ASSIGNMENT

Name S.AMEER ABBAS

Roll No. 520955311

Course MBA-Semester-3
Research
Subject
Methodology
Subject Code MB0034-Set-1
1.What do you mean by research? Explain its significance in social
and business sciences?

Research simply means a search for facts –answers to questions and

solutions to problems. It is a purposive investigation. It is an organized
inquiry. It seeks to find explanations to unexplained phenomenon to clarify
the doubtful facts and to correct the misconceived facts.

The search for facts may be made through either:

• Arbitrary (of unscientific) Method: It’s a method of seeking answers
to question consists of imagination, opinion, blind belief or
impression. E.g. it was believed that the shape of the earth was
flat; a big snake swallows sun or moon causing solar or lunar
eclipse. It is subjective; the finding will vary from person to person
depending on his impression or imagination. It is vague and
inaccurate. Or

• Scientific Method: this is a systematic rational approach to seeking

facts. It eliminates the drawbacks of the arbitrary method. It is
 objectives, precise and arrives at conclusions on the basis of
verifiable evidences.

Characteristics of Research
• It is a systematic and critical investigation into a phenomenon.

• It is a purposive investigation aiming at describing, interpreting and

explain a phenomenon.

• It adopts scientific method.

• It is objective and logical, applying possible test to validate the

measuring tools and the conclusions reached.

• Its is based upon observable experience or empirical evidence.

• Research is directed towards finding answers to pertinent questions

and solutions to problems

• It emphasized the development of generalization, principles of

theories.

• The purpose of research is not only to arrive at an answer but also

to stand up the test of criticism.

Significance of Research
According to a famous Hudson Maxim, “All progress in born of inquiry Doubt
is often better than over confidence, for it leads to inquiry, and inquiry leads
to invention”. It brings out the significance of research, increased amounts
of which makes progress possible. Research encourages scientific and
inductive thinking , besides promoting the development of logical habits of
thinking and organization.

The role of research in applied economics in the context of an economy or

business is greatly increasing in modern times. The increasingly complex
nature government and business has raised the use of researching solving
operational problems. Research assumes significant role in provides the basis
for almost all government policies of an economic system. Government
budget formulation, for example, depends particularity on the analysis of
needs and desires of the people, and the availability of revenues, which
requires research. Research helps to formulate alternative policies, in
addition to examining the consequences of these alternatives. Thus, research
also facilitates the decision making of policy –makers, although in itself it is
not a part of research. In the process. Research also helps in the proper
allocation of country’s scare resources. Research is also necessary for
collecting information on the social and economic structure on an economy to
understand the process of change occurring in involves various research
problems. Therefore, large staff of research technicians or experts is engaged
by the government these days to undertake this work. Thus, research as a
tool of government economic policy formulation involves three distinct stages
of operation which are as follows:
• Investigation of economic structure through continual compilation
of facts

• Diagnoses of events the are taking place and the analysis of the
forces underlying them, and

• The prognosis. i.e., the prediction of future developments.

Research also assumes a significant role in solving various operational and

planning problems associated with business and industry. In several ways,
operations research, market research, and motivational research are vital
and their results assist in taking business decisions. Market research is refers
to the investigation of the structure and development of a market for the
formulation of efficient policies relating to purchases, production and sales.
Operational research relates to the application of logical, mathematical, and
analytical techniques to find solution to business problems such as cost
minimization or profit maximization, or the optimization problems.
Motivational research helps to determine why people believe in the manner
they do with respect to market characteristics. More specifically, it is
concerned with the analyzing the motivations underlying consumer behavior.
All these researches are very useful for business and industry, which are
responsible for business decision making.
Research is equally important to social scientist for analyzing social
relationships and seeking explanations to various social problems. It gives
intellectual satisfaction of knowing things for the sake of knowledge. It also
possesses practical utility for the social scientist to gain knowledge so as to
be able to do something better or in a more efficient manner. This, research
in social sciences is concerned with both knowledge for its own sake, and
knowledge for what it can contribute to solve practical problems.

2. What is meant by research problem? What are the characteristics

of a good research problem?

Research really begins when the researcher experiences some

difficulty, i.e., a problem demanding a solution within the subject –are of his
discipline. Theis general area of interest, however, defines only the range of
subject matter within which the researcher whould see and pose a specific
problem for research. Personal values play an important role in the selection
of a topic for research. Social conditions do often shape the preference of
investigators in the subtle and imperceptible way.

Choosing the Problem:

The selection of a problem is the first step in research. The term problem
means a question or issue to be examined. The selection of problem for
research is not an easy task; it self is a problem. It is least amenable to
formal methodological treatment. Vision, an imaginative insight, plays an
important role in this process. One with a critical, curious and imaginative
mind and is sensitive to practical problems could easily identify problems for
study.
The sources from which one may be able to identify research problem or
develop problems awareness are:

• Review of literature

• Academic experience

• Daily experience

• Exposure to field situations

• Consultations

• Brain storming

• Research

• Intuition

Characteristics of a good research problem:

Horton and Hunt have given following characteristics of scientific research:

1. Verifiable evidence: That is factual observations which other observers

can see and check.

2. Accuracy: That is describing what really exists. It means truth or

correctness of a statement or describing things exactly as they are and
avoiding jumping to unwarranted conclusions either by exaggeration or
fantasizing.

3. Precision: That is making it as exact as necessary, or giving exact

number or measurement. This avoids colourful literature and vague
meanings.
4. Systematization: That is attempting to find all the relevant data, or
collecting data in a systematic and organized way so that the conclusions
drawn are reliable. Data based on casual recollections are generally
incomplete and give unreliable judgments and conclusions.

5. Objectivity: That is free being from all biases and vested interests. It
means observation is unaffected by the observer’s values, beliefs and
preferences to the extent possible and he is able to see and accept facts as
they are, not as he might wish them to be.

6. Recording: That is jotting down complete details as quickly as possible.

Since human memory is fallible, all data collected are recorded.

7. Controlling conditions: That is controlling all variables except one and

then attempting to examine what happens when that variable is varied. This
is the basic technique in all scientific experimentation – allowing one variable
to vary while holding all other variables constant.

8. Training investigators: That is imparting necessary knowledge to

investigators to make them understand what to look for, how to interpret in
and avoid inaccurate data collection.

3.What is hypothesis? Explain the procedures for testing hypothesis?

A hypothesis is an assumption about relations between variables. It is

a tentative explanation of the research problem or a guess about the
research outcome.
Before starting the research, the researcher has a rather general,
diffused, even confused notion of the problem. It may take long time for the
researcher to say what questions be had been seeking answers to.
 Hence, an adequate statement about the research problem is very
important. What is a good problem statement? It is an interrogative
statement that asks: what relationship exists between two or more
variables? It then further asks questions like: Is A related to B or not? How
are A and B related to C? Is A related to B under conditions X and Y?
Proposing a statement pertaining to relationship between A and B is called a
hypothesis.

According to Theodorson and Theodorson, “ a hypothesis is a tentative

statement asserting a relationship between certain facts. Kerlinger
describes it as “a conjectural statement of the relationship between
two or more variables”. Black and Champion have described it as “a
tentative statement about something, the validity of which is usually
unknown”. This statement is intended to be tested empirically and is
either verified or rejected. It the statement is not sufficiently
.established, it is not considered a scientific law
In other works, a hypothesis carries clear implications for
testing the stated relationship, i.e., it contains variables that are
measurable and specifying how they are related. A statement that
lacks variables or that does not explain how the variables are related
.to each other is no hypothesis in scientific sense

Procedures for testing hypothesis:

To test a hypothesis means to tell (on the basis of the data researcher has
collected) whether or not the hypothesis seems to be valid.
In hypothesis testing the main question is: whether the null hypothesis or
not to accept the null hypothesis? Procedure for hypothesis testing refers to
all those steps that we undertake for making a choice between the two
actions i.e., rejection and acceptance of a null hypothesis. The various steps
involved in hypothesis testing are stated below:
1 Making a Formal Statement
The step consists in making a formal statement of the null hypothesis (Ho)
and also of the alternative hypothesis (Ha). This means that hypothesis
should clearly state, considering the nature of the research problem. For
instance, Mr. Mohan of the Civil Engineering Department wants to test the
load bearing capacity of an old bridge which must be more than 10 tons, in
that case he can state his hypothesis as under:
Null hypothesis HO: μ =10 tons
Alternative hypothesis Ha: μ >10 tons
Take another example. The average score in an aptitude test administered at
the national level is 80. To evaluate a state’s education system, the average
score of 100 of the state’s students selected on the random basis was 75.
The state wants to know if there is a significance difference between the local
scores and the national scores. In such a situation the hypothesis may be
state as under:
Null hypothesis HO: μ =80
Alternative hypothesis Ha: μ ≠ 80
The formulation of hypothesis is an important step which must be
accomplished with due care in accordance with the object and nature of the
problem under consideration. It also indicates whether we should use a tailed
test or a two tailed test. If Ha is of the type greater than, we use alone tailed
test, but when Ha is of the type “whether greater or smaller” then we use a
two-tailed test.

2. Selecting a Significant Level

The hypothesis is tested on a pre-determined level of significance and such
the same should have specified. Generally, in practice, either 5% level or 1%
level is adopted for the purpose. The factors that affect the level of
significance are:
1 .The magnitude of the difference between sample ;
2. The size of the sample;
3. The variability of measurements within samples;
Whether the hypothesis is directional or non – directional (A directional
hypothesis is one which predicts the direction of the difference between, say,
means). In brief, the level of significance must be adequate in the context of
the purpose and nature of enquiry.
3. Deciding the Distribution to Use
After deciding the level of significance, the next step in hypothesis testing is
to determine the appropriate sampling distribution. The choice generally
remains between distribution and the t distribution. The rules for selecting
the correct distribution are similar to those which we have stated earlier in
the context of estimation.
4. Selecting A Random Sample & Computing An Appropriate Value
Another step is to select a random sample(S) and compute an appropriate
value from the sample data concerning the test statistic utilizing the relevant
distribution. In other words, draw a sample to furnish empirical data.
5. Calculation of the Probability
One has then to calculate the probability that the sample result would
diverge as widely as it has from expectations, if the null hypothesis were
in fact true.
6 .Comparing the Probability
Yet another step consists in comparing the probability thus calculated with
the specified value for α, the significance level. If the calculated probability is
equal to smaller than α value in case of one tailed test (and α/2 in case of
two-tailed test), then reject the null hypothesis (i.e. accept the alternative
hypothesis), but if the probability is greater then accept the null hypothesis.
Selecting A Random Sample & Computing An Appropriate
In case we reject H0 we run a risk of (at most level of significance)
committing an error of type I, but if we accept H0, then we run some risk of
committing error type II.

4.Write an essay on the need for research design and explain the
principles of experimental designs:
 Hypothesis-testing research studies (generally known as experimental
studies) are those where the researcher tests the hypothesis of causal
relationships between variables. Such studies require procedures that will not
only reduce bias and increase reliability, but will permit drawing inferences
about causality. Usually, experiments meet these requirements. Hence, when
we talk of research design in such studies, we often mean the design of
experiments.

Experimental design refers to the framework or structure of an experiment

and as such there are several experimental designs. We can classify
experimental designs into two broad categories, viz., informal experimental
designs and formal experimental designs. Informal experimental designs are
those designs that normally use a less sophisticated form of analysis based
on differences in magnitudes, where as formal experimental designs offer
relatively more control and use precise statistical procedures for analysis.

Informal experimental designs:

• Before and after without control design: In such a design, single test
group or area is selected and the dependent variable is measured before the
introduction of the treatment. The treatment is then introduced and the
dependent variable is measured again after the treatment has been
introduced. The effect of the treatment would be equal to the level of the
phenomenon after the treatment minus the level of the phenomenon before
the treatment.
• After only with control design: In this design, two groups or areas (test
and control area) are selected and the treatment is introduced into the test
area only. The dependent variable is then measured in both the areas at the
same time. Treatment impact is assessed by subtracting the value of the
dependent variable in the control area from its value in the test area.
• Before and after with control design: In this design two areas are
selected and the dependent variable is measured in both the areas for an
identical time-period before the treatment. The treatment is then introduced
into the test area only, and the dependent variable is measured in both for
an identical time-period after the introduction of the treatment. The
treatment effect is determined by subtracting the change in the dependent
variable in the control area from the change in the dependent variable in test
area.

Formal Experimental Designs

1. Completely randomized design (CR design): It involves only two
principle viz., the principle of replication and randomization. It is generally
used when experimental areas happen to be homogenous. Technically, when
all the variations due to uncontrolled extraneous factors are included under
the heading of chance variation, we refer to the design of experiment as C R
Design.
2. Randomized block design (RB design): It is an improvement over the
C Research design. In the RB design the principle of local control can be
applied along with the other two principles.
3. Latin square design (LS design): It is used in agricultural research. The
treatments in a LS design are so allocated among the plots that no treatment
occurs more than once in any row or column.
4. Factorial design: It is used in experiments where the effects of varying
more than one factor are to be determined. They are especially important in
several economic and social phenomena where usually a large number of
factors affect a particular problem

5.Distinguish between primary and secondary data collection. Explain

the features, uses , advantages and limitations of secondary data.
Which is the best way of collecting the data for research “primary or
secondary”. Support your answer.
Primary Sources of Data
Primary sources are original sources form which the researcher directly
collects data that have not been previously collected e.g.., collection of data
directly by the researcher on brand awareness, brand preference, brand
loyalty and other aspects of consumer behavior from a sample of consumers
by interviewing them,. Primary data are first hand information collected
through various methods such as observation, interviewing, mailing etc.

The search for answers to research questions is called collection of data.

Data are facts, and other relevant materials, past and present, serving as
bases for study and analyses. The data needed for a social science research
may be broadly classified into (a) Data pertaining to human beings, (b) Data
relating to organization and (c) Data pertaining to territorial areas.

Secondary Sources of Data

These are sources containing data which have been collected and compiled
for another purpose. The secondary sources consists of readily compendia
and already compiled statistical statements and reports whose data may be
used by researchers for their studies e.g., census reports , annual reports
and financial statements of companies, Statistical statement, Reports of
Government Departments, Annual reports of currency and finance published
by the Reserve Bank of India, Statistical statements relating to Co-operatives
and Regional Banks, published by the NABARD, Reports of the National
sample survey Organization, Reports of trade associations, publications of
international organizations such as UNO, IMF, World Bank, ILO, WHO, etc.,
Trade and Financial journals newspapers etc
Secondary sources consist of not only published records and reports, but also
unpublished records. The latter category includes various records and
registers maintained by the firms and organizations, e.g., accounting and
financial records, personnel records, register of members, minutes of
meetings, inventory records etc.

Features of Secondary Sources

Though secondary sources are diverse and consist of all sorts of materials,
they have certain common characteristics.
First, they are readymade and readily available, and do not require the
trouble of constructing tools and administering them.
Second, they consist of data which a researcher has no original control
over collection and classification. Both the form and the content of secondary
sources are shaped by others. Clearly, this is a feature which can limit the
research value of secondary sources.
Finally, secondary sources are not limited in time and space. That is,
the researcher using them need not have been present when and where they
were gathered.

Advantages of Secondary Data :

Secondary data, if available can be secured quickly and cheaply. Once
their source of documents and reports are located, collection of data is just
matter of desk work. Even the tediousness of copying the data from the
source can now be avoided, thanks to Xeroxing facilities.
Wider geographical area and longer reference period may be covered without
much cost. Thus, the use of secondary data extends the researcher’s space
and time reach.
The use of secondary data broadens the data base from which
scientific generalizations can be made.
Environmental and cultural settings are required for the study.
The use of secondary data enables a researcher to verify the findings
bases on primary data. It readily meets the need for additional empirical
support. The researcher need not wait the time when additional primary data
can be collected.
Disadvantages of Secondary Data
The most important limitation is the available data may not meet our
specific needs. The definitions adopted by those who collected those data
may be different; units of measure may not match; and time periods may
also be different.
The available data may not be as accurate as desired. To assess their
accuracy we need to know how the data were collected.
The secondary data are not up-to-date and become obsolete when
they appear in print, because of time lag in producing them. For example,
population census data are published tow or three years later after
compilation, and no new figures will be available for another ten years.

Finally, information about the whereabouts of sources may not be

available to all social scientists. Even if the location of the source is known,
the accessibility depends primarily on proximity. For example, most of the
unpublished official records and compilations are located in the capital city,
and they are not within the easy reach of researchers based in far off places.

The best way of collecting data is “SECONDARY” this is because the

secondary sources consists of readily compendia and already complied
statistical statements and reports. Finally secondary sources are not limited
in time and space, that is, the researched using them need not have been
present when and where they were gathered. Secondary data, if available
can be secured quickly and cheaply. Wider geographical area and longer
reference period may be covered without much cost. Thus, the use of
secondary data extends the researcher’s space and time reach. The use of
secondary data broadens the data base from which scientific generalizations
can be made.

6.Describe the interview method of collecting data. State the

conditions under which it is considered most suitable. You have been
assigned to conduct a survey on the reading habits of the house
wives in the middle class family. Design a suitable questionnaire
consisting of 20 questions you propose to use in the survey.

Interview method of collecting data:

Interviewing is one of the prominent methods of data collection. It
may be defined as a two way systematic conversation between an
investigator and an informant, initiated for obtaining information relevant to
a specific study. It involves not only conversation, but also learning from the
respondent’s gesture, facial expressions and pauses, and his environment.
Interviewing requires face to face contact or contact over telephone and
calls for interviewing skills. It is done by using a structured schedule or an
unstructured guide.
Interviewing may be used either as a main method or as a
supplementary one in studies of persons. Interviewing is the only suitable
method for gathering information from illiterate roles educated respondents.
It is useful for collecting a wide range of data from factual demographic data
to highly personal and intimate information relating to a person’s opinions,
attitudes, values, beliefs past experience and future intentions. When
qualitative information is required or probing is necessary to draw out fully,
and then interviewing is required. Where the area covered for the survey is a
compact, or when a sufficient number of qualified interviewers are available,
personal interview is feasible.
Interview is often superior to other data –gathering methods. People
are usually more willing to talk than to write. Once report is established,
even confidential information may be obtained. It permits probing into the
context and reasons for answers to questions.
Interview can add flesh to statistical information. It enables the
investigator to grasp the behavioral context of the data furnished by the
respondents.

Qualities of Interviews
The requirements or conditions necessary for a successful interview are:

Data availability: the needed information should be available with the

respondent. He should be able to conceptualize it in terms to the study, and
be capable or communicating it.

Role perception: the respondent should understand his role and know what is
required of him. He should know what is a relevant and how complete it
should be he can learn much of this from the interviewer’s introduction,
explanations and questioning procedure.

The interviewer should also know his role: he should establish a permissive
atmosphere and encourage frank and free conversation, he should not affect
the interview situation through subjective attitude and argumentation.

Respondent’s motivation : the respondent should be willing to respond and

give accurate answer. This depends partly on the interviewer’s approach and
skill. The interview has interest in it for the purpose of his research, but the
respondent has no personal interest in it. Therefore, the interviewer should
establish a friendly relationship with the respondent, and create in him an
interest in the subject –matter of the study. The interviewer should try to
reduce the effect of de-motivating factors like desire to get on with other
activities, embarrassment at ignorance, dislike of the interview content ,
suspicious about the interviewer, and fear of consequence, he should also try
to build up the effect of motivation actors like curiosity, loneliness,
politeness, sense of duty, respect of the research agency and liking for the
interviewer.

The above requirement reminds that the interview is an interaction process.

The investigator should keep this in mind and take care to see that his
appearance and behavior do not distort the interview situation.
ASSIGNMENT
 Name S.AMEER ABBAS

Roll No. 520955311

Course MBA-Semester-3
Research
Subject
Methodology
Subject Code MB0034-Set-2
1.Write short notes on the following”
a. Null hypothesis
b. What is explanatory research?
c. What is random sampling?
d. Rank order co-relation

a. A null hypothesis is a hypothesis (within the frequents context of

statistical hypothesis testing) that might be falsified using a test of observed
data. Such a test works by formulating a null hypothesis, collecting data, and
calculating a measure of how probable that data was assuming the null
hypothesis were true. If the data appears very improbable (usually defined
as a type of data that should be observed less than 5% of the time) then the
experimenter concludes that the null hypothesis is false. If the data looks
reasonable under the null hypothesis, then no conclusion is made. In this
case, the null hypothesis could be true, or it could still be false; the data
gives insufficient evidence to make any conclusion. The null hypothesis
typically proposes a general or default position, such as that there is no
relationship between two quantities, or that there is no difference between a
treatment and the control. The term was originally coined by English
geneticist and statistician Ronald Fisher.

In some versions of statistical hypothesis testing (such as developed by Jerzy

Neyman and Egon Pearson), the null hypothesis is tested against an
alternative hypothesis. This alternative may or may not be the logical
negation of the null hypothesis. The use of alternative hypotheses was not
part of Ronald Fisher's formulation of statistical hypothesis testing, though
alternative hypotheses are standardly used today.

For instance, one might want to test the claim that a certain drug reduces
the chance of having a heart attack. One would choose the null hypothesis
"this drug does not reduce the chances of having a heart attack" (or perhaps
"this drug has no effect on the chances of having a heart attack"). One
should then collect data by observing people both taking the drug and not
taking the drug in some sort of controlled experiment. If the data is very
unlikely under the null hypothesis one would reject the null hypothesis, and
conclude that its negation is true. That is, one would conclude that the drug
does reduce the chances of having a heart attack. Here "unlikely data" would
mean data where the percentage of people taking the drug who had heart
attack was much less then the percentage of people not taking the drug who
had heart attacks. Of course one should use a known statistical test to decide
how unlikely the data was and hence whether or not to reject the null
hypothesis.

b. Exploratory research provides insights into and comprehension of an

issue or situation. It should draw definitive conclusions only with extreme
caution. Exploratory research is a type of research conducted because a
problem has not been clearly defined. Exploratory research helps determine
the best research design, data collection method and selection of subjects.
Given its fundamental nature, exploratory research often concludes that a
perceived problem does not actually exist.

Exploratory research often relies on secondary research such as reviewing

available literature and/or data, or qualitative approaches such as informal
discussions with consumers, employees, management or competitors, and
more formal approaches through in-depth interviews, focus groups,
projective methods, case studies or pilot studies. The Internet allows for
research methods that are more interactive in nature: E.g., RSS feeds
efficiently supply researchers with up-to-date information; major search
engine search results may be sent by email to researchers by services such
as Google Alerts; comprehensive search results are tracked over lengthy
periods of time by services such as Google Trends; and Web sites may be
created to attract worldwide feedback on any subject.
The results of exploratory research are not usually useful for decision-making
by themselves, but they can provide significant insight into a given situation.
Although the results of qualitative research can give some indication as to
the "why", "how" and "when" something occurs, it cannot tell us "how often"
or "how many."

Exploratory research is not typically generalizable to the population at large..

c. Random Sampling is that part of statistical practice concerned with

the selection of an unbiased or random subset of individual observations
within a population of individuals intended to yield some knowledge about
the population of concern, especially for the purposes of making predictions
based on statistical inference. Sampling is an important aspect of data
collection.

Researchers rarely survey the entire population for two reasons (Adèr,
Mellenbergh, & Hand, 2008): the cost is too high, and the population is
dynamic in that the individuals making up the population may change over
time. The three main advantages of sampling are that the cost is lower, data
collection is faster, and since the data set is smaller is possible to ensure
homogeneity and to improve the accuracy and quality of the data.

Each observation measures one or more properties (such as weight,

location, color) of observable bodies distinguished as independent objects or
individuals. In survey sampling, survey weights can be applied to the data to
adjust for the sample design. Results from probability theory and statistical
theory are employed to guide practice. In business and medical research,
sampling is widely used for gathering information about a population.

d. Rank-order correlation - the most commonly used method of

computing a correlation coefficient between the ranks of scores on two
variables. In statistics, Spearman's rank correlation coefficient or
Spearman's rho, named after Charles Spearman and often denoted by the
Greek letter ρ (rho) or as rs, is a non-parametric measure of statistical
dependence between two variables. It assesses how well the relationship
between two variables can be described using a monotonic function. If there
are no repeated data values, a perfect Spearman correlation of +1 or −1
occurs when each of the variables is a perfect monotone function of the
other.

The Spearman correlation coefficient is often thought of as being the Pearson

correlation coefficient between the ranked variables. In practice, however, a
simpler procedure is normally used to calculate ρ. The n raw scores Xi, Yi are
converted to ranks xi, yi, and the differences di = xi − yi between the ranks of
each observation on the two variables are calculated.

If there are no tied ranks, then ρ is given by:

If tied ranks exist, Pearson's correlation coefficient between ranks should be

used for the calculation:

One has to assign the same rank to each of the equal values. It is an average
of their positions in the ascending order of the values.

2.Elaborate the format of a research report touching briefly on he

mechanics of writing.

Research report is a means for communicating research experience to

others. A research report is formal statement of the research process and it
results. It narrates the problem studied, methods used for studying it and the
findings and conclusions of the study.

The format of a research report is given below:

1. Prefatory Item
Title page
• Declaration
• Certificates
• Preface/ acknowledgment
• Table of contents
• List of tables
• List of graphs/ figures/ charts
• Abstracts or synopsis
•
2. Body of the Report
• Introduction
• Theoretical background of the topic
• Statement of the problem
• Review of literature
• The Scope of the study
• The objectives of the study
• Hypothesis to be tested
• Definition of the concepts
• Models if any
• Design of the study
• Methodology
• Method of data collection
• Sources of data
• Sampling Plan
• Data collection instruments
 • Field work
• Data processing and analysis plan
• Overview of the report
• Limitation of the study
• Result: Findings and discussions
• Summary, conclusions and recommendations

3. Reference Material

• Bibliography
• Appendix
• Copies of data collection instruments
• Technical details on sampling plan
• Complex tables
• Glossary of new terms used.

Mechanics of Writing:

A research report requires clear organization. Each chapter may be

divided into two or more sections with appropriate heading and in each
section margin headings and paragraph headings may be used to indicate
subject shifts. Physical presentation is another aspect of organization. A page
should not be fully filled in from top to bottom. Wider margins should be
provided on both sides and on top and bottom as well.
Centered section heading is provided in the center of the page and is usually
in solid font size. It is separated from other textual material by two or three
line space.
Marginal heading is used for a subdivision in each section. It starts from the
left side margin without leaving any space.
Paragraph heading is used to head an important aspect of the subject matter
discussed in a subdivision. There is some space between the margin and this
heading.
Presentation should be free form spelling and grammar errors. If the writer is
not strong in grammar, get the manuscript corrected by a language expert.
Use the rules of punctuations.
Use present tense for presenting the findings of the study and for stating
generalizations
Do not use masculine nouns and pronouns when the content refers to both
the genders. Do not abbreviate words in the text; spell out them in full.
Footnote citation is indicated by placing an index number, i.e., a superscript
or numeral, at the point of reference. Reference style should have a clear
format and used consistently.

3.Discuss the importance of case study method.

Case study is a method of exploring and analyzing the life of a social

unit or entity, be it a person, a family, an institution or a community. Case
study would depend upon wit, commonsense and imagination of the person
doing the case study. The investigator makes up his procedure as he goes
along. Efforts should be made to ascertain the reliability of life history data
through examining the internal consistency of the material.. A judicious
combination of techniques of data collection is a prerequisite for securing
data that are culturally meaningful and scientifically significant. Case study of
particular value when a complex set of variables may be at work in
generating observed results and intensive study is needed to unravel the
complexities. The case documents hardly fulfill the criteria of reliability,
adequacy and representativeness, but to exclude them form any scientific
study of human life will be blunder in as much as these documents are
necessary and significant both for theory building and practice. In-depth
analysis of selected cases is of particular value to business research when a
complex set of variables may be at work in generating observed results and
intensive study is needed to unravel the complexities.

Let us discuss the criteria for evaluating the adequacy of the case
history or life history which is of central importance for case study.

John Dollard has proposed seven criteria for evaluating such adequacy as
follows:
i) The subject must be viewed as a specimen in a cultural series. That is, the
case drawn out from its total context for the purposes of study must be
considered a member of the particular cultural group or community. The
scrutiny of the life histories of persons must be done with a view to identify
the community values, standards and their shared way of life.
ii) The organic motto of action must be socially relevant. That is, the action
of the individual cases must be viewed as a series of reactions to social
stimuli or situation. In other words, the social meaning of behaviour must be
taken into consideration.
iii) The strategic role of the family group in transmitting the culture must be
recognized. That is, in case of an individual being the member of a family,
the role of family in shaping his behaviour must never be overlooked.
iv) The specific method of elaboration of organic material onto social
behaviour must be clearly shown. That is case histories that portray in detail
how basically a biological organism, the man, gradually blossoms forth into a
social person, are especially fruitful.
v) The continuous related character of experience for childhood through
adulthood must be stressed. In other words, the life history must be a
configuration depicting the inter-relationships between thee person’s various
experiences.
vi) Social situation must be carefully and continuously specified as a factor.
One of the important criteria for the life history is that a person’s life must be
shown as unfolding itself in the context of and partly owing to specific social
situations.
vii) The life history material itself must be organised according to some
conceptual framework.

4. Give the importance of frequency tables and discuss the principles

of table construction, frequency distribution and class intervals
determination:

Principles of table construction:

1) Every tables should have a title. The tile should represent a

succinct description of the contents of the table. It should be clear
and concise. It should be place above the body of the table.
2) A number facilitating easy reference should identify every table.
The number can be centered above the title. The table number
should run in consecutive serial order. Alternative tables in chapter
1 be numbered as 1.1, 1.2,1…….., in chapter2 as 2.1, 2.2,
2.3…………and so on.
3) The caption (or column heading) should be clear and brief.
4) The units of measurement under each heading must always be
indicated.
5) Any explanatory footnotes concerning the table itself are placed
directly beneath the table and in order to obviate any possible
confusion with the textual footnoted such reference symbols as the
asterisk (*) Danger(+) and the like may be used.
6) If the data in a series of table has been obtained from different
sources, it is ordinarily advisable to indicate the specific source in a
place just below the tables.
7) Usually lines separated columns from one another. Lines are
always drawn at the top and bottom of the table and below the
captions .
8) The column may be numbered to facilitate reference.
9) All column figures should be properly aligned. Decimal points and
‘plus’ and ‘minus’ signs should be in perfect alignment.
10)Columns and rows that are to be compared with one another
should be brought closed together.
11) Totals of rows should be placed at the extreme right column and
totals of columns at the bottom.
12)IN order to emphasize the relative significance of certain
categories, different kind of type, spacing and identifications can be
used.
13)The arrangement of the categories in a table may be chronological,
geographical, alphabetical or according to magnitude. Numerical
categories are usually arranged in descending order of magnitude.
14)Miscellaneous and exceptions items are generally placed in the last
row of the table.
15)Usually the larger number of item is listed vertically. This means
that a table length is more than its width.
16)Abbreviations should be avoided whenever possible and ditto
marks should not be used in a table.
17)The table should be made as logical, clear, accurate and simple as
possible.

Principles of frequency distribution:

In statistics, a frequency distribution is a tabulation of the values that one

or more variables take in a sample. Managing and operating on frequency
tabulated data is much simpler than operation on raw data. There are simple
algorithms to calculate median, mean, standard deviation etc. from these
tables.

Statistical hypothesis testing is founded on the assessment of differences and

similarities between frequency distributions. This assessment involves
measures of central tendency or averages, such as the mean and median,
and measures of variability or statistical dispersion, such as the standard
deviation or variance.

A frequency distribution is said to be skewed when its mean and median are
different. The kurtosis of a frequency distribution is the concentration of
scores at the mean, or how peaked the distribution appears if depicted
graphically—for example, in a histogram. If the distribution is more peaked
than the normal distribution it is said to be leptokurtic; if less peaked it is
said to be platykurtic.

Letter frequency distributions are also used in frequency analysis to crack

codes and refer to the relative frequency of letters in different languages.

Principles of class interval determination:

In musical set theory, an interval class (often abbreviated: ic), also known
as unordered pitch-class interval, interval distance, undirected
interval, or (completely incorrectly) interval mod 6 (Rahn 1980, 29;
Whittall 2008, 273–74), is the shortest distance in pitch class space between
two unordered pitch classes. For example, the interval class between pitch
classes 4 and 9 is 5 because 9 − 4 = 5 is less than 4 − 9 = −5 ≡ 7 (mod 12).
See modular arithmetic for more on modulo 12. The largest interval class is 6
since any greater interval n may be reduced to 12 − n.

The concept of interval class was created to account for octave, enharmonic,
and inversion equivalency

5.Write short notes on the following:

a. Type I error and type II error
b.One tailed and two tailed test
c. Selecting the significance level
Ans.
a.Type I error and type II error

In statistics, the terms type I error (also, α error, false alarm rate (FAR)
or false positive) and type II error (β error, miss rate or a false
negative) are used to describe possible errors made in a statistical decision
process. In 1928, Jerzy Neyman (1894-1981) and Egon Pearson (1895-
1980), both eminent statisticians, discussed the problems associated with
"deciding whether or not a particular sample may be judged as likely to have
been randomly drawn from a certain population" (1928/1967, p. 1), and
identified "two sources of error", namely:

Type I (α): reject the null hypothesis when the null hypothesis is true,
and
Type II (β): fail to reject the null hypothesis when the null hypothesis
is false

Type I error, also known as an "error of the first kind", an α error, or a

"false positive": the error of rejecting a null hypothesis when it is actually
true. Plainly speaking, it occurs when we are observing a difference when in
truth there is none, thus indicating a test of poor specificity. An example of
this would be if a test shows that a woman is pregnant when in reality she is
not. Type I error can be viewed as the error of excessive credulity.

Type II error, also known as an "error of the second kind", a β error, or

a "false negative": the error of failing to reject a null hypothesis when it is
in fact not true. In other words, this is the error of failing to observe a
difference when in truth there is one, thus indicating a test of poor
sensitivity. An example of this would be if a test shows that a woman is not
pregnant, when in reality, she is. Type II error can be viewed as the error of
excessive skepticism.
b. One tailed and two tailed test

A one- or two-tailed t-test is determined by whether the total area of a

is placed in one tail or divided equally between the two tails. The one-tailed
t-test is performed if the results are interesting only if they turn out in a
particular direction. The two-tailed t-test is performed if the results would be
interesting in either direction. The choice of a one- or two-tailed t-test effects
the hypothesis testing procedure in a number of different ways.

TWO-TAILED t-TESTS

A two-tailed t-test divides a in half, placing half in the each tail. The null
hypothesis in this case is a particular value, and there are two alternative
hypotheses, one positive and one negative. The critical value of t, tcrit, is
written with both a plus and minus sign (± ). For example, the critical value
of t when there are ten degrees of freedom (df=10) and a is set to .05, is
tcrit= ± 2.228. The sampling distribution model used in a two-tailed t-test is
illustrated below:

ONE-TAILED t-TESTS

There are really two different one-tailed t-tests, one for each tail. In a one-
tailed t-test, all the area associated with a is placed in either one tail or the
other. Selection of the tail depends upon which direction tobs would be (+ or
-) if the results of the experiment came out as expected. The selection of the
tail must be made before the experiment is conducted and analyzed.
A one-tailed t-test in the positive direction is illustrated below:

The value tcrit would be positive. For example when a is set to .05 with ten
degrees of freedom (df=10), tcrit would be equal to +1.812.

A one-tailed t-test in the negative direction is illustrated below:

The value tcrit would be negative. For example, when a is set to .05 with ten
degrees of freedom (df=10), tcrit would be equal to -1.812.

Comparison of One and Two-tailed t-tests

1. If tOBS = 3.37, then significance would be found in the two-tailed and the
positive one-tailed t-tests. The one-tailed t-test in the negative direction
would not be significant, because was placed in the wrong tail. This is the
danger of a one-tailed t-test.

2. If tOBS = -1.92, then significance would only be found in the negative one-
tailed t-test. If the correct direction is selected, it can be seen that one is
more likely to reject the null hypothesis. The significance test is said to have
greater power in this case.

The selection of a one or two-tailed t-test must be made before the

experiment is performed. It is not "cricket" to find a that tOBS = -1.92, and
then say "I really meant to do a one-tailed t-test." Because reviewers of
articles submitted for publication are sometimes suspicious when a one-tailed
t-test is done, the recommendation is that if there is any doubt, a two-tailed
test should be done.

c.Selecting the significance level

Significance is commonly designated as:

• plain ol' "significance"
• "statistical significance"
• "probability" This word, "probability is the source of the letter tt
represents significance, the letter, "p"

The p value identifies the likelihood tt a particular outcome may have

occurred by chance.

6.Explain Karl pearson co-efficient of correlation. Calculate Karl

pearson co-efficient for the following data:

X(Ht)-cm 174 175 176 177 178 182 183 186 189 193
Y (Wt)-Kg 61 65 67 68 72 74 80 87 92 95

In statistics, the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient

(sometimes referred to as the PMCC, and typically denoted by r) is a
measure of the correlation (linear dependence) between two variables X and
Y, giving a value between +1 and −1 inclusive. It is widely used in the
sciences as a measure of the strength of linear dependence between two
variables

Pearson's correlation coefficient between two variables is defined as the

covariance of the two variables divided by the product of their standard
deviations:

The above formula defines the population correlation coefficient, commonly

represented by the Greek letter ρ (rho). Substituting estimates of the
covariances and variances based on a sample gives the sample correlation
coefficient, commonly denoted r :

An equivalent expression gives the correlation coefficient as the mean of the

products of the standard scores. Based on a sample of paired data (Xi, Yi),
the sample Pearson correlation coefficient is

where

are the standard score, sample mean, and sample standard deviation.