Business Research Methods MKT3001 Tourism Research Methods MKT2011

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Business Research Methods MKT3001 Tourism
Research Methods MKT2011
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Course Team

• Janelle McPhail Course Leader
• Room T422
• Phone [phone]
• Email mcphail_at_usq.edu.au
• Consultation times
• Tue 8 -11
• Wed 2 - 5

• Hoda McClymont Tutor
• T412
• 4631 1453
• hoda_at_usq.edu.au
• Tue 9 11
• Wed 10 12 1 2
• Fri 10 - 11

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Our contract with you

• You are instructed to review the course
  specification for the course online. This is our
  contract with you in relation to assignment due
  dates, assignment extensions, requirements to
  pass the course etc.
• Course Specification
• http//www.usq.edu.au/course/specification/2003/m
  nospecs.html
• If you have any
• administrative concerns or
• requests please contact me.

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Text Materials

• Cavana, RY, Delahaye, BL Sekaran, U 2001,
  Applied business research Qualitative and
  quantative methods, John Wiley Sons, Milton,
  Queensland.
• OR
• Jennings, G 2001, Tourism research, Wiley,
  Milton, Queensland.
• PLUS
• Coakes, SJ Steed, LG 2002, SPSS for windows
  Analysis without anguish, (version 11.0), John
  Wiley Sons, Milton, Queensland.
• MKT3001or MKT2011 study package available from
  the USQ Bookshop.
• SPSS available in USQ Computer Labs

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Assessment

• Assignment 1 20 2 April 2003
• One research proposal
• Assignment 2 20 21 May 2003
• requires the use of a statistical package (SPSS)
  you may like to read the requirements for this
  assignment early in the semester and commence
  working on it.
• Before commencing assignments please refer to the
  Communication Skills Handbook.
• Exam 60
• Two (2) hours duration
• Part A has six (6) short answer questions
• Part B a case study
• To pass the course students must pass the
  combined assignments (50) and the exam (50)

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USQConnect Study Desk

• Course Home Page
• Study materials Intro book Mod 1
• Lecture Notes ( tutorial program at end of
  Lecture)
• Course Website (team, resources etc)
• Discussion Area
• Intro and Chat
• Assessment Ass 1(Bus Trsm) Ass 2 Exam
• Discussion Forum

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Lecture Tutorial Times

• Lecture Thursday 8 10 D303
• Tutorial Times
• Tut 1 Prac 1 Tue 11 1 K308 K110
• Tut 2 Prac 2 Tue 2 4 K308 K110
• Tut 3 Prac 3 Wed 8 10 K308 K110

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Week 1 Research an overview

• Business Research
• Cavana et al. Chs 1,2
• Selected Readings 1.1 1.2 1.3
• Coakes Steed Ch 1
• Tourism Research
• Jennings Chs 1 2
• Selected Readings 1.1 1.2
• Coakes Steed Ch 1
• Market Research Society of Australia Limited
  MRSA
• http//www.mrsa.com.au

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Lecture Overview

• Course overview
• Information the Management Information System
  (MIS)
• Business/Tourism research what is it?
• Characteristics of scientific research
• Types of Business/Tourism research
• Philosophical bases of research
• Key research terms
• Research process the main steps
• Research brief
• Current issues
• Research Ethics

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Course Overview Research Methods
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Why is information needed?
Competition
Market/ Environment
Business managers need information on
Customers needs
Strategic planning
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The Management Information System
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Research the management process

• Research is a fundamental component of the
  process of management and the management decision
  process
• Research is key element of the management
  information system
• Can be used to analyse and monitor market
  opportunities
• Can be helpful in providing insight into
  organisational and individual behaviour

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Where is the Research function located within an
organisation if at all?

• Marketing Department (Mkt Info System)
• Research Department (ie Tourism Qld) that
  undertakes research work for the Mkt dept and
  other research on both internal and external
  customers
• Engage an independent Research Company to conduct
  research - Colmar Brunton Roy Morgan ACNielsen
• http//au.colmarbrunton.com/colmar/loc_per.htm
• Roy Morgan Research Market Research Splash
• http//www.roymorgan.com.au/
• http//www.acnielsen.com.au/home.asp

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What is business research?

• Systematic and organised effort to investigate a
  specific problem or opportunity with the goal of
  finding answers to the issues
• Marketing/Tourism research and business research
  should be considered one and the same
• Marketing / Tourism research is different in the
  focus but not in the process or outcomes from
  developing rigor and balance in the research
  process.
• Client Needs Colmar Brunton

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Business/Tourism Research
Business/Tourism research is an organised,
systematic, data-based, critical, objective,
scientific inquiry or investigation into a
specific problem or issue with the purpose of
finding solutions to it or clarifying it.
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Characteristics of scientific research Factors
to evaluate research

• Research must be conducted with
• Clear purpose
• Relevance
• Timely
• Efficiency
• Rigour
• Quality Accurate, Reliable Valid
• Objectivity
• Ethical
• Limitations of scientific research in behavioural
  areas

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Types of Business/Tourism Research
Applied done with the intention of applying
results to specific problems in the
business Basic/Pure to enhance the
understanding of problems that commonly occur
across a range of organisations. Undertaken to
extend knowledge
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Why study Business/Tourism research

• A tool that can be used in any discipline
• Foundation of both business and academic best
  practice
• If you are not a researcher in the future chances
  are that you will be a user of research allows
  use it in more sophisticated and creative ways
• Allows you to sift for reliable information
• Allows you to evaluate other peoples research.

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Philosophical bases of research

• Paradigm reflects a basic set of philosophical
  beliefs about the nature of the world.
• Give guidelines and principles in the way
  research is conducted within a paradigm
• Research methods and techniques should be in
  sympathy with the paradigm
• Research Paradigms Positivist Interpretative
  Critical Feminist Postmodern
• Paradigm a set of beliefs
• Ontology the nature of reality
• Epistemology relationship between researcher
  and the subject/object/respondent
• Methodology set of guidelines for conducting
  research tools for data collection analysis

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Key Research Terms

• Observations - perceptions of reality
• Fact universal truth supported by measurable
  evidence
• Opinion persons belief
• Concepts general representations of ideas to be
  studied ie service value service quality
• Variables concepts that are operationalised so
  it can be observed measured

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Quantitative Res Qualitative Res

• Reality is objective singular apart from
  researcher
• Researcher is independent of that being
  researched
• Concepts are in the form of distinct variables
• Measures are systematically created before data
  collection are standardised

• Reality is subjective multiple, as seen by
  participants
• Researcher interacts with that being researched
• Concepts are in the form of themes,
  generalisations
• Measures are open ended questions created for the
  specific research setting

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Quantitative Res Qualitative Res

• Data are in the form of numbers from precise
  measurements
• There are many subjects or respondents
• Procedures are standard - replication
• Analysis use statistics
• Methods Survey, Experiment
• Triangulation mixed method approach both qual
  quant methods are used will be a predominant
  use of one method.

• Data are in the form of words from documents,
  transcripts
• Generally few subjects or participants
• Procedures not easily replicated
• Analysis extract themes from evidence present
  a coherent picture
• Methods indepth interviews focus groups
  observations panels case studies

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Key Research Terms

• Secondary research researcher uses previously
  collected data
• Primary research collection of original data by
  researcher
• Research Design- framework or blueprint for
  conducting the research.
• Exploratory
• Descriptive
• Causal (hypothesis testing)
• Should note that researchers my use a singular,
  dual or multiple research design

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Why should management not automatically
commission a research study?

• Identify a number of situations when research may
  be inappropriate.

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Possible reasons

• Information is already available
• There is insufficient time for research (tight
  deadlines)
• Resources are not available (insufficient
  funding)
• Costs outweigh the value of the research

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Stages in the Research Process
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Research process

• Step One
• Problem definition
• Management problem
• Research problem (in the form of a question s)
• Research objectives
• Estimate the value of the information

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Research process

• Step two
• Research design plan or blueprint for gathering
  the data
• Linked to next 2 steps in research process
• Techniques to be used
• Who will be involved - respondents
• How the data will be gathered
• How it will be analysed

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Research process

• Step three
• Sampling / representation
• How will we group people, objects, things
• How will we select them
• Why will we select them
• Note even for qualitative research we need to
  identify the participants/respondents and justify

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Research process

• Step Four
• Data collection, Data Preparation/Processing and
  Analysis
• How data is collected
• How it is recorded
• How data is analysed
• Interpretation of findings to arrive at
  conclusions

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Research process

• Step five
• Recommendations and reporting
• Analysing data is not enough, it is important to
  be able to interpret your finding and include
  them in a report that the client can understand,
  interpret and apply to the management problem
• Oral presentation of the research results to
  client

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Report writing and presentation

• Permanent record of the entire project
• Quality of work is usually judged by the final
  report and presentation
• Should influence the action taken by management
• Needed if you are doing the course - Research
  Project

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Research Brief

• A document provided by the client to the research
  agency that describes the business decision
  problem and the expectations of a research study
  design to collect information to make the
  decision.
• Includes purpose, background, any previous
  research, need for research, research objectives,
  target audience, level of reporting, budget,
  timeline, expectations of proposal/selection
  criteria, professional membership/quality
  assurance information, contact details

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Current issues

• Privacy Act was enacted on the 21st December
  2001, changed the procedures for conducting
  primary research
• Growth of sugging (selling under the guise of a
  survey), frugging (fund raising under the guise
  of a survey), dugging (developing a database
  under the guise research) and telemarketing
• These practices violate the respondents trust
  and erode willingness to support legitimate
  surveys
• Misuse of research and reporting of findings by
  the media

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Ethical Research

• Ethical Research Practices those practices and
  procedures that lead to
• protection of human non-human subjects
• appropriate methodology
• inferences, conclusions recom. based on actual
  findings
• complete accurate research reports

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• Ethics Interaction of Rights and Obligations

Subjects Rights
Clients Rights
Researchers Obligation
Researchers Obligation
Researcher
Subject
Client
Researchers Rights
Researchers Rights
Subjects Obligation
Clients Obligation
Subjects Rights
Clients Obligations
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Ethics

• Most research involves three parties
• Researcher
• Client and
• Respondent/ subject/ participant
• the public at large
• Rights and responsibilities of the above
  stakeholders will be explored in the tutorial.
  Visit the MRSA website and SR 1.1

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Scientific Misconduct

• Research fraud - falsifies or distorts the data
  or the methods of data collection
• Plagiarism - steals the ideas writings of
  others without citing the source.
• Unethical but Legal - behaviour may be unethical
  but not break the law

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Summary

• Research and the MIS
• What is research? the main characteristics
• Applied Basic/pure research
• Research paradigm positivist, interpretative
• Key research terms concept variable
  qualitative quantitative research design
  exploratory, descriptive, causal primary
  secondary research
• Research process steps
• Research brief
• Research ethics researcher, respondent, client
  public

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Tutorial - Week 2

• Prior to tutorial complete all readings visit
  MRSA website
• Presentation details start in week 3
• Identify and explain the rights and obligations
  of each party in the research process
  respondent, researcher and client in terms of
  the general public what are the main ethical
  research concerns
• Complete questionnaire - end of module 2 What
  problems can you identify? What additional
  information would be good to have?
• FOR Tutorial week 3 prac administer
  questionnaire to 10 students and bring completed
  questionnaires to lab
• Introduction to SPSS computer lab second hour