !ould li4ely be dra!n from groups much
li4e those identified for the ,udgement sample
described unless the media have scheduled events
!here large congregations of their customers could be
located. 9> Qsing residence location information from
current riders 6ityBus might choose to identify city
bloc4s or sections of cities to canvas for the information
they see4. ;> .nother alternative to reach infrequent
riders is to query people !aiting for various buses
screening them for frequency of ridership. Regardless
of their suggestions students often !rongly assume that
nonprobability sampling is less time consuming less
e(pensive and easier to e(ecute. . discussion should
not be concluded !ithout a discussion of the costs =in
time manpo!er and money> of the processes that
students have proposed.
11. Keographic clustering has intuitive appeal given that
the bus routes are already geographically based.
5tudents !ant internally heterogeneous subgroups so
dra!ing a random or systematic sample from
residential city bloc4s !ould be feasible. Then the
students need to randomly or systematically select the
sample units =housing units> from each bloc4. +o list of
sample elements is needed for this probability estimate.
Fnce the students determine the selection rule for each
city bloc4 and for sample elements !ithin each bloc4
Burbidge need only travel to that bloc4 location to
e(ecute the cluster sample designed. Ff course if he is
the only intervie!er this !ill ta4e considerably more
time than using the captive audience on Bus GG.
1-. The unavailability or the inability to create a sample
frame is one stumbling bloc4 discouraging researchers
from using probability sampling. This e(ercise is
designed to have students thin4 about finding
developing or purchasing a sample frame. #f for
e(ample assume the student is interested in managing a
public educational institution. The student !ould then
be interested in determining !hat s4ills school boards
loo4 for in hiring ne! administrators. . sample frame
could be developed based on a request to each school
board !ithin the school districts of interest. Fr the
student might suggest approaching the governing body
for schools in their state and requesting the names of
all school board members. .s this information for all
public schools is a matter of public record acquiring
the sample frame should be easy//even if the student
!ould have to ,ump through some red/taped hoops. Cor
many industries of interest the student might turn to
professional society membership rosters many of
!hich may be purchased or are available on the
#nternet. Fr if a directory is published the student
might use that as their sample frame. 5tudents could
also develop a sample frame by identifying firms !ith
the requisite positions of interest identifying the person
!ho currently fills such a position as the desired sample
element or unit.
1. #n measuring !e attempt to note and record certain
observable indicators of properties of the sub,ect under
study.
.. ?aundry detergent / 5ome of the obvious but non/
functional properties !e might measure are !eight
volume te(ture color odor cost etc. Cunctional
properties might include dirt/removing po!er effect on
colors speed of cleaning action and s4in irritation
po!er.
B. :mployees / +on/functional properties include age
se( hair color marital status and the li4e. Cunctional
properties of employees include motivation reliability
,ob s4ill and productivity.
6. Cactory output / )e might be interested here in
measuring properties such as volume of output costs
salability of product seasonal nature of output and
identification of !hat is produced.
&. Iob satisfaction / )e may see4 to measure attitudes
to!ard !or4 attitudes to!ard the ,ob environment
perceptions of fair treatment and compensation and
absenteeism.
-. &ifferences in nominal ordinal interval and ratio
scales8
+ominal scales differentiate among ob,ects and
properties only on the basis of being ali4e or different
from other scale values. The $named% characteristics
are presumably mutually e(clusive and in an
e(haustive set of categories. Frdinal scales incorporate
this feature of differentiability plus the concept of order
=i.e. a sub,ect may e(hibit more less or the same
amount of a property as another sub,ect>. #nterval
scales incorporate both of the features of the ordinal
scale plus the added one of distance bet!een scale
points. Cor e(ample the distance bet!een 1 and - is the
same as bet!een - and 9. Cinally ratio scales include
all of the interval scale features plus the added feature
of having a *ero origin. This allo!s us to say that ; is
t!ice as large as - and to multiply scale values.
"o! the decision on scales affects the decisions on
statistical techniques8
1arametric statistics assume at least interval
measurement scales and the statistical measures of
arithmetic mean standard deviation etc. should
technically be used only !ith these scales.
+onparametric scales are the nominal and ordinal
scales. )hen people use parametric statistics for
ordinal or nominal scales they are literally adding
information to !hat actually e(ists. This position is
technically incorrect but !hen a normal distribution
underlies the variable=s> in question it may not be a
problem.
9. #n research !e hope that any measurement
represents a true portrayal of the property being
measured but !e recogni*e that it often does not.
:rrors can be of either a random or systematic type but
it is the latter !hich represent the greater threat to the
measurement process. Most systematic error in a
survey for e(ample flo!s either from the respondent
from some factors in the communication situation from
the researcher or from the instrument being used.
.ssume for e(ample that !e are intervie!ing persons
about economic topics and include a question about
their annual income. The respondents themselves may
be a source of error for they may not actually thin4 of
every source of income that is included in the research
definition. Respondents may also bias results if they
tend to e(aggerate or understate.
The situation under !hich the intervie! ta4es place
may distort the measurement especially if the study is
being done in the presence of someone else even a
family member. Fther situational biases arise if the
intervie! conditions do not foster carefully reasoned
ans!ers or provide access to records. The intervie!er
can affect results if heAshe fails to achieve rapport !ith
the respondent and therefore appears as a threat.
6areless recording coding and tabulating are other
sources of researcher error. Cinally the measurement
instrument itself can be an error source. The question
may confuse the respondent or be phrased in a !ay to
lead to one ans!er more than another. The question
may in addition ,ust not cover all of the possible
income sources. =Cor e(ample in one ma,or national
survey more than a do*en questions !ere used to
establish a familys total annual income.>
;. .. Refer to :(hibit E/<. #f you have an instrument that
truly measures !hat it claims to measure it reflects the
upper left panel of the e(hibit. .s in the upper right
panel ,ust because a measurement device delivers
consistent =reliable> results does not mean that those
results are valid =measures !hat is intended to be
measured>. There is no question that both validity and
reliability are important. .ssume the bulls/eye
represents the correct data and thus a high li4elihood of
a correct decision. #f you couldnt get a high
validityAhigh reliability instrument !hich !ould you
!ant7 . manager is more li4ely to ma4e an incorrect
decision relying on data developed !ith a lo! validity
instrument !ith high reliability =upper right panel> than
!hen relying on data developed !ith a high validity
instrument !ith lo! reliability =lo!er left panel>. #n this
latter scenario data may not be squarely in the center of
the target =desired> but at least some portion of the data
correctly reveals the desired information. Fur vote7
Ralidity !ins out over reliability in a forced choice.
B. 1robably not true in most cases. )e usually
determine content validity in a ,udgmental !ay and if
!e agree that a study has content validity then for our
purposes it does. 1redictive and construct validity on
the other hand may be much more difficult to develop
and do require statistical comparison of predictor and
criterion variables.
6. True / 5ee .. above.
&. Calse / 5tability is concerned !ith personal and
situation fluctuations and is achieved if !e get
consistent results !ith repeated measurements of the
same person !ith the same instrument. :quivalence is
concerned !ith consistent results over different
investigators or different samples of items.
<. #ntegrated ans!er to parts a and b8
Ratio scaled data on salaries !ould be the salary data
of each individual employee given as =say> the gross
dollar amount paid per year.
5ometimes !hen data is given in terms of class
intervals such as the follo!ing it is interpreted as
interval scaled data8
(a'ar+ range7<9 per
+ear
=!m&er of
emp'o+ees
less than -HHHH B9;
-HHHH but less than
;HHHH
1-9B
;HHHH but less than
BHHHH
--9E
BHHHH but less than
DHHHH
---
"o!ever it must be noted that this is not truly $interval
scaled data% since the origin or the first class interval
is +FT arbitrary. .s mentioned in the ans!er to
question B true interval scaled data is not often found
in business situations. Fn the assumption of symmetric
distributions !ithin each class interval it is possible to
use salary class interval midpoints for multiplication
operations and comparisons. This e(ample is not
strictly interval scaled and some operations that are
applicable to ratio scaled data are possible. Met the
student should be guided to understand =1> the loss of
data involved in the use of class intervals and =-> the
fact that the use of the mid/point involves assumptions
and inaccuracies. .t this level of analysis it is still
possible to say that employees in the class interval
U-HHHH/;HHHH have on an average =and assuming the
symmetric distribution !ithin each class interval> a
salary half that of employees in the ,oint interval
U;HHHH/UEHHHH.
.n ordinal ran4ing of the employees may be made in
terms of their salaries. +o! in terms of ran4ing !e
!ould 4no! that . is higher ran4ed than B and B is
higher ran4ed than 6. "o!ever the ran4ing does not
tell us the e(tent to !hich Bs salary is higher than that
of 6 and the e(tent to !hich .s salary is higher than
that of B. )hile .s salary may be greater than that of
B by U-HHH annually Bs may be greater than that of 6
by UBHHH.
.n e(ample of nominal classification of salary data on
the employees !ould be classification into three
categories such as8 e(ecutive supervisory and hourly
salaries. +o ordinal ran4ing of incomes is impliedJ for
instance there may be supervisors !ho have been !ith
the company for a long time and their present salaries
may e(ceed the salaries of ,unior e(ecutives.
B. There are relatively fe! pure interval scales
found in business research. .lmost all te(t discussions
of this scale refer to the e(ample of temperature scales.
"o!ever some attitude scales such as the ?i4ert and
5emantic &ifferential are claimed to approach interval
characteristics. #n addition appro(imate interval scales
can be developed from paired comparisons and ran4
orders of ob,ects.
..5tore customers
+ominal / Kroup them by race ethnic bac4ground
married or single status etc.
Frdinal / Ran4 them as very frequent buyers
frequent buyers infrequent buyers.
#nterval / 5ome scale of attractiveness in !hich the
scale is presumed to be interval.
Ratio / .verage si*e of monthly purchases.
B. Roter attitudes
+ominal / grouped as Republican &emocrat
#ndependent and other.
Frdinal / Ran4 of candidates in order of preference.
#nterval / ?i4ert / type scale
Ratio / 6ount of votes for various candidates in
each district.
6. "ardness of alloy
+ominal / #dentification of alloys that include
nic4el and those that do not.
Frdinal / Ran4ing of hardness by determining
!hich alloys scratch !hich others.
#nterval / Qse of an interval scale designed to rate
alloy hardness.
Ratio / .mount of nic4el per pound of steel in
various alloys.
&.6ommon stoc4 preference
+ominal / #ndustry classification of preferred
stoc4s.
Frdinal / Ran4 order of five stoc4s as to your
preference for them.
#nterval / Rating of preference for the stoc4 by
converting the results of a paired comparison
rating into presumed interval scale.
Ratio / 5i(/month changes in price of various
preferred stoc4s.
:. &ivision profitability
+ominal / 6lassification of sources of division
profits e.g. manufacturing assembly trading
price changes etc.
Frdinal / Ran4ing of divisions by the si*e of their
dollar profits in -HHL.
#nterval / Qse of 5emantic &ifferential scale in
evaluating the profit performance image of
various divisions.
Ratio / &ollar profits for each division in -HHL.
D. .ssume that the instrument has about several
scale items =ordinal or interval data> and is administered
to students and their parents at the end of each school
year. :ach item calls for a reply ranging from $<%
strongly agree to $1% strongly disagree.
.. 5tability =or test/retest reliability> !ould be
measured by repeating the administration of the
questionnaire to the same sample units about - !ee4s
later and then correlating the results of the t!o
administrations to measure the stability.
B. :quivalence8 )e might develop t!o parallel
versions of the same test and correlate the results.
6. #nternal consistency8 "ere !e are interested in
homogeneity of the items. :ven and odd or randomly
selected half may be used !ith the 5pearman/Bro!n
formula. The OR-H and 6ronbachs alpha have better
overall utility for multi/item scales.
&. 6ontent validity. This measure is largely
,udgmental. Qsing the research question hierarchy to
organi*e the topic is one good !ay to try to include all
aspects of the topic in the instrument. #t is probably
desirable to use a panel of ,udges 4no!ledgeable about
school curricula to determine !hether the content
coverage in an instrument is adequate.
:. 1redictive Ralidity8 Kood criterion/based validity is
difficult to sho! since there are no clear pragmatic
measures of course or curricula quality. #f the
instrument predicts ho! students vote in a $quality of
course% poll or if it predicts ho! parents !ould rate the
courses as to quality then it has predictive validity.
C. 6onstruct validity requires that the results of the
measurement compare !ell !ith other measures that
purport to indicate course or curricula quality. Cor
e(ample !e !ould e(pect high quality courses to be
particularly popular !ith academically strong students
and their parents and less popular !ith !ea4 students.
:ntirely different methods of attempting to evaluate
courses =e.g. accreditation agency evaluation a faculty
poll recognition of the quality of the course from
syllabus analysis by e(perts and the li4e> should all
correlate !ell !ith the results from using the
instrument. #f these results do correlate !ell !ith your
results you !ould have an e(ample of convergent
validity a subtype of construct validity.
E. The :((onMobil Travel Kuide in -HH1 a!arded only
;- Q.5. hotels and restaurants the coveted Cive 5tars
rating. $Fne of the industry0s highest accolades that top
rating indicates a level of quality service and
e(cellence that ma4es visiting each establishment a
unique and memorable e(perience.% :(hibit E/1
displays the five/star criteria or you are encouraged to
visit :((onMobils !ebsite for more detailed
information on the other star/levels and the
methodology.
=http8AA!!!.mobil.comAmobilXconsumerAtravelAguidesAi
nde(.html>
-.hi&it 8/$ -..onMo&i'>s #ra:e' 1!i)e 5/(tar Dining
Criteria
1
1!est
"rri:a
'
1roperty may call guest to confirm reservation.
Kuest is greeted at the door and assisted !ith
apparel. There is guest name recognition by the
host and other members of the staff. The building
is attractive immaculate and the grounds are
creatively landscaped and in 4eeping !ith overall
atmosphere. #nterior design dTcor and layout are
perfectly coordinated.
Ph+sic
a'
Prope
rt+
.ll materials are of highest caliber and integrated
to provide a stri4ingly memorable effect a !orld
class e(perience. The interior design is in 4eeping
!ith the overall theme and aspirations of the
restaurant. :very element such as the floor
covering !all covering art!or4 etc. is integrated
into the overall dTcor and no one element stands
out or detracts from the dining e(perience. .
customi*ed highest quality cloth or true linen is
used throughout the establishment. 6loth items are
replaced as they are soiled during the meal. .
special house design may be integrated throughout
the entire service. 6hina service is unique
comprehensive and of highest quality. The highest
quality stem!are is used =leaded crystal perhaps>
possibly utili*ing a unique design. There is a
thoroughly comprehensive silver inventory
including stea4 4nives lobster pic4s sauce spoons
dessert and fish for4s fish 4nives escargot holders
etc. as appropriate. Qnique design features may be
incorporated and a full complement of support
equipment =silver chafing dishes silver or marble
mahogany carts> may be used. . unique effort is
obvious in the menu design =such as commissioned
art !or4 or logo integration> and the menus are
printed on highest quality bond. Restrooms are
e(pected to have attendantsJ linen or cloth hand
to!els are also e(pected.
(er:ic
e
5ervice staff evidences some preparation s4ill such
as carving the use of service spoon and for4
boning salad preparation dessert merchandising
flambTing. The staff is familiar !ith the chef0s
culinary strengths and bac4ground. . sommelier is
present. :mpty glasses are immediately attended to
and spirits may be served from a small carafe or
decanter. &ecanting services are available or
offered. 5taff hygiene personal grooming and use
of cosmetics are impeccable. 5ervice personnel put
the guest at ease in promoting an en,oyable
e(perience. The guest is never challenged by the
service environment or nervous about committing
some culinary error. Tableside presentations do not
delay the dining e(perience.
C!'ina
r+
. Cive/5tar restaurant should maintain a
relationship !ith specialty purveyors receiving the
highest quality of fresh seasonal ingredients.
Karniture may be integrated !ith plate design.
6reativity and common sense are used in plate
presentationJ dishes are not hard to eat. )ild game
and variety meats as !ell as delicacies are present.
The menu evidences variety in coo4ing
methodology. . specialty menu degustation is
e(pected. :ach dish is comprised of compatible
flavors and colors reflecting various te(tures. The
menu is completely accurate in description /
Roquefort cheese comes from Roquefort. Cood
items reflect menu descriptions. The staff has
e(pert 4no!ledge of all menu items and is able to
describe ingredients and preparation techniques
!ithout hesitation. They are familiar !ith the chef0s
culinary strengths and bac4ground. The staff is
a!are of items that may be of concern to guests
!ith allergies and solicit this information from
guests prior to ordering. . selection of very high
quality hors d0oeuvres or amuses/bouches is
e(pected. 1roperties are evaluated on each course
or offering including appeti*ers salads soups
breads butterAoilAspreads entrees sides cheese
presentations or interme**o and desserts. These
courses are revie!ed on the basis of variety
offered taste te(ture appearance presentation
uniqueness accompaniments and garnishes.
Be:er
ages
. comprehensive !ine list of international
standards is e(pectedJ all !ine categories are
represented. There is an affinity bet!een the !ine
list and the food on the restaurant0s menu. The !ine
listing has a logical sorting and is customer
friendly. Cormal espresso and cappuccino service is
e(pected. 6offee is evaluated for taste appearance
presentation etc. . variety of bottled !aters are
immediately offered !ith choices of both
spar4ling and mineral !ater.
1!est
Depar
t!re
The chec4 is presented in a discreet manner !hen
requested. There are no unnecessary delays in the
payment of chec4s. 5taff assists !ith apparel and
possibly securing of transportation. 5pecial
amenities are provided =candies menus and
souvenirs>.
1
:(cerpts from :((onMobiles !ebsite
=http8AA!!!.mobil.comAmobilXconsumerAtravelAguidesAinde
(.html>
G. ..There are many concepts and constructs !hich
might be suggested and operationali*ed here but for
purposes of illustration !e restrict the discussion to t!o
definitions8 full/time student and student morale.
B. Cull/time students !ill be defined as those !ho are
ta4ing at least 1- semester credit hours of course!or4
and are studying either for a bachelors or a graduate
degree. Morale may be divided into three ma,or
dimensions8 academic living conditions and social
life.
6. Cor measuring student status !e classify all students
as full/time students if they report !hen as4ed that
they are currently registered for at least 1- semester
hours study and are !or4ing for a degree. Cor
measuring morale !e develop four statements
concerning each of the three morale dimensions and
as4 students to sho! their degree of agreement !ith
these statements on a 1 to < agreement scale. ="o! to
develop and choose these scale items !ill be discussed
in 6hapter E>.
&. The simplest !ay might be to sum the ans!ers to
the four items and average for each of the three
dimensions. These can in turn be combined in the
same !ay to secure an overall inde(. #n some cases !e
might !ish to use a !eighting system in compiling the
inde(.
:. Reliability can be determined by using several
versions of the scales to determine morale and
calculating coefficient alpha. )e might also administer
the scales several times over a short period of time to
the same students to determine if they give stable
results. )e can test for validity by loo4ing for other
indicators of a persons morale. )e might for e(ample
tal4 !ith friends of the students or query professors
advisors or parents.
1H
.
&ata Type
1.#n your 4ind of !or4 if a person tries to
change his usual !ay of doing things ho!
does it generally turn out7
Frdinal
-. 5ome people prefer doing a ,ob in pretty
much the same !ay because this !ay they can
count on al!ays doing a good ,ob. Fthers li4e
to go out of their !ay in order to thin4 up ne!
!ays of doing things. "o! is it !ith you on
your ,ob7
Frdinal or
#nterval
9. "o! often do you try out on your o!n a
better or faster !ay of doing something on the
,ob7
Frdinal
;. "o! often do you get chances to try out
your o!n ideas on the ,ob either before or
after chec4ing !ith your supervisor7
Frdinal
<. #n my 4ind of ,ob it0s usually better to let
your supervisor !orry about ne! or better
!ays of doing things.
Frdinal or
#nterval
B. "o! many times in the past year have you
suggested to your supervisor a different or
better !ay of doing something on the ,ob7
Frdinal
5tudents could add a question about the
respondent0s gender to obtain nominal data.
5tudents could add a question as4ing the
respondent0s actual age or the number of
years the respondent had !orded to obtain
ratio data.
+ominal
Ratio
1. .. Rating scales have an advantage in that they
require less time are interesting to use and have a
!ider range of application than ran4ing methods.
They can also be used !ith a large number of
properties or variables. The ma,or disadvantage of
rating scales is that they assume that a person can
and !ill ma4e good ,udgments. The human
element in rating scales ma4es the scale sub,ect to
the common errors of leniency central tendency
and the halo effect. These errors are discussed
individually in the section entitled 21roblems to
.void !ith Rating 5cales.2 Ran4ing scales do not
have the !ide application of rating scales nor can
they be used !ith a large number of properties or
variables. "o!ever ran4ing scales permit the
participant to e(press hisAher attitude in an
unambiguous manner. )hereas rating scales are
generally vie!ed as interval scaled ran4ing scales
are ordinal. There is a body of opinion that holds
that interval scales can be developed from some
ran4ing comparisons but this is not true of all
systems of ran4ing. .s has been indicated earlier
in 6hapter D there is a loss of data !hen !e use
ordinal rather than interval approaches. .n equal
difference in ran4s does not imply an equal
difference in the attribute by !hich the sub,ects
are ran4ed.
B. ?i4ert scales are relatively easy to develop
compared to differential scales. They are most
useful !hen it is possible to compare the person0s
score !ith a distribution of scores from some !ell
defined group. #f constructed in the classical
manner each item that is included in the scale has
met an empirical test for discriminating ability.
5ince participants ans!er each item it is probably
more reliable than a differential scale in !hich
only a fe! items are chosen. .lso it is easy to use
this scale both in participant/centered and
stimulus/centered studies.
The disadvantage of the ?i4ert scale is that a total
score can be secured by a !ide variety of ans!er
patterns thus there are questions as to the meaning
of the total score.
.side from the relative merits and demerits of
differential scales that can be inferred from the
above some additional points are8 =1> The cost and
effort required to construct differential scales has
limited their use. =-> This approach has been
critici*ed on the grounds that the values assigned
to various statements by the ,udges may reflect
their o!n attitudes and !ill thus be biased.
6. Qnidimensional scales are usually easy to
construct and are not difficult to understand.
6onceptually ho!ever there is a question of
!hether !e are truly measuring a single
dimension. The Kuttman technique is one effort
made to assure that a so/called unidimensional
scale is actually unidimensional. Multidimensional
scales are a !ay of recogni*ing that many concepts
cannot be represented a single dimension.
"o!ever these techniques are difficult to use and
to understand. The classical semantic differential
scale is the first ma,or multidimensional form that
has received considerable attention. 6urrently
there are many developments in multidimensional
scaling using computer/based procedures that are
attracting !idespread interest especially in
mar4eting research.
-. .. The /hurstone scale !ould be a set of statements
about the persons confidence in the economic
system. :ach statement !ould have been rated
regarding its degree of favorableness along some
assumed dimension. Cor e(ample the statement
2The Q.5. economic system is !ill rebound
quic4ly from the consequences of the terrorist
attac4s in +e! Mor4 and )ashington.2 might be
presented among a list of 1H statements. This one
might have been appraised as a 2D.B2 on a scale of
1 to 1H. The participant !ould be e(pected to
select one or more statements !ith !hich he
agrees.
B. . Likert scale !ould consist of a series of
statements about the resiliency of the economic
system each !ith a < point scale =may also be 9/
point or D/point scale> e(pressing a degree of
agreement or disagreement. #f the classical ?i4ert
approach is used the items on the scale !ould have
been chosen by a pretest using an item analysis
approach.
6. . semantic differential scale of the classical type
!ould use a set of bipolar ad,ective scales !ith the
sub,ect being the 2resiliency of the Q.5. economic
system2 or a dimension of the Q.5. economic
system such as its speed of recovery. #n a semantic
differential scale the ad,ective pairs !ould be
chosen to fit the sub,ect. These ad,ective pairs are
normally chosen on an arbitrary basis.
&. . 1tapel scale is used !hen bipolar ad,ectives
usable !ith the semantic differential scale cannot
be found. +o! for each attribute of the Q.5.
economy identified there is a set of 1H response
categories. Cor each item participants assign a
rating number =bet!een Z< and /<>. The more
appropriate the description the closer the rating is
to Z<. 6orrespondingly /< !ould refer to the most
inappropriate description.
:. 5uppose a !orced ranking scale !as used to study
the Q.5. economy in say three dimensions
gro!th stability and employment. +o!
participants can be as4ed to ran4 the performance
of the economy before and follo!ing the terrorist
attac4s of 5eptember 11 -HH1 for each of the
selected dimensions. "ence for employment
before may be ran4ed 1 =least unemployment>
and after may be ran4ed ; =most unemployment>.
The participant is essentially forced to ma4e a
ran4ing for each of the periods of time specified.
9. 2o& *n:o':ement8
.. . graphic rating scale8
Mou may e(press your level of ,ob involvement as
a 2A% intersecting the selected point along the line8
#ntensely .verage
6omplete
involvedXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXX.pathy
The concept of ,ob involvement may have multiple
dimensions such as =1> hours input per month
=verbal anchors8 highAlo!> =-> !or4 output quality
=e(cellentApoor> =9> energy level at !or4
=highAlo!> then each may be rated separately
using a graphical scale.
B. . Multiple Rating ?ist8
#s similar to a numerical scale !hich has equal
intervals bet!een numeric scale points and it
allo!s visuali*ation of the results. "ere the
question may li4e8
Choose? an) circ'e? the a'ternati:es that &est
)escri&e :ario!s aspects of +o!r @o&.
.spect of your ,ob8 "igh .verage
?o!
#nvolvement < ; 9 -
1
Man hours input < ; 9 -
1
)or4 output quality < ;
9 - 1
:nergy level < ; 9 -
1
;. .. =oak 8ip Pa"*e )r,
Peepers
Ooa4 L <H 11< 9<
Nip 1<H L 1BH DH
1ab*e E< ;H L ;<
Mr. 1eepers 1B< 19H 1<<
L
///////////////////////////////////////////////////
/////////////////
TFT.? ;HH --H ;9H 1<H
R.+O FR&:R - 9 1
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B. M
p
.B-< .;H .BB- .91-
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,
.9- / .-<; .;- / .;G
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,
.E1 .-; .G1 .HH
<. .. These choices may be critici*ed because there is
no !ay for a participant to e(press an 2undecided2
response or a 2don0t 4no!2 response.
B. . !idely used set of response choices and
generally acceptable. Fne problem is the
operational definition of the various terms. )hat
is 2fair2 to one may be 2good2 to another !hen
both are actually ma4ing the same ,udgment.
6. This assumes that the average must fall bet!een
good and fair !hile it might be that average
should be else!here.
&. The central choice of 2neither agree nor disagree2
does not adequately reflect the situation that might
be called 2uncertain2 or 2indifferent.2
B. .. #n ma4ing an overall assessment of consumer
perception of a brand !e are see4ing the final
vie! of the customer and a customer may have his
or her o!n dimensions of appraisal. . customer
may feel that brand . is better in quality than B
but may yet choose B since it may be perceived as
better 2value for money.2 Curther there may be
other dimensions listed in part =b> of this question.
Fne !ay out of this dilemma is to measure
customer perception as a self report of the
customers purchase preference. This is also !hat
is critical to mar4eting managers. "ence an overall
assessment of the brands consciously measuring
purchase preferences as a self report could be
made using the follo!ing rating scale8
'uestion 18 #f you !ere to purchase a bicycle
today 4eeping all your normal considerations
in mind ho! !ould you rate the follo!ing
brands8
. truly e(cellent buy
=<>///=;>///.verage///=->///=1> . really bad buy

Brand L
=<>///=;>///.verage///=->///=1>
Brand M =<>///=;>///
.verage///=->///=1>
Brand N
=<>///=;>///.verage///=->///=1>
b. To compare brands along the dimensions
similar scales could be constructed for each
dimension and as in the case of 'uestion 1 five
point scales !ith verbal anchors can be used. Cor
each of the dimensions the t!o polar verbal
anchors excellent and poor seem appropriate. .
seven/point scale may be more sensitive
compared to a five point scale. Qsing
representation as in 'uestion 1 !e are in fact
creating a visual system that assists the participant
in ma4ing mental inter/brand comparisons.
This data has the advantage that it measures
distanceJ it gives us a measure of ho. much a
brand is perceived as better or !orse than another
brand on a particular brand rather than a mere
ordinal ran4ing. To analy*e the data !e !ould li4e
to 4no!8
1. )hat is the average perception of each
brand in terms of purchase preference7
2. )hat is the average perception of each
brand along each dimension7
3. #s there consistency in opinions or is there
a lot of variation in the opinions of the
participants for both items 1 and -.7
The numerical data for purchase preference and
for each of the dimensions can be aggregated for
the sample. The arithmetic means can be used to
compute the average perceptions. The variance or
standard deviation can measure consistency of
opinions or the variance in opinions.
D. .. 5& S <
B. 5. S <
6. 5. S <
&. 5& S <
:. 5. S <
C. 5& S <
The responses for each person ans!ering could be
totaled to give a measure of each person0s attitude
to!ard the program. The purpose !ould be to
measure the attitudes of the participants for their
2total attitude.2 Fn the other hand each statement
could be tallied separately to determine ho! the
program scores on each point. #n this case the
emphasis is on different perceptions of the
program rather than attitudes of different students
to!ard the program.
E. Iason and Myra argue !ith Iean/6laude that the
6omplete6are research pro,ect needs a unique
scale =arbitrary> because 1> the scales used by the
company0s mar4eting staff for their consumer
products don0t relate to the computer servicing
problem -> the focus group research revealed the
need to address 2e(pectations2 and virtually none
of the scales developed for customer satisfaction
deal !ith e(pectations and 9> that the combination
of in/house and outsourcing of repairs places
special demands on measuring precision and
reliability.
G. From -.hi&it
/$
5imple category
5cale
6ould be used to measure
intention to enroll =enroll not
enroll>
Multiple 6hoice
5ingle/Response
5cale
6ould be used to have students
indicate the course and its time in
!hich they most !ant a seat in the
ne(t semester.
Multiple 6hoice
Multiple/
Response 5cale
6ould be used to have students
indicate the courses in !hich they
plan to enroll in the ne(t t!o
semesters.
?i4ert 5cale 6ould be used to measure the
li4elihood in enrolling in specific
courses in specific terms at
specific times.
+umerical 5cale 6ould be used to measure the
li4elihood of enrolling in specific
courses in specific terms at
specific times.
5emantic
&ifferential
)ith the e(tremes of 2enroll2 and
2not enroll2 students could be
as4ed to evaluate specific course
times for greatest li4elihood to
enroll.
Multiple Rating
5cale
5tudents could be as4ed to
respond to the anticipated course
offering list on </point li4elihood
to enroll scale.
Ci(ed 5um 5cale 5tudents could be as4ed to allocate
points to a list of courses based on
their li4elihood to enroll in the
subsequent semester.
5tapel 5cale 5tudents could be as4ed to
respond to a list of courses that
might be offered in the subsequent
academic year based on li4elihood
to enroll =Z< to /<>.
Kraphical Rating
5cale
Kiven the education level of
audience and the seriousness of
the topic =demand estimation> this
scale is unli4ely to be used.
From -.hi&it /6
1aired
6omparison
5cale
5tudents could be as4ed to choose
bet!een pairs of course times to
determine the ideal time to offer
particular elective courses.
Corced Ran4ing
5cale
5tudents could be as4ed to ran4
order a list of elective courses
based on their li4elihood to enroll.
6omparative
5cale
5tudents could be as4ed to
evaluate their li4elihood to enroll
by comparing the elective courses
offered in the subsequent term to
those planned for the follo!ing
academic year.
Chapter -.ercise
#nstructors often !ant a hands/on e(ercise that
brings the details of the chapter together !ith
practical e(perience. 5emantic differential scales
allo! students to e(amine a scaling application
using a topic familiar to them =the attitude ob,ect
can be their )>A program4 current class or other
topic of your choice>. ?i4ert graphic or other
rating scales typically require more preparation or
item analysis !or4 than you can spare for a brief
in/class illustration. 5emantic differential scales
also allo! a transition to multidimensional scales
for instructors !ith advanced students.
#nstructions to the student8
1. Qsing the semantic differential scale belo!
record your impressions of your current
educational program by placing a small L on
each ad,ective continuum.
-. 5core your responses by assigning a D to the
positive end of each continuum and a 1 to the
negative ad,ective end. +ote that some scales
are reversed.
9. )hich of the ad,ective pairs are evaluative7
potency7 activity7
#nstructors may !ish to provide a scoring 4ey
on the board after the ratings are made8 Ds are
good strong active complete fast hot
meaningful and heavy.
5ample scale form8
good
XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX bad
!ea4
XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX strong
active
XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX passive
complete
XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX incomplete
fast
XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX slo!
cold
XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX hot
meaningful
XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX meaningless
heavy
XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX8XXX light
.ns!er to item 9 of student instructions8
evaluation
activity potency
good/bad
active/passive strong/!ea4 complete/
incomplete fast/slo!
heavy/light
meaningful/meaningless cold/
hot
The instructor might !ant to arrange group scores
in a scatterplot on the blac4board. 5tudents are
as4ed to submit scores anonymously on a scrap of
paper. #t is interesting to compute semantic
differential sub/scores for evaluation activity and
potency and interpret them.
Fptional8 #f you have time compare the results for
2ideal program2 to the previous findings. :(amine
carefully the dimensions that contribute most to
the differences.
6hapter <
a. . source0s purpose indicates the li4ely bias of the
material provided by the source. #t the source
advocates a specific position =enlightenment> it
is li4ely to be biased in the direction of that
position. 5ources designed for entertainment ta4e
poetic license !ith their material to insure the
material is entertaining. 5erious information
!ould be suspect if it came form a clearly biased
or solely entertaining source.
b. . source0s scope indicates the time frame and
range of material presented by the site. . site
designed to provide current highlights !ould not
provide the detail needed by many e(ploratory
searches designed to enlighten the researcher.
But such a source might be a portal to other
richer and more comprehensive sources.
c. . source0s authority refers to the degree to !hich
primary vs. secondary data sources are reported
and the credentials and reputation of the authors
of the material in that source. This criterion is
especially important in a !eb source !here
anyone can post anything.
d. . source0s audience indicates for !hom the
information !as collected. . source designed for
children might be !ritten at too lo! a level to be
useful for the serious business researcher. .
source !ritten for members only might provide
too narro! a scope to be of use in solving a more
comprehensive problem.
e. . source0s format related to ho! the information
is related8 narrative prose table charts lin4ed to
detailed data etc. The more organi*ed the format
the easier the source is to use and thus the more
value it has for the serious business researcher.
-. 1rimary sources in a secondary search relate
original research usually containing ra! data !ith
out interpretation. 5econdary sources are often a
compilation of information containing
interpretations and summaries of primary sources.
Tertiary sources are usually compilations of
secondary sources into inde(es bibliographies and
other finding aids. #nternet search engines fall into
the latter category. :ach has value for the business
researcher engaging in an e(ploratory search for
information. .ll things being considered the more
removed the information from its primary source
the greater the distortion to the original information.
9. &ata mining is the process of e(tracting 4no!ledge
=valid novel useful and ultimately understandable
patterns in data> from information contained !ithin
databases stored in data marts or data !arehouses.
The process involves a disciplined set of analytical
and statistical procedures including data
visuali*ation clustering neural net!or4s tree
models classification estimation association
mar4et/bas4et analysis sequence/based analysis
fu**y logic genetic algorithms and fractal/based
transformations.
'[9
;. #n internal data mining the researcher is accessing
primary sources of data and e(ploring the patterns
!ithin and bet!een data in various databases. #n a
literature search much of the information revealed
comes from secondary and tertiary data sources that
another researcher has e(plored. .s a result some
of the 4no!ledge !ill have been lost ignored or
buried.
<. This might occur !hen the cost in time and money
is so great that only secondary sources may be used.
#n some cases the costs may be so great as to be
prohibitive. #n other cases !e can not gather the
data no matter ho! much money and time is spent
because !e do not have access to the information.
Cor e(ample ra! data in #R5 files are not available
to researchers. .lso information about historical
events is available only from published sources.
5ome e(amples might be8
..)e !ish to determine the relative costs of
living in every ma,or city in the countryJ
B. )e !ish to study the trends in the si*e of
family farms over the last <H yearsJ and
6. )e !ish to determine the relative mar4et
potential for cereal products in the <H states.
B. :ncourage your students to use their Business
Reference 5ources 6& as it is divided by
management functional areas and has a section on
accounting. The ma,or sources !ould include the
>i"liographic &ndex4 public catalog Li"rary of
#ongress #atalog or >ooks in Print4 6&/RFMs
such as >usiness Periodicals ?02D&1#4 #&RR on
Disc4 and A>&@&nform4 plus some periodical inde(es
such as >P&4 A1/&4 and PA&1, Fther good sources
!ould include dissertation inde(es the &ndex of
Pu"lications of >ureaus of >usiness and Economic
Research4 and a search of mathematics personal
computing and accounting ,ournals not cataloged in
the above sources. Fften these ,ournals !ill have
their o!n annual inde( that can be scanned for
li4ely references.
D. There are t!o chief problems. Fne is the question
of accuracy. :very study is done for some reason
=purpose scope audience and authority> and !e
should assure ourselves that the data !e use is not
biased in such a !ay that it is unusable. #n addition
there is the definition problem. &o !e 4no! the
operational definitions used in the study7 .re they
compatible !ith our o!n7
E. Belo! are the li4ely sources for each of the research
needs. The list of sources in each case is not
necessarily e(haustive nor does it cover many !eb
site possibilities.
.. #he presi)ent 5ants a 'ist of si. of the &est
references that ha:e appeare) on e.ec!ti:e
compensation )!ring the 'ast +ear. Because
current information is sought students should
use a search engine on the !eb such as Koogle
using the 4ey !ord8 e(ecutive compensation.
There are several sites that compile information
about e(ecutive compensation. 5tudents should
also use 1eriodical databases to supplement this
Koogle search such as .B# #nform
B. Aas the F#C p!&'ishe) an+ recent statements
75ithin the 'ast +ear9 concerning its position
on 4!a'it+ sta&i'iBationC Cor this students
should definitely use the CT6 !eb site
=http8AA!!!.ftc.govA>. 5tudents can reach it
directly or through Koogle or ,ust about any
)eb search engine. Fnce there the student
!ould have to use the search engine on the site
ho!ever to find the info requestedJ it !ould not
be available directly through a search engine.
6. * nee) a 'ist of the ma@or companies 'ocate)
in 1reens&oro? =orth Caro'ina. 6ould use
many different sources for this one including
5tandard and 1oors +et .dvantage "arris
directories Mergent0s C#5online &un and
Bradstreet0s Million &ollar &irectory Kale0s
Business and 6ompany Resource 6enter and
probably the local !eb sites.
&. P'ease get me a 'ist of the )irectors of
1enera' Motors? Microsoft? an) Morgan
(tan'e+ D Co. .ny site listed =5ee .ppendi( .
or 6&> that has annual report information !ill
include the list of directors. Fr you could go
directly to their )eb sites using any standard
search engine. Fr you could use any of the
sources listed for part 6 above. .lso Dun A
>radstreet Reference >ook of #orporate
)anagement4 Poor%s Register of #orporations4
Directors4 and Executives: Bnited 1tates and
#anada,
E. *s there a tra)e magaBine that specia'iBes in
the f'ooring in)!str+C This is a good Koogle
question and can also be found using )orldcat
or Qlrich0s. .lso Ayers Directory of
Pu"lications4 and Bnion List of 1erials in
Li"raries of the Bnited 1tates and #anada,
Bringing Research #o Life
G. Fne plausible research question is 2)hat problems
have surfaced !ith the )estridge pro,ect that have
the county commission a!aiting the
recommendation of the county planners and that
have 6royand .ssociates see4ing advise from
another research firm72 The 4ey !ords to include
in several bibliographic search queries include
research companies 6royand .ssociates real
estate ethics #nterMountBanc shopping centers
malls and ban4s. The first search query might be8
6royand .ssociates .+& #nterMountBanc FR
)estridge.
1H. Kovernment sources might be tapped to reveal
*oning applications *oning rulings building
permits building inspections building
certifications. )hile Iason could li4ely sort through
these physically !ere he in 6olorado rather than
Clorida it is more li4ely that Iason !ould turn to
city county and possibly state government
databases accessible via the #nternet.
11. This question offers the perfect opportunity for your
students to get a head start on their term pro,ect.
They li4ely have developed several research
questions that can serve to get them started on this
e(ploratory phase of their pro,ect. :ncourage them
to use the Business Reference 5ources 6& and
.ppendi( . and ,ump in !ith both feet\ Mou can
even have them submit their search plan as an
assignment.
Li&rar+ (earch -.ercise
1. #s there a recent bibliography on corporate
mergers and acquisitions7
5>i"liographic &ndex or 6&/RFM )LA
&nternational >i"liographies6
-. )here can # find historical statistics on
commodity futures prices7
5'uide to B,1, 'overnment 1tatistics or 6&/
RFM #&1 1tatistical )asterfile6

9. )hat is the name of the latest boo4 by Richard
Ffshe7
5#umulative >ook &ndex or >ooks in Print6
;. )hat !as last year0s rate of unemployment
among the -H/-; year age group7
5)onthly La"or Revie.6
<. "as the Q.5. 5enate held hearings on any
matters related to small business in the last
year7 =)onthly #atalog or 6&/RFM #&1
#ongressional )asterfile6
B. )hat is the name and address of the association
for the peanut industry7
5Encyclopedia of Associations6
D. #s there a Q.5. maga*ine for the mortuary
industry7
5Blrich%s6
E. )hat is the nearest university that receives the
Cournal of the ?il #hemist%s 1ociety7
5Bnion List of 1erials6
G. )hat !as the most recently published monthly
production figure for Q.5. bituminous coal7
51urvey of #urrent >usiness6
1H. )ho is the current president of R6.7
5Dun A >radstreet Reference >ook of
#orporate )anagement6
11. )hat universities have recently published
documents on labor negotiations7
5&ndex of Pu"lications of >ureaus of >usiness
and Economic Research6
1-. "o! many establishments !ere there in 1GD- in
industry 5#6 9;GE / fabricated pipes and
fittings7 5B,1, #ensus of )anufacturers4
publication M6D- =-> 9;C>
19. )hat doctoral dissertations if any have
recently been !ritten on consumer behavior7
5American Doctoral Dissertations Dissertation
A"stracts ?nline4 or 6&/RFM QM#
Dissertation A"stracts6
1;. )hat is the most recently reported quarterly
K+1 figure for the Q.5. in constant dollars7
5>usiness #onditions Digest or 1urvey of
#urrent >usiness6
1<. )hat !as the output of Q.5. hosiery
manufacturing last year7
51tatistical A"stract6
1B. )hat types of information are available by
census tracts7
5B, 1, #ensus of Population4 6ensus Tract
volumes>
1D. )hat are t!o or three important types of
information that are available on a county basis
concerning Q.5. manufacturing7
5#ensus of )anufacturers4 state volume>
1E. )hat is the pro,ected level of Q.5. population
for -HHH7
5B, 1, #ensus4 1/-< series selected
publications>
1G. )hat are t!o or three important types of
information available at a local level concerning
retail trade in the Q.5.7
5#ensus of Retail /rade4 state volumes>
-F.)hat is the total amount of outstanding
installment credit debt in the Q.5. last year7
5!ederal Reserve >ulletin6
-1. Fne area that is not fully covered in 6hapter 1H
is the vast amount of statistical information
available in published form. Fne can develop a
class e(ercise that uses these statistical sources
only. #n such an e(ercise use the various
#ensuses of >usiness4 Population4 Housing4
)anufacturing4 and Agriculture4 as !ell as
current economic statistics from the 1urvey of
#urrent >usiness4 !ederal Reserve >ulletin4 and
the )onthly La"or Revie., Fther publications
such as the #ounty >usiness Patterns4 the
various 6ensus 2p2 bulletins and other monthly
industrial foreign trade and agriculture
publications are also possibilities. #n such an
e(ercise the instructor may !ish to specify
specific information that the students should
collect and report.
,ther Data Mining (o!rces
.lgorithms used in data mining are complicated and
beyond the technical ability of most students but because of
the tremendous e(ploratory potential it is desirable to
illustrate the te(t material in class. The 5.5 #nstitute offers
resources at their !eb site including demonstration 6&s
and brochures that are beneficial for helping students
visuali*e this unit. Risit their site at !!!.sas.com or send
them an e/mail at soft!are]sas.sas.com.
#HAP/ER D
Response error occurs !hen the recorded data differ from
the true dataJ such errors can come from the
participant in the editing coding or data entry
stages.
&ntervie.er error occurs !hen the intervie!er in
some fashion corrupts the data. This can occur as a
result of inconsistent treatment of participants or
questionnaires ineffective participant motivation
and cooperation created by the intervie!er social
differences bet!een participant and intervie!er and
cheating.
0onresponse error occurs !hen the researcher had
difficulty in securing intervie!s from participants
!ho have been selected into the sample and the
non/participants differ from the participants in a
systematic !ay.
-. Many environmental conditions such as the degree
of urbani*ation in the area the day of the !ee4 the
time of day the location of the intervie! and the
other demands being made on the participant at the
time of contact are all important factors in
determining the rate of response. Cor e(ample
many urban residents feel threatened in their
neighborhoods and are reluctant to ans!er the door
!hen a stranger calls. ?i4e!ise in a business
shopping center at dinnertime it may be difficult to
secure cooperation from persons rushing home.
These problems can be only partially offset. 6are in
the selection and training of intervie!ers is one of
the best !ays to lessen these problems. 5ome
intervie!ers consistently turn in better response
rates. Techniques such as varying callbac4 times
ma4ing calls at the times of highest probability of
contact setting up intervie!s by phone
intervie!ing other members of the family =!hen
this is acceptable> and see4ing assistance from
neighbors to learn the best time to call are also !ays
to improve performance.
9. There are many !ays to motivate participants in
such a case. 5ome methods are economic such as
cash merchandise or discount coupons for products
sold in the mall. Fther methods are psychological
such as developing good rapport !ith the
participant sho!ing interest in the participant0s
thoughts and feelings and convincing the
participant that the research pro,ect and his
participation is important and appreciated. "ere it
is often useful to indicate the utility of the research.
#n most cases a single method is not sufficient for
adequately motivating participantsJ a combination
of motivational approaches is necessary.
;. Three suggestions for decreasing personal
intervie!ing costs !hile increasing the response
rates include8
=1> &evelop a strategy for intermediaries at the
doorAparticipant%s a"sence in case the required
participant is not available. This can be a system of
leaving a small note and visiting card rescheduling
the intervie!Aand giving a confirmatory telephone
call.
=-> Qse an incentive system to re!ard efficient
intervie!ing and using the telephone for scheduling
and screening personal intervie!s.
=9> Qse self/administered questionnaires.
#mproved selection of intervie!ers role playing
and other forms of training are also effective !ays
to improve intervie! efficiency.
<. #n these e(amples it is often possible to use any of
the three methods.
a. #n this first one it is more li4ely that a personal
intervie! !ill be used because of the compact study
area and a topic !hich !ill be of high interest to
participants. This is especially the case if there are
a substantial number of questions and a certain
degree of free form to the intervie!. Telephone
intervie!ing !ould be the second choice.
b. 1ersonal intervie! or telephone intervie!s for much
the same reasons as above. The sampling approach
probably !ill be a ma,or factor. #f it !ere going to
be a convenience sample then personal intervie!ing
at several spots on campus !ould be adequate. #f it
is a random sample it might be desirable to use
telephone intervie!ing !here possible and personal
or mail surveys !here telephone contact cannot be
made.
c. 1robably mail survey !ould be the most
appropriate. #t is possible that some !ritten
material !ill be sent =policy statements etc.> and
this must be handled by mail. Telephone surveys
are possible if the questioning is not too comple(
and lengthy. 1ersonal intervie!s !ould be the high
cost alternative and probably not used unless this
pro,ect had a substantial budget and !as aimed as
an in/depth study.
d. . mail survey !ould probably hold costs do!n and
improve the chances of ma4ing contact !ith the
special e(ecutive. Fne might also use a letter to
inform the financial officer of the pro,ect and then
call long distance at a pre/specified time to secure
the ans!ers to the questions.
e. 6ollege campuses today are fairly !ell connected
!ith operating #ntranets and supervisors of student
!or4ers typically provide some !ritten information
on the ,ob openings available in their departments.
Thus a combination of self/administered
questionnaire via !eb or mail along !ith either
telephone or personal intervie! is li4ely.
This study !as actually tested by mail survey first
but responses !ere incomplete and in some
instances provided confusing information. .
second more successful test used a !eb/delivered
instrument =to both students and supervisors> and
supplemented this !ith follo!/up personal
intervie!s =!ith supervisors> to clarify variables
that !ere ans!ered inappropriately or incompletely.
This is an e(cellent opportunity to discuss
incentives for participationJ students !ere an(ious
to participate because they perceived it !as li4ely to
bring about a ne! pay structure in !hich many of
these participants !ould benefit. 5upervisors on
the other hand had no such motivation. 1articipant
cooperation in a timely manner and organi*ation
culture !ere the primary reasons cited for using
personal intervie! rather than telephone intervie!s
for the follo!/up !ith supervisors. . large pool of
student volunteers !as used to conduct the
intervie!s thus eliminating the e(tra cost of a
personal intervie! and providing quic4 results as
!ell.
B. The best !ay !ould be by random digit dialing !ithin
the e(change. There are GGGG possible numbers from
!hich to choose a group by using a table of random
numbers or a random number generator. Record the
chosen random numbers in the order in !hich they
appear. Qse at least DH numbers in order to have
replacements for unassigned numbers business
establishment numbers and other non/households.
)hen a number does not ans!er continue to call bac4
up to </D times at different times of day before
replacing it !ith another numbered participant.
6ontinue the calling process until the sample of ;H
families is achieved.
D. This can be ans!ered in several !ays. The Oanu4 and
Berensen revie! article !ould suggest that follo!/ups
be used that a respected sponsorship be used that a
stamped return envelope be enclosed and that a money
incentive be included. The &illman approach is
concerned more !ith the total design of the pro,ect. "e
urges concern for the improvement of all aspects of the
study that could give it an aura of importance quality
personali*ation and usefulness. "e addresses the
problem in terms of the appearance and content of the
materials as !ell as the process used. "e stresses
envelope appearance cover letter appearance =equal to
a normal business letter> careful design of cover letter
content =to ma4e a strong appeal> and the importance
of the participant0s participation. "e advocates multiple
follo!/ups and careful timing of the mail outs.
E. .. 5ample selection8 #n the case of a large corporation
it may be assumed that the survey is a multi/
location e(ercise. Curther since the issue is one of
se(ual harassment the study may !ish to e(amine
the 2age2 aspect of se(ual harassment i.e. is the
problem more prevalent !ith females of certain age
groups and possibly men of certain age groups.
5ample selection may be random but stratified by
age and location.
B. 6ommunication8 Fn this there may be a number of
perspectives. The impersonal self administered
questionnaire the assurance of anonymity !ith the
survey assigned possibly to an e(ternal agency
could all contribute to fran4 responses and a
positive response rate. Fn the other hand 2e(pert
intervie!ing and probing2 !ould possibly be better
in some cases. The instructor may !ish to discuss
the merits of a t!o/stage approach here. 1hase 1
!ould be a survey questionnaire and 1hase - an
intervie!ing stage !here e(perts !ould intervie! a
sub sample based on responses in 1hase 1.
6. 1urpose8 . survey such as this may be highly
sensitive. #t can prove to be a catalyst to militant
unioni*ation by adversely affected employees.
.lternatively if it is perceived that the survey is an
instrument that !ill be used to determine future
policies demands may be 2e(aggerated2 by certain
segments facts falsified and the survey results
biased in this sense. This bias may be oriented
to!ards males or females and even the numbers in
each se( may bias results unless statistical analysis
ta4es cogni*ance of this. )hether issues of
relationship building fact finding or other issues
are involved it is important to =a> assure anonymity
or confidentiality of the participants =b> deliberate
!hether the survey should be carried out by an
internal agency or a more obviously 2distanced2
outside agency =c> assess the impact of a complete
disclosure of the purpose of the study versus
relative lac4 of openness as !ell as determine the
corresponding impact of rumors and grapevine
effects.
Fn the issue of response and nonresponse error
reference may be made to sections =b> and =c> and
the consideration of a t!o/stage survey approach
G. .s the chapter frequently refers to the .lbany case as
issues are discussed. The vignette provides lots of
information perceptions and analyses for the student to
collect prior to defining appropriate actions. This
question may be assigned as a partial out/of/classAin/
class e(ercise. Teams are formed to enumerate the
various problems !ith the study. Fnce they have shared
the problems teams are reformed to design an
appropriate communication study given the
measurement questions that !ere deemed necessary.
To facilitate discussion here are some quotes on the
.lbany study e(tracted from the study8
The .lbany clinic study !as an interceptAself/
administered central/location study.
#n interceptAself/administered studies the
intervie!ers primary role is to encourage
participation as the participant completes the survey
on his or her o!n. Ta4ing a!ay :dnas glasses
along !ith the natural an(iety associated !ith eye
surgery !ould not have encouraged :dnas
participation. "o!ever the $required% nature of the
information =!e assume surgery !ould not
commence !ithout prior completion of the
questionnaire> guaranteed :dnas participation no
matter ho! grudgingly given.
&ntervie.er Error source22failure to secure full
participant cooperation, The sample loses
credibility and is li4ely to be biased if intervie!ers
do not do a good ,ob of enlisting participant
cooperation. 6ertainly there is a question about the
quality of the data collected from :dna during the
.lbany clinic study. To!ard the end of the
communication there is some doubt about the
seriousness !ith !hich questions !ere ans!ered.
5tressing the importance of the information to the
surgery that follo!s and having a receptionist serve
as question interpreterAprober could reduce this type
of error.
The intercept intervie! !ould have been a
possibility in the .lbany clinic study although more
admissions cler4s !ould li4ely have been needed if
volunteers !ere not available to do this tas4.
)ith her eyesight and the problems of question
clarity that :dna e(perienced at the .lbany
Futpatient ?aser 6linic a personal intervie! rather
than the self/administered questionnaire might have
been a preferable communication method.
.s :dna and her friends discussed the .lbany clinic
survey they each applied their o!n operational
definitions to the concepts and constructs being
as4ed. This confusion !ould have created a bias
that might have been eliminated by a !ell/trained
intervie!er.
&ntervie.er Error source22failure to consistently
execute intervie. procedures, #n the .lbany clinic
study providing differing concept or construct
definitions to different clinic patients !ould have
created bias.
&ntervie.er Error source22failure to esta"lish
appropriate intervie. environment, 5ince the
.lbany clinic study as4ed for factual rather than
attitudinal data intervie!er/in,ected bias !ould
have been limited. #f the clinic had required the
admissions cler4 =!ho insulted :dna by referring to
her negative attitude> to also conduct a post/surgery
study of patient satisfaction the results of the latter
study may have been influenced by intervie!er
bias.
.ns!ers to many of the questions on the patient
survey might have been 4no!n by a caregiver
especially since :dna !as over EH. .nd the clinics
admissions department could have been confident
that such information !as as accurate as if given by
:dna herself.
The absence of assistance to interpret questions in
the .lbany clinic study !as a clear !ea4ness that
!ould have been improved by the presence of an
intervie!er. #ntervie!ers can note conditions of the
intervie! probe !ith additional questions and
gather supplemental information through
observation. :dna !as obviously in good spirits and
very rela(ed after she and her fello! patients had
critiqued the questionnaire. This attitude !ould
have been observed and noted by an intervie!er. Ff
course !ere hopeful that the intervie!er !ould
correctly interpret laughter as a sign of humor not
as a negative attitude as did the admissions cler4.
#n the .lbany clinic study the researcher could have
ta4en several actions to improve the quality of the
data. &istributing the questionnaire to the patients
eye doctor or to the patient =by mail> prior to arrival
!ould have increased the accuracy of identifying
medications diagnoses hospitali*ations and so
forth. The patients eye doctor !as in the best
position to encourage compliance !ith the
collection process but !as not consulted. "aving
the patient bring the completed questionnaire to the
admissions procedure !here the admissions cler4
could revie! the completed instrument for accuracy
and completeness !ould have given the researcher
the opportunity to clarify any confusion !ith the
questions concepts and constructs. Cinally
pretesting the instrument !ith a sample of patients
!ould have revealed difficulties !ith the process
and operational definitions. :dnas concerns could
have been eliminated before they surfaced.
The logical conclusions a student should reach are 1>
!hile the study might have elements indicating self/
administration it should have intervie!er contact !ith
the participantApatient -> the patient0s doctor could be
recruited to increase participant motivation to
participate 9> the receptionist could be trained to
facilitate the process if a self/administered study is
chosen and ;> the measurement questions should be
evaluated to determine their critical necessity.
This assignment might be an opportunity to discuss
!hether such a study@one that distracts patients from
their imminent surgery@has some value apart from an
analysis of the data collected !hether research
processes should be used for such a purpose and the
effects on the professional image of the research
industry !hen those untrained in research methods
assume responsibility for research pro,ects such as this
one. #t is this latter issue that brings the student full/
circle bac4 to :(hibit 1/9 Trends in the Research
1rofession and +ecessary Management 5afeguards.
1H. #t might be helpful for students to suggest possible
management dilemmas or management questions and
research questions that might have convinced the
anesthetist !ho designed the questionnaire that a study of
this type !as needed. .s forms and questionnaires are
quite routine in doctor0s offices the students should be
some!hat comfortable !ith the scenario.
The .lbany study describes several types of
measurement questions8 1> classification questions
include those on address age presence of false teeth
or bro4en dentures and occupation as !ell as
referring physician0s name and phone and -> target
questions included those on past medical history
incidence of flu and cold in recent medical history
nec4 motion current medications.
6learly the data needed calls for a communication
study not an observation study. )hile an e(amination
of medication containers as !ell as past eye dental
and general health records could reveal much of !hat
is needed they are also interested in the most current
conditions possible !hich precludes data mining.
The study definitely needs a participation appeal
li4ely by the referring physician during the initial visit
that determined surgery !as !arranted.
6ommon sources of intervie!er error should have
been noted and corrected =these are described in
question G>. Most question !ording problems noted in
the vignette are correctable and those that aren0t can
be overcome !ith the in,ection of clarification from a
trained intervie!er. 5ince no attitudinal information is
described intervie!er bias is minimi*ed.
. single contact at the point of data collection
=assuming the referring physician distributed the self/
administered instrument> is advisable. )ith so many
0authorities0 providing definitions and interpretations
there is bound to be bias on any given day not to
mention over the long/term use of the instrument.
Fffering intervie!er support on the self/administered
instrument !ould have been an error/reducing activity.
This could have been accomplished by offering a
telephone number for the patient to call if the
participant had questions. Fr !hile the referring
physician might have provided the instrument a
trained intervie!er could have called to actually
collect the data by phone enough prior to the surgery
for the data to have been useful but still current.
1. .. Direct uestions are those that the participant
should be able to ans!er openly and
unambiguously. &ndirect uestions are those
designed to provide ans!ers through inferences
from !hat the participant says or does.
B. ?pen uestions allo! participants to reply !ith
their o!n choice of !ords and concepts. #losed
uestions limit participants to a fe! predetermined
response possibilities.
6. These types of questions compose three of the four
levels of the management/research question
hierarchy. )easurement uestions are at the bottom
of the hierarchy and are designed to gather specific
information from research 1articipants. The
investigative uestions usually compose several
levels of questions and are ans!ered through the
information provided by the measurement
questions. The research uestion is the basic
information question or questions that the
researcher must ans!er to contribute to the solution
of the management problem. The research
questions are ans!ered through the information
obtained by the investigative questions.
&. +uestioning structure involves the amount of
structure placed on the intervie!er !hereas
response structure pertains to the amount of
structure placed on the participant. 5tructure limits
the amount of freedom that can be practiced by the
intervie!er andAor the participant !hen the former
as4s or the latter ans!ers a question.
-. The survey technique is popular in business and social
science research because so many of the research
questions concern human attitudes levels of
4no!ledge and other types of cognitive or affective
information. Much of this information can be secured
only by interrogation or at least can be secured more
efficiently by interrogation than by other means. Then
because !e have spent our lives conversing !ith others
the thought of 2as4ing people2 comes naturally.
9. T!o ma,or problems are the frame of reference problem
and the irrelevant response. The former gro!s out of
the participant interpreting the thrust of the question in
a different !ay than !as intended by the researcher.
This can lead to unanticipated responses and event
responses that appear to be acceptable but have a
different meaning. Cor e(ample a question li4e 2)hat
do you thin4 of Mr. 0L0 as the democratic presidential
candidate in the ne(t election72 . response of 2"e is
the best candidate the democrats have2 might introduce
a dimension that is different from the e(pected
preference statement. Fr an ans!er of 2great2 might
mean 2# prefer him because #0d li4e to see him be the
president2 or it could mean 2#0m a republican and his
nomination !ould assure a democrat loss.2 .n
irrelevant response might be 2# thin4 the democrats
can0t !in no matter !ho they run.2
;. There are several reasons !hy a researcher may
disguise the questioning ob,ective. The ma,or reason
!ould probably be to guard against introducing biases.
The topic may be so sensitive that a direct question !ill
elicit a refusal or the e(pression of socially approved
statements that do not accurately reflect the participant0s
vie!s. :ven if the topic is not sensitive a question may
be so uninteresting or difficult to ans!er adequately
that the participant replies in a stereotypical !ay. .
third situation in !hich indirect questioning may be
useful is !hen !e see4 information that is available
from the participant but not at the conscious level.
<. )hile opinions !ill vary on these four important faults
of the survey instrument designer are8
1> Cailure to understand the full dimensions of the
sub,ect hence the topic is covered inadequately and
the information is not secured in its most useful
form
-> Cailure in selecting the most appropriate
communication process or combination of
processes
9> Cailure in drafting specific measurement questions8
hence inadequate attention is given to each
question0s content !ording and the sequence of the
questions and
;> Cailure to test the instrument properly.
B. 1retests 5ho! up deficiencies in questions lines of
questioning and procedures of questioning. 5ometimes
pretests even indicate that further study is not needed or
is probably not going to be useful. More specifically a
pretest should indicate !hich questions need revision
!hether responses provide the desired information
!hether the procedures are adequate and if the
questioning can be done !ithin time and cost budgets.
Cinding the best !ording for a question calls for
e(perimentation !ith different versions particularly
!hen positive and negative versions are usable.
.nother good guide is to follo! the test/revise/retest
process !ith all questions. These si( questions are
helpful.
1. #s the question stated in terms of a shared
vocabulary7
-. #s the question clearly7
9. .re there unstated or misleading assumptions7
;. #s there biased !ording7
<. #s there the right degree of personali*ation7
B. .re adequate alternatives presented7
The section entitled 1urposes of 1retesting provides a
more complete set of criteria.
D. The first fe! questions need to a!a4en interest and
motivate the participant to participate in the study.
Fften students try to achieve this by starting off !ith
questions that have little or no information value.
.nother tendency they have is to as4 for personal
classification information at the start normally such
questions should come at the end =e(cept !hen needed
to qualify the participant or if there is a fear that the
percentage of completed intervie!s !ill be lo!>.
'uestionnaire designers generally begin !ith questions
that are easy to ans!er and of more interest to the
participant. They as4 the simpler and more general
questions first becoming more comple( and specific as
they progress =the funnel approach is described in the
section entitled 'uestion 5equence>. #t is generally
advisable to deal !ith a single sub/topic before moving
to another and there are often obvious sequences for
such topics that should be considered. Cinally they
should !atch out for interactive questions !here for
e(ample the ans!er to question 1E influences the later
ans!er to question -<. #t may be more desirable for
question -< to come first or it may be necessary to use
alternative versions to balance out the biasing effects of
one question on the other.
E. 5ome of the ma,or problem assumptions are8
.. 1articipants are motivated to ans!er every question
truthfully and fully.
B. 1articipants 4no! or understand 4ey !ords or
phrases.
6. 1articipants !ill ans!er the question from the same
frame of reference that the instrument assumes.
&. 1articipants !ill do calculations averaging or even
diligent remembering in order to ans!er a question.
:. .ssuming that the development of good survey
questions is a simple process.
G. +one are good questions for the follo!ing reasons8
.. #t leads the participant by as4ing !hether heAshe
reads a prestige maga*ine. #t !ill probably over/
report readership. .nd 2regularly2 can be
interpreted in different !ays.
B. #t presents the participant !ith a difficult estimation
tas4 requiring information that he is unli4ely to
have readily available. #t is unclear !hether the
question is concerned !ith verbal requests only or
any form of request.
6. #t concerns a rather trivial event in the distant past
that is not li4ely to be remembered.
&. The meaning of 2discretionary buying po!er2 is not
clear and not easily understood. #n addition the
question as4s for information that is not li4ely to be
easily available or calculable even if the term is
understood.
:. #t is a simple 2!hy2 question that leaves the frame
of reference open to the participant. #f the ans!er is
of substantial importance to the research it should
probably be e(panded.
C. #t does not ma4e the e(plicit statement alternative of
2not doing a good ,ob.2 #t !ill probably bias
responses in a positive direction. .lso the question
is too vague and general for any purpose other than
as a rough attitude indicator. Curthermore ho!
recent is 2no!27
1H. . number of criticisms may be made but among the
most li4ely are the follo!ing8 first there are several
format problems that could be improved. The order of
questions is not bad e(cept for putting the overall
evaluation at the beginning !here it is li4ely to
influence ho! the individual questions are ans!ered. .
second !ea4ness is the failure to provide adequate
space for responses especially in questions 9 and ;. #t
!ould also be !ise to give some more guidance as to
the form of ans!ers sought. The various parts of
question - apparently should be ans!ered by yes or no
but the lac4 of specific indications to this effect may
result in some participants merely chec4ing some parts
and not chec4ing others or ans!ering in other
une(pected !ays. )hen using !hat are essentially
closed response questions it is !ise to specify the
response choices.
+uestion E / should be placed much later as a summary
question. 5ome scale other than a good/fair/poor scale
!ould be better since these are vague concepts. #t
!ould probably be !ise to use a scale to compare the
professor to other professors in the student0s e(perience.
+uestion F / in all of these parts there should be at least
2yes2 and 2no2 response choices it might be even better
to use a more sensitive scale say of 1 to < points. #n -a
there is some question of the meaning of 2good
delivery.2 &oes this refer to spea4ing delivery s4ills
ability to conduct class discussions or does delivery
refer to total classroom performance7 'uestion -b is
better than most but is 24no! the sub,ect2 too crude or
vague in concept7 . similar criticism could be made in
-c !here 2positive attitude2 is too vague and sub,ect to
variable interpretations. 2Krade fairly2 =-d> and 2sense
of humor2 =-e> are probably acceptable but -f is a
multiple question that should be bro4en into several. #n
addition there should be some measure of usage. #n
question -g ho! prompt is 2promptly72
+uestion G / after providing more response space !e
might improve on 2strongest point.2 . statement as4ing
for the professor0s 2greatest strength2 probably clearly
conveys the intentions of the !riter.
+uestion - / it !ould improve the quality of response
if more effort !as made to see4 that aspect of the
professor0s !or4 that most 2needs improvement.2
+uestion ; / 2Oind of class2 is confusing. &oes this
mean sub,ect matter type of class operation good or
bad or !hat7
+uestion H / should have a yes/no specification.
+uestion 9 / probably could be strengthened by
stressing IvoluntarilyI ta4e another course. #t might
also help to give a response scale that is more sensitive
than merely yes of no.
11. This letter and questionnaire is an actual e(ample used
by a master0s degree candidate for thesis research at one
university. The reproduction in the te(t does not
adequately capture the flavor of the material. The letter
!as photocopied on one half sheet of paper !ith even
the sender0s signature photocopied. The tone of the
letter is totally self/centered. +o effort is made really
to interest the participant in the problem or to suggest
ho! heAshe or society might benefit from participation.
The final sentence typifies this self/centered approach.
. better letter !ould have had some degree of
personali*ation. #t !ould have suggested that there is a
need for such a study offered some information about
the purpose or than4ed the addressee for participation
and in general adopted more of a persuasive tone. The
accompanying envelope should have been stamped as
!ell as already addressed.
The questionnaire can not be fully evaluated in terms of
coverage since !e do not 4no! the precise ob,ectives
of the study. Fn balance ho!ever the instrument is
poorly designed and the question construction is
generally bad. To begin the heading a single !ord
2'uestionnaire2 is not very helpful. 5omething that
identifies the pro,ect !ould have been better. The
statement of directions is more !hat one !ould e(pect
on some class e(amination or bureaucratic form rather
than a study that see4s voluntary cooperation. Most
researchers !ant as much detail as possible rather than
as little. This suggests that the researcher is really not
interested in his o!n topic so !hy should the
participant be interested7
#t is difficult to sho! the space allocation problem in
this te(t illustration but clearly there is insufficient
room for ans!ering most of the questions. The actual
questionnaire had a similar amount of blan4 space for
each reply. Cor each question the blan4 for response
!as as long as the remaining space to the right margin.
.dditionally some comments can be made of each
question8
+uestion E 2 /his uestion assumes that all mem"ers
of the A1/D are actually in the field of training .hile
this may not "e the case, /he participant does not
kno. ho. the IfieldI is defined, !inally4 the
participant may have entered the field .ith some
organi*ation that is not a company4 e,g,4 university4 non
profit organi*ation4 or local4 state4 or federal
government,
+uestion F 2 Assumes that there is a clear Ifield of
trainingI definition, Also assumes that the participant
is no. in the field of training .hile he@she may no. "e
in a different area, &n such a case does one ans.er "y
giving the total time since entering training field4 or
total time in that departmentJ
+uestion G 2 Assumes participant .orks in a company
that has a training department, Like uestion F4 it
presumes that the participant is currently employed the
field of training,
+uestion - 2 'ives a full line to ans.er4 .here in this
case4 the reply expected is something like IK years,I
+uestion ; 2 3ord IdepartmentI may present
pro"lems, Ho. does one ans.er if training is a part of
a divisionJ &t also assumes that there is a training
department,
+uestion H 2 Assumes that Iyour departmentI is the
training department,
+uestion 9 2 Assumes participant is in training
department4 that there is a training department4 and
does not distinguish "et.een .hat might "e a relatively
small "ranch plant of a ma$or international company,
1uppose there are three plants locallyJ /hen ho. does
one ans.erJ
+uestion : 2 &nadeuate space for persons .ith more
than one degree,
+uestion D 2 I3hyI uestion is almost impossi"le to
ans.er since a full response .ould contain too many
factors, /his compound uestion could "e handled
"etter if "roken into several uestions,
+uestion EL 2 #ompound uestion could "e ans.ered
more accurately "y "reaking it up,
0ote also that there are no identification or
classification uestions, /here .as a .ritten code
num"er on the "ack of the uestionnaire that .as never
referred to,
1-. :ncourage your students to use :(hibit 1-/1H as !ell
as the cover letter !ith the &nuiring )inds 3ant to
=no.220o.M case to ans!er this question. . good
approach to this tas4 is to as4 students about their o!n
high school reunion e(periences. #f they haven0t been
out of school long enough to have e(perienced a
reunion as4 them !hat !ill encourage them to return.
5ome !ill have strong feelings supporting the t!o
e(treme positions =can0t !ait to returnA hope never to
have to return for any reason> but most !ill be in the
neutral position =high school !as o4ay maybe it !ould
be fun to see or hear from some of those # !ent to
school !ith>.
Crom this e(ercise move to one that has the students
developing the investigative questions for the li4ely
research question =)hat do !e need to 4no! about
graduates to !rite a ne!s!orthy article that the local
paper !ill print7> #nvestigative questions !ill usually
focus on !here graduates are/physically but also
financially professionally and personally. The list of
investigative questions should also include questions
related to !hat graduates have done since graduation
that is ne!s!orthy@unusual or impressive in and of
itself or une(pected based on !ho is involved.
Cinally as4 students to identify !hat the letter must
accomplish to get the highest possible response rate.
.nd also !hat it must +FT contain that might
discourage response. 5tudents might reveal the
follo!ing purposes among numerous others that the
letter must accomplish to get graduates of 1alm Krove
to consider completing and mailing bac4 the
questionnaire8
1> The letter must help the participant reconnect
!ith their hometo!n =as many !ill have li4ely
moved on to other to!ns states or countries>.
-> The letter must stimulate positive attitudes about
participant0s high school e(perience =a tall order
given that high school is a time of painful
ad,ustment for many teens>.
9> The letter must convince them that the
community in !hich they live =d> !ill benefit
from their sharing of personal information.
;> The letter must ma4e graduates feel important
that their information is vital to the effort.
<> The letter must ma4e completing the survey seem
en,oyable at best and painless and easy at the
very least.
.fter all this preliminary planning drafting the letter
may seem easy. This last tas4 could be assigned as an
out/of/class assignment.
19. This e(ercise is a natural e(tension of the investigative
questions developed in question 1-. Qsing this list and
4no!ing that the mail survey for a self/administered
study is the most li4ely instrument have students as an
out/of/class team assignment come up !ith a brief
survey of plausible measurement questions. Mou might
!ant to specify the number and type of questions you
!ill accept =e.g. 9/< classification questions ;/< target
questions>. "ave them refer to :(hibits G/1 G/- and
:(hibit 1-/B to obtain plausible scale designs and other
response strategies. .nd have them be prepared to
specify the preliminary descriptive statistics they !ant
to collect for each question as a means of defending the
scale or response strategy that they chose. :ach survey
should be complete in all its parts and not violate any of
the basic design rules enumerated in the -1 issues
detailed in the chapter. :ach instrument should also
follo! the rules for clarity reliability and validity.
"ave the team bring multiple copies =enough for
another team to use> to the ne(t class session.
Fn the ne(t class session each team could provide their
instrument as a transparency or 1&C and e(plain their
preliminary analysis plan. Then you can direct the
teams to s!ap surveys and critique the alternative
instrument as a 2researcher pretest2 using the same
rules that they used to build their o!n instrument. Mou
can have the teams critique the instrument on several
levels. &o the questions accomplish the research
ob,ective7 .re the response strategies appropriate given
the group0s preliminary analysis plan7 .re the questions
properly sequenced7 .re the transitions adequate7 .re
the questions free of error7 Fne spo4esperson from
each team should be as4ed to report on !hat the
critique reveals using the terminology of the research
profession. Thus each term must identify the problems
they find by their correct terms and provide the solution
to fi( each error.
1;. 5ome students learn graphically so translating their
team instrument development process to model the
detailed process graphics is an enlightening process.
This also can be an opportunity to demonstrate a
questionnaire flo!chart noting places of li4ely
discontinuation or termination s4ip directions
transitions introductions and conclusions. 5ome
instructors !ill assign this problem at the same time
they assign the out/of/class assignment of problem 19.
5ometimes it helps the students map the elements in
:(hibit 1-/1H and 1-/G before they actually put their
questions in survey format.
6hapter E
1. The observational method is a more useful method for
collecting data from children illiterate and functionally
illiterate persons. The intrusion of observation is often
better accepted than questioning. &isguised and
unobtrusive measures are often easier to carry out than
disguised questioning. #t is generally a slo! e(pensive
process !ith limited opportunity to learn about the past.
Curther comparisons are found in the accompanying
table.
(!r:e+ ,&ser:ation -.periment
.dvantageous
for discovering a
person0s
opinions
attitudes
motivations.
#ntervie!er may
observe
nonverbal
behavior =though
not !ith mail
and limited to
voice inflections
!ith telephone>.
5tructure of
schedule or
guide focuses
attention on
study purpose.
#nstruments may
restrict study to
previously
chosen
questions.
Relationship
bet!een
intervie!er and
participant is of
short duration
=and promotes
comparative
ob,ectivity>.
Fbservation and
recording
=notes
videotapes> is
superior to
depending on
someone0s
recollections.
1rimary method
for nonverbal
behavior
analysisJ has
!ide application
for behavioral
and non/
behavioral
analysis. Cirst
hand
observation of
phenomenon.
:thical
questions about
consent
anonymity etc.
Fbservation
instruments
often lac4
structure =but
unstructured
observation
offers
fle(ibility>.
5uperior
method for
establishing
causalityJ
surveys
=e(cept panels
and other
longitudinal
designs> do
not have
e(perimental
pre/post or
multiple
measurement
advantageJ
observation
may be
longitudinal
but there is
little
environmental
control or
ability to
measure
change in
dependent
variable.
Qltimate
method for
control of
variables8
smaller
-. Fbservation has the potential to involve deception
=particularly !ith participant observation> and violate
rights of privacy. )ith the observational method the
guarantee of anonymity is often difficult and it may not
be possible to secure consent !ithout revealing the
study0s ob,ectives. Fften there are safety ris4s for the
researcher and staff. Qnobtrusive measures
particularly those involving archival analysis and
physical traces are less prone to involve ethical
dilemmas. "o!ever garbage analysis !as considered a
violation to privacy rights until a 5upreme 6ourt ruling.
Referring to the chapter on :thics in the boo4 the
instructor may !ish to revie! some ethical issues.
6onsidering the four classes of observational studies
those !hich are completely structured and in a
laboratory setting !ill resemble e(periments and !ill
produce ethical problems =for e(ample8 B 6 & : C
K " #>. Qnstructured observations in a natural setting
may be only problematic !ith respect to . " and I.
.. #nvolving people in research !ithout their
4no!ledge or consent.
B. 6oercing people to participate.
6. )ithholding from the participant the true nature
of the research.
&. &eceiving the participant.
:. ?eading the participants to commit acts that
diminish their self/respect.
C. Riolating the right to self/determination8
research on behavior control and character
change.
K. :(posing the participant to physical or mental
stress.
". #nvading the privacy of the participant.
#. )ithholding benefits from participants in
control groups.
I. Cailing to treat participants fairly and to sho!
them consideration and respect.
1
9. 5tudent !or4 e(perience is solicited for class
discussion.
;. .. ?"servation data can be collected as it occursJ it
often can secure information !hich !ould have
been other!ise ignored by those present. #t is
possible to capture the total event it is often less
obtrusive than surveys and often information can
be secured only by observation. Fn the other hand
observation is slo! and e(pensive to conduct is
limited to overt action information the observer
often has to be at the scene of the event to secure
the information and for many types of historical
information the method is not usable.
Fn the other hand uestioning enables one to
gather more information about the past about future
e(pectations and to gather information such as
attitudes and e(pectations that are not reflected in
overt behavior. #nformation can be gathered !ith
less cost and from long distance by phone and mail.
B. 0onver"al analysis is one form of behavior analysis
in !hich body movements motor e(pressions and
the li4e are of ma,or concern. Linguistic analysis is
the analysis of spea4ing behavior including ho!
and !hat is said and to !hom. Extra2linguistic
analysis includes voice pitch and loudness rate of
spea4ing duration rhythm interactions including
tendencies to interrupt dominate etc. and verbal
styles including vocabulary use pronunciation
dialect and the li4e.
6. !actual o"servation is restricted to those manifest
events actions and conditions that are reported as
they occur or fail to occur. &nferential o"servation
calls for the observer to interpret events and actions
by dra!ing conclusions about latent factors that are
at !or4 or reasons !hy one reacts in a certain !ay.
:valuations of performance are an e(ample of
inferential observation.
<. There are three decision aspects to this question8
!hether to observe directly or indirectly !hether to
conceal the observer or the mission in some !ay and
!hether the observer is to participate in any functioning
that goes on. .ny combination of these three elements
is possible so the ans!er often depends upon the
assumptions made and the preferences of the researcher.
.. #f the observer is a member of the class then direct
observation in !hich the observation is concealed is
li4ely but the observer participates in class activity.
#f the observer is a visitor the concealment is hardly
possible and participation is unli4ely.
B. This could be direct but it is not uncommon for this
to be done by a video camera !hich ta4es a frame
every second or so. The process of observation
!ould probably be concealed from the customer
the observer !ould probably be visible but a
nonparticipant.
6. May be direct concealed and non/participatory if
the client visits the scene of the focus group and
observes from behind a one !ay mirror. .lso
videotape may be used and in this case it might be
indirect probably not concealed and non/
participatory.
&. 1robably direct concealed and participant. #t is
unla!ful in the Q.5. to 2spy2 on union activities on
behalf of management.
B. .. 5tudent ans!ers might ta4e a variety of forms so
this question is ideal for class discussion. 5tudents
might first suggest follo!ing a particular form
through the insurance company =e.g. a claim request
form>. 5tudents might also suggest that employee
movements could be logged =e.g. !hen did an
employee leave their !or4 space and !hat did they
go to retrieveJ !hen did another employee enter
someone elses !or4 space and !hyJ !hat forms
!ere most used and !here !ere they stored etc.>
5tudents could also observe ho! employees
communicated !ith each other =e.g. by yelling out
questions or calling a colleague or leaving a
personal !or4space to have a face to face
discussion !ith another employee>. :fficiency is
often hampered by the condition of the office so
observations might be made about a participants
!or4 space its degree of organi*ation the
availability of !or4 vs. storage spaces etc. The list
of potential observations is fairly e(tensive. #n
order to 4eep the discussion on trac4 you might
need to periodically remind the class that the
company !ants to improve efficiency and
paper!or4 flo!.
B. Mou might suggest that the class choose bet!een the
content areas of interoffice communication or
form LMN use and storage or use of reference
documentation or some other personal area of
interest. Then in the content area you should as4
for ,ust !hat and ho! the observation should be
done. Cor e(ample regarding interoffice
communication students might operationali*e the
follo!ing observations8
#f employees yelled questions and ans!ers across
or bet!een !or4space cubicles and ho! often
this occurred during the observation timeframe.
They should be required to indicate !hat they
!ill observe and !hat and ho! they !ill record
the observation. Cor e(ample !ill they record the
question or the substance area of the question the
time duration of the conversation the time of day
of the conversation !hether the question !as
adequately ans!ered the names of the parties
the resulting behavior follo!ing the conversation
etc.7 5tudents should be encouraged to develop
an observation chec4list to record their
observations.
)hether an employee left hisAher !or4space to
as4 questions of another employee or deliver
ans!ers from previously as4ed questions and
ho! the employee behaved if the targeted
e(pert !as unavailable to ans!er the question
due to absence or involvement in a phone
conversation. #n this area besides some of the
elements above a student might suggest that they
should record the distance of the trip the nature
of the question !ho !as the instigator amount
of time in the conversation !hether the !or4
space of the targeted e(pert !as invaded or the
conversation too4 place at the door or opening
!hether others in the area sho!ed signs of
distraction !hether an adequate ans!er !as
received !hether paper!or4 or other materials
=e.g. office supplies> changed hands !hether the
conversation !as e(tended by non/!or4 related
topics !hat !as done by each party immediately
after the interaction etc. 5tudents should be
encouraged to develop an observation chec4list to
record their observations.
D. 5ame as ; above.
E. .. 5ome of the standard information items that !ould
be noted are se( age !hether alone or !ith other
adults or children time of day day of !ee4 and
!eather conditions. :vidence of shopping activity
apparent income race apparent social class and
many other items might also be included depending
upon the ob,ectives of the study.
B. The study ob,ectives !ould be a ma,or determinant
of !hat to observe. There !ould also be a number
of variables that one might !ant to use as
modifying or control variables.
6. These !ould depend upon the variables used but
students should have no problem establishing
reasonable operational definitions. Cor e(ample
age might be separated into three or four age
categories by inspection. 5hopping status might be
defined in terms of carrying any shopping bag or
item that has apparently ,ust been purchased.
&. Kenerally the instructions should tell the observer
ho! to act and !hat to do. They !ould include
such information as to ho! to dress ho! to conduct
herAhimself on the ,ob !here to stand ho! to
record and ho! to deal !ith questions or other
situations !hich may develop. #n addition ho! to
sample !hen to conduct the observations any
special instructions as to !hat to observe and ho!
to adapt to conditions !hich might occur.
:. 1robably there !ill be a time sampling such as 1<
minutes of every hour !ith the particular 1</minute
segment being chosen originally by a random
method. The observer may also be instructed to
choose every ;th person passing a given point on
the side!al4 in one direction only.
G. .t 1ro5ec :lectronics the study of defective parts
should have given some direction to the observation.
Cor e(ample if defective parts had greasy residue then
the observation chec4list !ould have been see4ing
residue on !or4 stations either inherent or contributed
by the employee. #f the defective part !as due to
e(cess stress on the part then machines or processes
could be evaluated to determine !here e(cess material
stress !as occurring. The clandestine methods Iason
and Ftto used !ere partially due to not having
identified plausible causes of defects before the
observation started or assuming that employees !ere at
fault because all other causes had been discarded.
This e(ercise should encourage students to imagine all
the possible !ays an electronic device could be
damaged during manufacture. Fne !ay to organi*e the
brainstorming is to identify ma,or arenas for problems.
Many such ideas come from five ma,or arenas8
the .ork environment itself =e(cessive dust foreign
particles invading the electronic surface etc.> or
the machines !hich ma4e the parts =!orn die or out
of alignment machine> or
the people !ho operate the machines or supplement
the mechanical processes =Bertha0s peanut snac4s
s4ipped quality chec4 due to smo4ing brea4 or
smo4ing at the !or4station> or
the materials =lo!er grade plastic or metal
component parts causing stress on a proprietary part>
or
the supplier processes =e(cessive dampness or rodent
infestation in storage facility>.
1H. The chapter offers three 5+.15"FT5. #n each
mechanical observation is employed. This
question is an opportunity to discuss its limitations
and strengths and alterations that students !ould
success to overcome its limitations.
.. 1rogressive .utograph^
Behavioral nonverbal mechanicalJ
combined !ith nonbehavioral physical
condition and record analyses
B. 1ervasive 6ommerce
Behavioral nonverbal mechanicalJ
combined !ith nonbehavioral physical
condition and record analysis.
6. :nvirosell
Behavioral Mechanical plus 5patial
.nalysis. .ccording to the video on
:nvirosell they combine mechanical
observation !ith communication
programs to fully understand the
mechanical observations they record.
The chapter also offers a photograph of a mystery
shopper in the retail environment.
Behavioral nonverbal personal direct
and indirect participatory and concealed
in combination !ith non/behavioral
record analysis.
1. .. &nternal validity !as called simply 2validity2 in
6hapter E. #t involves the question of !hether !e
are measuring !hat !e thin4 !e are i.e. is the
e(perimental treatment the real cause of the result
!e find in the e(perimental group7 External
validity concerns the degree to !hich the
e(periment can be generali*ed across persons
times or settings. That is can the e(periment be
vie!ed as an accurate sample of some more general
conditions7
B. Pre2experiment designs are the crudest forms of
2e(perimentation2 because they fail to control
e(traneous variables and they often omit the basic
process of comparison. "istory maturation and
instrumentation problems often plague these
designs. +uasi2experiment designs are more
sophisticated than pre/e(periment designs but they
too do not qualify as true e(periments. These
designs are used !hen the researcher can control
only some of the variables. #n the quasi/e(periment
the researcher cannot establish equivalent
e(perimental and control groups through random
assignment and often heAshe cannot determine
!hen or to !hom to e(pose the e(perimental
variable. Fn the other hand researchers can often
determine !hen and !hom to measure.
6. Both are problems of internal validity. History
effects represent specific events that occur during a
study that can influence the #R/&R relationship.
)aturity effects occur purely as a function of time
passage and are not specific to a given event or
condition.
&. Random 1ampling =6hapter D> is the special case of
the probability sample !here each population
element has an equal chance of selection.
Randomi*ation and matching are both useful
devices by !hich one can improve the equivalency
of control and e(perimental groups. +either
method is perfect but randomi*ation is the basic
method because it is the primary means of assuring
compatibility !ithin some 4no!n error interval.
1articipants are randomly assigned to groups by
probability sampling the type depending on the
nature of the e(perimental design. )atching4 !hich
employs a nonprobability quota sampling approach
is a !ay to supplement random assignment and can
improve the equivalence of test and control groups.
:. Active factors are those variables that an
e(perimenter can manipulate by causing various
participants to receive more or less of the factor.
>locking factors are those that a participant has in
some degree and can not be changed by the
e(perimenter. The e(perimenter can only identify
and classify participants on these bloc4ing factors.
-. 5ee table in 6hapter 19 question 1.
9. There is complete data on three variables temperature
=T> humidity ="> and artisan e(perience =:> available
for a year =9B< days>. )hereas T " and : are the
&R0s the corresponding data on the percentage of
defective glass shells being manufactured =the &R> is
also available. This !ould permit the use of the
2factorial design approach2 !hich allo!s us to test for
both main and interaction effects. )hile not an
e(periment there is time series field data available for
each of the -D =9 L 9 L 9> cells in the factorial design
approach. .t this point it is suggested that the student
consider the concept of interaction and ho! the effects
of temperature and humidity may not be ,ust additive
main effects but there can be an 2interaction.2
.nalogously a more e(perienced artisan may be better
able to combat the negative effects of adverse
temperature and humidity conditions as compared to
less e(perienced artisans e(plaining a possible
interaction bet!een : and T or : and ".
The information says that !hile 2supervisors2 may be a
factor impacting the number of defectives the data for
this is available for only -;- out of the 9B< days. The
instructor may discuss t!o possibilities. 5uppose there
are four supervisors. #n that case the study may be
conducted using only the data of the -;- days for !hich
data on T " : and supervisor identity is complete to
come to conclusions using a =T L " L : L 5upervisor
#dentity> factorial frame!or4 !ith 9 L 9 L 9 L ; cells.
"o!ever this implies a loss of data for 9B</-;-S 1-9
days. The alternative !ould be to8 =1> Qse the 9 L 9 L 9
L ; frame!or4 to assign to various cells the
observations for the -;- days for !hich data is
complete. =-> Cor the remaining 1-9 days classification
data in terms of T " and : is available but the
supervisor identity is un4no!n. #n such cases .hile /4
H4 and E classifications .ould "e used as earlier4 the
cases can "e randomly assigned "et.een the different
supervisors,
;. 5tudents should operationally define the follo!ing
variables8 performance differences microcomputers
local area net!or4 minicomputer terminals. There are
permissible differences in the definitions. Belo! some
alternatives are covered.
Performance Differences / &efine performance as the
speed at !hich the system completes a tas4. 5everal
tas4s could be measured and combined in a !eighted
average to come up !ith a scalar number that represents
the performance of each of the t!o computer setups in
a particular customer environment. Cor e(ample the
follo!ing tas4s could be included8 time to retrieve
client information from a databaseJ time to update a
database time to complete a calculation time to chec4
the spelling of a document time to print a document.
5ince the research question involves more than one
2!or4station2 the tas4s should be measured !ith
varying numbers of people doing the tas4s =i.e. 1 <
and 1H>. The performance differences are represented
by the difference bet!een the time it ta4es the first
system to complete the tas4s and the time it ta4es the
second system to complete the tas4s.
)icrocomputers / . microcomputerA16 should be
defined as a personal computer containing a
microprocessor !ith a specific speed and hard dis4 of
specific si*e and speed. #t may include a monitor and
specific audio options. Cor e(ample it may be an #BM
compatible personal computer !ith a 1entium processor
running at EDD M"* and a 1</gigabyte hard dis4 !ith a
1H/msec access time. Fr it may be an .pple !ith a
1o!er16 processor running at <HH M"* and a1</
gigabyte hard dis4 having a 19/msec access time.
Local area net.ork =?.+> / . local area net!or4 is
defined as a set of microcomputers connected together
by cabling able to share data programs printers
scanners and etc. 5everal types of ?.+s are available
and the type of ?.+ !ill affect the performance.
Therefore ?.+s should be further operationally
defined to be to4en ring or :thernet and the speed at
!hich it runs should be defined =; or 1B MbAsec for
to4en ring 1HMbAsec for :thernet>.
)inicomputer / .ny of a number of midrange computer
systems li4e &igital0s R.L machine or #BMs .5;HH.
These systems operate only through terminals or
microcomputers that are attached directly or via a
modem. They have more comple( soft!are faster
processors and larger hard dis4 storage than
microcomputers. They support any!here from several
to more than one hundred terminals.
/erminals / #ncludes a 4eyboard and a screen that
connects to a computer. . terminal has no
2intelligence2 =processor> to do computing on its o!n
and depends on the computer to !hich it is lin4ed for
data storage as !ell.
<. .. Cor the testing of drugs !e need to studyAtest both
main effects and interaction effects. The effects of
the same dosages on different age groups are not
e(pected to be equal. To ta4e the more obvious
case infants require lo!er dosages than adults.
.nalogously the elderly may be more sensitive to
certain drugs. 5uch effects refer to the interaction
bet!een age and dosage. The factorial design
allo!s us to vary all factors simultaneously and test
for main and interaction effects. . completely
randomi*ed factorial design is suggested !ith each
of the dosage levels being randomly assigned to
each of the age groups. .lternatively the
randomi*ed bloc4 design serves the same purpose
and age may be used as the bloc4ing factor.
)hether the design improves the precision of the
e(perimental measurement depends on ho!
successfully the design reduces the !ithin bloc4
variance and ma(imi*es bet!een bloc4 variance.
B. #n drug testing control is made more stringent
through the use of double blinds. )hen participants
do not 4no! that they are receiving the
e(perimental treatment then they are 2blind.2 )hen
the e(perimenters also do not 4no! !hether they
are giving the treatment to the e(perimental or the
control group it is referred to as a double blind. The
issue of human mortality during e(periments is a
complicated one. .ttrition in an e(perimental group
is e(pected and this is normally handled through
random assignment of such cases. "o!ever in the
case of medical e(periments even the fe! deaths
have high 2real2 significance. The ageAdosage and
their interaction may in some cases ho!ever fe!
have main or interaction effects that are related to
death. Fne historical solution has been to attempt
to and in e(perimental replications collect enough
such observations to test the age@dosage main and
interaction effects in such cases alone4 ta4ing into
account other possible e(traneous factors impacting
these cases through techniques such as covariance
analysis.
B. =5ee 6hapter < on :thics>. #n the past there has often
been too little concern among researchers regarding this
problem. 6learly participants in e(periments have
rights that can be violated easily particularly in
research involving students !ho may not feel free to
refuse participation. The federal government has
promulgated regulations concerning the use of humans
as participants in research and many universities and
colleges have formed committees to monitor faculty
research pro,ects in this respect. 5tudent/run pro,ects
have generally not been monitored but there is no
compelling reason !hy they should not be regulated.
The discussion of this point should consider the degree
to !hich the follo!ing ten items are pertinent to the
e(perimental method8
.. #nvolving people in research !ithout their
4no!ledge or consent.
B. 6oercing people to participate.
6. )ithholding from the participant the true nature of
the research.
&. &eceiving the participant.
:. ?eading the participants to commit acts that
diminish their self/respect.
C. Riolating the right to self/determination8 research
on behavior control and character change.
K. :(posing the participant to physical or mental
stress.
". #nvading the privacy of the participant.
#. )ithholding benefits from participants in control
groups.
I. Cailing to treat participants fairly and to sho! them
consideration and respect. 1
D. The statement essentially says that the model of
e(perimental design is the most po!erful basis !e have
for determining causation. Therefore research efforts
should see4 to approach this ideal model as closely as
possible.
E. The ma,or characteristic of the true e(periment is the
achievement of equivalency bet!een e(perimental and
comparison groups through the use of random
assignment. #n this !ay !e can enhance internal
validity.
G. .. 6ompletely randomi*ed design
. S no incentive R . H
1
B S U1 #ncentive R B H
-
6 S U9 incentive R 6 H
9
B. Randomi*ed bloc4 design
.ssume that there are strong reasons to believe that
the e(periment should be bloc4ed on political
affiliation and that the three political classifications
are8
&emocrat#ndependent Republican
+o #ncentives R . . .
U1 R B B B
U9 R 6 6 6
6. ?atin square
.ssume that a second e(traneous factor age is
believed to have an important effect. )e divide all
participants into young middle age and old groups.
.ge &emocrat
#ndependentRepublican
Moung . 6 B
Middle B . 6
Fld 6 B .
&. Cactorial design
.ssume that !e !ish to test the effect of the se( of
the intervie!er at the same time !e test the
incentives. The factorial design might be8
+o incentive U1 U9
#ntervie!er =.> =B> =6>
Male =M> M. MB M6
Cemale =C> C. CB C6
)ith the information given it is not possible to
determine !hich design to use. #f there is no
apparent reason to use a more comple( design one
might use the completely randomi*ed design. #f
there is a useful basis on !hich to bloc4 this !ould
normally increase the precision of results as this
type of stratified sampling is typically more
statistically efficient than simple random sampling.
)ith a total sample of 9HH one might prefer a
design !ith only a fe! cells.

1H. .. 1robably the most appropriate design is a quasi/
e(periment called the nonequivalent control group.
Fne might assume that there are three different
factories =e.g. assembly plants> and each one !ill
use a different compensation method. )hile the
specific method assigned to each plant could be
done randomly this limited randomi*ation does not
give much equivalency assurance. The use of the
same compensation system !ithin each plant !ould
at least partially guard against the contamination
effect that might be found if one !ere to try three
e(perimental patterns !ithin the same plant.
B. This case calls for a factorial design since there are
t!o variables that are being tested simultaneously.
This pro,ect might call for setting up the e(periment
in several cities so as to achieve different levels of
advertising.
6. 5everal different designs might be suggested here.
5ome !ill suggest a time series quasi/e(periment
design in !hich various time periods !ill be control
periods =i.e. no music> !hile others !ill be
e(perimental periods. #n this case each time period
is a unit of observation.
.nother approach might be to use a randomi*ed
bloc4 design in !hich bloc4ing are done on time
periods !ith different traffic levels since this may
affect shopping speed. #ndividuals entering the
store during either control or e(perimental study
periods !ould be timed.
11. . good place to start this problem !ould be to
challenge the student to use their secondary data
4no!ledge and s4ills to find e(periments that have been
done !ith t!ins. . quic4 search reveals more than
;HHHH t!in research hits and appro(imately DHHH t!in
e(periments hits the most historically notorious done
by Menegele at .usch!it*. . sample of organi*ations
that do studies involving t!ins includes
+ational Frgani*ation of Mothers of T!ins
=!!!.nomotc.org>
5t. Thomas "ospital T!in Research 6enter =QO>
=!!!.t!in/research.ac.u4>
Qniversity of )isconsin/Madison T!in 6enter
=http8AApsych.!isc.eduAgoldsmithAnletters>
The T!ins Coundation
=!!!.t!insfoundation.com>
#nternational 5ociety for T!in 5tudies
M#T T!ins 5tudy
=http8AA!eb.mit.eduA,gangerA1ublicAourhome.html>
Mou can lin4 to the above and many more from this
portal for t!in information8
!!!.;t!ins.com
1-. #n +ose for 1roblem Fdors there are several treatments
and several measures. #n symbols the quasi/e(periment
might loo4 li4e this8
R L
1
L
-
F
1
F
-
!here L
1
S cleaning of armpit and application of
deodorant
!here L
-
S specified time in the hot room at
specific temperature
!here F
1
S !etness measures ta4en from the cotton
pad
!here F
-
S offensive odor measure ta4en by human
odor detective
or different formula could be applied to the different
armpits of specified participants
R
1
L
1
L
-
F
1
F
-
R
-
L
1
L
-
F
9
F
;
!here R
1
S is the participant0s right armpit
!here R
-
S is the participant0s left armpit
!here L
1
S cleaning of armpit and application of
deodorant formula 1 or -
!here L
-
S specified time in the hot room at
specific temperature
!here F
1
pad
!here F
-
odor detective
!here F
9
pad
!here F
;
odor detective
#n Ramping Qp 54ate 5ales the e(periment might
loo4 li4e this8
F
1
F
-
L
1
F
9
F
;
F
<
F
B
F
D
F
E
!here R
1
S is a group of stores matched on sales
!here R
-
S is a group of stores matched on sales
control group
!here L
1
S is O-5ports sales ambassador
!here F
1/E
S is a measure of monthly O-5ports sales
in the test and control stores
19. #n this question the student is as4ed for sub,ective
impressions of the e(perimental procedure. The
response should be a short essay from a participants
perspective. The chapter section 6onducting an
:(periment is a good starting point for a critique.
http8AA!!!.psych.upenn.eduAlin4s ta4es you to a list of
resources and help. 5elect !eb e(periments. This page
opens8 :(periments and surveys on the !eb. . good
choice is The 6enter for :(perimental Business
Research ="ong Oong>. This lin4 leads to several
choices from decision/ma4ing to the stoc4 mar4et.
Fnce choice the #nteractive 6yberlab for :(periments
has ongoing e(periments and posted results. .n active
e(periment at the time of publication is sho!n belo!.
;e& -.periment 6%%$
"*(#
" ChimpanBee an) 3 Een)ing Machines
5tarted on Fct. 1E -HH1
*ntro)!ction
This is an interesting problem on possibilities. This is
a basic e(periment to e(amine in !hich cases !e can
use easily =available> information to determine
possibilities.
Fo! can check here if +o! a'rea)+ ha:e
participate) or not. :ach person can participate only
once.
Consent Form
The study is being conducted by &r. Iiro #hara of
.#5T in Iapan and it has been approved by .#5T. +o
deception is involved and the study involves no more
than minimal ris4 to participants =i.e. the level of ris4
encountered in daily life>. 1articipation in the study
typically ta4es < / 1H minutes depending on
participants. .ll participants should ans!er one
problem.
1ersonal information !ill not be published.
1articipants should be a!are ho!ever that the
e(periment is not being run from a 2secure2 https
server of the 4ind typically used to handle credit card
transactions so there is a small possibility that
responses could be vie!ed by unauthori*ed third
parties =e.g. computer hac4ers>.
.ll data !ill be pooled and published in aggregate
form only. The results !ill be published on this site
!hen sufficient data are collected.
#f participants have further questions about this study
they may contact the principal investigator &r. Iiro
#hara at8 ,iro/ihara]aist.go.,p
#f you understand the statements above and freely
consent to participate in the study ////clic4 on the 2#
agree2 lin4 to begin the e(periment.
1. .. #oding rules govern the establishment of category
sets. The four rules are that category sets should be8
=1> appropriate to the research problem or purpose
=-> e(haustive =9> mutually e(clusive and =;>
derived from only one classificatory principle.
B. 1preadsheet data entry uses personal computer
soft!are for spreadsheet computation as a data
entry device. 1reliminary analysis data
manipulation summary statistics and graphics are
frequently available in this medium.
6. >ar codes are digitalAgraphical labels used for
trac4ing inventory movement and movement of a
product or service through a service process stage.
#t is a multi/part identifier comprised of alpha and
numeric characters that provides 4ey elements of
information including producer category and
productAservice specifics. .s a result it is one device
that has made data mining more effective. Bar
codes are most frequently used to trac4 the
responses to administrative questions in research
=!ho did the intervie! !here and !hen the
intervie! !as collected etc.>.
&. Precoded instruments anticipate responses to
questions and assign numerals or other symbols for
those responses in advance.
:. )easures of shape include s4e!ness and 4urtosis
!hich describe departures from symmetry and the
relative flatness =or pea4edness> of a distribution
respectively.
C. #ontent Analysis is a research technique for the
ob,ective systematic and quantitative description
of the manifest content of a communication. #ts
application in research can be as a primary
methodology or in the coding of open questions.
K. )issing values are data not provided by a
participant =or ob,ect during observation>. These
may be due to lac4 of 4no!ledge participation or
motivation. . researcher must decide ho! such data
!ill be coded during data preparation.
". ?ptical mark recognition is a means of data entry in
!hich a spreadsheet style interface is used to read
and process user/created forms. #t generates lo!er
cost faster and more accurate data by handling data
entry and preliminary data analysis.
#. )easures of spread is the description of a data0s
dispersion or variability. Measures of spread include
the variance standard deviation range interquartile
range and quartile deviation. They describe ho!
scores cluster or scatter in a distribution.
-. There are several !ays to handle &O ans!ers. #f
there are only a fe! they might be left as a separate
category and included in the findings. .nother
approach is to eliminate them. #n doing this !e are
assuming that they have no particular bearing on the
pattern of ans!ers !e are getting. #n cases !here
!e suspect that they may be a disguise for some
other ans!er !e may attempt to correlate the &O
ans!ers !ith these other ans!ers. 6omparing
ans!ers to other questions and chec4ing !ith the
intervie!er may at times also help interpret these
replies.
9. )hile the standard deviation and the variance are
measures of spread the standard deviation is more
easily interpreted =as it measures distance from the
mean of a data set in the original units of measure
rather than being a squared calculation as is the
variance> as !ell as measuring the variability of
individuals !ithin a data set.
;. This e(ercise is perfect for learning to code open
question. +ote8 #tems labeled a / n are not separate
questions but 1; representative responses to the
specified open question. The challenge for the
student is to categori*e the responses in some
meaningful !ay. .ssigned to teams for an in/class
e(ercise students !ill come up !ith several
different coding schemes to discuss. The
classification scheme belo! is ta4en from one in
!hich more than 9H replies !ere used. #n the
longer e(ercise the follo!ing classification system
!as the best that resulted from the efforts of the
student team involved.
Mention +ot
Mention
..Buying practices
1. ?ess advance buying XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
-. 6areful requirements planning XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
9. Buy closeouts etc. XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
;. Better or more careful buying XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
<. Buy for cash XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
B. 1roduct selection
1. ?ess style emphasis XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
-. Ce!er resourcesAlines XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
9. 6oncentrate on 4no!n brands XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
;. Reduce item duplication XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
<. 6oncentrate on in/stoc4 shoes XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
B. :liminate fringe items XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
6. 1rice reduction
1. 5mall early mar4do!ns XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
-. Mar4do!ns at season end XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
9. &o not mar4do!n staples XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
&.5ales effort intensification
1. 1Ms XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
-. 1ush slo! movers XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
9. 5ales XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
;. Better sales !or4 XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
:. #nventory control
1. 6areful chec4ing XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
-. Oeep stoc4 lo! XXXXXXX XXXXXXX
<. This question requires student/collected data. .ny
of the follo!ing units may be used to analy*e this
data8 syntactical referential propositional or
thematic. Fne might use syntactical units =!ord
counts> for specific mention of position activity
goal structure =immediate or deferred> or strategy.
. propositional approach =e.g. actor action action
ob,ect> might mention goal attainment through
family school colleagues mentoring or personal
environmental scanning.
B. The median is the number in the middle position
dividing the ordered dispersion into halves. =median
S =1<;Z1BH>A- S1<D>
D. )edian stays the same but the mean changes
drastically
1- 1-
19 19
-9 -9
9- 9-
;9 1;9
mean -;.B ;;.B
media
n
-9 -9
E. The Table belo! contains the spreadsheet =te(t :(hibit
1</G> computations8
(tatistics E$ E6 E3 E4
E5
$%%
Best
Rank
6%%$
-mp'o
+GH(
2o&
1ro5I
#rngG
hrJ+r
-ntG(a'
GProf
Re:en
!es
7Mi'9
+ Ralid 1< 1< 1< 19 1< 1;
Missin
g
H H H - H 1
Mean BH1;.H
H
E.-H B-.E< <G-HE.H
H
-BB9.-G
Medi
an
-H;D.H
H
D.HH <-.HH <1G<D.H
H
EE9.<H
Mode <BB 1; 9- ;<HHH 1;B
5td.
dev.
E<G9.;
-D
<.G<< ;-.1<
-
-;<DE.H
BB
<D<G.D1
9
54e!
ness
-.HHE .HEG 1.;G- 1.D1D 9.<HB
Ourto
sis
-.G<H /1.9DH 1.BH9 -.GE< 1-.BGB
Rang
e
-B9HB 1E 1;1 GH-H- --1;D
Mini
mum
<BB H -1 9;DGE 1;B
Ma(i
mum
-BED- 1E 1B- 1-<HHH ---G9
a Multiple modes e(ist. The smallest value is sho!n
a. R- has a similar mean and median providing
preliminary evidence that the distribution is not
e(ceptionally s4e!ed.
b. By using the rule of thumb that the ratio of the range
to the standard deviation should be bet!een - and B to
support a contention of homogeneous data !e find the
follo!ing ratios8 R1S9 R-S9 R9S9.; R;S9.D
R<S9.E Qsing this technique it is difficult to ma4e
inferences about proportionately larger standard
deviations.
c. 5hape is best determined by e(amining the inde( and
producing a visual. 5elect the histogram feature =in
5155 &escriptive 5tatistics procedure Crequencies>
and superimpose the normal curve. R- and R9 have
the least s4e!nessJ R< has the largest 4urtosis.
1. .. Marginals are the ro! and column totals that appear
at the bottom and right $margins% of a data table.
They sho! the counts and percentages of the
separate ro!s and columns.
B. . 1areto &iagram is a bar chart !hose percentages
sum to 1HH percent. The variables represented by
the bars are sorted in decreasing importance =bar
height> !ith bar height descending from left to
right.
6. 5tandard scores =N scores> may be calculated to
improve compatibility among variables that come
from different scales and require comparison. 8
scores convey distance in standard deviation units
!ith a mean of H and a standard deviation of 1.
&. . control chart displays sequential measurements of
a process together !ith a center line and control
limits. ?imit lines provide guides for evaluating
performance. 6ommonly used in as a graphical
display in process analysis.
:. 0onresistant statistics =e.g. the mean and standard
deviation> are influenced by outlying values in a
distribution and may change significantly in
response to a small change in the data set.
C ?o!er control limit on a process control chart the
lo!est acceptable value of data. &ata that is belo!
the lo!er control limit is evidence that the process
is out of control or special causes are adversely
affecting it.
K. /he five2num"er summary consists of the median
upper and lo!er quartiles and largest and smallest
observations in a distribution.
". 'eographical &nformation 1ystems are systems of
hard!are soft!are and procedures that capture
store manipulate integrate and display spatially/
referenced data. K#5 stac4s different datasets on top
of each other so that the data points from variables
of interest align on a common geographical referent
allo!ing the user to drill do!n and visuali*e the
relationships.
#. 1pread2and2level plots e(amine the relationship of
the average value =level> of a variable and its
variability =spread> using the log of the median and
the log of the interquartile range. Crom the slope a
po!er transformation can be estimated that !ill
eliminate or lessen the relationship.
;. There are several !ays to handle &O ans!ers. #f
there are only a fe! they might be left as a separate
category and included in the findings. .nother
approach is to eliminate them. #n doing this !e are
assuming that they have no particular bearing on the
pattern of ans!ers !e are getting. #n cases !here
!e suspect that they may be a disguise for some
other ans!er !e may attempt to correlate the &O
ans!ers !ith these other ans!ers. 6omparing
ans!ers to other questions and chec4ing !ith the
intervie!er may at times also help interpret these
replies.
9. .. "istograms are less helpful for error detection than
frequency tables stem/and/leaf displays or
bo(plots. . histogram of family si*e that had an
une(pected code such as a midpoint at -H might
reveal a coding error or alert the analyst to a
potential outlier.
B. 5tem/and/leaf displays present data values in
condensed form facilitating inspection of
questionable observations. These in turn may be
lin4ed bac4 to the data file and to the participant
that produced them.
6. Bo(plots through !his4ers and outlier identification
call attention to values that e(tend beyond the main
body of the data. 5ince e(treme values have a
substantial influence on numerical summaries
errors in this area are often detected early.
&. The presence or absence of une(pected categories
or frequency counts in crosstabulated cells alerts the
analyst to a potential coding problem.
;. .. The main body of the data is bet!een the upper and
lo!er hinges labeled 2"2 in 1B/1 belo!. This area
represents <HP of the observed values.
-.hi&it $6 K $ 5tem and ?eaf &isplay for +et 1rofit RariableY
B. The upper and lo!er 2inner fences2 are plus or minus
1.< #'Rs from the hinges. The #'R is 1;HB.9B. 5ince the
lo!er hinge is EHD.B and the minimum value in the
distribution is -<1 there are no lo!er outside values.
The upper 2inner fence2 !ould be 919H.1B =1D-9.EH
Z 1;HB.9B> and the last observed value inside that
fence is -GD<. Thus four values are outside8 9D<E
9E-< 9G9G and ;--;.9 . =5ee :(hibit 1B/1.>
<. .. The five/number summary is sho!n at the top of
:(hibit 1B/-.
B. 5ee the bo(plot in :(hibit 1B/-.
=+ote8 )ith reference to the ans!er to
question Be the outliers and e(treme cases are
identified above>
6. The upper 2inner fence2 1.< #'Rs from the end of
the rectangular bo( is ;BE-H. 5even observed
values lie beyond this point each of !hich is
designated by a case number in the e(hibit
presented here =:(hibit 1B/-> and has a
corresponding participant number in the &ata Table
for this problem. This distribution is positively
s4e!ed and some!hat pea4ed. :(treme values are
primarily from the follo!ing sectors8 &urable /
6apital :quipment :nergy and "i / Tech.
&. Transforming the Rariable into N scores8 #n the
tables belo! the column 25.?:52 is the data as
given in the te(t. The column N5.?:5 gives the
corresponding N score. The column 5.?:51 is the
same sales data no! given in HHH0sJ N5.?:51 is
the corresponding N score. 5tudents should note
that the change in units ma4es corresponding
changes in the descriptive statistics. "o!ever the N
score transformations stay the same. N scores
convey distance in standard deviation units !ith a
mean H and standard deviation of 1.
N S =L
i
/ Mean of all L
i
>A s =standard deviation>
6.5: 5.?:5 N5.?:5 5.?:51N5.?:51
1 EGBB.H /H.BGBD E.GBBH /H.BGBD
- 1-BG9-.H ;.--9E 1-B.G9 ;.--9E
9 <;<D;.H 1.-H<D <;.<D; 1.-H<D
; EBB<B.H -.<;9G EB.B<B -.<;9G
< B-D1H.H 1.<;<H B-.D1H 1.<;<H
B GB1;B.H -.G9GD GB.1;B -.G9GD
D 9GH11.H H.<<B< 9G.H11 H.<<B<
E 9B11-.H H.;9<B 9B.11- H.;9<B
G <H--H.H 1.H-;1 <H.--H 1.H-;1
1H -<HGG.H /H.H-9E -<.HGG /H.H-9E
11 <9DG;.H 1.1D91 <9.DG; 1.1D91
1- -<H;D.H /H.H-<G -<.H;D /H.H-<G
19 -9GBB.H /H.HD1H -9.GBB /H.HD1H
1; 1D;-;.H /H.9;9G 1D.;-; /H.9;9G
1< 19GGB.H /H.;EBG 19.GGB /H.;EBG
1B 9-;1B.H H.-E1; 9-.;1B H.-E1;
1D 1;1<H.H /H.;EH< ;.1<H /H.;EH<
1E 1DBHH.H /H.99BB 1D.BHH /H.99BB
1G 1<9<1.H /H.;9H; 1<.9<1 /H.;9H;
-H --BH<.H /H.1-DE --.BH< /H.1-DE
-1 9DGDH.H H.<191 9D.GDH H.<191
-- 11<<D.H /H.<EEB 11.<<D /H.<EEB
-9 11;;G.H /H.<G91 11.;;G /H.<G91
-; -HH<;.H /H.-9;- -H.H<; /H.-9;-
-< 19-11.H /H. <1GB 19.-11 /H.<1GB
-B 1D<99.H /H.99G; 1D.<99 /H.99G;
-D 11119.H /H.BHD1 11.119 /H.BHD1
-E 1GBD1.H /H.-<H- 1G.BD1 /H.-<H-
-G 119EG.H /H.<G<B 11.9EG /H.<G<B
9H 1<-;-.H /H.;9;G 1<.-;- /H.;9;G
91 1H-11.H /H.B;;E 1H.-11 /H.B;;E
9- G<G9.H /H.BDHB G.<G9H /H.BDHB
99 GBG1.H /H.BBB< G.BG1H /H.BBB<
9; 1-E;;.H /H.<9;G 1-.E;; /H.<9;G
9< 1E9GE.H /H.9H99 1E.9GE /H.9H99
9B -H-DB.H /H.--;G -H.-DB /H.--;G
9D ED9H.H /H.DHB< E.D9HH /H.DHB<
9E 1DB9<.H /H.99<1 1D.B9< /H.99<1
9G E<EE.H /H.D1-< E.<EEH /H.D1-<
;H -<G--.H H.H1HB -<.G-- H.H1HB
;1 1B1H9.H /H.9GGH 1B.1H9 /H.9GGH
;- 1;HE9.H /H.;E99 1;.HE9 /H.;E99
;9 11GGH.H /H.<DHB 11.GGH /H.<DHB
;; -G;;9.H H.1<D; -G.;;9 H.1<D;
;< 1G<9-.H /H.-<BH 1G.<9- /H.-<BH
;B 1HH1E.H /H.B<-E 1H.H1E /H.B<-E
;D 1-G9D.H /H.<911 1-.G9D /H.<911
;E 1<B<;.H /H.;1DD 1<.B<; /H.;1DD
;G D;G-.H /H.D<E- D.;G-H /H.D<E-
<H 1-9;<.H /H.<<<E 1-.9;< /H.<<<E
&:56R#1T#R: 5QMM.RM 5T.T#5T#65
5.?:5 5.?:51
N5.?:5 N5.?:51
+ <H <H <H <H
M:.+ -.<BD:ZH; -<.BBG /<.9-G:/1D /
1.19-:/1B
5& -.9GD:ZH; -9.GD; 1.HHHH
1.HHHH
M#+#MQM D;G-.H D.;G-H /H.D<E-
/H.D<E-
M:&#.+ 1.D;E:ZH; 1D.;DG /H.9;1B /
H.9;1B
M.L#MQM 1.-BG:ZH< 1-B.G9
;.--9E ;.--9E
B. .. The histograms for this problem are sho!n as
:(hibit 1B/9 =<HHH unit > 1B/; =-HHH unit>. There
is considerably less information in the 1HHH and
-HHH interval histogram than in the <HHH unit
version. :(treme values and outliers are apparent in
all e(amples but the -HHH and <HHH display them
best. The <HHH unit chart provides a clear picture of
gaps in the main body of the distribution but not
sufficiently more so to ,ustify its si*e.
B. The 1HHH or -HHH unit version !ould be the most
desirable for a management report based on the
tradeoffs of si*e clarity and completeness of
information.
6. 5everal factors ma4e this distribution one !here
transformation is considered. #t is stretched to the
right by outliers and its pea4edness in the vicinity of
the mean and median is more pronounced than
e(pected under the normal distribution =see overlay
of normal in 1B/9>. &ispersion statistics have also
been affected by e(treme scores.
&. :(hibit 1B/< sho!s a spread/and/level plot for this
data. .t the bottom is a recommended
transformation of .;;<. Rounding up our first
transformation attempt !ould use the square root.
D. The standard rule in determining !hich direction to
compute percentage totals in a cross tabulation is to
compute them in the direction of the causal factor
follo!ing this rule8 =a> the age variable !ould total
1HHP =b> family income !ould total 1HHP =c> marital
status !ould total 1HHP and =d> unemployment !ould
total 1HHP. "o!ever some may point out that there are
circumstances !here it !ould be useful to run the
percentages in the other direction. 6onsider for
e(ample the relationship bet!een age and consumption
of brea4fast food a property/behavior relationship.
Fne !ould not suggest that cereal changes cause age
changes but a cereal manufacturer might still find it to
be very informative to have an age profile of the users
of each of its cereal products. #n li4e manner !e might
be very interested in an economic survey to 4no! the
family income patterns of the optimists and pessimists
regarding their family futures.
E. .t first glance it !ould appear that students on aid have
a higher tendency to drop out of school than do students
on no aid. The remainder of the data in !hich aid
grants are cross/tabulated !ith drop out by nearness of
the student0s home to school indicates that the original
aidAdrop out relationship is reversed. That is !hen
ad,usted for nearness of home to school the students
receiving aid tend to be retained in school better than
the non/aid students. This occurs because a much
higher percentage of the 2home far2 students are on aid
than is the case !ith the 2home near2 students. The
table sho!n !ould have resulted if the absolute
numbers involved !ere as follo!s8
"ome +ear "ome Car
.id +o
.id
.id +o
.id
&rop
Fut
< BH 1-H ;H
5tay G< 9;H -EH BH
Total 1HH ;HH ;HH 1HH
G. .. .ppeal . is superior.
B. )or4ing class members respond better than do
middle class.
6. Fne !ould conclude that both social class and
appeal type are important variables but that
!or4ing class is stronger perhaps by <HP or so.
This can be sho!n by comparing the )6AB to
M6A. cell response rates.
Percent Rep'ies
.ppea
l
Middle
6lass
)or4ing
6lass
. -H ;H
B 1< 9H

)hy use these cells rather than the M6AB vs.
)6A.7 To compare the ,oint effects !e compare
mi(ed pairs of categories =mi(ed in the sense that
each pair contains one better and one !orse
category>. 5ince !or4ing class is the better and
appeal B is the !orst the intersection of these t!o
factors is compared to the other !orse/better cell
=M6A.>.
1H. 1art . indicates that salaried employees have a
generally lo!er turnover than !age earners. There
is also evidence that persons from rural origins have
fe!er turnovers than persons from urban
bac4grounds =but only in salaried positions>. )hen
education level is included !e see that is a very
important factor in the relationship.
"nn!a' -mp'o+ee #!rno:er per $%% emp'o+ees
5.?.R#:& ).K:
"igh
:d
?o!
:d
"/? "igh
:d
?o!
:d
"/?
Rural B 1E /1- 1; 1E /1;
Qrban 1H 1G /G 1- -H /E
Rural/
Qrban
/; /1 - /-
#t seems to be several times stronger than the
ruralAurban origin. #n fact along !age earners the
ruralAurban difference becomes confused and is
probably immaterial. )hen ruralAurban origin is
2held constant2 it appears that education is perhaps
t!ice as important as ,ob type and even more so
among those of urban origin.
"nn!a' -mp'o+ee #!rno:er per $%% emp'o+ees
RQR.? QRB.+
"igh ?o! "/? "igh ?o! "/?
:d :d :d :d
5.?.R
M
B 1E /1- 1H 1G /G
).K: 1; 1E /G 1- -H E
5/) /E H /- /1
11. This question gives students e(perience !ith creating
and interpreting control charts. The data are the same as
in :(hibit 1B/1;. +ote that the left column of this
e(hibit identifies statistical sub/samples =or subgroups>.
The data sho!n belo! are entered in/line and the R1
variable is the subgroup identifier. &efine the process
measure as R-. The results obtained using 5155 are
straightfor!ard//the same as te(t :(hibit 1B/1<. The
e(planation is that there are no assignable causes.
"o!ever the fifth and seventh subgroup sho! s!ings
in average horsepo!er output belo! and above
average respectively. .s4 the students to speculate on
causes. #s the manufacturer using a Iust/in/Time
inventory process7 &oes a change in parts suppliers
signal a difference7 #f a portion of the assembly is hand
produced are !or4ers coming closer to optimal
specifications =blueprinting> on some shifts7
1rocedure8 Qsing 5155 select the Kraphs menu select
6ontrol and define the chart type as L/bar and R.
&ata8
R1 R-
1.HH 1H.--
1.HH 1H.91
1.HH G.DG
-.HH 1H.-<
-.HH 1H.99
-.HH 1H.1-
9.HH 1H.9D
9.HH G.G-
9.HH 1H.EH
;.HH 1H.;B
;.HH G.G;
;.HH 1H.-B
<.HH 1H.HB
<.HH G.9G
<.HH 1H.91
B.HH 1H.<G
B.HH 1H.1<
B.HH 1H.-9
D.HH 1H.E-
D.HH 1H.E<
D.HH 1H.-H
E.HH 1H.<-
E.HH 1H.1;
E.HH 1H.HD
G.HH 1H.19
G.HH 1H.BG
G.HH 1H.1<
1H.HH G.EE
1H.HH 1H.9-
1H.HH 1H.91
1. .. Both parametric or nonparametric tests assume
random probability
sampling. Recall also that significance testing is
concerned only !ith possible sampling errors and
tells us nothing about the many other types of error
that might e(ist. Parametric tests assume that the
measurement is at least interval in nature !hile
nonparametric testing assumes only nominal or
ordinal scales depending on the test. Many
parametric tests also assume8
1. #ndependent observations.
-. Fbservations from a normally distributed
population.
9. 1opulations that have equal variances.
+onparametric tests typically have fe!er and less
restrictive assumptions than parametric tests. The
particular assumptions vary from test to test but
nonparametric tests are often referred to as
02distribution/free tests.2 )hile this is an
e(aggeration they usually do have fe! distribution
requirements.
B. )hen testing a null hypothesis !e have t!o
choices8 !e can re,ect the null hypothesis or !e can
fail to re,ect it =loosely !e refer to this as accepting
the null4 but this is not technically correct>. )e also
find that t!o circumstances may e(ist / either the
null hypothesis is true or it is false. This
combination of states of nature =i.e.. null hypothesis
is true or false> and decisions =i.e. re,ect or not
re,ect the null> gives us four conditional outcomes
t!o of !hich are correct and t!o of !hich are not.
They may be displayed as follo!s8
=!'' h+pothesis is
#r!e Fa'se
"ccept the
n!''
h+pothesis
6orrect
&ecision
*ncorrect
Decision
#+pe **
error
1robability
pS1/alpha
1robability
pSbeta
Re@ect n!''
h+pothesis
*ncorrect
)ecision
#+pe * error
6orrect
&ecision
pSalpha po!er of
test
pS1/beta
/ype & error is measured by alpha !hich !e set in
our hypothesis testing. #t is the probability =or
significance> level at !hich !e !ill ris4 re,ecting
the null hypothesis. )e define it by choosing some
critical value beyond !hich the occurrence of a
sample value leads us to conclude that the null
hypothesis is false. Kiven such a critical value !e
then compute the probability that !e !ill
incorrectly fail to re,ect the null hypothesis !hen it
is false. This is /ype && error or beta error. #t is not
difficult to compute this arithmetically but it is
sometimes difficult to e(plain conceptually. The
beta error depends upon !hat assumptions !e ma4e
as to ho! far the population parameter may have
changed. Cor e(ample if mu !as originally <H and
changes to <- !e get a different beta than if mu
changes only to <1.
6. The null is a hypothesis of no change or no
difference. More specifically !e conclude that a
population value has not changed from one time to
another or that a sample statistic does not vary
significantly from an assumed population
parameter. #n other cases !e use the null hypothesis
to state that one sample distribution does not differ
from another =i.e. that they both are from the same
population>. The alternative hypothesis holds that
there is a difference bet!een sample statistics or
bet!een a sample statistic and population
parameter.
&. The acceptance region delineates the area in a
distribution !here the occurrence of a sample
statistic value leads us to fail to re,ect the null
hypothesis. The re$ection region is that portion of
the distribution !here !e have agreed to re,ect the
null hypothesis. The 2critical value2 divides these
t!o areas.
:. . t.o2tailed test is a significance test in !hich the
alternative hypothesis specifies no direction of
difference from the population parameter value such
as m. :qual re,ection regions are in both tails of the
distribution. #n a one2tailed test !e specify a 2less
than2 or 2greater/than2 direction to the alternative
hypothesis placing all of a re,ection region in one
tail or differing amounts of re,ection region in each
tail.
C. The probability that !e !ill incorrectly fail to re,ect
the null hypothesis !hen it is false is a /ype && error
or beta error. The po.er of the test is calculated as
1/ beta and is the probability !ith !hich !e !ill
correctly re,ect the false null hypothesis =see
:(hibit 1D/9>.
-. There are si( relatively !ell/defined steps8 =1> 5tate
the null hypothesisJ =-> 6hoose the statistical testJ
=9> 5elect the desired level of significanceJ =;>
6ompute the calculated difference valueJ =<> Fbtain
the critical test valueJ and =B> Ma4e the decision to
accept or re,ect the null.
9. The Mean 5quare
bet!een
is the result of the bet!een/
groups sum of squares divided by the bet!een/
groups degrees of freedom =number of groups
minus one>. This calculation represents the effect of
the treatment condition. The Mean 5quare
!ithin
calculated by dividing the !ithin/groups sum of

squares by the !ithin/groups degrees of freedom
=total observations minus number of groups>
represents the error due to sampling and random
fluctuations. )hen M5
b
is divided by M5
!
the !
ratio results. #f the null hypothesis is accepted the
ratio reflects the fact that there is relatively little
difference bet!een the presumed treatment
=numerator> and error variance =denominator>.
;. The required assumptions for .+FR. are8 =1>
independent random samples from each of the
represented populations =-> normal distribution of
the represented populations and =9> equal variances
of said populations. .ssumptions - and 9 are
chec4ed !ith diagnostic procedures. Measures of
location shape and spread !ere discussed in
6hapter 1< // along !ith graphic techniques for
e(amining distributions for normality. #n addition
:(hibit 1D/B provides an e(ample of normal
probability plotting and detrended probability
plotting for e(amining normality. )ith respect to
equal variance there is a number of homogeneity of
variance tests // many of !hich are dependent on
the normality of the sample. Cor this reason !e have
referred to the ?evene test in both 6hapters 1B and
1D. #t is less dependent on the assumption of
normality and !hen using the 5155 1rocedure
:L.M#+: is nested !ithin a spread/and/level plot
!hich also serves to determine !hether the data
should be transformed.
<. The tradeoffs bet!een Type # and Type ## errors
have a practical dimension as defined by the costs
incurred for each error. Fften a change in the status
quo is associated !ith great cost =e.g. gambling the
future of a firm on a ne! technology an acquisition
a si*able investment in equipment etc.>. 5ince the
change must be beneficial the ris4s associated !ith
alpha should be 4ept very lo!. "o!ever if it is
essential to detect changes from a hypothesi*ed
mean the ris4 of a beta error !ould be paramount.
Thus !e !ould choose a higher less critical level
for alpha.
.. )e can reduce the probability of a Type # error by
moving our critical values farther from the e(pected
mean i.e. e(pand our region of acceptance and
reduce our area of re,ection. . second !ay is to
hold the same critical value but increase the si*e of
sample. . third !ay is to shift from a statistically
inefficient sample design to one more efficient
4eeping the same sample si*e.
Type ## error can be reduced given an assumed
population mean by increasing the si*e of sample.
. second !ay is to increase our alpha ris4 by
moving our critical value closer to the original
mean. . third !ay to reduce Type ## error is to use
a one tailed distribution. That is place the entire
region of re,ection in the tail of the distribution in
the direction of concern.
B. 5tatistical significance is concerned !ith !hether
there is truly a difference or not. 1ractical
significance concerns !hether the difference even
if it e(ists is of any useful value for decision
ma4ing.
6. Mes. This is obviously the case since a census of
both groups !as ta4en. )hether the difference has
any real meaning or practical value is another
question.
B. .. The appropriate test in this case is the 6hi/5quare
test !hich is particularly useful for situations
involving nominal data but can also be used for
higher scales. The test is used e(tensively in cases
!here persons events or ob,ects are grouped into
t!o or more nominal categories such as yes/no or
as in this case accepted/re,ected. The question is
similar in principle to the e(ample in the te(tboo4
=6hapter 1D section on the 6hi/square test>
regarding -HH students and their intentions to ,oin a
club.
B. #n this case !e have -B observations regarding
gas4et thic4ness. . 9mm thic4ness is specified as
the production specification quality control
parameter !hich means that the sample mean must
not be significantly different from 9mm. The
te(tboo4 =6hapter 1D section on parametric tests>
states that the N and t tests are used to determine the
statistical significance bet!een a sample
distribution mean and a parameter. The 2parameter2
here ta4es the value 9mm since an 2ideal2
acceptable population of gas4ets !ould have a
mean thic4ness of 9mm. .s the sample is 2small2
the t test is chosen rather than the N test !hich is
appropriate for large samples. .s both deviations
above and belo! 9mm mean a deviation from the
production specification a t!o tailed testing
procedure is applicable.
6. The required test !ill be a test for 2t.o independent
samples2J the N test and the t test are generally used.
The N test is used !ith large samples =above 9H
observations> and the t test !ith small samples.
.lternatively the N test can be used !ith smaller
samples !hen the data are normally distributed and
population variances are 4no!n. #n this case !ith a
sample of ;< automobiles from each facility the N
test can be used. "ere !e only see4 to e(amine
!hether the 2gas mileage is the same2 for products
of the t!o facilities. "ence a t!o/tailed test is
appropriate. #f on the other had if !e sought to
e(amine !hether 2automobiles from facility .
produced automobiles that gave a higher gas
mileage than those manufactured at facility B2 then
a one/tailed test !ould be appropriate.
&. The data are in three categories of managers and
three categories of motivation. Cor data that is
2categorical2 or 2classificatory2 the 6hi/square test
is appropriate. Curther reference may be made to the
ans!er to question 9. in this guide and the sections
on Fne/5ample Tests and the 6hi/5quare test in the
te(tboo4. #t is useful to note that the binomial
nonparametric test is not usable since it is
applicable only !hen the population is vie!ed as
t!o classes for e.g. male and female.
:. The t.o2related samples t test is used here as !e
are measuring the sales performance of the same
trainees before and after a training program. This
implies that the data are not independent. Curther
!e are assuming that the measure of sales
performance is 2ratio2 =in fact sales either value or
quantity is often ta4en as measure of sales
performance.> .s !e are see4ing to e(amine
!hether the 2training improves performance2 rather
than !hether there is 2a difference before and after
training2 a one/tailed test is appropriate.
C. "ere the dependent variable is sales measured in
dollars or as units sold =ratio scale> and the
independent variables are product quality and
advertising. #f the data on product quality and
advertising are 2classificatory2 =e.g. high medium
and lo! grades of a productJ advertising budgets
from H/<mill </1< mill and 1< mill dollars and
above> the technique of choice !ould be .+FR..
C tests !ould test the significance of the
independent variables. )e !ould be testing the
Main effects8 'uality and .dvertising as !ell as
the #nteraction effect8 'uality ( .dvertising.
The instructor may !ant to suggest that !ere the
independent variables obtained as 2continuous2
ratio or interval scaled variables for e.g. through
the use of D/or 11/point point semantic differential
scales then the technique of regression could be
used !hich is detailed in 6hapter 1E.
D. =1> The null hypothesis is that there is no difference
bet!een the long run average of 9.H and the current
year0s average of 9.- other than !hat is e(pected by
sampling variations. #t !ould seem appropriate
here to use a one tailed test since !e are concerned
only !ith !hether the sampling variation could
have gone as high as 9.-.
=-> The proper test is the parametric test involving
one/sample results being compared to a population
value. Qse the t test.
=9> The desired level of significance is set at a S .
H<
=;> 6alculated value8

t =
X -
X
=
3.2 - 3.0
.4 / 25
=
.20
.08
= 2.5
=<> :nter Table C / - !ith -; degrees of freedom.
)e find a critical value =one tailed test> of 1.D11 for
alpha S .H<.
=B> 5ince the calculated value -.<H _ critical value
=1.D11> the null hypothesis is re,ected.
The question also as4s8 2.t !hat alpha level !ould
it be significant700 6hec4ing te(t :(hibit K/- again
!e find that the critical value of -.;G- is found for
an alpha of .H1.
E. =1> The null hypothesis !ould be that there is no
difference bet!een the degree of conservatism of
professors and students and that the differences
found are due to sampling variations only.
=-> This is a case of t!o independent samples
involving proportions. The appropriate test is
parametric. Qsing the t test.
=9> The desired level of significance is again set at a
S .H<
t =
p
1
- p
2
p1 - p2
=
.5 - .3
.25
20
+
.21
20
=
.200
.152
= 1.32
<> 6ritical value from Table C/- !ith 9E d.f. is 1.BG
for one/tailed test and -.H9 for t!o/tailed test.
=B> 6alculated values of 1.9- ` either critical value
so null hypotheses is not re,ected. That is the
differences found bet!een professors and students
could be due to sampling errors only.
G. =1> +ull hypothesis. "
H
8 There is no difference
bet!een average annual starting salaries of the
graduates at the t!o universities. "
.
8 Kraduates of
:astern Qniversity received higher starting
salaries than graduates of )estern Qniversity.
=-> 5tatistical test. The t test is chosen because the
data are at least interval in form and the samples are
independent in a t!o/ test situation.
=9> 5ignificance level. alpha S .H< =one/tailed testJ
the alternate hypothesis states direction>
t =
(18800 - 18000) - 0
36 (1000)
2
+ 40 (1000)
2
(36 + 40) - 2

(
1
36
+
1
40
)
=
800
232.8179
= 3.436
=<> 6ritical test value S 1.BB. d.f. S D; one/tailed
test alpha S .H< .
=B> &ecision. 5ince the calculated value is larger
than the critical value =9.;; _ 1.BB> re,ect the null
hypothesis and conclude that graduates of :astern
Qniversity secured higher average annual starting
salaries.
B. Random samples from normal populations !ith the
same variance.
1H.
+umber Crequencies8 F
i
=:
i
>
#ntervie!ed 1ercent
Cavorable +eutral
Qnfavorable
=-> ( -DH =->(--H
=->(91H
Creshmen --H .-D< 1HH=D;.-<>
<H=BH.<> DH=E<.-<>
5ophomores -1H .-B-< EH=DH.EE>
BH=<D.D<>DH=E1.9E>
Iuniors 1EH .--< <H=BH.D<>
<H=;G.<> EH=BG.D<>
5eniors 1GH .-9D< ;H=B;.1->
BH=<-.-<>GH=D9.B->
EHH 1.HHH -DH --H
91H
H
i
S observed :
i
S e(pected
=1> +ull hypothesis. "
H
8 F
i
S :
i
. That is the
attitudes to!ard corporations in the population are
independent of college class. "
.
8 F
i
a :
i
. That is
the attitudes to!ard corporations in the population
do vary by class.
=-> 5tatistical test. 6hoose the k sample chi/square
test to compare the observed distribution to a
hypothesi*ed distribution. The chi/square test is
used because the responses are classified into
nominal categories and there are sufficient
observations in each cell.
=9> 5ignificance level. ?et alpha S .H<.
2
=
O
i
-E
i
2
E
i
i=1
k
2
=
25.75
2
74.25
+
9.12
2
70.88
+
-10.75
2
60.75
+
-24.12
2
64.12
+ . . . +
16.38
2
73.62

2
= 33.6

=<> 6ritical test value S 1-.<G. alpha S .H< d.f. S B
=B> &ecision. The calculated value is greater than
the critical value so re,ect the null hypothesis and
conclude that there is a significant difference among
the classes as to attitude to!ard corporations.
11. =1> +ull hypothesis. "
H
8 There is no difference in
readership rates bet!een business school and liberal
arts students. "
.
8 Readership rates differ bet!een
business and liberal arts students.
=-> 5tatistical test. Qse the t test of t!o independent
samples.
=9> 5ignificance level. alpha S .H< t!o/ tailed test
=alternative hypothesis is not directional>.

t =
(5.6 - 4.5) - 0
100 (2.0)
2
+ 100 (1.5)
2
(100 +100) - 2

(
1
100
+
1
100
)
=
1.1
.251
= 4.378
=<> 6ritical value S 1.GB. alpha S .H< t!o/ tailed
test d.f. S 1GE. 6onsult Table K/ -.
=B> 6alculated value of ;.; _ critical value =1.GB>.
Re,ect the null hypothesis.
1-. =1> +ull hypothesis. "
H
8 There are no durability
differences among the three products. "
.
8 There
are durability differences among the three products.
=-> 5tatistical test. )e use the ! test !ith one/!ay
analysis of variance because the data are ratio
scales. There are k independent samples and !e
accept the assumptions underlying this parameter
test.
=9> 5ignificance level. alpha S .H<.
=;> 6alculated value8 5ee :(hibit 1D/1.
=<> 6ritical test value for ! S 9.EG alpha S .H<
d.f. S =-1->
=B> &ecision. 5ince the calculated value is greater
than the critical value =<.;G _ 9.EG> !e re,ect the
null hypothesis.
#n the continuation of this e(hibit a post hoc
comparison =multiple comparison test> of the three
paints using the 5cheffe procedure sho!s that the
significant differences are bet!een Fne/Ooat and
6ompetitor B =groups 1 and 9>.
19. =1> +ull hypothesis. "
H
8 There are no
differences among the three sales strategies =as
represented by store types>.
=-> 5tatistical test. )e use the ! test !ith one/!ay
analysis of variance because the data are ratio
scales. There are k independent samples and !e
accept the assumptions underlying this parameter
test.
=9> 5ignificance level. alpha S .H<.
=;> 6alculated value8 5ee :(hibit 1D/-.
=<> 6ritical test value for ! S 9.EG alphaS .H<
d.f. S = - 1- >
=B> &ecision. 5ince the calculated value is greater
than the critical value =<.;9 _ 9.EG> !e re,ect the
null hypothesis. . post hoc comparison of the three
store types using the 5cheffe procedure sho!s that
the significant differences are bet!een the
electronics store and the department store =groups 1
and ->.
1;. . test for related samples should be used since the
data are collected on the same firms and are paired
for the one/year interval.
H
8 There is no difference
bet!een the profits in of the utility companies. "
.
8
The profits are higher in the second year.

=-> 5tatistical test. The related samples t test is
chosen because the data are ratio and the samples
are dependent.
=9> 5ignificance level. alpha S .H<
=;> 6alculated value8 5ee :(hibit 1D/9.
=<> 6ritical test value S 1.E1. d.f. S1H one/tailed
test. alpha S .H< .
=B> &ecision. 5ince the calculated value is smaller
than the critical value
=1.<9 ` 1.E1 !e fail to re,ect the null hypothesis and
conclude that there are no differences bet!een
profits of the t!o years.
1<. . 5tudents might use the Cortune categories
from the article8 1 S soft!areAservices - S
entertainmentAsports 9 S
hard!areAsemiconductors ; S
communications equipment < S
biotechnology B S food D S venture capital.
Ra
nk
+ame
Compan+
1ro
+et
)o
rth
7< in
mi''ions
9
- 1ierre
Fmidyar
eBay 1 ;9GH
9 Ieff 54oll eBay 1 -B9H
< Ieff Be*os .ma*on.6om #nc. 1 1-9H
B Rinny 5mith 'uest 5oft!are 1 DEH
D &avid Cilo Mahoo 1 D9H
E Ierry Mang Mahoo 1 D-1
G Rob Klaser Real+et!or4s 1 B9<
11 Kreg Reyes Brocade
6ommunications
5ystems
1 <1E
1- Ien/"sun
"uang
+vidia 1 <HD
1; Ioe
?iemandt
Trilogy 5oft!are 1 9GH
1E 5an,ay
Oumar
6omputer .ssociates
#nternational #nc.
1 -DH
-1 Iames T.
&emetriades
5eeBeyond
Technology
1 -9G
-9 Ierry
Kreenberg
5apient 1 --<
-; I. 5tuart
Moore
5apient 1 --;
-D &avid "it* +et!or4 .ppliance 1 -H-
-E Iohn ?.
MacCarlane
Fpen!ave 5ystems
#nc.
1 1GE
9H Raul
Cernande*
&imension &ata
+orth .merica
1 1EE
9- 6hris Olaus #nternet 5ecurity
5ystems
1 1ED
9< Michael
5aylor
Microstrategy 1 1EH
9E Marc
.ndreessen
?oudcloud 1 1BB
1H &an 5nyder )ashington Reds4ins - BH;
19 Michael
Iordan
)ashington )i*ards - 9GE
1G Tom 6ruise 6ruiseA)agner
1roductions
- -<1
-H 1ercy Miller
=Master 1>
+o ?imit - -;G
-- 5ean 6ombs
=1. &iddy>
Bad Boy
:ntertainment
- -91
9B Iim 6arrey 1it Bull 1roductions - 1D1
;H Tiger )oods :T) - 1BH
1 Michael &ell &ell 6omputer 9 1B9HH
; Ted )aitt Kate!ay #nc. 9 1EDH
1B 1antas
5utard,a
Marvell Technology 9 9B9
9G +av 5ooch 5ilicon ?aboratories 9 1B-
1< Ieanette
5ymons
Nhone Technologies ; 9D;
-< 5udha4ar
Ravi
5onic).?? ; -1G
-B 5ree4anth
Ravi
5onic).?? ; -1G
-G Ieffrey
6itron
Ronage ; 1G;
99 .nousheh
.nsari
5onus ; 1EH
9D Ionathan M.
Rothberg
6uraKen < 1BE
1D Iohn
5chnatter
1apa Iohn0s
#nternational
B -G9
91 :ric
Kreenberg
#nnovation
#nvestments
D 1ED
9; "alsey
Minor
1- :ntrepreneuring D 1EH
B. )ith one/!ay analysis of variance !e test the
hypothesis that there are no differences in the net
!orths among the groups. 6ategory values < B and D
are omitted because there is insufficient sample to run
.+FR.. The Fne/)ay ! test is significant at .H9;.
The null hypothesis of no differences is re,ected. )e
conclude from the post hoc test that the
hard!areAsemiconductor net !orth is significantly
different from the other three groups.
=et ;orth
#!ke+ B
+5ubset
for
alpha
S .H<

Kroup 1 -
;.HH <-9D.-H
HH

-.HH D-G;.E<
D1

1.HH -HD9H.<H
HH

9.HH ; ;BD9.D
<HH

Means for groups in homogeneous subsets are
displayed.
a Qses "armonic Mean 5ample 5i*e S B.---.
b The group si*es are unequal. The harmonic
mean of the group si*es is used. Type # error
levels are not guaranteed.
1B. =1> +ull hypothesis. "
H
8p
1
S p
-
the proportion
removed by .nti/R is equal to the proportion
removed by '/6ure. "
.
8 p
1
a p
-
=-> 5tatistical test. The Mc+emar test is chosen
because the groups have been matched according to
the control characteristic// standard number of
viruses that each anti/virus product is presumed to
remove. .lthough nominal measurements !ere
used the chi/square test of independence is not
appropriate.
=9> 5ignificance level. alpha S .H< =t!o/tailed
test>
Z =
33 - 58
33 + 58
=
-25
91
= - 2.62
=<> 6ritical test value S
Z
1.GB alpha S .H< .
=B> &ecision. 5ince the =absolute value> calculated
value is larger than the critical value =b/-.B-b _ b
Z
1.GBb> re,ect the null hypothesis and conclude that
the proportion removed by .nti/R is not equal to
the proportion removed by '/6ure.
+ote8 the other approach to Mc+emar a modified
chi/square that !as illustrated in the te(t produced
a chi/square value of B.EB. )ith 1 d.f. at alpha S .
H< the critical value is 9.E;. )e re,ect the null.
=The square root of B.E; is the 8 result of -.B-.>
1D. .. Test of hypothesis8
H
8 F
i
S :
i
. That is the styling
preferences are independent of buyer behavior. "
.
8
F
i
a :
i
.
=-> 5tatistical test. 6hoose the t!o independent
sample chi/square test to compare the observed
distribution to a hypothesi*ed distribution. The chi/
square test is used because the responses are
classified into nominal categories and there are
sufficient observations in each cell.
=9> 5ignificance level. ?et alpha S .H<.
=;> 6alculated value8 5ee :(hibit 1D/;.

=<> 6ritical test value S 9.E;. alpha S .H< d.f. S 1
=B> &ecision. The calculated value =-H.G;> is
greater than the critical value =9.E;> so re,ect the
null hypothesis and conclude that styling preference
is not independent of buyer characteristic.
B. Many analysts !ould apply the correction for
continuity since the sample si*e is larger than ;H
and a - ( - table is used. #n this case the calculated
value drops only slightly to 1G.11 and !e also re,ect
the null hypothesis.
1E. =1> +ull hypothesis. "
H
8 There are no differences
bet!een the means of the t!o groups relative to
flight service ratings.
=-> This is a case of t!o independent samples. The
appropriate test is parametric because the data are
interval. Qse the t test.
=9> The desired level of significance is again set at
alpha S .H<
=;> 6alculated value8 5ee :(hibit 1D/<.
=<> 6ritical value from te(t :(hibit K/- !ith 9E d.f.
is -.H9 for a t!o/tailed test. The ! test on the left of
the e(hibit indicates that !e cannot re,ect the
hypothesis of equality of meansJ thus !e interpret
the pooled variance estimate section.
=B> 6alculated values =absolute values> of b/-.1Gb _
critical value= b-.H9b>. The null hypothesis is
re,ected. That is there is a significant difference
found bet!een the t!o groups !ith respect to the
service rating.

1. .. . regression coefficient is the value !hich
e(presses ho! much of a dependent variable0s value
is estimated to change !ith the change of one unit
in the independent variable. . correlation
coefficient r is a measure of the association bet!een
one or more independent variables and a dependent
variable. The correlation coefficient can range from
/1.H to Z1.H.
B. Both r S H and p S H state that there is no
relationship bet!een the L and M variables. The
inde( r represents the sample data !hereas p
represents the population correlation.
6. The test of the slope = b
1
S H> is a very important test
in bivariate linear regression. #f the true slope is
found to be *ero there is no linear relationship
bet!een the L and M variables. The test of the
intercept is only to determine if the regression line
goes through the origin. The test of r
-
S H is
similar to the test of the slope !ith a slightly
different interpretation. .s a goodness of fit test r
-
tells us ho! !ell the regression line fits the data. By
partitioning the sum of squares in the dependent
variable !e discover the proportion of variation in
the dependent variable e(plained by the model.
&. The coefficient of correlation r describes the
relationship bet!een the t!o measured variables.
The coefficient of determination is r
-.
#t sho!s the
degree to !hich the variables in question share
common variance. #f r is found to be .GH r
-
is equal
to .E1J that is E1P of the variance in L is e(plained
by M and vice versa.
:. . slope of *ero is represented by a hori*ontal line in
bivariate linear regression and a slope of infinity is
represented by a vertical line. The meaning of a
*ero slope may be based on several conditions8 =1>
M is completely unrelated to L and no systematic
pattern is evident =-> there are constant values of M
for every value of L or =9> the data are related but
nonlinear.
C. #n bivariate regression a test of goodness of fit uses
t. #n multiple regression the C test is used to chec4
the entire model and individual t tests evaluate each
independent variable separately. The C test !hen
applied to bivariate regression produces the same
result as t
-
.
-. The interpretation of the four plots is as follo!s8
=.> +o relationship =B> 1ositive relationship =6>
+onlinear relationship =&> +egative relationship.
9. .. Kamma is found to be .EEB / as per computer
calculation in :(hibit 1E/1.
B. Oendall0s Tau
b
and Tau
c
are .DHD and .DH
respectively.
6. Kamma is based on a comparison of concordant and
discordant pairs of scores. #t treats variables
symmetrically in calculation8 no independent or
dependent variable is designated. Both versions of
tau are refinements of gamma that considers that not
all pairs of variables are concordant or discordantJ
some observations may be tied on variable L M or
both. ?i4e gamma the range for tau is /1.H to Z1.H
and larger coefficients imply stronger relationships
bet!een the variables. Technically tau
b
can only
obtain this range for a square table if no marginal
frequency is equal to H. Tau
c
better approaches the
outer limits of the range for tables of any ro! by
column configuration.
&. . large value for gamma often occurs !hen a more
appropriate measure of the variables !ould produce
a smaller coefficient. #n this sense gamma is often
inflated. 5ince all the coefficients !ould be
appro(imately the same if there !ere no tied pairs
it appears prudent to consider this effect and the
greater stability of tau across different situations.
Cor this data either tau !ould be suitable although
tau
c
!ould be the more conservative choice.
;. 5ee :(hibit 1E/1. 5omers0 d symmetric is .DHD and
asymmetric !ith opinion dependent is .DH. The
symmetric coefficient results from averaging the
t!o asymmetric coefficients. 5omers0 is e(tension
of gamma that considers the number of pairs not
tied on the independent variable. The magnitude of
the coefficients is quite similar to the tau results. )e
!ould assume that education influences opinion on
the ta( and that the asymmetric coefficient !ith
opinion dependent is the most appropriate one to
interpret. )e conclude from this problem that there
is a relatively strong positive relationship bet!een
education and opinion about a ta( on stoc4 and
bond transactions.
<. )e have computed four measures of association in
:(hibit 1E/-. Ff the four phi is the most
appropriate because the table in question is - ( -.
.s noted else!here 6ramer0s R simplifies to phi
for - ( - tables. The 1earson contingency
coefficient 6 is problematic because of its upper
limit and comparability to other measures. .ll of
these three are based on the chi/square. ?ambda on
the other hand offers a 1R: interpretation. Kiven
the information in the problem it !ould be difficult
to identify a predictor variable for lambda in that it
could be argued that one0s position on ta(es in
general is ,ust as good a predictor of party
affiliation as party affiliation !ould be for
predicting favorableness on a specific position.
B. .. 5ee :(hibit 1E/9
B. M S ;.E Z 1.HBD L
6. 5ee :(hibit 1E/9
&. #f L S 1H M S 1<.<J L S 1D M S --.G
D. .. (+mmetric Meas!res
Ralu
e
.ppro
(. 5ig.
1hi.E-D .HHH
6ramer0s
R
.E-D .HHH
6ontinge
ncy
6oefficie
nt
.B9D .HHH
+ of BE<
Ralid
6ases

1hi is appropriate for this - ( - table. #t is identical to
6ramers R in this case. The 6ontingency 6oefficients
upper range restriction ma4es it unsuitable for
comparison. The relationship bet!een the t!o variables
is relatively strong. #t is also statistically significant at .
HHH<. The 6hi/square !as significant and since the three
measures are based on 6hi/square !e !ould e(pect
them to have the same confidence level.
B. The value for lambda is .BE !ith the clinical condition
as the designated dependent variable. This means that
BEP of the error in predicting the clinical condition
=pregnancy> is eliminated by 4no!ledge of the test
result.
E. 5ee :(hibit 1E/;.
.. )ith d.f. =1E> the critical value of ! is <.9-. #n this
table the calculated value is G<.D< =found from the
mean squares once the student fills in the d.f. and
sum of squares by subtraction>. )e re,ect the null
hypothesis b S H.
B. The t value =G.DG> is the square root of !, #t is the
primary test of the slope for bivariate regression.
G.
1H. The largest 1earson coefficient is .GDH; the
relationship bet!een cash flo! and mar4et value.
The 5pearman ran4 order correlation is found to be .
GD<E. +ormally !e !ould e(pect the 5pearman to
display a lo!er coefficient since the ratio data is
lost !hen each data point is converted to a ran4. #n
this case the order preserved the relationship !ith
precision.
11. The variables selected for illustration !ere net
profits and mar4et value. The regression appears in
:(hibit 1E/B. The R
-
is .G- and a t value for the
slope is G.DG. The null hypothesis !as re,ected at
the .HHHH< level.
The follo!ing assumptions !ere e(amined8
linearity equality of variance independence of
error and normality. #n addition residuals !ere
e(amined for outliers.
Linearity8 The scatterplot graphs the relationship of
the L and M variables. There is little doubt that the
function is linear and that a straight line fits the
data.
Euality of Nariance8 The assumption of equality of
variance may be chec4ed !ith the plot sho!n in
:(hibit 1E/D. There is some spread of the residuals
!ith increases in predicted values. :ven !ith this
small sample si*e !e should be cautious about this
assumption.
&ndependence of Error8 The collection and
recording of data !as a computer generated random
sample. There is no reason to suspect sequential
values. .s sho!n at the bottom of :(hibit 1E/B no
case!ise plot !as produced for this e(amination
because no outliers !ere found.
Residuals8 The summary of residual statistics in
:(hibits 1E/E and 1E/G does not seem to indicate
that the ranges =in the /1.B to 1.D range for
standardi*ed values> !ould not be a cause for
concern.
0ormality8 Reinforcing !hat !e 4no! from prior
chec4s the histogram of studenti*ed residuals in
:(hibit 1E/1H does not reveal any residuals beyond
Z
9.1B. Cor a sample of 1H the :(pected + conforms
reasonably !ell to the observed +. .lthough there
are some of departures from a strictly normal
histogram !e are dealing !ith residuals and
nonconstant variance and therefore e(pect that
normality !ill sho! some effects. The normal
probability plot of standardi*ed residuals in :(hibit
1E/11 also provides some indication of departures
from normality but not in a patterned !ay.
Recommendations8 Kenerally the diagnostics
suggest that this small random sample from Corbes
<HH data conforms rather !ell to regression
assumptions. :quality of variance could be
improved !ith transformation and that !ould be our
ne(t step in this problem. Fther!ise the departures
are relatively minor.
1-. .. The relationship bet!een L and M is sho!n as / .E;
in :(hibit 1E/1-.
B. The sign of the correlation is negativeJ they vary in
opposition.
6. The square of the correlation r
-
is equal to .D1J
that is D1P of L is e(plained by M and vice
versa.
&. The equation is8 M S 91.B; / 1.H; L. The line is
plotted as sho!n8
:. Refer to :(hibit 1E/1-. The test of the slope =b S H>
!as re,ected belo! our conventional a S .H< !ith a
t value of / ;.1B and significance of .HH;-. The test
for the significance of the correlation coefficient
!as determined by a t!o/tailed t2 test as sho!n in
the top of the e(hibit. This null !as re,ected at .H1.
Cinally the ! test of the regression model !as equal
to t
-
=1D.9>.
1. .. )ultidimensional 1caling uses a spatial map to
describe perceptions. Qsually participants rate or
ran4 ob,ects =or people places constructs etc.> !ith
the smallest value applying to ob,ects that are
perceived to be most similar and the largest applying
to ob,ects that are perceived to be least similar.
Fften the participant is instructed on the criteria to
use in ,udging similarity. The researcher decides on
the number of a(es used to display the spatial map.
T!o to three dimensions are most useful. The map
sho!s the most similar pair as closest to each other
and the least similar pair as furthest a!ay from each
other.
B. #n contrast to M&5 !hich spatially sho!s
similarities and dissimilarities cluster analysis
groups ob,ects by similarities. )hereas M&5 is
used mainly for perceptions cluster analysis is used
for any set of attributes. #ts algorithm is defined to
ma(imi*e membership in mutually e(clusive
clusters that are homogeneous. Both techniques use
a graphical presentationJ cluster analysis puts the
ob,ects into distinct groups and M&5 does not.
6. Cactor analysis li4e cluster analysis is a grouping
technique. "o!ever !hereas cluster analysis
requires members to be in one group only variables
can load on more than one factor in varying
amounts. )hereas cluster analysis groups similar
members together into a cluster factor analysis
attempts to e(plain =or describe> latent constructs by
creating ne! factors to replace the original
variables.
-. &ependency and interdependency identify the t!o types
of interrelationships among variables. #n the
dependency situation the concern is !ith the 2effect2
that independent variables have on a dependent
variable. #n the interdependency situation there is no
designated dependent variable. Rather the
interrelations among variables are studied.
. dependency technique !ould be chosen !hen one or
more variables can be classified as dependent.
9. #f a M.+FR. problem has t!o factor levels and
several dependent variables the position of the
variables could be reversed and treated !ith
discriminant analysis. The t!o levels of the factor
already a technically nominal classification become the
dependent variable in the discriminant equation !ith
the several dependent variables =from the M.+FR.>
becoming the predictors. #n this !ay the degree to
!hich each dependent contributed to a linear equation
predicting the correct classification could be assessed.
;. There are a variety of possibilities here about !hich
your students !ill quite possibly have some e(pertise.
5ome of the factors and levels that could be considered
for are8
Cactor ?evels
Brands 9 =required>
"ardness of shoc4s 9 =softAmediumAhard>
Kearing - =lo!Ahigh>
)eight - =lightAheavy>
Tire si*e 9 =carAtruc4Aother>
Tread type 9 =high!ayAoff/roadAother>
+umber of seats 9 =1A-A;>
#f !e use the first < factors of the list !e have a 9 ( 9 (
- ( - ( - design or a D-/option full concept design.
<. .. 1robably a discriminant analysis. The problem
involves a dependency relationship in !hich the
dependent =or criterion> variable is nonmetric =i.e..
applicants either choose to attend or not attend>.
)e are not sure about the measurement scales of the
independent =predictor> variables but it is assumed
that they are metric. .nother possibility is multiple
classification analysis !ith a H/1 dependent
variable.
B. This situation also involves the dependency
relationships and presents a metric dependent
variable and at least some independent variables
that are metric. The appropriate multivariate
technique is multiple regression perhaps !ith some
dummy =H/1> independent variables.
6. . multiple regression equation for the reasons of
dependency plus metric predictor and criterion
variables.
&. This appears to call for a statistical technique !hich
relates the various test results and e(tracts a fe!er
number of latent variables or dimensions !hich
2e(plain2 sales success. This !ould suggest factor
analysis.
B. ?et us adopt the follo!ing symbols for the variables8
5ales8 5 =U>
5alesperson0s level of education8 : =Mears of
education>.
Kender8 )e use a single dummy variable for t!o
categories. #f the observation is male then the
variable MS1 if female then H.
6onsumer income8 # =U>
)ealth8 ) =U>
:thnicity8 ?et us consider three categories
6aucasian "ispanic and .sian. Cor the three
categories !e need t!o dummy variables.
.sian /. !hich ta4es the value 1 if it is an .sian
and H other!ise.
"ispanic /" !hich ta4es the value 1 if it is a
"ispanic and H other!ise.
bH is a constantJ b1 b- b9 etc. are coefficients e is
the residual error term.
The general model !ill be8
5 S bH Z b1: Z b-M Z b9# Z b;) Z b<. Z bB" Z e
The instructor may observe and e(plain ho!A !hen the
values of the dummy variables M . and " are each
*ero then the predicted value of 5 is for a Cemale
salesperson !ith the consumer being 6aucasian.
D. .. This particular e(ercise illustrates the sort of
problems one encounters almost routinely in real
life situations and ho! the form and scale in !hich
data is collected restricts the analysis and
determines the techniques that can be used.
The follo!ing points are !orth observing at the
outset8
1. The data for all the variables i.e. ,ob
satisfaction promotions and departments are
non/metric =non/metric refers to nominal or
ordinal>.
-. +o dependent variables are specified.
:(hibit 1G/1 =5electing the Most 6ommon
Multivariate Techniques> in the te(tboo4 indicates
that if there are no dependent variables and the
variables are non/metric the possibly usable
techniques are non metric factor analysis latent
structure analysis non metric cluster analysis and
non metric multidimensional scaling.
Ff these cluster analysis groups similar ob,ects or
people. "ere cluster analysis !ould e(amine
2!hether and !here is there a clustering2 of people
in terms of ,ob satisfaction promotions and
departments. &o people high on ,ob satisfaction
seem to be those !ho also have many promotions7
&o these seem to be from one department alone7
These are the nature of insights that cluster analysis
may provide.
The instructor can point out that the data on
promotions could easily have been collected as
2number of promotions2 for each participant =ratio
scaled> and ,ob satisfaction data could be collected
on a semantic differential seven point scale etc.
!hich !ould allo! us to use methods appropriate
for metric data. #f this !ere done then only
2&epartments2 !ould be nominally scaled.
Ta4ing the data as it is an e(ploratory e(ercise to
test the hypothesis that 2there is no relation bet!een
departments promotions and ,ob satisfaction2 can
be done using the 6hi 5quare Test =refer to 6hapter
1B>. Curther if hypotheses !ere formulated and a
dependent variable specified then depending on the
manner in !hich the data is collected =metric or non
metric> discriminant analysis =non metric dependent
variable> or multiple regression =metric dependent
variable> could have been used.
B. Brand choice =9 brands> is a nominally scaled non/
metric variable income levels and e(tent of
advertising =say advertising budgets or the number
of advertisements> are ratio scaled metric variables.
)ith the dependent variable for study being brand
choice the appropriate methodology !ould be
discriminant analysis.
6. 6luster analysis is recommended here. #f there
are substantive cluster formations for dar4 fabric
buyers in particular incomeAethnic groups and
particular temperature conte(ts then those cluster
groupings indicate the temperature income
ethnicity 2combinations2 !hich should be focused
on. 6luster analysis also reveals the 2bases2 that are
not important to the formation of clusters =for
instance !hile the ma,ority of people !ho are .sian
may buy dar4 fabric income may sho! no relation
to the clustering>. The cluster identification and
corresponding mar4et segmentation principle
minimi*es !ithin cluster distance and ma(imi*es
bet!een cluster distance. The cluster characteristics
of dar4 fabric buyers can then be compared to the
demographic data available for different areas and
those areas !here the chosen cluster characteristics
are salient may be chosen as mar4ets for dar4
fabric.
.nother !ay of approaching the issue !ould be to
treat fabric color choice as the dependent variable in
a discriminant analysis !ith income temperature
and ethnicity being the e(planatory or independent
variables. :thnicity is a nominal variable and to use
it in a discriminant analysis procedure !ould
require the use of dummy variables in a manner
similar to that used in regression analysis. #n this
case the discriminant function can be used to
e(trapolate and 2predict2 the number of dar4 color
fabric users !hen the data on income temperature
and ethnicity is 4no!n.
E. The R- value indicates that the four independent
variables statistically account for G- percent of the
variation in the annual sales. The standard error of
estimate is a measure of the precision of the M
estimates. This value of 11.G million dollars indicates
that t!o out of three times the equation estimates of
company sales !ere !ithin a plus or minus 11.G million
of the true sales figure.
The regression coefficients indicate that8
1. M S ;G.E< million dollars !hen all the #Rs are
*ero.
-. M is lo!er by UBEHHH for each increase of a
million annual marriages. This is illogical and
suggests that the estimating equation might be
improved by substituting another variable. .ll
other regression coefficients sho! the effects on M
of a change in one unit of the independent
variable.
G. Fne !ay to ,udge the predictive value of a discriminant
analysis is to determine the percent of correctly
classified dependent variable cases. #n this problem
-1H of -EH or D< percent of the cases !ere correctly
classified. Crom the detailed data !e see that the best
record !as in predicting !hich persons !ould ta4e
alternative ..
1H. The data are found on the !ebsite
=!!!.mhhe.comAbusinessAcooperE> in :(cel
spreadsheet form. &ata source8 "air Ioseph C. Rolph
:. .nderson Ronald ?. Tatham and )illiam 6. Blac4.
Multivariate &ata .nalysis !ith Readings. <
th
ed. Qpper
5addle River +I8 1rentice/"all 1GGE pp. D-</-B. L1S
delivery speed L- S price level L9 S price fle(ibility
L;S manufacturers image L< S overall service LB S
salesforce image. LD S product quality.
Qsing the procedure Cactor in 5155J principal
components varima( rotation. :ighty/three percent of
the variance is e(plained by three factors. The rotated
solution is sho!n belo!.
Rotate) Component Matri.
6omponent
1 - 9
L9 /.EHB
LD .DBH
L- .D<; .<B1
L1 /.D<- .<BH
LB .G;<
L; .G-1
L< .GEH
:(traction Method8 1rincipal 6omponent
.nalysis.
Rotation Method8 Rarima( !ith Oaiser
+ormali*ation.
a Rotation converged in < iterations.
#erms in Re:ie5
1. .. . speaker2centered presentation is one !here the
focus =generally resulting from the spea4ers sense
of inadequacy> relies on memori*ation of the
manuscript. The style of delivery reflects a
preoccupation !ith the memori*ed message to the
detriment of establishing rapport !ith and adapting
to the needs of the audience. #t is considered self or
spea4er/ centered because it is strictly one/!ay
communication. #n contrast an extemporaneous
presentation replaces a script !ith an organi*ed set
of ideas that may be presented from notes or an
outline. This approach ta4es into consideration the
need for adaptability to the occasion fle(ible
response to audience feedbac4 and a conversational
delivery of the message.
B. /echnical reports include both a full presentation of
the analysis as !ell as sufficient procedural
information to permit another researcher to replicate
the study. The report structure follo!s the steps of
the research study itself8 prefatory items
introduction methodology findings conclusions
appendi(es and bibliography. The appendi(es
contain detailed information such as
instrumentation data analysis methods and
instructions for the field personnel.
)anagement reports are !ritten for the
nontechnical client. They minimi*e methodological
details. 6onclusions are presented before the
findings that support them. Kraphics are used to
enhance comprehension. The appendi( is short
compared to the technical report and the
bibliographic references are often omitted.
6. The topic outline is a format in !hich only a 4ey
!ord or t!o are used for each item. 1entence
outlines e(press the essential thoughts using brief
sentences associated !ith the specific topic.
-. .. #t is important to include a balanced and thoughtful
but fair e(pression of the conceptual and
implementation limits that the reader should 4eep in
mind !hen dra!ing inferences from a report0s
findings. #t is a mar4 of the true professional. #n
student reports one sometimes sees an e(tensive
listing of faults !hich may be ,ustifiably true but
detract from the report.
B. Tables appearing in the body of the report or
presentation should be 4ept as simple as possible in
order to allo! the readerAlistener to grasp one or
t!o specific points. #n place of tables use charts
and graphs !henever possible. #f comple( tables are
necessary in the report an appropriate place is in
the appendi(.
6. The physical presentation of the report is critical to
its being read. #t is especially important to design
the report to fit its audience and to deal adequately
!ith the 4no!ledge gap that may e(ist bet!een the
!riter and reader. The particular form of the report
should be appropriate to the audience occasion and
importance of the sub,ect.
&. 21ace2 concerns the problem of ho! quic4ly
concepts are developed and ho! deeply they are
e(plained. The pace tends to be slo! and the depth
limited if the topic is comple( and the audience
unsophisticated. #f the topic is comple( but the
audience is sophisticated the !riter can assume a
certain depth of 4no!ledge and move quic4ly and
deeply into the sub,ect.
9. .. . short report informational in nature most li4ely a
memo. 6osts reimbursement amounts and
employee satisfaction !ith the health plan are
comparative aspects that may be included in
graphical form.
B. . technical report !hich follo!s the suggested
format of the ,ournal in question.
6. . short report8 memorandum or letter style
informational in nature.
&. . long report. . technical report !ould be
mandatory a management report may also be
presented to supplement the technical report.
;. 5everal different graphic forms are acceptable for each
of the cases mentioned.
.. #f the intent is to sho! yearly data for the decade it
is probably !ise to use a line diagram on a semilog
chart because semilog scales sho! rates of relative
change much better than do arithmetic scales. #f
one is sho!ing only the percentage change bet!een
annual income in 1GGH and -HHH then an arithmetic
line scale diagram may be used if 1GGH for each
country is set at 1HH and -HHH is e(pressed as a ratio
to 1GGH. . better choice !ould be to use a multiple
variable bar chart !ith both countries listed above
the years 1GGH and -HHH. The ra! data and the
percentage change can thus be sho!n on the same
chart using numbers to augment the graphic.
B. &ata are delivered several !ays depending on the
message being delivered. #f there !ere a desire to
only compare percentages of income spent on items
it !ould probably be best to use a hori*ontal bar
chart of the 1HHP component type. This is the best
!ay to sho! comparable allocations among
subparts. . vertical version of the same type of
chart is often found and is also acceptable. #f on
the other hand the absolute dollar comparisons
!ere desired a vertical stac4ed bar chart !ould be a
good choice. Fther possibilities include a set of pie
charts =for percentages only> a 9/& column chart if
the data has been collected for more than one year
or a stratum chart.
6. This could be the t!o/!ay percent change
hori*ontal bar chart. #t is an ideal !ay for
comparing percent changes bet!een t!o points for
a limited number of entities especially !hen one or
more may be negative percent changes.
.lternatively a multiple variable vertical bar chart
could be used to graphically sho! the changes from
year to year. This !ould be best done !ith the
years 1GGB and 1GGD as the variables and the si(
firms as the heading for the groups of bars. . third
possibility is to use a line chart !ith each firms0
price sho!n as a different line.
<. This can be a good e(ercise to have students
prepare in advance and then have several sho!n on
chal4board or via transparencies. Fne suggested
outline for the first assignment is given belo!.
.ns!ers to parts B and 6 depend on the
circumstances at the time.
#. Pre5riting Consi)erations
.. 1urpose of report
B. &efine audience
6. 6ircumstances and limitations
&. "o! !ill it be used7
##. Report Choice
.. #nformational or research7
B. ?ong or short7
6. Management or technical7
&. Cormat7
###. Draft &o)+ of report
.. .nalysis of data
B. 5elect important findings
6. 5tatistical tests
&. &raft conclusions
:. &raft recommendations
C. Revie! and revise
1. by self
-. by others
#R. ;riting report
.. Futline body of report
B. "o! to present data
1. draft tables
-. set up charts
9. develop graphics
6. #ntroduction
&. .ppendi(
:. 5ynopsis
C. Cirst draft / total report
K. Revie! and revise
1. by self
-. by others
". Cinal printing and finishing touches
R. (!&mit report

6. There are hundreds of #nternet presentations most in
1o!er1oint .dobe .crobat or real/time that may be
found using a search engine li4e Koogle. )e selected a
topic on secondary data !ith a 1o!er1oint slide sho!
as the delivery medium
=http8AA!!!.dtic.milAcendiAactivitiesA1-X11XH1XoaisXpr
ogram.html> $5etting the Cederal 5tage8 &eveloping a
+ational &igital #nformation #nfrastructure for
1reservation.% This presentation !as made in &ecember
-HH1 at the conference on Managing and 1reserving
:lectronic Resources at the ?ibrary of 6ongress.
1resenter8 Martha .nderson Technical 6oordinator
Fffice of 5trategic #nitiatives ?ibrary of 6ongress.
D. 5ome li4ely requirements for statistical materials are8
.. 5tatistical data should usually be presented in small
doses.
B. .ll tables should be labeled adequately to ensure
that the reader could understand their contents.
6. )riters should seldom put more than several
statistical numbers in the body of te(t. )hen more
need to be presented the statistics should go into
tables or semi/tabular presentations.
&. )henever possible salient points should be
emphasi*ed by means of a po!erful graphic. Cor
time series data bar charts and stratumAarea charts
are good choices. Cor percentage data a pie chart
can be used. Cor distributions consider the
histogram or bo( plot.
:. )riters should recogni*e that charts and graphs
represent visual comparisons that have more impact
than the labels on the data. Cor e(ample the
omission of a *ero base line may give an incorrect
visual impression even though the scales may be
labeled correctly.
C. 5tatistical data from !hich findings are dra!n
should be ad,acent to those findings.

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Business Research Methods study Material

1. Research is defined as a systematic inquiry aimed at

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