Research Question/ Research

Objectives
Saunders- Chapter 2
2 Business School
Developing your research
question
Research
question
Capability
Appropriateness
Sources
Source: C. Wangs PowerPoint slides
3 Business School
Capability: is it feasible?
Capability
Are you really
fascinated by it?
Do you have/ can you
develop necessary skills?
Is it achievable
within timeframe?
Is it achievable
within resources?
Are you sure about
gaining access to data
4 Business School
Appropriateness: is it worthwhile?
Appropriateness
Will it meet
assessment criteria?
Does it have
a clear link to
academic theory?
Can you
state your
research
question /
objectives
clearly?
Will it provide
fresh insights?
Does it relate
to the idea from
your organisation?
Are the
outcomes
symmetrical?
Does it match
your career
goals?
5 Business School
Sources: refining the research question
Sources
Examine own strengths/
interests
Look at past
dissertations
Search academic
literature
Search the media
Discuss ideas
Keep a notebook/
diary of ideas
Explore personal
preferences using
past dissertations
Brainstorm ideas
Use relevance trees
Research questions should
Be clear. They must be understandable to you and to
others.
Be researchable.
Be linked to each other.
Have potential for making a contribution to
knowledge.
Be neither too broad nor too narrow.

Remember that:
We cannot answer all the research questions that
occur to us 3 or 4 may be enough!
We therefore have to select from the possible
research questions at which we arrive
We should be guided by the principle that the
research questions we choose should be related to
one another
When there is some legitimate doubt over the
existence of objective facts, be cautious e.g. use
perceptions of , perceived effectiveness etc.

8
Brainstorm issues/ questions

Starting with a symptom may lead you into potential
issues and then into Research Questions (RQs):

Symptom: Low customer service ratings

Potential Issues: Training is inadequate? Sales rep
territories too large?

RQs: What factors influence customer service
ratings?

Developing General Focus Questions from
Research ideas.


Job recruitment via the Internet (Research Idea)
How effective is recruiting for new staff via the
Internet in comparison with traditional methods?
(RQ)

The use of internet banking (Idea)
What effect has the growth of Internet banking
had upon the uses customers make of branch
facilities? (RQ)




Developing General Focus Questions from
Research ideas.


Advertising and share prices (Idea)
How does the running of a TV advertising
campaign designed to boost the image of a
company affect the share price? (RQ)


Your example(Idea)
Your example(RQ)
11 Business School
Turning your research question into objectives
Objective(s): the goal(s) of your research
Question Objective
Why do organisations use
expatriates on overseas
assignments?
To identify organisations
objectives for the use of
expatriates
How do organisations ensure
that the relocation of international
managers is effective?
To establish how organisations
define effectiveness with regard
to relocation of international
managers
To identify those factors which
impact upon this effectiveness
and the reasons why
12 Business School
Your dissertation topic turning research
questions into objectives?
Using the process discussed turn it into an
objective or series of objectives
Remember to ensure
It starts with the word To
All aspects of the question (in the researchers
mind) are covered
To identify /describe/determine/explore
13
Convert research questions into
Objectives
RQ: What can be done to improve employee
morale?
Objective: To identify factors that influence
employee morale
14
Convert research questions into
Objectives
RQ: When has employee training been
effective?
Objective: To describe the situations and
criteria when employee training has been
effective
15
Convert research questions into
Objectives
RQ: Where should we sell our products?
Objective: To determine in which geographic
areas our products are most likely to sell
16
Convert research questions into
Objectives
RQ: Who should we consider outsourcing our
manufacturing to, and for which products?
Objective: To determine the criteria that
should be used in selecting countries and
companies to consider outsourcing of
manufacturing
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Assignment
Now, convert YOUR research questions into a
set of objectives:
Symptoms
Problem Definition/ Issues
RQ: ..?
Objective: To identify
/describe/determine..