The Research Process: The broad problem area and defining the
problem statement
1
Chapter Objectives1. 2. 3.
4. 5. 6.
Discuss how problem areas can be identified. State research
problems clearly and precisely. Explain how primary and secondary
data help the researcher to develop a problem statement. Develop
relevant and comprehensive bibliographies for any research topic.
Write a literature review on any given topic. Develop a research
proposal.2
Broad Problem Area
1.
The broad problem area refers to the entire situation where one
sees a possible need for research and problem solving. Such issues
might pertain to: Problems currently existing in an organizational
setting that need to be solved. 3
Broad Problem Area2.
3.
4.
Areas that a manager believes needs to be improved in the
organization. A conceptual or theoretical issue that needs to be
tightened up for the basic researcher to understand certain
phenomena. Some research questions that a basic researcher wants to
answer empirically.4
Examples of Broad Problem Areas that Could be Observed at the
Work Place
Training programs are perhaps not as effective as anticipated.
The sales volume of a product is not picking up. Inventory control
is not effective Some members in organization are not advancing in
their careers. The introduction of flexible work hours has created
more problems than it has solved in many companies.5
Preliminary Data Collection
1.
2.
The nature of data to be gathered could be classified under
three headings: Background information of the organization (the
contextual factors). Prevailing knowledge on the topic (relevant
findings from previous research).
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Preliminary Data Collection
The background details of the company can be obtained from
available published records, the web site of the company. Company
policies, procedures, and rules can be obtained from the
organizations records and documents. Data gathered through such
existing sources are called secondary data. 7
Preliminary Data Collection
Secondary data, are data that already
exist and do not have to be collected by the researcher. Some
secondary sources of data are statistical bulletins, government
publications, information published or unpublished and available
from either within or outside the organization, library records,
data available from previous research, online data, web sites, and
the Internet.8
Preliminary Data Collection
Other types of information such as the perceptions and attitudes
of employees are best obtained by talking to them; by observing
events, people, and objects; or by administering questionnaires to
individuals. Such data gathered for research from the actual site
of occurrence of events are called primary data.9
Prevailing knowledge on the topic
A literature review should help the researcher to identify and
highlight the important variables that are related to the
problem.
10
Literature Survey
Literature survey is the
documentation of a comprehensive review of the published and
unpublished work from secondary sources of data in the areas of
specific interest to the researcher.
11
Literature Survey
The library is a rich storage base for secondary data through
books, journals, newspapers, magazines, conference proceedings,
doctoral dissertations, masters theses, government publications,
and financial marketing, and other reports.12
Literature Survey
The computerized databases is now readily available and
accessible, which makes the literature search much easier, and can
be done without entering the portals of a library building.
13
Reasons for the Literature Survey1.
2.
3.
Helps to find the important variables that are likely to
influence the problem situation are not left out of the study.
Helps the development of the theoretical framework and hypotheses
for testing. The problem statement can be made with precision and
clarity.14
Data Sources
Textbooks Academic and professional journals Theses: phD theses
and Master theses. Conference proceedings Unpublished manuscripts
Reports Newspapers The internet15
Searching for literature
1.
There are three forms of databases: The bibliographic databases,
which display only the bibliographic citations, that is, the name
of the author, the title of the article (book), source of
publication, year, volume, and page numbers.16
Searching for Literature2.
3.
The abstract databases, which in addition provide an abstract or
summary of the articles. The full-text databases, which provide the
full text of the article. Databases are also available for
obtaining statistics- marketing, financial, and so on.
17
Preliminary Data Collection
Secondary data, are data that already
exist and do not have to be collected by the researcher. Some
secondary sources of data are statistical bulletins, government
publications, information published or unpublished and available
from either within or outside the organization, library records,
data available from previous research, online data, web sites, and
the Internet.18
Preliminary Data Collection
Other types of information such as the perceptions and attitudes
of employees are best obtained by talking to them; by observing
events, people, and objects; or by administering questionnaires to
individuals. Such data gathered for research from the actual site
of occurrence of events are called primary data.19
Writing Up the Literature Review
The documentation of the relevant studies citing the author and
the year of the study is called literature review or literature
survey. The literature survey is a clear and logical presentation
of the relevant research work done thus far in the area of
investigation.20
Writing Up the Literature Review
The purpose of the literature survey is: To identify and
highlight the important variables. To document the significant
findings from earlier research that will serve as the foundation on
which the theoretical framework for the current investigation can
be built and the hypotheses developed.21
Defining the Problem Statement
After the literature review, the researcher is in position to
narrow down the problem from its original broad base and define the
issues of concern more clearly.
22
What makes a good problem statement? The problem statement
introduces the key problem that is addressed in the research
project. Problem statement is a clear, precise, and short statement
of the specific issue that a researcher wishes to
investigate.23
The three key criteria for problem statement
There are three key criteria to assess the quality of the
problem statement:1. It should be relevant 2. It should be feasible
3. It should be interesting
24
From an academic perspective, research is relevant if:1. 2.
3.
4.
Nothing is known about the topic. Much is known about the topic,
but the knowledge is scattered. Much research on the topic is
available, but the results are contradictory. Established
relationships do not hold in certain situations.25
A problem statement is feasible
If you are able to answer the problem statement within the
restrictions of the research project. These restrictions are
possibly related to time and money and the expertise of the
researcher (a problem statement may be too difficult to answer).
Thus, it is important that you develop a narrowly defined question
that can be investigated with a reasonably amount of time and
efforts.26
The problem statement is interesting
Because research is a timeconsuming process and you will go
through many ups and downs before you present a final version of
your research report. It is therefore vital that you are interested
in the problem statement that you are trying to answer, so you can
stay motivated throughout the entire process.27
Examples of broad problem areas that a manager could observe at
the workplace:
Training programs are not as effective as anticipated. The sales
volume of a product is not picking up. Minority group members are
not advancing in their careers. The newly installed information
system is not being used by the managers for whom it was primarily
designed. The introduction of flexible work hours has created more
problems than it has solved in many
companies.
28
Examples of Well-Defined Problem Statements
To what extent do the structure of the organization and type of
information systems installed account for the variance in the
perceived effectiveness of managerial decision making? To what
extent has the new advertising campaign been successful in creating
the high-quality, customer-centered corporate image that it was
intended to produce? How has the new packaging affected the sales
of the product? What are the effects of downsizing on the
long-range growth patterns of companies?
29
Example
While Chryslers minivans, pickups, and sports utilities take a
big share at the truck market, its cars trail behind those of
General Motors, Ford, Honda, and Toyota. Quality problems include,
among other things water leaks and defective parts ( Business Week,
No.10, 2007).30
Example-cont.1. Identify the broad problem area. 2. Define the
problem? 3. Explain how you would proceed further.
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Answers1. The broad problem is that the Chrysler cars are
lagging in market share. 2. The problem statement: How can the
market share of Chrysler cars be improved?
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The research proposal contains the following:
Key elements:
Purpose of the study Specific problem to be investigated. Scope
of the study Relevance of the study Research design:
Sampling design Data collection methods Data analysis
Time frame Budget Selected Bibliography33
Visit the following websites
Intel http://www.intel.com Microsoft
http://www.microsoft.com
write a paragraph on each of these companies.
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