Summary
Samenvatting Business Research Techniques (for Pre-master)
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This summary contains all the information from the Grasple modules and also some useful notes from the lectures.
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Business Research- Business research = a systemic process of testing hypotheses through carefully executed data
analyses that are aimed to help a manager solve, avoid, or minimize a problem.
o Systematic process: business research consists of several distinct but highly
interrelated stages. Systemic because: universally agreed upon.
o Test hypotheses: a study without hypotheses findings could be a mere coincidence,
rather than contribute to the understanding of the problem.
- Intuition should never be a substitute for research. While intuition has place in
managerial decision-making, detached from rigorous data intuition can lead to less
effective decisions.
- Cognitive biases = unconscious thinking errors. Attempt of our brain to simplify the
complex world and speed up decision-making. Three of the most common:
o Confirmation bias = the tendency to only consider information that agrees wit
your pre-existing beliefs.
▪ Example: pessimists who focus on the negatives while ignoring the
positives.
o Availability bias = in which you decide based on readily available information,
even though it may not be the best information to inform your decision.
▪ Example: Reddit users who raised the stock-price from $17 to $469
o What-you-see-is-all-there-is (WYSIATI) bias = deciding whether there is a
relationship between an event and an outcome, we tend to notice what is
present, but we often forget to consider the absent.
▪ Example: not looking at the numbers of what isn’t been researched,
like the brand sale increase with or without a advertising campaign.
- Judging academic-journal quality:
o Some articles are predatory, there sole purpose is to make money. How to
evaluate?
▪ Peer-reviewed?
▪ Impact factor > 1.0 is more likely to be legitimate
▪ Consult the list of quality journals, compiled by TiSEM.
- Deductive vs. inductive research (not mutually competing)
o Inductive research approach = developing a theory, by first collect data, then
try to find a pattern in these data, after which they develop a theoretical
framework based on this pattern.
o Deductive research approach = testing a theory, by first hypothesize
relationships between variables based on theory, then these hypotheses are
tested using data.
- 7-step deductive research process:
o Demarcate the business problem
o Formulate research questions
o Develop the theoretical framework
o Choose a research strategy
o Collect the data
o Analyze the data
, o Write a report
Theory Formation
Demarcated Business Problem
- A business problem occurs with a threat or opportunity.
- A business problem needs to be demarcated or narrowed before it can be researched.
o Purpose of this: to focus on a clearly defined portion of the bigger problem.
Problem relevance
- Two types of relevance
o Academic relevance:
▪ Completely new topic
• No research available at all, although the topic is important
o Why is it important?
▪ New context
• Prior research is available but not in the same context
o The relationship between the variables differ, or even the
variables differ.
▪ Integrate scattered research
• Different studies have focused on different IVs / moderators;
consequently, their relative importance is not clear
o Large vs. small companies
▪ Reconcile contradictory research
• Solve the contradictions through introducing one or more
moderators
o Managerial relevance
▪ Who benefits from having the problem solved?
o Managers
▪ Of one company
▪ Of one industry
▪ Of multiple industries
o End users
o Public policy makers
Research question
- Good problem statement is:
o Open-ended question (not answerable with yes or no)
▪ What is the relationship between … and …?
▪ How are … and … associated?
▪ To what extent does … relate to …?
o Identifies the study’s unit of analysis (UoA = the entity that the study wishes to say
something about)
▪ The entities being studied are typically referred to as the subjects:
• Individuals
• Firms
, • Groups
• Things
• Geographical units
▪ Can be a lower or a higher level of aggregation:
• If a UoA level is higher
o Is expressed in terms of (i) variables and (ii) relationships
▪ Variables must have at least two values or levels in a study.
• 4 types of variables:
o Dependent variables = the variable of primary interest, also
known as criterion variable or DV
o Independent variables = influences the dependent variable,
also known as predictor variable or IV
▪ In a positive way or negative way
▪ When X changes, Y changes to.
o Mediating variables = situated between the IV and DV,
explains the mechanism at work between X and Y. Also
known as mediator or intervening variable
▪ Why or how does X affect Y
o Moderating variables = effects the relationship between X
and Y. It alters the strength and sometimes even the
direction (positive → negative) of the relationship
between X and Y
▪ Vb. Recession (yes/no) on relationship between
advertising spending (IV) and sales (DV)
▪ When or From whom the effect is stronger
o Control variables = covariance analysis. It is a variable which
is not the focus of the research, but its existence has a
certain effect on the DV that cannot be ignored. Its
monitored, kept under control or kept constant.
▪ Goal: filter out the impact of the control variables.
▪ Variables can vary in 3 ways:
• Across subjects
• Over time
• Across subjects and over time
▪ When something that could potentially vary only has one level in the study,
it is not a variable but a constant.
▪ Types of relationships:
• Main effect = direct effect of an IV on DV.
• Direct / indirect effect =
• Moderating effect
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