INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT A

MARKETING RESEARCH

Submitted to,
Mr. P. MURUGAN
Lecturer
Department of Management Studies
National Institute Of Technology
Trichy - 15

Submitted By:
KAVYA KRISHNAN K
215115026
DOMS 2015-2017

PROBLEM STATEMENT AND PURPOSE

1. What is the problem and/or purpose of the research study?
The study focuses on how shelf display and limited product quantity
can influence buying behavior in ingested and non ingested product
categories. Also how brand equity moderates the result.
2. Does the problem or purpose statement express a relationship
between two or more variables? If so, what is/are the relationship(s)?
Are they testable?
Yes, fear of contamination, perceived popularity, choice of customer is
variables. They are testable.
3. Does the problem statement and/or purpose specify the nature of the
population being studied? What is it?
Yes. The population studied is customers of department and retail
outlets.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE AND THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

1. What concepts are included in the review? Of particular importance,
note those concepts that are the independent and dependent variables
and how they are conceptually defined.
The review contains a brief discussion on factors of shelf display
influencing purchase like whether the shelf is organized or not. From
previous study they have found out how disorganized shelf results in
fear of contamination and leading to feeling disgust. Concept of brand
familiarity and fear of contamination are independent while choice is
dependent on both.
2. Does the literature review make the relationships among the variables
explicit or place the variables within a theoretical/conceptual
framework? What are the relationships?
Yes. Fear of contamination and perceive popularity for ingestible and
non ingestible familiar and unfamiliar brand is given. How they
influence on choice is stated in the review.

3. Are the references cited by the author mostly primary or secondary

sources? Give an example of each.
Mostly primary references are cited. It includes the data collected for
each study. The customer survey and observation data collected for
testing. Secondary include previous research work on contamination.
For example,Angyal, Andras (1941), Disgust and Related Aversions, Journal of
Abnormal and Social Psychology, 36 (3), 393412. Argo, Jennifer J., Darren W. Dahl, and
Andrea C. Morales

4. What are the operational definitions of the independent and

dependent variables? Do they reflect the conceptual definitions?
Independent variables: shelf display organization, product quantity,
product type, and brand familiarity
Dependent variable: purchase likelihood and choice
HYPOTHESES OR RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1. What hypotheses or research questions are stated in the study?
H1: Consumers are less likely to purchase ingestible products when
they appear to be disorganized on the shelf and product quantity is
limited than when they are organized and fully stocked.
H2: Consumers are more likely to purchase noningestible products
when they appear to be disorganized on the shelf and product
quantity is limited than when they are organized and fully stocked.
2. If research questions are stated, are they used in addition to
hypotheses or to guide an exploratory study?
In addition to the hypothesis the following is also tested. How the
familiarity of the brands on the shelf may moderate this relationship?
3. What are the independent and dependent variables in the statement of
each hypothesis or research question?
For H1: Dependent variable is purchase likelihood independent
variables are disorganized display, brand familiarity and product
quantity.
For H2:
dependent variable is purchase likelihood and choice.
Independent variables are shelf display and brand familiarity for both
ingestible and noningestible products.

4. If hypotheses are stated, is the form of the statement statistical (also

called null) or research?
The hypotheses in the journal are research hypotheses
5. What is the direction of the relationship in each hypothesis, if
indicated?
The variables have negative association for H1 and positive
association for H2.
6. Are the hypotheses testable?
Yes. The hypotheses are testable and are tested based on sample by
using survey.
RESEARCH DESIGN
1. What type of design is used?
Experimental research design.
2. Does the design seem to flow from the proposed research problem,
theoretical framework, literature review, and hypothesis?
Yes.
3. What type(s) of data -collection method(s) is/are used in the study?
A questionnaire that asked, for example, How likely are you to buy a
product? and rating it in a seven-point scale (1 = not at all likely,
and 7 = very likely). Observational methods were implemented as the
subjects were unaware of the study in some tests
4. Are the data -collection procedures similar for all subjects?
Yes.
5. What indications are given that informed consent of the subjects has
been ensured?
The subjects were UG marketing students who were awarded extra
credits for participation. From this we can understand their consent
was obtained for the study. For study 2, 3 the subjects were unaware
of the purpose.
INSTRUMENTS
1. Physiological measurement: Is a rationale given for why a particular
instrument or method was selected? If so, what is it? What provision

is made for maintaining the accuracy of the instrument and its use, if
any?
The behavior of customer in two context i.e. ingestible and
noningestible is measured when the shelf is organized and
disorganized. Photographs of shelfs were shown rather than a real
enivironment thus eliminating external factors from decision making
by customers.
2. Observational methods: Who did the observing? How were the
observers trained to minimize bias? Was there an observational
guide? Were the observers required to make inferences about what
they saw? Is there any reason to believe that the presence of the
observers affect the behavior of the subjects?
The observing was done by the researches Iana A. Castro, Andrea C.
Morales, & Stephen M. Nowlis. They gave different photographs to
each subject. But complete unbias of data was not ensured as the
research was experimental pretest. The observation was also an
important part of the experiment.
3. Questionnaires: What is the type and/or format of the
questionnaire(s) (e.g. Likert, open -ended)? Is (Are) it (they) consistent
with the conceptual definition(s)?
The questions were 7 point scale questions ranging from least to most
likely. They are consistent with the concept.
4. Available data and records: Are the records that were used
appropriate to the problem being studied? Are the data being used to
describe the sample or to test the hypothesis?
Yes. The data are collected in different settings thus incorporating all
factors in the study
ANALYSIS OF DATA
1. What level of measurement is used to measure each of the major
variables?
For study 1 interval scale is used and for the rest nominal and ordinal
which is then mapped to metric data.
2. What descriptive or inferential statistics are reported?
Descriptive statistics using ANNOVA

3. Were these descriptive or inferential statistics appropriate to the level

of measurement for each variable?
Not 100%. The observational data analysed using descriptive will not
be accurate.
4. Are the inferential statistics used appropriate to the intent of the
hypotheses?
Yes. For overall conclusion it is used to infer from the statistics.
5. Does the author report the level of significance set for the study? If so,
what is it?
Yes . 0.01 level of significance.
6. If tables or figures are used, do they meet the following standards?
They supplement and economize the text. They have precise titles and
headings. They do not repeat the text.
Yes.
CONCLUSIONS,
IMPLICATIONS,
RECOMMENDATIONS,
UTILIZATION FOR MARKETING PRACTICE

AND

1. If hypothesis testing was done, was/were the hypotheses supported or

not supported?
Both the hypotheses were supported by the studies conducted.
2. Are the results interpreted in the context of the problem/purpose,
hypothesis, and theoretical framework/literature reviewed?
Yes. 5 study results were discussed on the basis of problem and
literature
3. What relevance for marketing practice does the investigator identify, if
any?
The study has great implications for a marketing manager on the shelf
display of different products. The impact of shelf display and brand
familiarity on various kinds of product helps in designing effective
shelf positioning in retail shops. For retailers also to improve their
sales the study give a holistic idea on impact of shelf organizing on
sales.
4. What generalizations are made?

The study conducted was made applicable to all retail population.

Thus adding to the previous literature the study substantiated the
cues of retail environment include shelf organizing and product
quantity.
5. Are the generalizations within the scope of the findings or beyond the
findings?
The generalization is within the scope of finding
6. What recommendations for future research are stated or implied?
To study more on brand equity and familiarization and impact on
choice
7. Are there other studies with similar findings?
Yes. For example Consumer Contamination: How Consumers React
to Products Touched by Others, Journal of Marketing
8. Is direct application of the research findings feasible in terms of time,
effort, money, and legal/ethical risks?
Yes. The results are highly feasible and prove to be highly beneficial.
9. How and under what circumstances are the findings applicable to
marketing practice?
For retail environment to influence customer choice in choosing a
brand it is applicable. But brand familiarity can moderate the effect
shelf display have on sales.
10.
Yes

Should these results be applied to marketing practice?

11.
Would it be possible to replicate this study in another marketing
practice setting?
No. it is applicable to retail environment.

NOTE:Deleted questions are not applicable to the journal taken for

study.