RESEARCH

METHODOLOGY
(Business Research Methods)

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 1

 Editing and Coding Data
 Editing is the process of checking data for errors such as
omissions, illegibility and inconsistency, and correcting
data where and when the need arises

 Example 1: A questionnaire meant to be answered by

adults over the age of 30 years has also been answered
by some persons under the age of 30 years

 Example 2: A respondent gives her birthday as 1865 or

claims to have a car insurance but says she doesn‘t own
a car

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 2

 Field Editing and In-House Editing
 Field Editing is a prelimary form of data editing
which is undertaken by the field supervisor on
the day of the interview with a view to finding
omissions, checking the legibility of handwriting,
and clarifying responses by respondents that are
logically or conceptually inconsistent

 In-House Editing is a form of data editing which

is more rigorous than field editing in nature, and
which is performed by a centralized office staff

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 3

Data Consistency and Completeness
 The data obtained from a questionnaire must be logically
consistent, especially when questions are related

 Sometimes inconsistency of data may not be readily

apparent. In this case, the data editor must judge what
action to take (example: Salary of the CEO of a big
corporation is given as USD 25,000 per annum)

 Circumstances permitting, the data editor may have to

insert data if answers to questions have been omitted by
the respondent, but which can be answered on the basis
of the other data obtained (example: respondent does
not answer a question asking if his organization has a
website, but somewhere later answers that the
organization has three websites)

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 4

Non-Responses and Out-Of-Order
Answers
 Often, questions are left unanswered by
respondents (Item Non-Response). In such
cases, where data must be inserted, the data
editor has some options such as using a „plug
value“ according to some prespecified rule

 Sometimes respondents give answers to (open-

ended) questions in other questions. In such
cases, data has to be shifted around the
questions
Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 5
Some Observations on Editing
 Editing of data should, deally, be done wih a coloured
pencil and the original data must not be erased in case it
is required for future reference

 Data editing should be conducted systematically on the

basis of procedures made by professionals

 Data editing should be included in the pretest phase of a

questionnaire, in order to improve the quality of a
questionnaire

 Data editing has drawbacks, such as, the editor does not
possess the required level of intelligence, experience
and objectivity

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 6

 Data Coding
 Data Coding follows data editing and is the
means by which data can be converted into a
format that enables its processing and analysis
by the computer

 Data Coding incorporates a number of technical

steps and can be a tedious proceess

 For details of data coding process, refer to your

text book pp. 457 ff.

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 7

 Research Report, Presentation,
Follow-Up
 The research report is the crucial means for communicating the
whole project to those individuals or entities who or which
commissioned the research

 A research report may be in writing, verbal, or a combination of both

 It is essential that great effort is put into writing a good research

report because it is often the only part of the research cycle that end
users get to see!

 A great research based on a well-conceived approach will go to

waste if the research report leaves a bad impression on the end
users of that research

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 8

 Communicating the Research
Report
 The business researcher should carefully
consider how he or she is going to communicate
the information to the end user

 The business researcher should take pains to

ensure that he/she and the research end-user
are at the same communicational level, i.e., that
the terminology used in the report is
understandable and that the end-user is
presented with all the information neded to make
an informed decision
Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 9
 Research Report Templates
 There is no universally applied template
for writing a research report, rather, there
is a general consensus on what
constitutes a good research report

 Many organizations have designed their

own in-house formats for reports and
specified what aspects must be included

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 10

Research Report Design Template

Research Report

Prefatory Main Appended

Parts Body Parts

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 11

Research Report Components (1)
PREFATORY PARTS

Title Page Summary

Letter of Objectives
Transmittal
Results
Letter of
Authorization Conclusions

Table of Recommendations
Contents

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 12

 Research Report Components (2)
MAIN BODY

Introduction Results Limitations

Area 1
Methodology Conclusions
and
Area 2 Recommen-
dations

Final Area

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 13

Research Report Components (3)
APPENDED PARTS

Data Collection
Forms

Detailed
Calculations

General Tables

Bibliography

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 14

Graphic Aids in Research Reports
 In research reports, several types of graphical
components may be used, including, for example: tables,
charts and graphs in their diverse manifestations,
diagrams, maps, photographic or computer-generated
images, sketches etc.

 Graphical components are a useful supplement to – but

not a substitute for – written text because they can
convey a lot of information and are visually appealing,
particularly if they are in colour

 Software programmes like MS Excel make the task of

creating graphics from raw data easy and quick

 See text book examples, pp. 506 ff.

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 15
 Oral Presentations (1)
 Oral presentations are a useful supplement to written
research reports because they enable the salient
findings of the research to be presented at any time, and
they give listeners the opportunity to raise questions and
clarify any ambiguous issues or points

 The researcher giving the oral presentation must be very

well prepared to defend the results of his or her written
report in a confident and competent manner so that the
individuals who will be making decisions on the basis of
the report are convinced of its importance and accuracy

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 16

 Oral Presentations (2)
 The researcher should try to maintain good
communication with the listeners by avoiding excessive
technical jargon if and when dealing with persons from
other disciplines

 The researcher should avoid simply reading out text,

maintain eye contact with his or her listeners, and
gesture occasionaly

 Multimedia aids can be considered as can posters or

handouts

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 17

 Research Follow-Up Work
 After the research has been completed, and
information submitted to the manager or
decision-makers concerned, follow-up work may
be necessary

 Follow-up includes recontacting the managers or

decision-makers concerned and asking them if
the research has met their informational
requirements, or whether additional input is or
may be needed

Course Instructor: Dr. Aurangzeb Z. Khan 18