Business Research Methods

1. Business Research Methods Dr Robert Shaw School of Management Guangdong University of Foreign Studies

2. Today • The hegemony of science • Three kinds of research • New directions in business research • How to write • How to publish

3. 1. The hegemony of science • The word “hegemony” • Courses for students • The ascent & challenges of science • Physics as the exemplar • Understanding • Social sciences • Understanding • Business research • Understanding

4. hegemony Leadership, predominance, preponderance; esp. the leadership or predominant authority of one state of a confederacy or union over the others: originally used in reference to the states of ancient Greece, whence transferred to the German states, and in other modern applications. Oxford English Dictionary

6. Business methods courses • Textbooks • Confusion about purposes • Classification of methods • Base on what is done (analogy: menu) • Needs to be base on epistemology and/or ontology • Philosophical • Purpose

7. 2. Three kinds of research • Kinds of papers • Scientific (basic, fundamental) • Operational research (applied) • Philosophical (conceptual, argumentative) • Examples of each • Structure of the paper • Epistemological / ontological stance • The production of such papers

8. Scientific research in business • Common • Surveys • Experimental designs • Assumptions / ground • Epistemology • Ontology • Philosophy of science • Positivism • Constructivism • Phenomenology

9. Scientific papers • An example (next seven slides) • Structure of the paper • Prescribed method • Known standards • Engagement with the tradition • The traditions of research • The narrowing of the focus • The proliferation of sub-disciplines • Origin of problems - confusion with purposes

17. Scientific papers • An example (next seven slides) • Structure of the paper • Prescribed method • Known standards • Engagement with the tradition • The traditions of research • The narrowing of the focus • The proliferation of sub-disciplines • Origin of problems - confusion with purposes

18. Operational research in business • Examples • Marketing • Policy • Evaluation • Applied research • Consulting • Structure of the paper • In-house use • Report format • Often mimics science • Epistemological stance • Technology – a tool

21. 3. New directions • Science in business research • More about less • Detached from real problems • The interdisciplinary movement & new requirements • Understanding in the social sciences • Philosophy as business research • Phenomenology • Philosophy of management • Philosophy of science • Philosophy of technology • Critical management theory

22. 4. How to write • Pros and cons • Scientific enquiries • Operational enquiries • Philosophical enquiries • Technology • Screens • Grammar & spell checker • Bibliographic software (Endnote) • Dictionary and thesaurus • Academic databases • Library • Others

27. My kind of writing • Find a project – you need something to say • Write the abstract • Commit to a conference • Write, write, write – produce organically • Search online for relevant papers • Support your writing with references • Present it as quickly as possible • Re-write for publication • Submit for referees report

31. 4. How to publish • Control of journals • Academic societies • Open access journals • Set realistic goals