A. What is research? Research = the process of finding solutions to a problem after a thorough study and analysis (Sekaran, 2006). Research = systematic inquiry that provides information to guide decision (Cooper & Schindler, 2001) Is research always problem solving based? Yes!! B. Types of research There are two types of research: i. Applied research To solve a particular problem faced by a particular organization. Examples: o Proton wants to know why Perodua is gaining market share in Malaysia. o How would imposing a new IT based performance appraisal system affect employee satisfaction at UTM. o How international students perceived service quality of PSZ Basic research To better understand some phenomena as it applies to all industries/business in general. Examples o Does brand image affect the buying decision? o How does technological turbulence affect business performance? o Does job stress affect the job performance and job satisfaction? To differentiate applied research and basic research Sekaran (2006) states, Research done with the intention of applying the result of the finding to solve specific problem currently being experienced in the organization is called applied research. Research done chiefly to enhance the understanding of certain problem that commonly occur in organization setting, and seek method of solving them is called basic or pure research. (p.8) The aims of applied research and basic research: Applied research: Solving current problem
Basic research: Generating knowledge, understanding of phenomena/problems that occur in various organization setting. C. A model of Scientific Inquiry (Salkind, 2003) Asking the question / Asking new questions observing the phenomena Identifying the important factors Refinement of theory or Implementation Formulating the hypothesis Working with the hypothesis Hypothesis Testing Collecting data Example : 1. Asking the questions / observing the phenomena Reports from RMK8 (8 th Malaysia Plan), RMK9 (9 th Malaysia Plan) & mainstream newspapers reveal that the level of technology transfer in public university R&D is still low. The Malaysian government have introduces some measures and initiatives to boost the R&D activities by developing policies and allocating special budgets and grants. However the results of R&D activities are not as expected. WHY?
Questions: Why technology transfer is low? What factors contribute to it? 2. Identifying the important factors and develop your research framework One the question has been asked, the next step is to identity the factors that have to be examined to answer the question. HOW???? Read, read, read (Literature Review) Ask from the expert or authorized persons/party(ies) For example, based on your reading, the following list of factors has been investigated over the past 15 years by various researchers: Factors that influence the research productivity or R&D results: i. Seniority (Author A, 2001; Author C, 1999; Author D, 2004) Gender (Author A, 2001; Author B, 1998; Author F, 1996) i Academic discipline (Author C, 1999; Author A, 2001; Author D, 2004) iv. Academic qualification (Author C, 1999; Author D, 2004) v. Research Management Practices (Author E, 2008) And these are only several factors that could be explored. There will be more factors that could be explored. There are two options : First Of all the five factors, which one should be selected as a focus? It is better to choose the one which have not investigated thoroughly before. This will contribute to the new findings and to the understanding of the question you are asking. Second Choose the factors that not investigated before (in your context of study) but you believe it can help you to understand the phenomena (Phd Level). This will totally contribute to the new findings and solve the problem under study.
Then you can pose a series of research question, such as: i. Does seniority influence technology transfer? Does gender influence technology transfer? i Do academic disciplines influence technology transfer? iv. Do academic qualifications influence technology transfer? v. Do research management practices influence technology transfer? For instance, based on your reading (literature review), there are thorough discussion on the issues of seniority, gender, academic discipline & academic qualification. Moreover the answer for those issues has been established and consistent over researchers. So there is no point to investigate further (it have been proven), unless you want to challenge the status quo. If you still looking for the answer whether the seniority, gender, academic discipline & academic qualification influences the technology transfer, most probably your findings would not contribute to the new knowledge. Why? It is just because everybody knows that those factors influence the technology transfer. No need to do research, the answers are on the shelf!! So there is no new things!! Meaning that, no contribution!!! So you should look for NEW things. For example, based on your literature review, there is only one research done (too few) on the influence of research management practices on technology transfer. So this is the GAP and focus on this issue!! Why? There is still no solid agreements on to what extent do the research management practices influence technology transfer. The findings of the previous research still debatable. Not become a solid theory yet. It has to be tested (through replication study). You may support or against the previous finding. Your study will contribute to the process t of theory development. Your study will enrich the literature since the discussion on this issue is limited. Finalize your research framework i.e: Research Management Practices Technology transfer
In addition, find out the theory that can support your framework: RBV theory? System Theory? Contingency Theory Ect. 3. Formulating the hypothesis What is hypothesis? An educated guess!! (Salkind, 2003) The tentative explanation for the problem (waiting to be approved) (Cooper & Schindler, 2001) Hypothesis should conceive a clear relationship between different factors. Example: If the question is Do research management practices influence technology transfer? then the hypothesis could be: Research management practices are positively influence the level of technology transfer. Other examples of research question lead to hypothesis Research Questions Does advertising influence sales? Does flexible schedule create increased labor efficiency? Does price affect product quality rating? Is gender related to job performance? Hypothesis Advertising is positively related to sales. Business unit using flex time have lower unit costs than do those using standard schedule procedures Customer rate high price product as higher quality than low price product Male employees perform better than female employees. 4. Collecting data
Once a hypothesis is formulated, then we proceed for data collection. The empirical data will confirm or oppose the hypothesis. For instance, you might collect two types of data to test the hypothesis Research management practices are positively influence the level of technology transfer The first is research management practices The second is technology transfer 5. Testing the hypothesis In hypothesis testing, an important point is you only to test them, not to prove them. Trying to prove a hypothesis can place you in the position of biasing (Salkind, 2003). Types of testing procedure: i. Parametric Analysis (i.e T test, Anova, Regression) Non Parametric Analysis (i.e Chi Square, Kruskall Wallis, Man Whitney) In scientific research, there is no wrong or right finding. If the result of the testing does not support the hypothesis, do not worry its only means that: There are additional questions question to ask such as: o What are the other factors that can influence the technology transfer? How about attitude? How about personality? How about culture? 6. Working with the hypothesis The result may confirm or oppose the hypothesis If the result confirms the hypothesis, then the importance of factors that were hypothesized to be related to technology transfer will be accepted. Discuss the finding and relate it with literature review. If the result not confirms the hypothesis, it is a time for looking something that was not known before!! Example... It could be other factors that explain the technology transfer instead of research management practices. 7. Refinement of theory or Implementation For pure or basic research, we have to consider for theory refinement (PhD)
For applied research, we can standardize the solution for implementation. D. The Thought Process: Induction & Deduction. Induction is a process of establishing a general proposition (hypothesis) based on observed fact. To induce is to draw conclusion form one (or more) particular fact. The conclusion explains the facts. Example: i. Fact (phenomena) Sales did not increase during or after promotional campaign! i Question Why? Based on the experience, we know that: a. Sales should go up during promotional campaign. b. If promotion is poorly executed, sales will not increase. iv. So, based on the experience, we made the conclusion that the sales do not increase because the promotion was poorly executed!!. HOWEVER, please remember the conclusion is only a hypothesis. It might be true, it might be not. Cooper & Schindler (2001) put a clear explanation on this. According to Cooper & Schindler (2001) The inductive conclusion is an inferential jump beyond the evidence presented. (p.35) To confirm the conclusion, we have to test the hypothesis Deduction process Deduction is a process of arriving conclusion by logical generalization of a known fact (Sekaran, 2006). Example:
Our past experiences and the previous studies have shown that, there is a strong relationship between sales and promotion. Meaning that, a well execute promotion will increase sales (this is the known fact or hypothesis) Its involve hypothesis testing!!! Example (Cooper & Schindler, 2001) Phenomena / Fact : We promote a product but sales do not increase Induction WHY Hypothesis: Deduction*: The promotion was poorly executed Ineffective promotion will not increase sales **Based on the deduction process, we can have other options to state hypothesis to show relationship, i.e. i. There is a positive relationship between promotion and sales, or.. i The more effective the promotion, the higher the sales, or.. The less effective the promotion, the lower the sales
E. Understanding term: Concept, Construct, Element/item, and Variables CONCEPT CONSTRUCT CONSTRUCT CONSTRUCT ITEMS
VARIABLES: Four main types 1. Dependent variable (Criterion variable) 2. Independent variable (predictor variable) 3. Moderating variable 4. Intervening (mediating) variable Dependent Variable (DV) i. It is the primary interest to the researcher. The researcher s goal is to understand & describe the dependent variable Independent Variable (IV) i. It is the one that influence the dependent variable.. the predictor.. the explanatory variable. IV: Research management Practices DV: Technology Transfer
Moderating Variable i. The presence of a third variable modifies the original relationship between IV and DV. Answer the issue of when or who IV DV Moderating Variable Mediating Variable I. It is the one that surface between the time the independent variable start operating to influence the dependent variable. II. It help us to understand HOW Workforce diversity Creative Synergy Organizational Effectiveness IV mediating variable DV
PART II: SELECTING A PROBLEM AND REVIEWING THE RESEARCH A. Selecting a problem The selection of the area you want to study is important for two reasons: i. It takes your time and energy so be sure that the area you select interests you. The area selection is the first step in the research process. Select problem which suit to your interest + it is researchable B. Ideas, Ideas, Ideas!!! No ideas? No issues to investigate? i. Use the results of previous studies to fine tune your research ideas and hypothesis. i iv. Use your personal experience as an important source of ideas then keep on reading to see the link between your experience and possible research topic. Look for a research question that reflects the next step in the research process. Example: A, B, and C have already been done but how about D? If D is not done or clearly discover, then look for D START READING!!! C. Reviewing the literature Research is built on the foundation of the hard work of past researchers. To see the results of previous research look to journals, books and online resources The review of literature provides a framework for research proposal. The comprehensive review of the literature helps you to see what has been done and what next. There are basically three types of sources that you will use in your literature review:
Information source What it does Example General Sources Provides an overview of the topic and provides lead to where more information can be found Daily newspapers, popular periodical magazine (Malaysian business, The Edge, Times) Secondary sources Provides a level of information once remove from the original work Books Primary sources The original reports of the original work or experience Journals, abstracts Writing the literature review i. For the start, read other literature reviews Just to get the feeling!! i iv. Create a unified theme. Organize your material according to topics or date (to provide historical perspective) Work from an outline or template. v. Practice write, write, write from day 1. References: Cooper, D. R., & Schindler, P. S. (2001). Business research method. New York: McGraw Hill. Salkind, N. J. (2003). Exploring research. New Jersey: Pearson Education. Sekaran, U. (2006). Research methods for business: A skill building approach. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.