Quantitative information:

•We can get data

quickly, but we need to be sure that we are working on the right problem and that the data is valid.

•Data means

–a few recording

–an extensive national or international survey

•An item of data becomes

information when it informs the user.

•Internet has transformed the flow and availability of data.

•The ability to manage data, produce information

and work with problems are all seen as and important business competencies.

•Desk research:

–First you need checking what work has already been done.

–Provide information or identify techniques.

–It is always helpful to find a questionnaire that has been used previous study and may only require
some modification.

•Managing numbers is an important part of

understanding and solving problems.

•The collecting together of numbers, and other facts and opinions provides data.

•This data only becomes information when it

informs the user!!

•The quantitative approach is more than just ‘doing sums’.

•It is about making sense of numbers within a

context.
PROBLEM SOLVING

•To understand problems within a context, it can

be useful to work through a number of stages:

•defining (and redefining) the problem,

•searching for information,

•problem description (and again redefinition ifnecessary),

•idea generation,

•solution finding and finaly,

• acceptance and implementation

METHODOLOGY

Old methods
New methods

•Reliability and validity of findings (conclusions)

•Was the purpose of the research clear?

•Was this research necessary? (desk research)

•Was the means of data col

lection appropriate?

•What can we infer?

(-inductive approach generalization -deductive approach)

MEASUREMENT

•Measurement is about assigning a value or a score to

an observation.

•Measurement is the representation of –

type,

size or

quantity by numbers.

•How we work with data will depend on the level of

measurement achieved.

•Measurement can be categorized as:

nominal, ordinal, interval, ratio

Nominal (or categorical) level of measurement:

•If responses merely classified into a number of

distinct categories, where no order or value.

•The classification of survey respondents on the basis

of

religious affinity,

voting behaviour or

car ownership.

•The numbers assigned give no measure of amount

or importance.

•For data processing conven

ience, we may code respondents 0 or 1 (e.g. YES or NO) or

1, 2, 3 (Party X, Party Y, Party Z), but these numbers do not relate to meaningful origin or to a
meaningful distance.

We cannot calculate statistics (mean, standard deviation).

We can make percentage comparisons (e.g. 30 % will vote for party X), present data using bar charts or
use more statistical methods

Ordinal level of measurement:

•has been achieved when it is possible to rank order

all categories according to some criteria.

•The preferen

ces indicated on a rating scale ranging

from ‘strongly agree’ to ‘strongly disagree’ or the

classification of respondents by social class (occupational groupings A, B, C1, C2, D, E) are both common
examples where ranking is implied.

•Individuals are often

ranked as a result of performance in sporting events or business appraisal.

•In these examples we can position a response or a

respondent but cannot give weight to numerical differences.

•It is as meaningful to code a five point rating scale 7,

8, 12, 17, 21 as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 though the latter is generally expected.

•Only statistics based on order really apply.

•You will, however, find in market research and other

business applications that the obvious codings are made (e.g. 1 to 5) and then a host of computer-
derived statistics calculated.

•Many of these statistics can be useful for descriptive

purposes, but you must always be sure about the type of measurement achieved and its statistical
limitations.

Interval scale:

•is an ordered scale where the differe

nces between numerical values are meaningful.

•Temperature is a classic example of an interval scale,

the increase on the centigrade scale between 30 and 40 is the same as the increase between 70 and 80.

•However, the heat cannot be measured in absolute

terms (0oC does not mean no heat) and it is not possible to say that 40oC is twice as hot as 20oC, but we
can say it is hotter.

•In practice there are few business

-related measurements where the subtlety of the interval scale is of consequence.

*Ratio scale:
•The highest level of measurement,

- which has all the distance properties of the interval scale and in addition, - zero represents the
abscence of the caracteristic being measured.

•Distance and time are good examples.

•It is meaningful, for example, to refer to 0 time and 0

distance and refer to one journey taking twice as long as another journey or one distance as being twice
as long as another distance.

•In summary, it is considered more powerful to

achieve measurement at higher level as this will contain more discriminating information;

•it is more useful to know how many cigarettes a

respondent smokes on average (0 or more) than just whether they smoke or not.

•The measurement sought will depend on the

purpose of the research.

•Another useful system of classification is whether

measurement is discrete or continuous.

•Measurement is discrete if the numerical value is the

consequence of counting. (the number of respondets, the number of companies)

•Continuousmeasurement can take any value within a continuum, limited only by the precision of the
measurement instrument. (5 seconds or 5.17 seconds)

MARKET RESEARCH

•Market research can be directly concerned with a

market (which will need definition) and can provide information on market size, market trends, market

share by brand, customer characteristics and other factors.

•Aspects of market research include advertising and

promotional research, product research and distribution.

•Market research companies also

sell a range of services, and will frequently undertake research for government, both national and local,
academic projects and not-for-profit organizations. CONCLUSION

•Obtaining and using data as information is an

important part of understanding and solving any problem.

•There is little doubt about the volume of data now

available, and any search of the Internet can easily produce reams of computer printout.

•As with all problem solving we need to work within

boundaries that ensure the problem remains manageable and yet does not exclude new avenues of
enquiry.

•Given the diversity of possible data sources we need

to check that data is appropriate, adequate and without bias.

•As discussed, the choice is rarely between secondary

data (existing data) or primary data (new data that needs to be collected for the specific purpose).

•Secondary data will help describe and define the

existing problem.

•The examination of secondary data can also provide

guidance on what research methods work and which don't.

•Primary data will generally be needed to add specific

detail.

•The purpose of any statistical investigation needs to

be clear.

•A statement that we wish to investigate the

management of change within the organization will mean different things to different people.

•In this case, we need to be clear about our meaning

of change or changes, 'management' and the general context.

•Decisions will need to be made on who to include

and who to exclude.

•In all statistical work the definition of population (all

those people or items of interest) is particularly important.

•If we refer to the workforce, for example, do we

mean only full-time employees, those at a particular location or those doing a particular job?
•It is a frequently reported experience that 'desk

research' yields some of the information required but also yields other data of interest and a wealth of
new ideas.

•It is also worth considering how much research is

genuinely original!

•If t

he purpose of the statistical investigation requires the collection of original data, then the sample survey
is probably the most widely used method in business and economics.

•The choice that you make will depend on the size of

the survey, the resources available and the sophistication of the analysis necessary.