Pre-MSc Research Skills
Week 1
Research skills reader:
Chapter 1: Why science
What is science?
Business administration is a science. All sciences share three fundamental features.
- The first one is systematic empiricism (leren uit eigen ervaring). Scientists learn based on
their own observations. They planning, making, and analyzing observations, and when these
observations conflict with their ideas, their ideas should be adapted.
- The second feature of the scientific approach is that it is concerned with empirical questions
(vragen die beantwoord worden door eigen onderzoek). These are questions about the world
actually is and can be answered by systematically observing. Question that are for example
about ethical or unethical are non-empirical questions.
- The third feature of science is that it creates public knowledge. After making their
observations and conclusions scientists publish their work in an article or a professional
journal. Increasingly, scientists are opting to publish their work in open access journals for
anyone. This allows publicly-funded research creating knowledge that is available for anyone.
There are two reasons why publication is an important feature of science. The first reason is
that science is a social process with many researchers. The second reason is that publication
allows science to be self-correcting. It can happen that scientists made some mistakes and
their conclusions are incorrect.
Individual studies can be flawed (onvolmaakt). That is the reason why academics don’t treat a single
study as the final say on a certain subject.
Goal of business research
Science grew out of natural curiosity and is the best way to achieve detailed and accurate knowledge.
The three goals of science.
- The first and most basic goal of science is to describe. This goal is achieved by making careful
observations.
- The second (ultimate) goal of science is to explain. This goal involves determining the causes
of behaviour.
- The third goal of science is to predict. Once the observations have been made. That
information can be used to predict some situations. For example if a new manager will be a
successful manager.
Scientific research is often classified as being either basic (fundamenteel) or applied (toegepast).
Basic research is conducted primarily for the sake of achieving a more detailed and accurate
understanding of human behaviour, without necessarily trying to address any particular practical
problem. In contrast, Applied research is conducted primarily to address some practical problem.
Many papers have both a ‘basic’ and ‘applied’ element to them, and many excellent studies
contribute both to theoretical and practical understanding.
,Chapter 2: Thinking like a researcher
Concepts, constructs and variables
Explanation requires development of concepts. Concepts are characteristics associated with people.
The people are not concepts but their characteristics like behaviour are.
A construct is an abstract concept chosen to explain a given phenomenon. There are unidimensional
constructs (weight) and multidimensional constructs (communication skills). A multidimensional
construct consists of multiple underlying concepts. The distinction is clearer in a multidimensional
construct, where the higher abstraction is called a construct.
When discussing constructs there are two types of definitions.
- Conceptual definition.
A conceptual definition involves defining a construct on an abstract and theoretical level. For
example, a conceptual definition of perceived service quality could be “the degree and direction of
discrepancy between consumers’ perceptions and expectations.
- Operational definition.
Are necessary when it comes to collecting and analyzing data. You have to be very specific on how
you measure the construct.
A variable is a measurable representation of an abstract construct. For example, someone’s
intelligence is measured with IQ. The intelligence is the construct and the measured IQ is the variable.
Scientific research proceed along two planes, the theoretical
plane and the empirical plane.
There are different types of variables. Variables that explain other variables are called independent
variables. Variables that are explained by other variables are called dependent variables.
Variables that are explained by independent variables, but explain dependent variables are called
mediating variables. They help by understanding the mechanism.
A moderating variable (moderator) is a variable that strengthens or weakens the effect of another
variable.
The last variable is a controlled variable. These are variables that you have to control (rekening mee
moet houden maar verder niet van belang zijn.)
The overall network of relationships between related constructs is called a conceptual model.
,Propositions, hypotheses, theories and models
Propositions represent tentative relationships between theoretical constructs, such as intelligence
and academic achievement. These relationships are stated in a declarative form and are empirically
testable. However, propositions cannot be tested directly, so they are translated into hypotheses,
which link measurable variables like IQ scores and GPAs. Hypotheses vary in strength, from weak ones
that state a relationship without directionality or causality, to strong ones that specify both.
In hypotheses, independent variables (causes) and dependent variables (effects) must be clearly
defined, making them empirically testable. For example, in the hypothesis "students' IQ scores
positively affect academic achievement," intelligence is the independent variable and academic
achievement the dependent variable. Hypotheses that lack these specifications are not scientifically
valid.
Theories are sets of systematically related propositions aimed at explaining or predicting phenomena,
while models represent systems to study these phenomena. Theories tend to be more complex and
abstract than propositions, while models are often used for decision-making and prediction, such as
in marketing or weather forecasting.
Theory-building involves both deductive reasoning (deriving conclusions from premises) and
inductive reasoning (drawing conclusions from observed facts). Deduction is typically stronger but
relies on the correctness of the initial premises, while inductive conclusions can be tentative and
subject to disproof. Scientific research often requires moving between these reasoning methods to
improve or build new theories and models.
Reading reader for understanding image:
, Chapter 3: Overview of the scientific method
A model of scientific research in business
The business research process follows a cycle where researchers formulate a research question,
conduct an empirical study, analyze the data, and publish results, which then inspire new research
questions. This cycle is illustrated in a simple model of scientific research in business, where
questions arise from practical business challenges or informal observations. Researchers begin by
reviewing existing literature to refine their research questions based on prior findings.
Examples of the Research Process:
Innovation Management: Ferreira, Coelho, and Moutinho (2021) studied how strategic
alliances influence innovation and new product development. After reviewing the literature,
they conducted a survey with managers from Portuguese SMEs. Their findings showed that
strategic alliances affect innovation indirectly by first influencing exploration and exploitation.
This study contributed to academic discourse and raised further questions about the
mechanisms involved, demonstrating the iterative nature of business research.
Marketing: Henderson et al. (2020) aimed to understand customer inertia—why some
customers never switch firms despite better offers. Their study, based on a survey and a field
experiment, revealed two psychological processes, "thinking minimization" and "regret
minimization," that influence inertia. They found that loyalty rewards could disrupt or
reinforce inertia, depending on the process. This study contributed to the understanding of
customer behavior and informed marketing strategies.
Both examples show how business research bridges practical challenges and theoretical concerns,
leading to deeper understanding and further research.
Week 1
Research skills reader:
Chapter 1: Why science
What is science?
Business administration is a science. All sciences share three fundamental features.
- The first one is systematic empiricism (leren uit eigen ervaring). Scientists learn based on
their own observations. They planning, making, and analyzing observations, and when these
observations conflict with their ideas, their ideas should be adapted.
- The second feature of the scientific approach is that it is concerned with empirical questions
(vragen die beantwoord worden door eigen onderzoek). These are questions about the world
actually is and can be answered by systematically observing. Question that are for example
about ethical or unethical are non-empirical questions.
- The third feature of science is that it creates public knowledge. After making their
observations and conclusions scientists publish their work in an article or a professional
journal. Increasingly, scientists are opting to publish their work in open access journals for
anyone. This allows publicly-funded research creating knowledge that is available for anyone.
There are two reasons why publication is an important feature of science. The first reason is
that science is a social process with many researchers. The second reason is that publication
allows science to be self-correcting. It can happen that scientists made some mistakes and
their conclusions are incorrect.
Individual studies can be flawed (onvolmaakt). That is the reason why academics don’t treat a single
study as the final say on a certain subject.
Goal of business research
Science grew out of natural curiosity and is the best way to achieve detailed and accurate knowledge.
The three goals of science.
- The first and most basic goal of science is to describe. This goal is achieved by making careful
observations.
- The second (ultimate) goal of science is to explain. This goal involves determining the causes
of behaviour.
- The third goal of science is to predict. Once the observations have been made. That
information can be used to predict some situations. For example if a new manager will be a
successful manager.
Scientific research is often classified as being either basic (fundamenteel) or applied (toegepast).
Basic research is conducted primarily for the sake of achieving a more detailed and accurate
understanding of human behaviour, without necessarily trying to address any particular practical
problem. In contrast, Applied research is conducted primarily to address some practical problem.
Many papers have both a ‘basic’ and ‘applied’ element to them, and many excellent studies
contribute both to theoretical and practical understanding.
,Chapter 2: Thinking like a researcher
Concepts, constructs and variables
Explanation requires development of concepts. Concepts are characteristics associated with people.
The people are not concepts but their characteristics like behaviour are.
A construct is an abstract concept chosen to explain a given phenomenon. There are unidimensional
constructs (weight) and multidimensional constructs (communication skills). A multidimensional
construct consists of multiple underlying concepts. The distinction is clearer in a multidimensional
construct, where the higher abstraction is called a construct.
When discussing constructs there are two types of definitions.
- Conceptual definition.
A conceptual definition involves defining a construct on an abstract and theoretical level. For
example, a conceptual definition of perceived service quality could be “the degree and direction of
discrepancy between consumers’ perceptions and expectations.
- Operational definition.
Are necessary when it comes to collecting and analyzing data. You have to be very specific on how
you measure the construct.
A variable is a measurable representation of an abstract construct. For example, someone’s
intelligence is measured with IQ. The intelligence is the construct and the measured IQ is the variable.
Scientific research proceed along two planes, the theoretical
plane and the empirical plane.
There are different types of variables. Variables that explain other variables are called independent
variables. Variables that are explained by other variables are called dependent variables.
Variables that are explained by independent variables, but explain dependent variables are called
mediating variables. They help by understanding the mechanism.
A moderating variable (moderator) is a variable that strengthens or weakens the effect of another
variable.
The last variable is a controlled variable. These are variables that you have to control (rekening mee
moet houden maar verder niet van belang zijn.)
The overall network of relationships between related constructs is called a conceptual model.
,Propositions, hypotheses, theories and models
Propositions represent tentative relationships between theoretical constructs, such as intelligence
and academic achievement. These relationships are stated in a declarative form and are empirically
testable. However, propositions cannot be tested directly, so they are translated into hypotheses,
which link measurable variables like IQ scores and GPAs. Hypotheses vary in strength, from weak ones
that state a relationship without directionality or causality, to strong ones that specify both.
In hypotheses, independent variables (causes) and dependent variables (effects) must be clearly
defined, making them empirically testable. For example, in the hypothesis "students' IQ scores
positively affect academic achievement," intelligence is the independent variable and academic
achievement the dependent variable. Hypotheses that lack these specifications are not scientifically
valid.
Theories are sets of systematically related propositions aimed at explaining or predicting phenomena,
while models represent systems to study these phenomena. Theories tend to be more complex and
abstract than propositions, while models are often used for decision-making and prediction, such as
in marketing or weather forecasting.
Theory-building involves both deductive reasoning (deriving conclusions from premises) and
inductive reasoning (drawing conclusions from observed facts). Deduction is typically stronger but
relies on the correctness of the initial premises, while inductive conclusions can be tentative and
subject to disproof. Scientific research often requires moving between these reasoning methods to
improve or build new theories and models.
Reading reader for understanding image:
, Chapter 3: Overview of the scientific method
A model of scientific research in business
The business research process follows a cycle where researchers formulate a research question,
conduct an empirical study, analyze the data, and publish results, which then inspire new research
questions. This cycle is illustrated in a simple model of scientific research in business, where
questions arise from practical business challenges or informal observations. Researchers begin by
reviewing existing literature to refine their research questions based on prior findings.
Examples of the Research Process:
Innovation Management: Ferreira, Coelho, and Moutinho (2021) studied how strategic
alliances influence innovation and new product development. After reviewing the literature,
they conducted a survey with managers from Portuguese SMEs. Their findings showed that
strategic alliances affect innovation indirectly by first influencing exploration and exploitation.
This study contributed to academic discourse and raised further questions about the
mechanisms involved, demonstrating the iterative nature of business research.
Marketing: Henderson et al. (2020) aimed to understand customer inertia—why some
customers never switch firms despite better offers. Their study, based on a survey and a field
experiment, revealed two psychological processes, "thinking minimization" and "regret
minimization," that influence inertia. They found that loyalty rewards could disrupt or
reinforce inertia, depending on the process. This study contributed to the understanding of
customer behavior and informed marketing strategies.
Both examples show how business research bridges practical challenges and theoretical concerns,
leading to deeper understanding and further research.
