Chapter 17 · Research Methods for Business Report Format •Chapter 5, Discussion and Recommendation –Introduction –Discussion on Findings –Contributions of the Study

Research Methods for Business

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Chapter 17

The Research Report

© 2012 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. www.wiley.com/college/sekaran


The Written Report

• The key purpose of any research report is to offer a clear description of what has been done in the various stages of the research process.

• Important to identify the specific purpose of the report, so that it can be tailored accordingly.

• Examples– Simple descriptive report– Comprehensive report, offering alternative solutions



Presentation of Results

• Results of the study and recommendations to solve the problem have to be effectively communicated to the sponsor, so that suggestions made are accepted and implemented.

• Contents and organization of written report and oral presentation depend on the purpose of the research study, and the audience to which it is targeted.



Characteristics of a Well-Written Report

• Clarity

• Conciseness

• Coherence

• The right emphasis on important aspects

• Meaningful organization of paragraphs

• Smooth transition from one topic to the next

• Apt choice of words

• Specificity



Contents of Research Report

• Title

• Executive summary or abstract

• Table of contents

• List of Tables, Figures, and Other Materials

• Preface

• Authorization Letter

• The introductory section

• The body of the report

• The final part of the report

• References

• Appendix



Report Format• Normally, 5 chapters• Chapter 1, introduction

– Introduction – Research Background – Problem Statement – Conceptual Framework – Research Objectives – Research Questions – Scope of Study – Significance of Study – Limitations of Study– Operational Definitions– Outline of Chapters


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Report Format

• Chapter 2, Literature Reviews

– Introduction

– Literature 1

– Literature 2

– etc

– Summary of chapter


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Report Format• Chapter 3, Research Methodology

– Introduction

– Research Design

– Purpose of the Study

– Time Dimension of Study

– Research Design Strategies

– Unit of Analysis

– Location of Study

– Population and Sampling

– Data Collection


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Report Format

– Administration of Questionnaire

– Questionnaire Design

– Measurement of Variables

– Pilot Study

– Goodness of Measure

– Reliability

– Validity


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Report Format– Normality Test

– Method of Data Analysis

– Descriptive Test

– Factor Analysis

– One-sample T-test

– Correlation Test

– Multiple Linear Regression Test

– Summary of Chapter


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Report Format• Chapter 4, Findings

– Introduction – Data Cleaning and Screening– Demographic Analysis – Factor Analysis – Level of Firm’s Absorption Capability and Technology Transfer – Performance – Correlation Analysis – Multiple Linear Regression Analysis – Compliance Test for Multiple Linear Regression Analysis – Normality – Linearity – Auto-correlation among variables – Multicollinearity– Homoscedasticity – Absence of outliers– Adequate sample size – Significantly Predicting Attributes Test


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Report Format• Chapter 5, Discussion and Recommendation

– Introduction – Discussion on Findings – Contributions of the Study – Theoretical Contribution – Managerial Contribution – Recommendations for Future Research – Comparative Studies with other similar case– Use of Structural Equation Modelling – Development of Dimension for Firm’s Absorption – Capability Attributes and Technology Transfer – Performance – Conclusion


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Report Format

• References

– Article from journal

– Article from newspaper

– Thesis

– Article from conferences

– Books

– Unpublished materials


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• SUPERVISOR’S DECLARATION

• STUDENT’S DECLARATION

• DEDICATION

• ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

• ABSTRACT (BI) & ABSTRAK (BM)

• TABLE OF CONTENTS

• LIST OF TABLES

• LIST OF FIGURES

• LIST OF APPENDICES

• LIST OF SYMBOLS

• LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

• CHAPTER 1, etc


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Documents

Chapter 17 · Research Methods for Business Report Format •Chapter 5, Discussion and Recommendation –Introduction –Discussion on Findings –Contributions of the Study