Business Research Methods: Reflective Journal and Analysis

This journal entry provides a reflective analysis of a 12-week business research methods course. The author details their learning journey, focusing on the core concepts of business research, market research, and the importance of well-defined research questions. The entry highlights the development of research skills through two assignments investigating the relationship between house prices and immigration rates. The journal chronicles the progression through weekly lessons, covering topics from research methodologies (qualitative and quantitative) to data conceptualization and conclusion formulation. The author reflects on the practical application of these concepts, emphasizing the use of literature reviews for data collection and the integration of different data sets for comprehensive analysis. The journal concludes with a summary of key lessons learned and their relevance to the author's future career, underscoring the significance of research in organizational decision-making.

Journal Entry
(Author’s name)
(Institutional Affiliation)
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Introduction
Research is an integral part of any business as it aids with the decision making process of the
business. (ekaran, and Bougi 2016) A number of studies have revealed that organization’s that
conduct well developed and accurate research is more successful than those that don’t. The
success stems from the fact that the better the research work the more the information available
to ensure accurate decision making (Liu 2017). For the past 12 weeks we have been learning
about business research method and the primary objective of the lessons was for students to
develop an understanding of how research work is conducted in business. The lessons provided
me with an opportunity to work on two research assignments. Both assignments investigated the
relationship that existed between house prices and immigration rates. This journal reviews the 12
week teaching period documenting a critical analysis of the learning process. In the journal I will
reflect and review how I have progressed with the learning goals that relate to assignments 1 and
2 on a week by week basis. The journal will then provide a conclusion bearing a summary of the
key lessons learnt during the 12 weeks and their practical application in my future career.
Week 1
The first week was one of the most important week in the learning process as we were
introduced into the topic of business research and the different concepts related with it. In this
week I was able to learn about the different forms of business research and identified market
research as one of the most important forms of research (Eriksson, and Kovalainen 2015). This is
because through market research a business is able to better understand its existing customers
and identify new potential customers. The information obtained in the first week is quite
important especially for a person who seeks to occupy the managerial position in any
organization. I was also able to learn about the importance of business research for organizations
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and for everyday life. It was evident that one of the most important reasons as to why
organizations conducted research was to obtain more information on a particular topic so as to be
able to make a well informed decision regarding the particular topic. Research helped
organizations to determine how different factors affect each other and how by adjusting one
factor, a person can be able to affect the other. The insight obtained week 1 is demonstrated in
assignment 1 and 2 where we sought to determine how immigrations rates and house prices
affect each other. In summary week 1 focused primarily on providing the student with an
overview of what to expect for the next 12 weeks.
Week 2
In the second week of the learning process, I was able to learn about the selection of a research
topic and how organizations should go about doing the same. In the classes, it was made evident
that the research question plays a significant role in determining whether the data collected is
relevant and helpful to the organization or not. The more refined a research topic is, the more
helpful it is towards the success of the organization.. This information is quite helpful for a
person in the management position of an organization. Well thought out research questions
provide for better research work thus making for an easy decision making process. The
information I obtained in this class was useful to me in being able to effectively develop and
understand my research question.
Week 3
In the third week of the learning practice I was able to learn about research goals and how to
select proper research goals. The learning experience made me aware of the fact that the research
goals are largely associated with the research question that one is seeking to answer. In
conducting the first assignment, the research objectives were critically evaluating the relationship
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that exists between immigration rates and house price rates, investigate the factors influencing
immigration rates and house across different countries and the production of a fruitful
relationship that is based on a fruitful relationship that is based on change in period and nursery.
Week 4
Unlike in week 1 lessons where we covered general aspects of research, week 2 focused more
on specific elements of research. In week 4 I learnt about how to conduct a research; here I was
introduced into the different research methods that are in existence and how use them I learnt
that there exists two broad categories of research namely qualitative and quantitative research.
Quantitative research is used primarily when dealing with quantifiable data while qualitative
research is used when dealing with information that one cannot quantify (Bryman, and Bell
2015). While learning about the two categories of research, I was also educated on the different
methodologies of collecting data for research from the use of questioners, to focus groups.
Learning about these elements helped to expound my perception on the field of research. The
information obtained in this week was important as I would be able to effectively choose which
research method to use while undertaking my assignment. Through the information obtained in
this lesson I was able to efficiently determine the scope of different research works that I have
conducted. The term project scope is used to refer to the projects that a particular research would
cover. This information was quite helpful to me in the development of the scope for the research
questions on the relationship between immigration and housing process. In reviewing the scope,
it is important to indicate that the more specific a scope is the more insightful the research will
be. This is because specific and narrowed down scopes allow for in-depyth research work which
results in quality data.
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Week 5-week 8
The period spanning week 5 to week 8 we were able to learn about the different research
methods that are in existence and how they are used. In the lessons, I was able to learn of the fact
that research methods are utilized in different contexts based on the research questions. Research
questions that are predominantly statistical in nature required qualitative research mechanisms
while those that are not required qualitative means of conducting the research (Paradis et al.,
2016). Some research questions might require an individual to utilize a combination of both
qualitative and quantitative research data to ensure the obtainment of results that are reflective of
the questions being reviewed (Field 2015). Due to the complex nature of my research question in
conducting the two assignments one and two, I decided to utilize both qualitative and
quantitative research method (Hair 2015). This was obtained through the use of literature review.
Through the use of literature review as my primary method of data collection for the two
assignments, I was able to obtain both qualitative data from the opinions of the authors and other
reputable individuals regarding their opinion on the subject matter (Neelankavil 2015). I was also
able to obtain quantitative data through the facts and figures presented in the articles being
reviewed. The use of literature review as the primary source of data collection served to provide
me with a large base of data to select from when making my analysis comments.
Week 9-10
In week 9 and 10, I was able to learn about conceptualization of the data a person obtains after
conducting research on the specific subject matter. The more in depth the conceptualization
process is the more accurate the research work is. The conceptualization entails obtaining the
data through various data collection methods and deriving a meaning from the data Guerra-
(Santin et al. 2015). Personally I found the ability to derive meaning from data collected from
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different sources and tie this information together to be quite interesting. This is because the data
research process is usually quite disjointed. By being able to integrate the different data sets
together, one is able to interact with the data therefore enhancing the recipients information.
Week 9-12
In the final week of the learning experiences we were told how to develop summaries and
conclusion remarks on the status of the data. This information is important as it helps to persuade
the reader regarding the validity of the arguments presented in the article. The conclusion
remarks also serve to enhance some of the key aspects of the paper that were preserved in the
research (Logan 2015). This serves to efficiently persuade the audience to the argument
standpoints that they were unable to obtain. It is also important to provide a summary of the
research paper so as to make it easier for individuals to read through the most important
elopements of a research paper without having to read through the entire paper (Lester, and
Lester Jr 2015).
Conclusion
In summary it is logical to conclude that research is an element aspect of the organizations
operations and thus there is a need to maintain it. The more defined a research question is, the
less likely it is for one to experience some of the major difficulties associated with research work
(Sekaran, and Bougie 2016). It is my personal opinion that while engaging in the week 1 and 2
assignment, I was able to obtain a lot of information which will serve to enhance my ability to
operate as a business person.
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Bibliography
Bryman, A. and Bell, E., 2015. Business research methods. Oxford University Press, USA.
Eriksson, P. and Kovalainen, A., 2015. Qualitative methods in business research: a practical
guide to social research. Sage.
Hair, J.F., 2015. Essentials of business research methods. Me sharpe.
Sekaran, U. And Bougie, R., 2016. Research methods for business: a skill building approach.
John wiley & sons.
Neelankavil, J.P., 2015. International business research. Routledge.
Guerra-santin, O. and Tweed, C.A., 2015. In-use monitoring of buildings: an overview of data
collection methods. Energy and buildings, 93, pp.189-207.
Field, T., 2015. The benefits and limitations of quantitative data collection to the literature
review data collection.
Paradis, E., O'brien, B., Nimmon, L., Bandiera, G. and Martimianakis, M.A., 2016. Design:
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Liu, W., 2017. Research goals and hypotheses. In how are Chinese only children growing (pp.
95-104). Springer fachmedien wiesbaden.
Logan, B., 2015. Research goals, not milestones.
Lester, J.D. and Lester Jr, J.D., 2015. Writing research papers: a complete guide (paperback).
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Sekaran, U. and Bougie, R., 2016. Research methods for business: a skill building approach.
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