Business Research methods; research process and formulation

UNIT TWO

2. RESEARCH PROCESS AND PROBLEM FORMULATION

2.1 The research process
Research process consists of series of actions or steps necessary to
effectively carry out research and the desired sequencing of these steps. The
following flow chart will illustrate the general research process.

Identify the research topic

Define research problem

Review the literature

Review concepts and theories Review previous research

finding

Formulate hypotheses

Design research (including sample design)

Collect data (execution)

Analyze data (Test hypotheses, if

any)

Interpret the results and report the

findings

Figure 2.1; research process flow chart

Compiled By Yibabe N., Thomas H. & Belachaw A. Mgmt, CBE, Samara University
Page 1
Business Research methods; research process and formulation

At times, the first step determines the nature of the last step to be
undertaken. If subsequent procedures have not been taken into account in
the early stages, serious difficulties may arise which may even prevent the
completion of the study. The various steps involved in a research process are
not mutually exclusive; nor are they separate and distinct.
However, the following order concerning various steps provides a useful
procedural guideline regarding the research process:
(1) Formulating the research problem;
(2) Extensive literature survey;
(3) Developing the hypothesis;
(4) Preparing the research design;
(5) Determining sample design;
(6) Collecting the data;
(7) Execution of the project;
(8) Analysis of data;
(9) Hypothesis testing;
(10) Generalizations and interpretation, and
(11) Preparation of the report or presentation of the results, i.e., formal
write-up of conclusions reached.
2.2 What is research topic/problem?

To do a research, a topic or research problem must be identified. So the first

step in the research process is the choice of suitable problem for
investigations. Problem refers to some difficulty which the researcher
experiences in the context of either a theoretical or practical situation and
wants to obtain a solution for a problem. Generally, a research problem
exists when there is/are:
Usually we say that a research problem does exist if the following conditions
are met with:
(i) There must be an individual (or a group or an organization) to whom the
problem can be attributed. The individual or the organization, as the case
may be, occupies an environment, say which is defined by values of the
uncontrolled variables.
(ii) There must be at least two courses of action to be pursued. A course of
action is defined by one or more values of the controlled variables.
(iii) There must be at least two possible outcomes of the course of action, of
which one should be preferable to the other. In other words, this means that
there must be at least one outcome that the researcher wants, i.e., an
objective.
(iv) The courses of action available must provide some chance of obtaining
the objective, but they cannot provide the same chance, otherwise the

Compiled By Yibabe N., Thomas H. & Belachaw A. Mgmt, CBE, Samara University
Page 2
Business Research methods; research process and formulation

choice would not matter. In simple words, we can say that the choices must
have unequal efficiencies for the desired outcomes.
2.2.1 How to choose a problem
Research is carried out to achieve certain goal. The goal may be solving
current problem, modifying existing knowledge, policy or program or
discovering new knowledge. In all situations a researcher should select a
research problem that enables her / him to conduct research. If there is no
problem, there is no effort to provide solutions.
Having all-rounded knowledge demands no research. The reason to conduct
research is lack of knowledge (the presence of problem to be researched).
Therefore, the first job of the researcher should be identification of the
research problem.
Identification of a problem is not enough to do research. When the
need to select research topic arises, the researcher;
 Should ask him/her self whether the topic requires data and where to
get the data
 Consider data sources, data collection and analysis methods
 What is the research problem and why the researcher is interested for
 Determine Scope and direction of the problem

The technique of defining a problem can be illustrated for better

understanding by taking an example as here under: Suppose a researcher
has selected the following research problem.
“Why is productivity in South Africa so much higher than in
Ethiopia”?
In this form the question has a number of ambiguities such as: What sort of
productivity is being referred to? Labor productivity, capital productivity,
total productivity with what industries the same is related? Manufacturing,
service: what sort of manufacturing/service industries with what period of
time the productivity is being talked about? In view of all such ambiguities
the given statement or the question is much too general to be amenable to
analysis. Rethinking and discussions about the problem may result in
narrowing down the question to:
 What factors were responsible for the higher labor productivity of South
Africa’s manufacturing industries during the decade 1971 to 1980
relative to Ethiopia’s manufacturing industries?
This latter version of the problem is definitely an improvement over its
earlier version. The various ambiguities have been removed to the extent
possible. Further rethinking and rephrasing might place the problem on a still
better operational basis as shown below:
 “To what extent did labor productivity in 1971 to 1980 in South Africa
exceed that of Ethiopia in respect of 15 selected manufacturing

Compiled By Yibabe N., Thomas H. & Belachaw A. Mgmt, CBE, Samara University
Page 3
Business Research methods; research process and formulation

industries? What factors were responsible for the productivity

differentials between the two countries by industries? “
Usually the topics chosen are broad at first. It lacks focus for conducting
research. Therefore, it should be narrowed properly and focused into specific
question. So that the next step is narrow down. Techniques that help us to
narrow a research topic in to research question are:-
 Examining of the past and the present literature
 Discussing the idea with other peoples
 Applying the topic to specific context( specific time period, society
or geographical unit or subgroups of categories )

Research problem should have the following component;

(i) There must be an individual or a group which has some difficulty or the
problem.
(ii) There must be some objective(s) to be attained at. If one wants nothing,
one cannot have a problem.
(iii) There must be alternative means (or the courses of action) for obtaining
the objective(s) one wishes to attain. This means that there must be at least
two means available to a researcher for if he has no choice of means, he
cannot have a problem.
(iv) There must remain some doubt in the mind of a researcher with regard
to the selection of alternatives. This means that research must answer the
question concerning the relative efficiency of the possible alternatives.
(v) There must be some environment(s) to which the difficulty pertains.
Some potential sources of research topic;
Like a plant springs from its own seed, a research topic must spring from the
researcher’s mind. Nevertheless; some important sources which may be
helpful to a researcher for selecting a research problem may be suggested.
 Own professional experience is the most important source.
In addition contacts and discussions with research oriented people, attending
conference, seminars and listening to the learned speakers.
 Inferences from theory and professional literature:
Research reports, bibliographies of books and articles, periodicals, research
abstracts and research guides suggest areas that need research. In general,
preliminary literature source is important in order to find out;
- What other researchers have said about the topic
- Ensure that no one else has exhausted the question that you aim to
examine.
 Technological and social change:
New developments bring forth new development challenges for research.
New innovations and changes need to be carefully evaluated through the
research process.

Compiled By Yibabe N., Thomas H. & Belachaw A. Mgmt, CBE, Samara University
Page 4
Business Research methods; research process and formulation

Some possible helping guides in identifying a research topic

Identify the general area of interest i.e. agriculture, industry,
service etc.
Reexamine course materials
Carefully revisit your professional interest and experience
Some points to be observed when selecting a problem
 Subject which is overdone should be avoided
 Controversial subjects are not recommended to be studied
 Too narrow or too broad or vague problems should be avoided.
 The subject selected should be familiar and feasible. it should be within
the researcher’s reach
 The importance of the subjects
 The qualification and training of the researcher
 The cost involved and the time factor

1. Definition and the Statement of the Problem

The next step is to clearly define the problem in unambiguous manner i.e.
explaining the problem in clear and unambiguous term. A problem clearly
defined is a problem half solved. In this section the researcher;
Elaborates importance of the research problem to the reader. the area
of interest
States the leading questions of the topic/research problem
Gives overall explanation of the research problem
State nature of the problem and rationale to conduct the study

Recommended steps in Defining the research problem

To effectively perform the research process and to clarify the direction of the
research, it is important to elaborate the problem and draft the leading
questions that enable us to limit the research scope and design.
Leading questions are questions derived from the research problem and the
research intends to get solution for them. Solving theses questions implies
getting solution to the research problem
To clearly state the problem it is necessary to,
Read, revise and evaluate previous research findings in the area
Assess how previous researchers conducted the study
What problems occurred while they conduct the research & how they
solved
Evaluate the strong and weak side of these researches
How their weak side can be improved.

Rising and answering such kind of questions can help generate basic ideas
helpful to state our research question/hypothesis. Leading questions can be

Compiled By Yibabe N., Thomas H. & Belachaw A. Mgmt, CBE, Samara University
Page 5
Business Research methods; research process and formulation

presented in the form of descriptive design, correlation design or

explanatory (cause-effect) form.
Rephrasing (stating) the Research Problem
Finally, the researcher must sit to rephrase the research problem into a
working proposition. Once the nature of the problem has been clearly
understood, the environment (within which the problem is to be studied) has
been defined, discussions over the problem have taken place and the
available literature has been surveyed and examined, rephrasing the
problem into analytical or operational terms is not a difficult task. Through
rephrasing, the researcher puts the research problem in as specific terms as
possible so that it may become operationally viable and may help in the
development of working hypotheses.*

* Working hypotheses are a set of suggested tentative solutions of a

research problem which may or may not be the real solutions.
In addition to what has been stated above, the following points must also be
observed while defining a research problem:

(a) Technical terms and words or phrases, with special meanings used in the
statement of the problem, should be clearly defined.
(b) Basic assumptions or postulates (if any) relating to the research problem
should be clearly stated.
(c) A straight forward statement of the value of the investigation (i.e., the
criteria for the selection of the problem) should be provided.
Example 1; Research problem/topic;
Workers’ perception of job insecurity in the case of AP factory

Sample; Statement of the problem for the above research problem

An organization has various kinds of resources used to produce goods and
services. These resources include manpower, materials, finance, and
information. Among these resources man power is the most important.
Because whatever the kind materials, finance and information that an
organization has, it depends on the implementation ability of manpower.
(Keith Sisson, 1989) (Background to the study and limit of the study)
For effective and efficient functioning of human beings in the organization,
they need conducive environment; man power in the organization is affected
by internal and external factors. Internal factors include motives, attitudes,
perception, social interactions, etc. So, this study focuses on one of this
internal factor i.e. perception (elaboration about the importance of the
research).
Job insecurity is global phenomenon. For employees, however, chronic job
insecurity is a major source of stress, disorder and can lead to a lower

Compiled By Yibabe N., Thomas H. & Belachaw A. Mgmt, CBE, Samara University
Page 6
Business Research methods; research process and formulation

performance and productivity (Luis R.G., David and Robert L.C., 2001). Most
workers believe that job security is the most important aspect of their job.
And the security of their job is more important to men than to women.
However, far more of those in full-time permanent jobs through security to
be the most important aspect of a job. It is interesting that those in
seemingly the most secure jobs were most concerned about job security,
with the exception of the unemployed. It could be the case that their position
in full-time permanent jobs has been motivated by this concern, and that
those who are less concerned about job security are happier to be in less
secure jobs. (Shirley Dex and A. McCulloch, 1997)
(Previous research findings agreements and disagreements)
Therefore, AP factory is one of such organizations that require its employee’s
full attention and motivation towards their work. Because of this, this study
tries to see the impact of perceived job insecurity on worker’s behaviour and
performance. In addition to this the study also tries to see the relationship
between individual-level performances with organizational-level
performance.
The problem of this study is to determine the impact of perceived job loss on
the workers behaviour and performance. This study identifies two variables:
Independent variable is perception of job insecurity and dependent variable
is workers behaviour and performance.
The leading key questions to be answered is, the following:
What is the perception of employees towards job security? (Descriptive
design)
Does perceiving of job loss have impact on the behaviour of the workers?
(Explanatory design)
Does the individual level performance linked to organization level performan
ce?
(Correlatonal design)
What is the effect of job insecurity on individual performance (explanatory
design?)
What is the effect of job insecurity on organizational performance
(explanatory design?)
(Leading questions and rationale to conduct the study)

2. Objectives of the study

The next step after the statement of the problem is setting up the
objective; it is the most important task in conducting research. It is here
that the research can exactly determine what data is to be collected.
Thus;

Compiled By Yibabe N., Thomas H. & Belachaw A. Mgmt, CBE, Samara University
Page 7
Business Research methods; research process and formulation

 Set over all objective of the research

 Split the overall objectives in to smaller segments known as specific
objectives
 State the specific objectives clearly and precisely using action verbs
such as to assess, to distinguish, to measure, to identify and to
inspect etc.
3. Research Hypothesis
Definition: Hypothesis or proposition is a tentative intelligent guess
postulating from the purpose of directing the research towards the solution
of the problem. Or it is a statement which predicts the relation between two
or more variables. It is necessary link between theory and investigation,
usually stated after an extensive survey of the literature.
A proposition is a statement about concepts that may be judged as true or
false to observable phenomena. When a proposition is formulated for
empirical testing it is hypothesis. Hypothesis has also been described as
statements in which we assign variable to a case.
Importance of Research Hypothesis:
 It is an indicator of the type of data needed.
 It gives direction to the research objectives
 It gives direction to data gathering techniques(Procedures)
 It facilitates the extension of knowledge because it links theory and
investigation.

The initial hypothesis is called working hypothesis because it is subject to

modifications as the investigation proceeds.(See example of hypothesis in
unit one hand out)
Formulation of Research Hypothesis
Usually it is derived from the deductive logic of the objective under
investigation. A one-to-one correlation might exist between the objective
and their corresponding hypothesis. Thus there could be as many research
hypotheses as there are objectives. There are also objectives that do not
need formulation of hypothesis.
The main approach to develop a working hypothesis includes.
1) Discussions with colleagues and experts about the problem, its origin
and objective in seeking a solution.
2) Examination of data and records concerning the problem if available
3) Review of similar studies in the area of the studies on similar problems
and
4) Exploratory personal investigation which involves original field,
interviews on a limited scale, with interested parties and individuals
with a view to secure greater insight in to the practical aspect of the
problem

Compiled By Yibabe N., Thomas H. & Belachaw A. Mgmt, CBE, Samara University
Page 8
Business Research methods; research process and formulation

Note that a hypothesis can appear in your report on either:

i. Deductive form: makes positive statement about the outcome of the
study. It can come in the form of directional and non-directional way.
 Directional: stipulates the direction of the expected result. E.g.
the performance of young employees is significantly higher than
those who are experienced and old.
 Non-directional: Does not specify the direction of expected
difference or relationship. E.g. there is a difference in
performance of employees who are young and those who are
old and experienced.
ii. Null form: makes a statement that stat no relationship. E.g. there is
no significant difference in the performance of employee between
those who are young and old.
iii. Question form: put the hypothesis in question form. E.g. does the
change in experience of the employees affect the performance of
employees?
iv. Alternative hypothesis: this signifies a statement written opposite
to the null form, i.e. when the final decision is made at a given
significant level if the null hypothesis is to be rejected alternative
hypothesis gets accepted. The alternative hypothesis too on equal
footing along with the null hypothesis provides direction to the
research. E.g. there is significant difference in the performance of
employees between those who are young and old.
Descriptive hypothesis
These are propositions that typically state the existence; size, form or
distribution of some variables.
E.g. American cities (case) are experiencing budget difficulties
(variable)
Eight percent of company “A” stakeholders (case) favors the
company’s cash dividend (variable)
Do a majority of high school educated students aware of
HIV/AIDS.
Descriptive hypothesis has several advantages:
 It encourages researchers to crystallize their thinking about the
likely relationship to be found.
 It further encourages them to think about the implication of
supported or rejected finding.

Relational hypothesis
It is a statement that describes a relationship between two variables with
respect to some case. For example, foreign cars (variable) are perceived by
consumers (case) to be of better quality (variable) than domestic cars.

Compiled By Yibabe N., Thomas H. & Belachaw A. Mgmt, CBE, Samara University
Page 9
Business Research methods; research process and formulation

Correlation hypothesis -States merely that the variables occur together in

some specified manner without implying that one causes the other.
E.g. young employees (under the age of 30) are less productive than those
who are 30 years or older.
Explanatory (causal) hypothesis
There is an implication that the existence of, or a change in one variable
causes or leads to a change in other variable. The causal variable is called
the independent variable (IV) and the other, the dependent variable (DV).
E.g. an increase in family income (IV) leads to an increase in percentage of
income saved (DV). An increase in advertisement (IV) expenditure leads to
an increase in sales of the product (DV).
4. Significance of the study
It is to mean the rationale to conduct the research. The significance or
rationale to take a research may be stated as:

1) There is no detail local investigation before about the problem.

2) The study may be conducted on the assumption that there is a strong
need for local investigation
3) To alert decision makers.
4) To fill the gap in the existing studies.
5) To resolve some inconsistency in previous research
6) The finding may lead to new problem for further study.
7) To provide basic data about the problem
5. Delimitation of the study

It is also known as the scope of the study. In many research projects,

researchers can not treat all aspects of the research topic/problem. The
researcher, there for, should carefully state the boundary of the problem to
be investigated. This will be undertaken by specifying areas of all variables
which will be considered in the study or by eliminating all aspects and factors
which will not be considered in the study.
Operational Definition (glossary of terms).
It is a list of words or phrases (terms or concepts). It is important to define all
unusual terms and concepts that should be misinterpreted (misunderstood).
The technical terms, words, or phrases having special meaning should be
defined operationally.
Limitation of the study:

Compiled By Yibabe N., Thomas H. & Belachaw A. Mgmt, CBE, Samara University
Page 10
Business Research methods; research process and formulation

It refers to problems encountered during the research process and their

effect on the quality of the research output, for instance time and finance
limitations.
Review of related literature
Secondary sources of information are useful in exploratory research. The
search may involve conceptual literature, trade literature or published
statistics. The literature that is searched depends on the problem being
addressed. In a literature search, the major emphasis is on the discovery of
ideas and tentative explanations of the phenomenon.
In most cases, the exploration phase will begins with a literature search-a
review of books as well as articles in journals or professional literature that
relate to the problem. A literature search requires the use of library’s online
catalogue and one or more bibliographic databases or indexes. Other
reference materials will be incorporated in search strategy.
Importance
1. Help to know whether the problem has been studied or not. Is the
problem new?
2. To identify research gaps, controversies and the like.
3. To avoid unintentional duplication of well investigated problems
4. To get basis for formulating hypothesis
5. To know about the recommendations of the previous research

Compiled By Yibabe N., Thomas H. & Belachaw A. Mgmt, CBE, Samara University
Page 11