1. Meaning and definitions of Research
Business Research Methods
Dr. Kasamsetty Sailatha
HOD, PG Dept. of Commerce,
Vidya Vikas First Grade College,
Mysore.

2. • Introduction
• Meaning and Definition of Research
• Definition of Business Research
• Why study Business Research?
• Importance/Role of Business Research

3. • Introduction about Research:
–Search for knowledge or systematic
investigation to establish facts.
–Literally, research means (re-search) or
search again for the
knowledge/solutions to solve the
existing problems.
– search for new knowledge or to
develop new concepts and theories.
–The systematic inquiry which provides
information for decision making.

4. • Meaning of Research:
– Research means discovering, interpreting and the
development of methods and systems for the advancement of
human knowledge on a wide variety of scientific matters of
world and the universe.
• Definition of Research:
1. Grinnell: “the word research is composed of two syllables,
re and search. The dictionary defines the former as a prefix
meaning again, a new or over again and the latter as a verb
meaning to examine closely and carefully, to test and try, or
to probe. Together they form a noun describing a careful,
systematic, patient study and investigation in some field of
knowledge, undertaken to establish facts or principles.”
2. Webster Dictionary: “a Careful inquiry or examination in
seeking facts or principles: diligent investigation in order to
ascertain something.”
3. Robert Ross: “research is essentially an investigation, a
recording and analysis of evidence for the purpose of
gaining knowledge.”
4. Fred Kerlinger: “Research is an organized inquiry designed
and carried out to provide information for solving a
problem.”

5. 5. Francies Rummel: “Research is a careful inquiry or
examination to discover new information or
relationships and to expand and to verify existing
knowledge.”
6. Clifford Woody: “Research comprises of defining
and redefining problems, formulating hypothesis or
suggested solutions; making deductions and
reaching conclusions; and at last carefully testing the
conclusions to determine whether they fit the
formulating hypothesis”
• Deductive theory or reasoning: also known as logical
deduction, is the process of reasoning from one or more
general statements regarding what is known to reach a
logically certain conclusion. Deductive reasoning involves
using given true premises to reach a conclusion that is also
true.

6. • An example of a deductive argument:
– All men are mortal.
– Socrates is a man.
– Therefore, Socrates is mortal.
The first premise states that all objects
classified as "men" have the attribute
"mortal". The second premise states that
"Socrates" is classified as a "man" – a
member of the set "men". The conclusion
then states that "Socrates" must be "mortal"
because he inherits this attribute from his
classification as a "man".

7. Process
Problem Inquiry Information Problem Solving
Feed back
7. 5. C.C. Crawford: “is a simply a systematic and refined
technique of thinking, employing specialized tools,
instruments and procedures in order to obtain a more
adequate solution of a problem than would be possible
under ordinary means. It starts with a problem, collects
data or facts, analyses these critically and reaches decisions
based on the actual evidence. It evolves original work
instead of mere exercise of personal opinion.”

8. 8. 6. George G. Mouly: “Reseach is considered to be the more
formal, systematic, intensive process of carrying the
scientific method of analysis. It involves a more systematic
structure of investigation, usually resulting in some sort of
formal record of procedures and report of result or
conclusions.”
9. 7. R.R. Rusk: “Research is a point of view, an attitude of
inquiry or a frame of mind. It asks questions which have
hitherto (up till now) not been asked and it seeks t answer
them by following a fairly definite procedure. It is not a
mere theorizing, but rather an attempt to elicit fact and to
face them once they have assembled ”

9. 10.Francis G. Cornell: “the activity of collecting
information in an orderly and systematic
fashion. Research is, literally speaking, a
kind of human behaviour, an activity in
which people engage. In education, teachers,
administrators, scholars or others engage in
educational research when they
systematically assemble information about
schools, school children, the social matrix in
which a school system is determined. The
characteristics of the learner or the interaction
between the school and pupils.”

10. 11. Slesinger and Stephenson: “the manipulation of things,
concepts or symbols for the purpose of generalizing to
extend, correct or verify knowledge. Whether the
knowledge aids in construction of theory or in the practice
of an art.”
12. W.S. Monroe: “a method of studying problems whose
solutions are to e derived partly or wholly from facts. The
facts dealt with in research may be statements of opinion,
historical facts, those contained in records and reports, the
results of tests, answers to questions, experimental data of
any sort and so forth. The final purpose of educational
research is to ascertain principles and develop procedures
for use in the field of education; therefore, it should
conclude by formulating principles or procedures. The
mere collection and tabulation of facts is not research,
though it may be preliminary to it on even a part thereof.”

11. 13. Francis Bacon: “Research is a power of
suspending judgment with patience, of
meditating with pleasures, of asserting with
caution, of correcting with readiness and of
arranging thought with scrupulous plan ”
Systematic techniques
Scientific tool Suggestion and
Discover Analysis of for finding recommendations
Facts facts solution
Feed back

12. • Definition of Business Research:
1. “Business research is defined as the systematic and
objective process of generating information for aid in
making business decisions.”
• The above definition suggests:
1. Research information is neither intuitive nor haphazardly
gathered.
2. The information generated or data collected and analyzed
should be accurate.
3. The objective is to facilitate the managerial decision-making
process for all aspects of a business: finance, marketing,
personnel, and so on.
4. An essential tool for management in its problem-solving and
decision-making activities, business research generates and
provides the necessary qualitative or quantitative information
upon which to base decisions. By reducing the uncertainty of
decisions, research reduces the risk of making wrong decisions.

13. 2. “Business research is a systematic inquiry
that provides information to guide managerial
decisions. More specifically, it is a process of
planning, acquiring, analyzing, and
disseminating relevant data, information, and
insights to decision makers in ways that
mobilize the organization to take appropriate
actions that, in turn, maximize business
performance.”

14. • Why study Business Research?
• Is it to solve day to day problems?
ex. Restaurant and
ROI
Mobile phone
• Business has to work with internal and
external environment.

15. • Importance of Research in Management/Role of
Business Research:
– The role of research has increased in the field of
business and economy as a whole.
– Because it provides the knowledge and skills to solve
the problems and meet the challenges of today’s
modern pace of development.
– The following factors stimulate people to conduct an
inquiry of a management dilemma, the problem or
opportunity that requires a management decision.
1. Increased role of information technology;
2. Active role of stakeholders;
3. Cut throat competition;

16. 4. Increased government's intervention;
5. More complex decisions;
6. Development of management as a group of
disciplines;
7. Greater computing power and speed:
a. Lower-cost data collection;
b. Better visualization tools;
c. Powerful computations;
d. More integration of data;
e. High speed access to information;
f. Advanced analytical tools for enhanced insights;
g. Customized reporting
8. New perspectives on established research
methodologies.