Dissertation Ethical Approval Form

Dissertation Ethical Approval Form
The purpose of this form is to ensure that the investigation you are commencing is
appropriate in terms of scope and ethics. Before submitting please ensure that you have
read Arden University Ethics Policy and the Guidelines for Completing the Student Research
Proposal Form.
Under no circumstances should the recruitment of participants begin until written
approval (usually by email) is received from the Arden Ethics Panel. Failure to obtain
ethical approval will result in you being unable to submit your work.
By submitting this form you are confirming that
(a) You have read Arden University’s Policy on Ethics
(b) You have read the Guidelines for Completing the Student Research Proposal Form
(c) You have completed this form fully and appropriately
(d) You have the necessary skills and competencies to carry out the investigation
(e) You have the necessary consent from any relevant organisation or agency (e.g., their
employer) to carry out this investigation
Your name on this form and subsequent submission will be regarded as your electronic
signature.
If your investigation involves the use of human participants, you MUST append at the end of
this file:
(a) Participant Information Sheet and Consent Form
(b) Any materials used (see later section)
(c) Debrief Sheet
Where no external contract exists, Arden University asserts ownership of primary data
generated in the course of research undertaken by researchers in its employment and by
registered students. Where research is carried out under a grant or contract, the terms of
the agreement will determine ownership and rights to exploit the data.
1. Student’s Details
Full Name
(family name last)
Student Number

Email address
Contact address
Telephone number
2. Programme Details
Level of Study 6 / 7
Programme
Module Name and Code
Supervisor Name
Supervisor Email Address
3. Proposed Research
Project Working Title To identify the impact of E marketing on consumer purchase
decision making. A case study on retail industry.
Project Summary (maximum: 250 words)
A brief summary of the project, including the context and rationale.
The study is about on how e marketing is impacting on consumer decision in retail
industry. it provides a brief overview of industry as well as marketing trends influence
on consumer decision. Furthermore, primary data will be gathered from customers to
get insight of their views and opinions.
Context – In recent times, internet is highly impacting on business world. it has provided
a platform for companies to use social media and other methods and techniques to
market and advertise products and services. so, they are easily able to directly
communicate with customers. e marketing is concept is using website, e mail, etc. to
attract people. in retail sector it has highly impacted on consumer purchase decision.
This is because of emerging market trends. Thus, the main context of research is to
identify impact of e marketing on consumer purchase decision making. Also, it objective
is to analyse trends in e marketing.
Rationale – this study will find out the positive as well as negative impact of e
marketing on consumer purchase decision making. Also, it will help in analysing the
factors or drivers due to which consumer changes their decision. Moreover, research
will provide data and information about different stages of decision making and how
each stage is been impacted. However, what types of e marketing methods are used by
retail industry to influence purchase decision.

Research Method (maximum: 500 words)
Explain the principle methods you will use (e.g. online survey, observation, interviews),
data selection and collection (e.g. online forums, social media sites, face to face – and
name them e.g. LinkedIn), and your rationale for your choices.
In order to conduct research, it is necessary to use specific research methods so that
study is completed in systematic way. also, it enables user to identify that what methods
are been used. Besides that, the data needs to be gathered using relevant and
appropriate sources. This allows in collecting precise and accurate data.
Data collection – Data must be collected in an appropriate way so that accurate results can be
obtained. The overall research aim and objectives depend on how data is collected. The
researcher has to gather precise data and information from various available resources. Data
collection is a process in which information is used from other related sources to search
answers of problems and examine the results. It can be divided into two parts: primary and
secondary data. Primary data collection includes two sub parts i.e. quantitative and qualitative
research methods. Quantitative methods are mainly supported by formats or mathematical
calculations. It includes questionnaire, interviews, surveys, focus groups, etc. In interviews,
direct questioning is there from the interviewer to the respondent. In focus groups, a group of
people is targeted whose issues are concerned. Questionnaire is widely used by researchers for
data collection. Here, quantitative method is used in primary data for the present research. This
is a suitable and convenient method to gather information from a wide range of population.
In the dissertation both secondary and primary data collection methods are taken to gather data.
the secondary data will be gathered through journals, articles, etc. also, the scholar will collect
primary data through online survey and for this it will use questionnaire.
These both methods are taken because the secondary data will give brief description of e
marketing methods used in retail industry. also, it will be easy to gather secondary data
from articles and journals by searching it on database and internet. Furthermore, for
primary method online survey is taken because it will be easy to conduct survey as cost
and time taken is less as compared to other methods. For survey questionnaire is used
because it will provide only precise and accurate data. so, on basis of it, data will be easily
interpreted and relevant outcomes are obtained. In this way, aims and objectives of
research is achieved.
Research Outcomes (maximum: 250 words)
Outline what you expect to achieve from the research (e.g. testing a new concept,
develop an intervention, recommendations for your organisation)
From this study it will be easy to find out that how e marketing is impacting on consumer
purchase decision. Also, it will reflect on social cognitive theory and how it impacts on
behaviour of consumer. Beside that, the research will be useful in defining relationship
between consumer behaviour and purchase decision. It means it will show that how