Research Methods Session 13 Presenting Research Reports [Compatibility Mode]

8/2/2019 Research Methods Session 13 Presenting Research Reports [Compatibility Mode]

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/research-methods-session-13-presenting-research-reports-compatibility-mode 1/5

1

BUSINESS RESEARCH METHODSBUSINESS RESEARCH METHODSBUSINESS RESEARCH METHODSBUSINESS RESEARCH METHODS

( (( ( Presenting research reports ) )) ) Session 12

ByBy

RezaReza BeebeejaunBeebeejaun

University of Technology, Mauritius

2

Introduction

• In this session we will focus on report preparation andpresentation.

• One of the important aspects of any research project is to

assist managers in decision making process and lotdepends on how the researcher communicates the findings

of the research project to the managers.

•

An effective research report can overcome this challenge

3

key issues to remember

• The researcher must keep in mind that the manager who is going toread and utilize the findings of the research project might not be astechnically knowledgeable with statistical techniques or at times withthe methodology.

•

Furthermore, the manager will be more interested in knowing how results can be used for decision making rather than how they have beenderived.

• Jargons and technical terms should be kept at minimum. If the jargonscannot be avoided, then researcher should provide a brief explanationfor the manager to understand it.

• Researcher should keep in mind how to the structure of the report

4

Which parts of a research study appeal

1. Exploring and defining a research problem

2. Reading and reviewing the literature

3. Designing the research methods

4. Conducting the research

5. Analysing data

6. Writing the research report



2

5

Format for a research report

1. Title page

2. Table of contents

3. Executive summary

a. Research objectives,

b. Brief discussion on

methodology

c. Major findings

d. Conclusion

e. Recommendations

4. Introduction

a. objectives

b. Problem definition

c. Research questions

d. Hypothesis generated

5. Literature Review

6

6. Research methodology

a. Type of design used

b. Data collection

c. Scaling techniques

d. Questionnaire development and pilot testing

e. Sampling

f. Limitation

g. Ethical issues


7

7. Data analysis and findings

a. Analysis techniques employed

b. Results

8. Discussion

9. Conclusion and recommendation

10. Appendices

a. Questionnaire and forms

b. Statistical output


8

Title page

• The title page indicates the subject of the report,information regarding researcher and his/her associations

and the name of the recipient, along with organizational

details.

• The title should reflect the nature and objective of theproject concisely.



3

9

Table of contents

• The table of contents should list the topics covered withappropriate page numbers.

• In most reports, only major headings and subheadings are

included.

• It is also common to provide list of tables and figures after

the table of contents.

10

Executive summary

• The executive summary is a very important part of the overall report.

• The executive summary therefore is a brief and meticulously prepared part of the overall report.

• The executive summary should focus on:

(a) why and how the research was carried out

(b) what was found

(c) what can be interpreted and acted upon by the manager.

• Therefore, in most reports executive summary contains researchobjectives, brief description of methodology employed, majorfindings, conclusions and recommendations.

11

Introduction

• The introduction provides background informationnecessary for a clear understanding of the report.

• It may include definition of terms, relevant background

details for the project (sometimes using secondary data

analysis), and scope of the research.

• Provides detailed explanation of the research problem andresearch objectives and hypotheses.

• After reading the introduction, the reader should know precisely as to what is the research about, why was it

conducted, and what gap the research addresses which was

not addressed previously.

12

Literature Review

• Literature Review is the documentation of a

comprehensive review of published and

unpublished work from secondary sources of data

in the areas of specific interest to the researcher.



4

13

Research Methodology

• The research Methodology section of a report focuses on details relating to how the research was conducted.

• It focuses specifically on what type of research design was used withclear justifications.

• It explains both secondary and primary data collection processes.

• It describes how were the measurement scales developed and provideinformation on their validity and reliability.

• It further informs the reader about the development of the questionnaire

and the pilot testing.

• It discusses what changes were performed and why.

• Describes in details the sampling process including sample population

definition, sample size, sample type, and the sampling technique,limitations, ethical issues

14

Data analysis and findings

• In this section researcher should describe the structure of data analysisand various techniques employed to achieve the objectives of analysis without using much technical details and jargons.

• Many times researchers do get carried away in explaining this in toomuch technicality.

• This can make the reader disengaged with the report as they might notbe able to grasp what is being said.

• It is always good to provide the reader with some details regarding why a

specific analysis technique was used and how the results can beinterpreted.

• The presentation of findings should directly be correlated with the

research problem.

• It is important to use graphs and tables as they help reader understandthe details much easily in most cases.

15

Discussion

• This is the real test of your ability to synthesise what youfound in the literature review and in your primary research

and to pull out from that synthesis what seem to you to be

the most important points.

• Should relate to your objectives and research questions• Writing should be clear but intense – all sentences must

add value.

16

Conclusion and Recommendations

• The conclusions section should step back a little and takean objective view of the outcomes – theoretical and

practical – from the whole project – there should be no

new references at this stage, but a clearly persuasive

account of what has been achieved• Recommendations. – may be detailed and practical or may

simply urge further research in an area which has been

uncovered by your research. Where practical suggestions

are made, they must be feasible, not “blue sky” ideas.Preferably there should be suggestions about how they

could be taken forward – sometimes with a tabularimplementation plan.



5

17

Appendices

• The appendices section should include the other relevantdetails which might be helpful to the reader. The

questionnaire form and sophisticated technical analysis should

be added in this section also. Cross-referencing should bedone within the report so the reader can find this information

easily.

• They are there for two possible reasons:

a) to add information to the main text where word length orfocus did not allow their inclusion

b) to maintain a complete record of relevant information,

particularly for your future use of this document. Keepappendices to a minimum.

Research Methods Session 13 Presenting Research Reports [Compatibility Mode]

Documents

Transcript of Research Methods Session 13 Presenting Research Reports [Compatibility Mode]