Deck 4: The Research Process: an Overview

Question 1

Which term below refers to a criterion for judging the attractiveness of two or more alternatives when using a decision variable?

A) Decision theory
B) Decision rule
C) Ex post facto evaluation
D) Choice theory
E) Success probability

Answer 1

B

Question 2

To satisfactorily answer a research question,researchers must first answer _____ questions.

A) management
B) investigative
C) measurement
D) dilemma
E) deductive

Answer 2

B

Question 3

The process of stating the basic dilemma and then developing other questions by progressively breaking down the original question into more specific ones is called the _____.

A) research question
B) management-research-question hierarchy
C) management dilemma
D) management question
E) investigative question

Answer 3

B

Question 4

All of the following are benefits of pilot tests except _____.

A) provision of proxy data for probability sampling
B) identification of measurement errors
C) detection of weaknesses in research design
D) sensitization of respondents to the purpose of the study
E) all of the above are benefits

Question 5

McGraw-Hill is planning a study of educator preferences to determine the needs of college instructors.Because of the number of college instructors,McGraw-Hill will select a portion of the target population,known as a(n)_____,to participate in the study.

A) element
B) sample
C) sampling frame
D) census
E) extent

Question 6

Ex Post Facto evaluation means that the research is evaluated _____.

A) prior to execution
B) based on the facts
C) after the research concludes
D) each day throughout the project
E) none of the above

Question 7

Which of the following terms fails to capture the meaning of a research design?

A) Map
B) Blueprint
C) Manual
D) Dictionary
E) Guidebook

Question 8

Pilot tests typically use a sample size of _____ participants.

A) less than 100
B) 100-500
C) 501-1000
D) more than 1000
E) it depends on budgetary constraints

Question 9

Which form of budgeting involves taking a fixed percentage of some criterion such as sales as the basis for the research budget?

A) Rule-of-thumb budgeting
B) Percentage-of-sales budgeting
C) Departmental budgeting
D) Task budgeting
E) functional-area budgeting

Question 10

Apple plans to survey every customer who has purchased an Apple computer in the last 5 years.Apple plans to use a _____.

A) convenience sample
B) snowball sample
C) systematic sample
D) census
E) random sample

Question 11

A _____ is a trial collection of data to detect weaknesses in the design or instrument.

A) test market
B) census
C) sample
D) pilot test
E) sampling frame

Question 12

Information collected from participants,by observation,or from secondary sources is called _____.

A) response
B) data
C) knowledge
D) fact
E) perceptual content

Question 13

Who answers measurement questions?

A) Management decision makers
B) Researchers
C) Field workers
D) Participants
E) Statisticians

Question 14

Who answers investigative questions?

A) Management decision makers
B) Researchers
C) Field workers
D) Participants
E) Statisticians

Question 15

The problem or opportunity that requires a business decision is called the _____.

A) research question
B) management-research-question hierarchy
C) management dilemma
D) management question
E) investigative question

Question 16

Departmental budgeting means that research budgets are determined by _____.

A) allocating the same amount to research that competing firms allocate
B) the contributions of various departments to fund department-specific projects
C) evaluating projects on a case-by-case basis
D) taking a fixed percentage of some criterion
E) allocating whatever is left after covering other required expenditures

Question 17

Which form of budgeting allocates a portion of total expenditures in the unit to research activities?

A) Rule-of-thumb budgeting
B) Percentage-of-sales budgeting
C) Departmental budgeting
D) Task budgeting
E) Competitive parity

Question 18

Participants in a research study are asked _____ questions.

A) research
B) management
C) measurement
D) investigative
E) dilemma

Question 19

Which of the following statements is false regarding the evaluation of alternatives?

A) The selection of alternatives is determined by the decision variable chosen and the decision rule used
B) Each alternative must be explicitly stated
C) A decision variable is defined by an outcome that may be measured
D) A decision rule is determined by which outcomes may be compared
E) all of the above are true

Question 20

The quantifiable characteristic,attribute,or outcome on which a choice decision will be made is called a _____.

A) decision theory
B) decision rule
C) ex post facto evaluation
D) decision variable
E) success probability

Question 21

A researcher who is method-bound is likely to _____.

A) be responsible for data analysis
B) utilize a probability sample
C) prefer one research approach over all others
D) mine a client's database
E) all of the above

Question 22

The question,"Should products be withdrawn if even one death is associated with its prescribed use,even if no fault for the tampered product accrues to the manufacturer?" is an example of a(n)_____.

A) ill-defined problem
B) strip data mining issue
C) favored-technique problem
D) unresearchable question
E) politically-motivated question

Question 23

All of the following components are included in the overview section of a research report except _____.

A) problem background
B) findings from secondary sources
C) research design
D) procedures
E) recommendations

Question 24

The federal government conducts a census of the U.S.population rather than a sample because _____.

A) a census is less expensive than a sample
B) a sample may not fully represent the population
C) it is faster to collect data using a census
D) data collection is more manageable
E) all of the above

Question 25

BankChoice is concerned about stagnating profits and asks,"How can profitability be improved?" This is an example of a(n)_____.

A) management question
B) research question
C) investigative question
D) measurement question
E) management dilemma

Question 26

The executive summary of a research report includes _____.

A) all the materials necessary for replication
B) a synopsis of the problem, findings, and recommendations
C) a summary of findings from secondary sources and the research design
D) recommendations and implementation strategies
E) a list of expenses

Question 27

Reducing data to a manageable size,developing summaries,and applying statistical techniques are all aspects of _____.

A) sampling
B) data collection
C) pilot testing
D) data analysis
E) data transformation

Question 28

Ill-defined problems are those that _____.

A) cannot be expressed completely or easily
B) cannot be answered
C) can be answered through data mining
D) cannot be addressed with secondary data
E) develop in method-bound research projects

Question 29

The fundamental weakness in the research process is _____.

A) incorrectly defining the research question
B) identifying a flawed sampling frame
C) misdefining the target population
D) failing to identify all relevant secondary information
E) skipping the exploratory phase

Question 30

Which type of management question asks "What do we want to achieve?"

A) Choice of purpose
B) Evaluation of solutions
C) Troubleshooting
D) Control
E) Concern

Question 31

Which type of sample provides a group of participants who are most representative of the target population?

A) Census
B) Judgment
C) Probability
D) Nonprobability
E) Primary

Question 32

Which of the following questions is considered when discussing the management dilemma?

A) How can management eliminate negative symptoms?
B) What does the manager need to know to choose the best alternative from the available sources of action?
C) What is the recommended course of action?
D) What symptoms cause management concern?
E) What should be asked or observed to obtain the information the manager needs?

Question 33

A synopsis of the problem,findings,and recommendations are provided in the ____ section of a research report.

A) executive summary
B) abstract
C) overview
D) implementation
E) technical appendix

Question 34

Ensuring consistency among respondents,locating omissions,and reducing errors in recording are all benefits of _____.

A) data collection
B) data editing
C) sampling
D) coding
E) data analysis

Question 35

Jason is entering the data analysis portion of his research project.Data analysis involves all of the following activities except _____.

A) reducing data to a manageable size
B) developing summaries
C) conducting focus groups
D) looking for patterns
E) applying statistical techniques

Question 36

If a _____ sampling design is chosen,the process for choosing the sample must give every person within the target population a known nonzero chance of selection.

A) census
B) judgment
C) nonprobability
D) probability
E) primary

Question 37

Planning the research design involves decisions regarding _____.

A) data collection mode
B) type of study
C) measurement
D) sampling plans
E) all of the above

Question 38

Which section of a research report contains all the materials necessary to replicate the project?

A) Executive summary
B) Abstract
C) Overview
D) Implementation
E) Technical appendix

Question 39

Which of the following is not a common research process problem?

A) Politically motivated research
B) Database strip-mining
C) Unresearchable questions
D) Ill-defined management problems
E) Pilot testing

Question 40

During the _____ stage,the analyst will look for patterns of responses to the survey questions.

A) data editing
B) data collection
C) data analysis
D) sampling
E) reporting

Question 41

Data have many characteristics.If data are changing due to passage of time,you are describing their level of ______.

A) abstractness
B) elusiveness
C) verifiability
D) closeness to the phenomenon
E) replicability

Question 42

A beer distribution company has recently purchased the rights to package and distribute its beer in a new type of can that is self-cooling.Because of the innovativeness of the product packaging,measurement questions will need to be formulated specifically for the project at hand.All of the following are disadvantages of customized questions except _____.

A) increased project costs
B) pretesting requirements
C) enhanced validity
D) increased time
E) all of the above are disadvantages

Question 43

Data have many characteristics.If you cannot see or feel the data being measured,you are describing their level of ______.

A) abstractness
B) elusiveness
C) verifiability
D) closeness to the phenomenon
E) replicability

Question 44

What are the three types of budgets in organizations where research is purchased and cost containment is crucial? List and describe each one.Is one more desirable than the others? Explain.

Question 45

Explain the difference between interim evaluation and ex post facto evaluation.

Question 46

The target population ...

A) is identical to the sample population
B) is smaller in size than the sample population
C) must be defined before research begins
D) must be able to be captured in a sample frame
E) none of the above

Question 47

Primary data have a higher level of ____ than secondary data.

A) abstractness
B) elusiveness
C) verifiability
D) closeness to the phenomenon
E) replicability

Question 48

Questions that the researcher must answer to satisfactorily arrive at a conclusion about the research question are called _____ questions.

A) management
B) research
C) investigative
D) measurement
E) hypothetical

Question 49

Secondary data have a lower level of ____ than primary data.

A) abstractness
B) elusiveness
C) verifiability
D) closeness to the phenomenon
E) replicability

Question 50

The exploratory research phase of a research project allows a researcher to accomplish several objectives.Name three of the objectives common to this stage.

Question 51

Secondary data as a means of addressing a management problem are considered weaker than primary data because the data

A) were was potentially collected to address a different problem
B) are older, and therefore, irrelevant to current conditions
C) are less specific to the current problem
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 52

Explain the value of conducting a pilot test and the primary considerations for a research planning to use a pilot test.