Marketing Research: An Applied

Orientation
Seventh Edition

Chapter 5
Exploratory Research
Design: Qualitative
Research

Copyright © 2019, 2010, 2007 by Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
 5-2

Chapter Outline (1 of 4)

1) Overview
2) Primary Data: Qualitative Versus Quantitative
Research
3) Rationale for Using Qualitative Research
Procedures
4) A Classification of Qualitative Research Procedures
5) Focus Group (FG) Interviews
i. Characteristics
ii. Planning and Conducting Focus Groups
iii. Telesessions and Other Variations
iv. Advantages and Disadvantages of Focus
Groups
v. Applications of Focus Groups
 5-3

Chapter Outline (2 of 4)

vi. Online Focus Group Interviews

vii. Advantages and Disadvantages of Online FGs

6) Depth Interviews
i. Characteristics
ii. Techniques
iii. Advantages and Disadvantages of Depth
Interviews
iv. Applications of Depth Interviews
7) Projective Techniques
i. Association Techniques
ii. Completion Techniques
a. Sentence Completion
 5-4

Chapter Outline (3 of 4)

b. Story Completion
iii. Construction Techniques
a. Picture Response
b. Cartoon Tests
iv. Expressive Techniques
a. Role Playing
b. Third-Person Technique
v. Advantages and Disadvantages of Projective
Techniques
vi. Applications of Projective Techniques
8) Analysis of Qualitative Data
9) International Marketing Research
 5-5

Chapter Outline (4 of 4)

10) Marketing Research & Social Media

11) Mobile Marketing Research
12) Ethics in Marketing Research
13) Summary
 A Classification of Marketing Research 5-6

Data
Fig. 5.1
Marketing Research Data

Secondary Data Primary Data

Qualitative Data Quantitative Data

Descriptive Causal

Survey Observational Experiment

Data and Other al Data
 5-7
Primary Data: Qualitative Versus Quantitative
Research

 Qualitative research: is an unstructured, exploratory

research methodology based on small samples that
provides insights and understanding of the problem
setting
 Quantitative research: a research methodology that
seeks to quantify the data and, typically, applies some
form of statistical analysis
 Both types of research are viewed as complementary
rather that in competition with each other
 Often, once a research problem is addressed, we begin
with some form of qualitative exploratory research to
clearly identify the research problem, then we proceed
to a more formal quantitative research.
 See next slide …
 Qualitative vs. Quantitative 5-8

Research
Table 5.1

Qualitative Research Quantitative Research

Objective To gain a qualitative To quantify the data and

understanding of the generalize the results
underlying reasons and from the sample to the
motivations population of interest

Sample Small number of non- Large number of

representative cases representative cases

Data Unstructured Structured

Collection
Non-statistical Statistical
Data Analysis
Develop an initial Recommend a final
Outcome understanding course of action
 Rationale for using qualitative 5-9

research
 As explained earlier, the main objective of using
qualitative research is to develop an understanding to a
research problem.
 In addition, the use of qualitative research can be
justified (as the main method of data collection) on other
grounds, such as:
 People may be unwilling or unable to answer certain

questions, or even talk about some sensitive issues.

 People may not be able to provide accurate answers

to questions that tap their subconscious, such as the

emotional drive to purchase a certain product.
 In all the above cases, the information can best be
obtained through a qualitative research.
 5-10
A Classification of Qualitative Research
Procedures
Fig. 5.2
Qualitative Research
Procedures

Direct (Non Indirect

disguised) (Disguised)

Projective
Depth Interviews Techniques
Focus Groups

Associatio Completio Construction Expressive

n n Techniques Technique
Technique Technique s
 5-11

Definitions of concepts
 Direct qualitative research approach (non-
disguised): is a type of qualitative research in which
the purpose of research is disclosed (revealed) to
respondents approach.

 Indirect qualitative research approach

(disguised): is a type of qualitative research in which
the purpose of research is disguised from respondents
(i.e. all projective techniques are disguised).

 Focus Group Interview: is an interview conducted

by a trained moderator among a small group of
respondents in an unstructured and natural manner.
 5-12

Characteristics of Focus Groups

Table 5.2

Group Size 8-12

Group Composition Homogeneous,

respondents,
prescreened

Physical Setting Relaxed, informal atmosphere

Time Duration 1-3 hours

Recording Use of audiocassettes and

videotapes

Moderator skills Observational,

interpersonal, and
 5-13
Key Qualifications of Focus Group
Moderators
1. Kindness with firmness: The moderator must combine a disciplined
detachment of kindness and firmness with understanding empathy so
as to generate the necessary interaction among the group.

2. Permissiveness: The moderator must be permissive yet alert to

signs
that the group’s cordiality or purpose is disintegrating.

3. Involvement: The moderator must encourage and stimulate intense

personal involvement and participation.

4. Incomplete understanding: The moderator must encourage

respondents to be more specific about generalized comments by
exhibiting incomplete understanding.

5. Encouragement: The moderator must encourage unresponsive

members to participate.

6. Flexibility: The moderator must be able to take the discussion

anywhere within the bounds of the subject.

7. Sensitivity: The moderator must be sensitive enough to guide the

group discussion toward the desired ideas within the subject matter.
 5-14
Procedure for Planning and Conducting Focus
Groups
Fig. 5.3

Determine the Objectives and Define the Problem

Specify the Objectives of Qualitative

Research
State the Objectives/Questions to be Answered by Focus
Groups
Write a Screening Questionnaire

Develop a Moderator’s Outline

Conduct the Focus Group Interviews

Review Tapes and Analyze the Data

Summarize the Findings and Plan Follow-Up Research or

Action
 5-15

Variations in Focus Groups

1. Two-way focus group. This allows one target
group to listen to and learn from a related group. For
example, a focus group of physiotherapists viewed a
focus group of patients discussing the treatment
they desired. Then a focus group of these
physiotherapists is held to discus this subject.

2. Dual-moderator group. A focus group conducted

by two moderators: One moderator is responsible
for the smooth flow of the session, and the other
ensures that specific issues are discussed.

3. Dueling-moderator group. There are two

moderators, but they deliberately take opposite
positions on the issues to be discussed.
 Variations in Focus Groups 5-16

(cont’d)
4. Respondent-moderator group. The moderator
asks selected participants to play the role of
moderator temporarily to improve group dynamics.

5. Client-participant groups. Client personnel are

identified and made part of the discussion group.

6. Mini groups. These groups consist of a moderator

and only 4 or 5 respondents.

7. Tele-session groups. Focus group sessions by

phone using the conference call technique.

8. Online Focus groups. Focus groups conducted

online over the Internet.
 5-17

Advantages of Focus Groups

1. Synergism (i.e. people together can come up with creative ideas)
2. Snowballing (i.e. one comment could trigger many ideas)
3. Stimulation (i.e. encouraging atmosphere to participate)
4. Security (i.e. more comfortable feeling to express ideas)
5. Spontaneity (i.e. ideas come spontaneously)
6. Serendipity (ideas arise out of the blues - accidental discoveries)
7. Specialization (i.e. people learn from the fine skills of moderator)
8. Scientific scrutiny (i.e. scientific way of collecting data)
9. Structure (i.e. ideas and concepts are structured within a subject)
10. Speed (i.e. speed of collecting huge data in one session)
 5-18

Disadvantages of Focus Groups

1. Misuse: (i.e. misusing and abusing results by
considering them as conclusive, not exploratory)
2. Misjudge: (i.e. results can be easily misjudged as
they are susceptible to biases)
3. Moderation: (i.e. effective moderation depends
on high skills of moderators, which are rare in reality
in many cases)
4. Messy: (i.e. the unstructured nature of responses
makes coding, analysis, and interpretation difficult)
5. Misrepresentation: (i.e. results of focus group
may not be really representative of the general
population, and thus not projectable. Therefore, they
should not be the sole source of data. It is only
exploratory.
 Online Versus Traditional Focus Groups (1 of 3): Table
5-19

5.3

Characteristic Online Focus Groups Traditional Focus

Groups
Group size 4 to 6 participants 8 to 12 participants
Group composition Anywhere in the world Drawn from the local area
Time duration 1 to 1.5 hours 1 to 3 hours
Physical setting Researcher has little Under the control of the
control researcher

Respondent identity Difficult to verify Can be easily verified

Respondent Respondents can engage Attentiveness can be
attentiveness in other tasks monitored

Respondent recruiting Easier. Can be recruited Recruited by traditional

online, by email, by panel, means (telephone, mail,
or by traditional means mail panel)

Group dynamics Limited Synergistic, snowballing

(bandwagon) effect
 5-20
Online Versus Traditional Focus Groups (2 of 3):
Table 5.3

Characteristic Online Focus Groups Traditional Focus Groups

Openness of Respondents are more Respondents are candid,
respondents candid due to lack of except for sensitive topics
face-to-face contact
Nonverbal Body language cannot be Easy to observe body
communication observed language and emotions
Emotions expressed by
using symbols
Use of physical stimuli Limited to those that can A variety of stimuli
be displayed on the (products, advertising,
Internet demonstrations, and so on)
can be used
Transcripts Available immediately Time-consuming and
expensive to obtain

Observers’ Observers can Observers can manually

communication with communicate with the send notes to the focus-
moderator moderator on a split- group room
screen
 5-21
Online Versus Traditional Focus Groups (3 of 3):
Table 5.3

Characteristic Online Focus Groups Traditional Focus Groups

Unique moderator Typing, computer usage, Observational

skills familiarity with chat-room
slang

Turnaround time Can be set up and Takes many days for setup
completed in a few days and completion

Client travel costs None Can be expensive

Client involvement Limited High

Basic focus-group Much less expensive More expensive due to

costs facility rental, food,
video/audio taping, and
transcript preparation
Advantages of Online Focus 5-22

Groups
 Geographical constraints are removed and
time constraints are lessened.
 Unique opportunity to re-contact group
participants at a later date.
 Can recruit people not interested in
traditional focus groups: doctors, lawyers,
etc.
 Moderators can carry on side
conversations with individual respondents.
 There is no travel, videotaping, or facilities
to arrange so the cost is much lower.
Disadvantages of Online Focus 5-23

Groups
 Only people that have access to the
Internet can participate.
 Verifying that a respondent is a member
of a target group is difficult.
 There is lack of general control over the
respondent's environment.
 Only audio and visual stimuli can be
tested. Products can not be touched
(e.g., clothing) or smelled (e.g.,
perfumes).
 5-24

Depth Interviews
 Depth Interview: is an unstructured, direct, personal
interview in which a single respondent is interviewed by
an interviewer to uncover underlying motivations,
beliefs, attitudes, or opinions on a topic.

 It could take 30 minutes to more than an hour.

 There are three main techniques for depth interviews:

1. laddering
2. hidden issue questioning
3. Symbolic analysis

See next slides…

 Depth Interview Techniques: 5-25

Laddering
 In laddering, the line of questioning proceeds from product
characteristics to user characteristics.
 This technique allows the researcher to tap into the
consumer's network of meanings.

 Example:
Wide body aircrafts (product characteristic)

I can get more work done (user characteristic)

I accomplish more (user characteristic)

I feel good about myself (user characteristic)

Advertising theme: You will feel good about yourself when

flying our Airline. “You're The Boss.”
 Depth Interview: Hidden Issue 5-26

Questioning

In hidden issue
questioning, the focus is
not on socially shared values
but rather on personal “sore
spots;” not on general
lifestyles but on deeply felt
personal concerns.

fantasies, work lives, and social lives

↓
historic, elite, competitive activities
Advertising theme: communicate aggressiveness,
high status, and competitive heritage of the airline.
Depth Interview Techniques:
5-27

Symbolic Analysis
 Symbolic analysis attempts to analyze the symbolic
meaning of objects by comparing them with their opposites.
 The logical opposites of a product that are investigated may
include: non-usage of the product, attributes of an
imaginary, and opposite types of products.

“What would it be like if you could no longer use airplanes?”

“Without planes, I would have to rely on letters and long

distance calls.”

Airlines sell to the managers face-to-face communication.

Advertising theme: The airline will do the same thing for a

manager as Federal Express does for a package.
 5-28
Advantages and disadvantages of Depth
interviews

Advantages:
 Uncover greater depth of insights
 Responses are attributed directly to respondents
 Free exchange of information in the absence of group
pressure
Disadvantages:
 Skilled interviewers are expensive and difficult to
find
 Because of lack of structure, results are susceptible
to interviewer’s influence (i.e. an interviewer can
influence the discussion and take it any where)
 Data obtained is difficult to analyze and interpret
 Due to interview length and cost, number of
interviews will be small
 Uses of depth interviews: 5-29
they are used in special problem situations
requiring:

1. Detailed probing of respondents

2. Data on sensitive or embarrassing topics
3. Data on consumption where strong social norms
exist that could be influenced by group responses
4. Data on complicated buying behavior (i.e. buying
cars)
5. Data on professional people
6. Data on competitors, who may not reveal
information in a group setting
7. Situations, where product consumption is sensory
in nature (i.e. perfumes, gifts, personal jewelries)
 Focus Groups Versus Depth Interviews (1 of 2) 5-30

Table 5.4

Characteristic Focus Groups Depth

Interviews

Group synergy and dynamics + −

Peer pressure/group influence − +

Client involvement + −

Generation of innovative ideas + −

In-depth probing of individuals − +

Uncovering hidden motives − +

Discussion of sensitive topics − +

 5-31
Focus Groups Versus Depth Interviews (1 of 2) Table
5.4

Characteristic Focus Depth

Groups Interviews
Interviewing respondents who are − +
competitors
Interviewing respondents who are − +
professionals
Scheduling of respondents − +
Amount of information + −
Bias in moderation and + −
interpretation
Cost per respondent + −
Time (interviewing and analysis) + −
Note: A + indicates a relative advantage over the other procedure, a
− indicates a relative disadvantage.
 Definition of Projective 5-32

Techniques
 An unstructured, indirect form of questioning that
encourages respondents to project their
underlying motivations, beliefs, attitudes or
feelings regarding the issues of concern.
 In projective techniques, respondents are asked
to interpret the behavior of others.
 In interpreting the behavior of others, respondents
indirectly project (reveal) their own motivations,
beliefs, attitudes, or feelings into the situation.
 projective techniques can be classified as:
1) Associations, 2) Completion, 3) Construction, and
4) Expressive.
 5-33

Word Association
 In word association, respondents are presented with a
list of words, one at a time and asked to respond to
each with the first word that comes to mind.
 The words of interest, called test words, are mixed
with the list which also contains some neutral, or filler
words to disguise the purpose of the study.
 Responses are analyzed by calculating:
(1) the frequency with which any word is given as a
response;
(2) the amount of time that elapses before a response
is given; and
(3) the number of respondents who do not respond at all
to a test word within a reasonable period of time.
 5-34

Word Association
EXAMPLE
STIMULUS MRS. M MRS. C
washday everyday ironing
fresh sweet clean
pure air white
scrub efforts clean
filth this neighborhood dirt
bubbles bath soap and water
family squabbles (fights) children
towels dirty wash
 5-35

Completion Techniques
In Sentence completion, respondents are given incomplete
sentences and asked to complete them. Generally, they are
asked to use the first word or phrase that comes to mind.

A person who shops at Mecca Mall is __________________

A person who receives a tip or gift from customers would be

______

Safeway is most liked by _________________________

When I think of shopping in a department store, I ________

A variation of sentence completion is paragraph completion,

in which the respondent completes a paragraph beginning
with the stimulus phrase.
 5-36

Completion Techniques
 In story completion, respondents are given
part of a story – enough to direct attention to a
particular topic, but not to hint at the ending.
 They are required to give the conclusion to the
story in their own words.
 5-37

Construction Techniques
 In a picture response, respondents are given
a series of pictures, and asked to describe these
pictures (pictures contain ordinary as well as
unusual events). The respondent's
interpretation of the pictures gives indications
about that individual's personality.

 In cartoon tests, cartoon characters are shown

in a specific situation related to the problem.
The respondents are asked to indicate what one
cartoon character might say in response to the
comments of another character.
 Cartoon tests are simpler to administer and
analyze than picture response techniques.
 5-38

A Cartoon Test
Figure 5.4

Sears

Let’s see if we
can pick up
some house
wares at Sears
 5-39

Expressive Techniques
 In expressive techniques, respondents are
presented with a verbal or visual situation and
asked to relate the feelings and attitudes of
other people to the situation (what other people
might comment on the situation).

 The two main expressive techniques are:

1. In Role playing, respondents are asked to play the
role or assume the behavior of someone else.

2. In Third-person technique, the respondent is

presented with a verbal or visual situation and the
respondent is asked to relate the beliefs and attitudes
of a third person rather than directly expressing
personal beliefs and attitudes. This third person may
be a friend, neighbor, colleague, or a “typical” person.
Advantages of Projective 5-40

Techniques
 They may elicit responses that
subjects would be unwilling or unable
to reveal if they knew the purpose of
the study.

 Helpful when the issues to be

addressed are personal, sensitive, or
subject to strong social norms.

 Helpful when underlying motivations,

beliefs, and attitudes are operating at
a subconscious level.
Disadvantages of Projective 5-41

Techniques
 Require highly trained
interviewers.
 Skilled interpreters are also
required to analyze the responses.
 There is a serious risk of
interpretation bias.
 They tend to be expensive.
 May require respondents to
engage in unusual behavior.
Guidelines for Using Projective 5-42

Techniques
 Projective techniques should be
used because the required
information cannot be accurately
obtained by direct methods.
 Projective techniques should be
used for exploratory research to gain
initial insights and understanding.
 Given their complexity, projective
techniques should not be used
naively.
 5-43
Comparison of Focus Groups, Depth Interviews,
and Projective Techniques
Table 5.3

Criteria Focus Depth Projective

Groups Interviews Techniques
1. Degree of Structure Relatively high Relatively Relatively low
2. Probing of individual Low medium Medium
respondents High
3. Moderator bias Relatively Low to high
4. Interpretation bias medium Relatively high Relatively high
5. Uncovering Relatively low High
subconscious Low Relatively
information medium Medium
6. Discovering to high Low
innovative High
information High
7. Obtaining sensitive Low Medium
information Yes
8. Involve unusual No
behavior or Medium Somewhat
questioning Highly useful useful
 5-44

Analysis of Qualitative Data (1 of 2)

1) Data reduction – Select which aspects of the

data are to be emphasized, minimized, or set
aside for the project at hand.
2) Data display – Develop a visual
interpretation of the data with the use of such
tools as a diagram, chart, or matrix. The
display helps to illuminate patterns and
interrelationships in the data.
3) Conclusion drawing and verification –
Consider the meaning of analyzed data and
assess its implications for the research
question at hand.
 5-45

Analysis of Qualitative Data (2 of 2)

Responden (a) Past (b) Most (c) Why

t: Communications Effective
A  Email  Email  News is
communicated in
almost “real time”
Blank  Informal interchanges Blank Blank
 Telephone Blank Blank
B  Email  Email  Easy to keep a
record of the
news for future
reference
Blank  Student newspaper  Campus Web Blank
page
Blank  Campus Web page Blank
C  Informal interchanges  Campus mail  Work on campus
Blank  Telephone Blank  Not an Email
person
Blank  Campus mail Blank Blank