Business research : a practical guide for undergraduate & postgraduate students / Jill Collis & Roger Hussey.

By:

Collis, Jill

Contributor(s):

Hussey, Roger

Material type: Text

TextPublication details: Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire ; New York, NY : Palgrave Macmillan, 2014.Edition: Fourth editionDescription: xxiii, 351 pages : illustrations ; 24 cmISBN:

9780230301832 (pbk.)

Subject(s):

Business -- Research -- Methodology

DDC classification:

650.072 COL

Holdings
Item type	Current library	Call number	Copy number	Status	Date due	Barcode
Standard Loan	Moylish Library Main Collection	650.072 COL (Browse shelf(Opens below))	1	Available		39002100659425

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Now in its fourth edition, this is a hands-on and straightforward core textbook in business research methods. Combining a clear and succinct style with a beautifully presented text design, this textbook delivers the fundamentals of business research in a highly accessible manner. It provides balanced coverage of both quantitative and qualitative methods and supports students throughout the entire process of business research, from reviewing the literature to writing up results. Practical advice is combined with strong academic rigour to provide students with a comprehensive grounding in research methods. In this way, they can decide on the most efficient and appropriate way of collecting, analysing and presenting data.Written by a highly experienced author team, Business Research will be an essential resource for students taking modules in research methods on undergraduate, postgraduate and MBA courses. The user-friendliness of the book also makes it highly suitable for independent study. New to this Edition:- Revised and restructured content to provide detailed, balanced coverage of both quantitative and qualitative methods- New vox pop feature brings theory to life, sharing the experiences of student researchers- Expanded discussion of research ethics to reflect contemporary concerns and practices

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

List of Figures (p. xi)
List of Tables (p. xiii)
List of Boxes (p. xv)
About the Authors (p. xvii)
Preface to the Fourth Edition (p. xviii)
Acknowledgements (p. xx)
Tour of the Book (p. xxii)
1 Understanding Research (p. 1)
1.1 Introduction (p. 2)
1.2 Nature and purpose of business research (p. 2)
1.3 Classifying research (p. 3)
1.4 Academic levels of research (p. 8)
1.5 Overview of the research process (p. 9)
1.6 Supervision (p. 12)
1.7 Managing the project (p. 16)
1.8 Conclusions (p. 19)
References (p. 19)
Activities (p. 20)
2 dealing with practical issues (p. 21)
2.1 Introduction (p. 22)
2.2 Knowledge, skills and personal qualities (p. 22)
2.3 Generating a research topic (p. 25)
2.4 Negotiating access (p. 28)
2.5 Research ethics (p. 30)
2.6 Planning and project management (p. 35)
2.7 Funding the research (p. 38)
2.8 Conclusions (p. 40)
References (p. 40)
Activities (p. 41)
3 identifying your paradigm (p. 42)
3.1 Introduction (p. 43)
3.2 The two main paradigms (p. 43)
3.3 Assumptions of positivism and interpretivism (p. 46)
3.4 Comparing positivism and interpretivism (p. 50)
3.5 Pragmatism (p. 54)
3.6 Conclusions (p. 55)
References (p. 56)
Activities (p. 57)
4 designing the research (p. 58)
4.1 Introduction (p. 59)
4.2 Link between paradigm and methodology (p. 59)
4.3 Methodologies associated with positivism (p. 60)
4.4 Methodologies associated with interpretivism (p. 64)
4.5 Triangulation and mixed methods (p. 71)
4.6 Conclusions (p. 72)
References (p. 72)
Activities (p. 74)
5 searching and reviewing the literature (p. 75)
5.1 Introduction (p. 76)
5.2 Searching the literature (p. 76)
5.3 Referencing (p. 83)
5.4 Reviewing the literature (p. 87)
5.5 Avoiding plagiarism (p. 92)
5.6 Conclusions (p. 93)
References (p. 94)
Activities (p. 95)
6 writing your research proposal (p. 96)
6.1 Introduction (p. 97)
6.2 Overview of research design (p. 97)
6.3 The research problem (p. 98)
6.4 Purpose of the research (p. 101)
6.5 The research questions (p. 103)
6.6 Writing the research proposal (p. 107)
6.7 Evaluating your proposal (p. 113)
6.8 Conclusions (p. 115)
References (p. 116)
Activities (p. 117)
Appendix - Examples of business research proposals (p. 118)
7 collecting qualitative data (p. 129)
7.1 Introduction (p. 130)
7.2 Main issues in collecting qualitative data (p. 130)
7.3 Interviews (p. 133)
7.4 Critical incident technique (p. 139)
7.5 Focus groups (p. 141)
7.6 Protocol analysis (p. 144)
7.7 Diary methods (p. 146)
7.8 Observation (p. 148)
7.9 Conclusions (p. 150)
References (p. 151)
Activities (p. 152)
8 analysing qualitative data (p. 153)
8.1 Introduction (p. 154)
8.2 Main issues in analysing qualitative data (p. 154)
8.3 General analytical procedure (p. 157)
8.4 Content analysis (p. 166)
8.5 Discourse analysis (p. 169)
8.6 Evaluating your analysis (p. 172)
8.7 Conclusions (p. 173)
References (p. 173)
Activities (p. 174)
9 integrated collection and analysis methods (p. 176)
9.1 Introduction (p. 177)
9.2 Grounded theory (p. 177)
9.3 Repertory grid technique (p. 185)
9.4 Cognitive mapping (p. 188)
9.5 Conclusions (p. 192)
References (p. 192)
Activities (p. 193)
10 collecting data for statistical analysis (p. 195)
10.1 Introduction (p. 196)
10.2 Main issues in collecting data for statistical analysis (p. 196)
10.3 Variables (p. 201)
10.4 Data collection methods (p. 204)
10.5 Designing questions (p. 210)
10.6 Coding questions (p. 219)
10.7 Conclusions (p. 221)
References (p. 222)
Activities (p. 223)
11 analysing data using descriptive statistics (p. 225)
11.1 Introduction (p. 226)
11.2 Key concepts in statistics (p. 226)
11.3 Getting started with SPSS (p. 227)
11.4 Frequency distributions (p. 235)
11.5 Measuring central tendency (p. 244)
11.6 Measuring dispersion (p. 248)
11.7 Normal distribution (p. 251)
11.8 Conclusions (p. 256)
References (p. 257)
Activities (p. 257)
12 analysing data using inferential statistics (p. 258)
12.1 Introduction (p. 259)
12.2 Planning the analysis (p. 259)
12.3 Tests of difference (p. 262)
12.4 Tests of association (p. 265)
12.5 Correlation (p. 270)
12.6 Factor analysis (p. 276)
12.7 Linear regression (p. 281)
12.8 Time series analysis (p. 287)
12.9 Conclusions (p. 295)
References (p. 296)
Activities (p. 296)
13 writing up the research (p. 297)
13.1 Introduction (p. 298)
13.2 Planning (p. 298)
13.3 Structure and content (p. 303)
13.4 Presenting qualitative and quantitative data (p. 310)
13.5 General standards (p. 315)
13.6 Conference papers and articles (p. 318)
13.7 Conclusions (p. 328)
References (p. 329)
Activities (p. 330)
14 troubleshooting (p. 331)
14.1 Introduction (p. 332)
14.2 Getting started (p. 332)
14.3 Managing the process (p. 333)
14.4 Identifying a topic and/or a research problem or issue (p. 333)
14.5 Making a preliminary plan of action (p. 333)
14.6 Finding a theoretical framework (p. 334)
14.7 Writing the proposal (p. 334)
14.8 Deciding the methodology (p. 335)
14.9 Searching and reviewing the literature (p. 335)
14.10 Collecting research data (p. 336)
14.11 Organizing qualitative research data (p. 336)
14.12 Analysing the research data (p. 336)
14.13 Structuring the dissertation or thesis (p. 337)
14.14 Writing the dissertation or thesis (p. 337)
14.15 Dealing with writer's block (p. 338)
14.16 Achieving the standards (p. 338)
14.17 Eleventh-hour strategies for writing up (p. 339)
Glossary (p. 340)
Appendix: Random Number Table (p. 346)
Index (p. 347)

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Jill Collis is a Reader in accounting and Director of the Accounting and Auditing Research Centre at Brunei University, London, UK.
Roger Hussey is Emeritus Professor at the University of the West of England, UK and the University of Windsor, Canada.