BCR Tutorial Week 4 (Lecture Notes 2 & 3)

FIC 0154 Basic Comm Research

Reference materials: Lecture notes 2 and 3 and relevant text book chapters

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Question 1

Research is divided into two major sectors – academic and private. From your textbook, read up on the section relating to academic vs private research and summarise the points that differentiate between these two. You may find this reading in Chapter 1 of Wimmer and Dominick (pages 14-16 in the latest 9^th edition).

Answers: 

Differences:

1. Basic or Applied 

    - Academic: 

       -> Known as "Basic" research

       -> Has a theoretical or scholarly approach 

       -> The results will help to explain trend and society

       -> the mass media effects the individual

    - Private: 

       -> Known as "Applied" research

       -> Results are for decisions making

2. Researchers

    - Academic: 

      -> Carried out by academic researchers like us, students...

    - Private: 

      -> Carried out by private company/ non-government company.

3. Data and The Sharing

   - Academic: 

     -> Asks the original researcher for raw data.

     -> Others share the findings to the public.

   - Private: 

      -> They do not share their findings. Why? -> For property.

      -> Results meant to be kept for themselves

      -> Secret research (Do not let their competitors know)

4. Purpose of Research

    - Academic: 

      -> For the sake of knowing, understanding, getting knowledge and explain to the society.

    - Private: 

      -> Decision making

      -> Consumer preferences

      -> Can change or upgrade during the research

      -> Eg. Brand too low, so change to improve

5. Amount of Time

    - Academic: 

      -> No specific time or dateline for the research

      -> Research is more flexible which can take longer

      -> Research takes part of one's career.

      -> Eg. PHD (At least 3 years research...)

     - Private: 

        -> Have specific time and dateline for the research

        -> Meaning: is a job.

        -> Need a date (Whether to launch the product or not)

        -> Eg. Coca Cola (given research on flavor. Research have to be done in time)

6. Expenses

    - Academic: 

      -> Less expensive

      -> Facilities area available; no need to hire workers; the support is there.

     - Private: 

       -> More expensive

       -> Need to hire workers to do work, so need to use money; need money for facilities

       -> Backing is a need.

7. Topic Choosing

    - Academic: 

      -> Can choose our own topic

    - Private: 

       -> cannot choose topic. (Don't have the flexibility to choose topic.)

Similarities:

1. Both use same methodology in their research

2. Find something that is new; for the sake of understanding

3. Private can do trending things too; academic researchers can do private research too.

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Question 2

Explain the 8 steps of research, giving examples to illustrate what each step entails, if necessary.

Answers: 

1. Selecting and Defining Research Problem

    - To find things that we want to do; do research that others haven't do; do something new.

    - Problem -> Situation, interest, new, something that is worth-investigating

    - Private Sector: 

       -> Market research (For private company, Eg. Coca Cola)
       -> They don't have the flexibility to choose topic.
       -> Eg. Coca Cola (Given a research on a flavor, the workers cannot choose not to do.)

    - Academic: 

       -> Can choose their own topic, because they are academic researchers.

    - To find topics, we can go read trend and the media (Eg. TV effects, impacts...)

2. Determining Topic Relevance and Significance

    - Topic too broad?

       -> Eg. Effects of TV (Programme? Type? Negative or positive effects? Who is your subject? Timing?...)

    - Can the problem be investigated?

       -> Eg. Research on teenager without TV (How do you find a family without TV?)
       -> Eg. Investigate about criminals? (Jail? Definitely no! Because we cannot go into jail.)
       -> Don't have enough money, time and resources.

    - Can the data be analyzed?

       -> Eg. Can we do statistics from the data we got? Have enough money to do analysis?

       -> If no? The conclusion -> End up giving up and wasting time and money.

    - Is the problem significant?

       -> We don't do research that is no use.
       -> See whether the research is relevant or not. If not, no need to put so much effort.
       -> Do research that have value and meaning to the society.

    - Can the results be generalized?

       -> Can your results of your research apply on other people?

       -> The people that we choose should be the representatives.

    - Cost and time

    - Planned approach appropriate
       -> to do correctly without any mistakes and troubles.

    - Will it harm anybody?

       -> Either emotional, physical or mental?

3. Review of Literature

    - Reading (As many as we can that is available)

    - Literature
       -> What other researchers have done before your research on your topic or area that are similar to your research

       -> To see what method other researchers used in their research

    - Recap (key things that happened)

       -> What others conclude (results)
       -> What other people have done 

     - Not to repeat, but to give new knowledge.

     - To learn from the previous one.
     - To see what have been done.

     - There's a gap for us to fill in. (New knowledge.)

4. Stating a Hypothesis or Research Question

    - Hypothesis

       -> Statement - Approve or Reject
       -> Specific - Accept or Reject

    - Research Question

       -> What you want to investigate

       -> Open-ended question (Guide your research)

       -> Must be general
       -> Possible to have both hypothesis and research question in a research. However, sometimes only have either one because you don't have the results, so you have no statement or hypothesis.)

5. Preparing Research Instruments

    - Tools/ Instruments
       -> Researchers are to prepare and design them
       -> To collect data

6. Data Collection

    - Eg. Interview (Jot down notes), Survey (Collect the survey), Questionnaire and so on.

7. Data Analysis and Interpretation

    - Interpret the data then give conclusion that are meaningful

    - Eg. Give numbers to the data (10%, 20%, 30%...)
    - Eg. Give gender (Boy or girl)
    - To form in into graphs or chart.

8. Presenting Results

    - Publish first in journal, paper or theses (from step 1 to 7) and share through conferences

    - The one we published will become others' literature review.

Posted by Tan Tze Mun [Rachel] (0308950)