SOLUTION MANUAL
Research Methods For Business Students
8th Edition Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis
Chapters 1 - 14, Complete
3
© Pearson Education Limited 2019
, Contents
Chapters Pages
Introduction 5
1 Business and management research, reflective diaries and the purpose
of this book 15
2 Choosing a research topic and developing your research proposal 19
3 Critically reviewing the literature 23
4 Understanding research philosophy and approaches to theory development27
5 Formulating the research design 32
6 Negotiating access and research ethics 36
7 Selecting samples 40
8 Utilising secondary data 44
9 Collecting data through observation 48
10 Collecting primary data using research interviews and research diaries 54
11 Collecting primary data using questionnaires 59
12 Analysing data quantitatively 63
13 Analysing data qualitatively 68
14 Writing and presenting your project report 72
Appendix 75
1 Research project assignment 75
2 Group poster research project assignment 80
3 Research proposal assignment 84
4 Additional cases on the companion website 89
INTRODUCTION
An overview of the instructors’ manual
This instructors’ manual provides commentary for the eighth edition of the textbook
Research Methods for Business Students. The commentary is on a chapter by chapter basis and
includes:
chapter learning outcomes;
summary of the content;
comments on likely student reactions and possible use of materials;
4
© Pearson Education Limited 2019
, ideas jfor jstudents’ jpreparatory jwork;
suggestions jfor jdelivery jin jthe jclassroom;
ideas jfor jstudents’ jfollow-up jwork.
In jaddition, jwe jhave jincluded ja jcopy jof ja jresearch jproject jassignment, ja jgroup jresearch
jprojectjposter jassignment jand ja jcopy jof ja jdissertation jproposal jassignment jas jappendices.
Research jMethods jfor jBusiness j– jan joverview jof jthe jeighth jedition
Pedagogic j features
The jover-riding jpurpose jof jResearch jMethods jfor jBusiness jStudents jis jto jhelp jundergraduate jand
jpostgraduate jstudents jand jstudents jon jprofessional jcourses jto jundertake jresearch. jEach
jchapter jdeals jwith ja jpart jof jthe jresearch jprocess jand jdiscusses jthe jideas, jtechniques jand
jmethods jusing jas jlittle jjargon jas jis jpossible. jTables, jchecklists jand jdiagrams jare jused jto jaid
jthis jdiscussion. jWhere jnew jterms jare jintroduced jfor jthe jfirst jtime, jthey jare jshown jin jbold,
jand ja jdefinition jor jexplanation jfollows jshortly jafterwards. jThey jare jalso jlisted jwith ja
jbrief jdefinition jin jthe jglossary. jThe japplication jof jappropriate jinformation jtechnology jis
jconsidered, jin jmost jinstances jas jan jintegral jpart jof jthe jtext. jChapters jhave jbeen jcross-
referenced jas jappropriate, jand jan jindex jis jprovided jto jhelp jstudents jfind jtheir jway jaround
jthe jbook.
Focus jon jstudent jresearch jboxes jare jincluded jwithin jthe jtext jof jeach jchapter. jThese jare
jbased jon jactual jresearch jprojects, jundertaken jby jstudents, jin jwhich jpoints jmade jin jthe
jtext jare jillustrated. jIn jmany jinstances, jthese jworked jexamples jillustrate jpossible jpitfalls
jstudents jmay jcome jacross jwhile jundertaking jtheir jresearch. jWhere ja jpitfall jhas jbeen
jillustrated, jit jwill, jit jis jhoped, jhelp jyour jstudents javoid jmaking jthe jsame jmistake.
jFurther jillustrations jare jprovided jby jfocus jon jmanagement jresearch jand jresearch jin jthe
jnews jboxes.
Focus jon jmanagement jresearch jboxes jdiscuss jrecent jresearch jin jbusiness jand jmanagement.
jThese jare jnormally jderived jfrom jrefereed jacademic jjournal jarticles, jand jstudents jare jlikely
jto jbejable jto jdownload jthe jactual jarticles jfrom jonline jdatabases jat jtheir juniversity.
Focus jon jresearch jin jthe jnews jboxes jprovide jtopical jnews jarticles jthat jillustrate jpertinent
jresearch-related jissues. jAll jthese jwill jhelp jstudents jto junderstand jthe jtechnique jor jidea
jand jto jassess jits jsuitability jor jappropriateness jto jtheir jresearch. jBoxed jchecklists jprovide
jstudents jwithjfurther jfocussed jguidance jfor jtheir jown jresearch.
A jsummary jof jkey jpoints jat jthe jend jof jeach jchapter jcan jbe jused jby jstudents jbefore jand
jafter jreading jthe jchapter jto jensure jthat jthey jhave jdigested jthe jmain jpoints.
Self-check jquestions jenable jstudents jto jcheck jthey jhave junderstood jthe jchapter. jThese jcan jall
jbe janswered jwithout jrecourse jto jother j(external) jresources. jAnswers jare jprovided jto jall
jthe jself- jcheck jquestions jat jthe jend jof jeach jchapter.
Review jand jdiscuss jquestions jfollow jthe jself-check jquestions. jThese jsuggest ja jvariety jof
jactivities j students j can j undertake j to j help j them j further j develop j their j knowledge j and
j understanding jof jthe jmaterial jin jthe jchapter, joften jinvolving jdiscussion jwith ja jfriend.
Self-test jmultiple jchoice jquestions jand jtrue/false jquestions jfor jeach jchapter jare javailable jon
jthis jbook’s jcompanion jwebsite.
5
© Pearson Education Limited 2019
, Saunders, Research Methods for Business Students, 8e, Instructor’s Manual
All jchapters jinclude ja jsection jtowards jthe jend jtitled j“Progressing jyour jresearch jproject” jthat
jcan jbe jundertaken jas jpart jof jthe jstudent’s jresearch jproject. jThese jare jpresented jin jsufficient
jdetail jto jenable jthem jto jfocus jon jthe jtechniques jthat jare jmost jappropriate jto jhis jor jher
jresearch. jBy jcompleting jall jthese jsections, jthe jstudent jwill jhave jalso jcompleted jhis jor jher
jproject jreport.
Each jchapter jis jalso jaccompanied jby jreferences, jfurther jreading jand ja jcase jstudy.
Further jreading jis jincluded jfor jtwo jdistinct jreasons:
▪ to jdirect jstudents jto jother jwork jon jthe jideas jcontained jwithin jthe jchapter;
▪ to j direct j students j to j further j examples j of j research j where j the j ideas j contained j in j the
j chapterjhave jbeen jused.
Case jstudies jat jthe jend jof jeach jchapter jare jall jnew jto jthe jeighth jedition. jThey jhave jbeen jdrawn
jfrom ja jvariety jof jbusiness jand jmanagement jresearch jscenarios jand jhave jbeen jbased jon jthe
jcase jstudy’s jauthors’ jstudents’ jexperiences jwhen jundertaking ja jresearch jproject. jThey
jhave jbeen jwritten jto jhighlight jreal jissues jthat joccur jwhen jundertaking jbusiness jand
jmanagement jresearch. jTo jhelp jfocusjstudents’ jthoughts jor jdiscussion jon jsome jof jthe jpertinent
jissues, jeach jcase jis jfollowed jby jevaluative jquestions, janswers jto jwhich jare jprovided jon jthe
jInstructors’ jCompanion jWeb jSite. jA jcase jstudy jfollows jevery jchapter. jA jfurther j75 jcase
jstudies jfrom jearlier jeditions jof jthe jbook jare javailable jon jthe jStudents’ jCompanion jWeb
jSite; janswers jto jthese jcases jare jprovided jon jthe jInstructors’ jCompanion jWeb jSite. jA
jcomplete jlist jof jthese jcases jis jprovided jin jAppendix j4.
Contents
Chapter j1 joutlines jthe jnature jof jresearch jand, jmore jspecifically, jof jbusiness jand
jmanagement jresearch. jThe jbasic jversus japplied jresearch jand jrelevance jdebates jare
jconsidered jand jadvice joffered j regarding j keeping j a j reflective j diary j or j notebook. j The
j chapter j concludes j with j an j overview jof jthe jpurpose jand jstructure jof jthe jbook.
Chapter j2 jis jwritten jto jassist jstudents jin jthe jgeneration jof jideas, jwhich jwill jhelp jthem jto
jchoose ja jsuitable jresearch jtopic, jand joffers jadvice jon jwhat jmakes ja jgood jresearch jtopic. jIf
jyour jstudents jhave jalready jbeen jgiven ja jresearch jtopic, jperhaps jby jan jorganisation jor
jtutor, jthey jwill jneed jto jrefine jit jinto jone jthat jis jfeasible jand jshould jstill jtherefore jread
jthis jchapter. jAfter jtheir jidea jhas jbeen jgenerated jand jrefined, jthe jchapter jdiscusses jhow
jto jturn jthis jidea jinto jclear jresearch jquestion(s) jand jobjectives. j(Research jquestions jand
jobjectives jare jreferred jto jthroughout jthe jbook.) jFinally, jthe jchapter jprovides jadvice jon
jhow jto jwrite ja jresearch jproposal.
The jimportance jof jthe jcritical jliterature jreview jto jstudents’ jresearch jis jdiscussed jin
jChapter j3. jThis jchapter joutlines jwhat ja jcritical jreview jneeds jto jinclude jand jthe jrange jof
jsecondary jand jprimary jliterature jsources javailable. jThe jchapter jexplains jthe jpurpose jof
jreviewing jthe jliterature, jdiscusses ja jrange jof jsearch jstrategies jand jcontains jadvice jon jhow
jto jplan jand jundertake ja jsearch jand jto jwrite jthe jreview. jThe jprocesses jof jidentifying jkey
jwords jand jsearching jusing jonline jdatabases jand jthe jInternet jare joutlined. jIt jalso joffers
jadvice jon jhow jto jrecord jitems jand jto jevaluate jtheir jrelevance jas jwell jas jdiscussing
jplagiarism.
Chapter j4 jaddresses jthe jissue jof junderstanding jdifferent jresearch jphilosophies jincluding
jpositivism, jcritical jrealism, jinterpretivism, jpost jmodernism jand jpragmatism. jWithin jthis,
jthe jfunctionalist, jinterpretive, jradical jhumanist jand jradical jstructuralist jparadigms jare
jdiscussed. jDeductive, jinductive, jabductive jand jretroductive japproaches jto jtheory
6
© Pearson Education Limited 2019
Research Methods For Business Students
8th Edition Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis
Chapters 1 - 14, Complete
3
© Pearson Education Limited 2019
, Contents
Chapters Pages
Introduction 5
1 Business and management research, reflective diaries and the purpose
of this book 15
2 Choosing a research topic and developing your research proposal 19
3 Critically reviewing the literature 23
4 Understanding research philosophy and approaches to theory development27
5 Formulating the research design 32
6 Negotiating access and research ethics 36
7 Selecting samples 40
8 Utilising secondary data 44
9 Collecting data through observation 48
10 Collecting primary data using research interviews and research diaries 54
11 Collecting primary data using questionnaires 59
12 Analysing data quantitatively 63
13 Analysing data qualitatively 68
14 Writing and presenting your project report 72
Appendix 75
1 Research project assignment 75
2 Group poster research project assignment 80
3 Research proposal assignment 84
4 Additional cases on the companion website 89
INTRODUCTION
An overview of the instructors’ manual
This instructors’ manual provides commentary for the eighth edition of the textbook
Research Methods for Business Students. The commentary is on a chapter by chapter basis and
includes:
chapter learning outcomes;
summary of the content;
comments on likely student reactions and possible use of materials;
4
© Pearson Education Limited 2019
, ideas jfor jstudents’ jpreparatory jwork;
suggestions jfor jdelivery jin jthe jclassroom;
ideas jfor jstudents’ jfollow-up jwork.
In jaddition, jwe jhave jincluded ja jcopy jof ja jresearch jproject jassignment, ja jgroup jresearch
jprojectjposter jassignment jand ja jcopy jof ja jdissertation jproposal jassignment jas jappendices.
Research jMethods jfor jBusiness j– jan joverview jof jthe jeighth jedition
Pedagogic j features
The jover-riding jpurpose jof jResearch jMethods jfor jBusiness jStudents jis jto jhelp jundergraduate jand
jpostgraduate jstudents jand jstudents jon jprofessional jcourses jto jundertake jresearch. jEach
jchapter jdeals jwith ja jpart jof jthe jresearch jprocess jand jdiscusses jthe jideas, jtechniques jand
jmethods jusing jas jlittle jjargon jas jis jpossible. jTables, jchecklists jand jdiagrams jare jused jto jaid
jthis jdiscussion. jWhere jnew jterms jare jintroduced jfor jthe jfirst jtime, jthey jare jshown jin jbold,
jand ja jdefinition jor jexplanation jfollows jshortly jafterwards. jThey jare jalso jlisted jwith ja
jbrief jdefinition jin jthe jglossary. jThe japplication jof jappropriate jinformation jtechnology jis
jconsidered, jin jmost jinstances jas jan jintegral jpart jof jthe jtext. jChapters jhave jbeen jcross-
referenced jas jappropriate, jand jan jindex jis jprovided jto jhelp jstudents jfind jtheir jway jaround
jthe jbook.
Focus jon jstudent jresearch jboxes jare jincluded jwithin jthe jtext jof jeach jchapter. jThese jare
jbased jon jactual jresearch jprojects, jundertaken jby jstudents, jin jwhich jpoints jmade jin jthe
jtext jare jillustrated. jIn jmany jinstances, jthese jworked jexamples jillustrate jpossible jpitfalls
jstudents jmay jcome jacross jwhile jundertaking jtheir jresearch. jWhere ja jpitfall jhas jbeen
jillustrated, jit jwill, jit jis jhoped, jhelp jyour jstudents javoid jmaking jthe jsame jmistake.
jFurther jillustrations jare jprovided jby jfocus jon jmanagement jresearch jand jresearch jin jthe
jnews jboxes.
Focus jon jmanagement jresearch jboxes jdiscuss jrecent jresearch jin jbusiness jand jmanagement.
jThese jare jnormally jderived jfrom jrefereed jacademic jjournal jarticles, jand jstudents jare jlikely
jto jbejable jto jdownload jthe jactual jarticles jfrom jonline jdatabases jat jtheir juniversity.
Focus jon jresearch jin jthe jnews jboxes jprovide jtopical jnews jarticles jthat jillustrate jpertinent
jresearch-related jissues. jAll jthese jwill jhelp jstudents jto junderstand jthe jtechnique jor jidea
jand jto jassess jits jsuitability jor jappropriateness jto jtheir jresearch. jBoxed jchecklists jprovide
jstudents jwithjfurther jfocussed jguidance jfor jtheir jown jresearch.
A jsummary jof jkey jpoints jat jthe jend jof jeach jchapter jcan jbe jused jby jstudents jbefore jand
jafter jreading jthe jchapter jto jensure jthat jthey jhave jdigested jthe jmain jpoints.
Self-check jquestions jenable jstudents jto jcheck jthey jhave junderstood jthe jchapter. jThese jcan jall
jbe janswered jwithout jrecourse jto jother j(external) jresources. jAnswers jare jprovided jto jall
jthe jself- jcheck jquestions jat jthe jend jof jeach jchapter.
Review jand jdiscuss jquestions jfollow jthe jself-check jquestions. jThese jsuggest ja jvariety jof
jactivities j students j can j undertake j to j help j them j further j develop j their j knowledge j and
j understanding jof jthe jmaterial jin jthe jchapter, joften jinvolving jdiscussion jwith ja jfriend.
Self-test jmultiple jchoice jquestions jand jtrue/false jquestions jfor jeach jchapter jare javailable jon
jthis jbook’s jcompanion jwebsite.
5
© Pearson Education Limited 2019
, Saunders, Research Methods for Business Students, 8e, Instructor’s Manual
All jchapters jinclude ja jsection jtowards jthe jend jtitled j“Progressing jyour jresearch jproject” jthat
jcan jbe jundertaken jas jpart jof jthe jstudent’s jresearch jproject. jThese jare jpresented jin jsufficient
jdetail jto jenable jthem jto jfocus jon jthe jtechniques jthat jare jmost jappropriate jto jhis jor jher
jresearch. jBy jcompleting jall jthese jsections, jthe jstudent jwill jhave jalso jcompleted jhis jor jher
jproject jreport.
Each jchapter jis jalso jaccompanied jby jreferences, jfurther jreading jand ja jcase jstudy.
Further jreading jis jincluded jfor jtwo jdistinct jreasons:
▪ to jdirect jstudents jto jother jwork jon jthe jideas jcontained jwithin jthe jchapter;
▪ to j direct j students j to j further j examples j of j research j where j the j ideas j contained j in j the
j chapterjhave jbeen jused.
Case jstudies jat jthe jend jof jeach jchapter jare jall jnew jto jthe jeighth jedition. jThey jhave jbeen jdrawn
jfrom ja jvariety jof jbusiness jand jmanagement jresearch jscenarios jand jhave jbeen jbased jon jthe
jcase jstudy’s jauthors’ jstudents’ jexperiences jwhen jundertaking ja jresearch jproject. jThey
jhave jbeen jwritten jto jhighlight jreal jissues jthat joccur jwhen jundertaking jbusiness jand
jmanagement jresearch. jTo jhelp jfocusjstudents’ jthoughts jor jdiscussion jon jsome jof jthe jpertinent
jissues, jeach jcase jis jfollowed jby jevaluative jquestions, janswers jto jwhich jare jprovided jon jthe
jInstructors’ jCompanion jWeb jSite. jA jcase jstudy jfollows jevery jchapter. jA jfurther j75 jcase
jstudies jfrom jearlier jeditions jof jthe jbook jare javailable jon jthe jStudents’ jCompanion jWeb
jSite; janswers jto jthese jcases jare jprovided jon jthe jInstructors’ jCompanion jWeb jSite. jA
jcomplete jlist jof jthese jcases jis jprovided jin jAppendix j4.
Contents
Chapter j1 joutlines jthe jnature jof jresearch jand, jmore jspecifically, jof jbusiness jand
jmanagement jresearch. jThe jbasic jversus japplied jresearch jand jrelevance jdebates jare
jconsidered jand jadvice joffered j regarding j keeping j a j reflective j diary j or j notebook. j The
j chapter j concludes j with j an j overview jof jthe jpurpose jand jstructure jof jthe jbook.
Chapter j2 jis jwritten jto jassist jstudents jin jthe jgeneration jof jideas, jwhich jwill jhelp jthem jto
jchoose ja jsuitable jresearch jtopic, jand joffers jadvice jon jwhat jmakes ja jgood jresearch jtopic. jIf
jyour jstudents jhave jalready jbeen jgiven ja jresearch jtopic, jperhaps jby jan jorganisation jor
jtutor, jthey jwill jneed jto jrefine jit jinto jone jthat jis jfeasible jand jshould jstill jtherefore jread
jthis jchapter. jAfter jtheir jidea jhas jbeen jgenerated jand jrefined, jthe jchapter jdiscusses jhow
jto jturn jthis jidea jinto jclear jresearch jquestion(s) jand jobjectives. j(Research jquestions jand
jobjectives jare jreferred jto jthroughout jthe jbook.) jFinally, jthe jchapter jprovides jadvice jon
jhow jto jwrite ja jresearch jproposal.
The jimportance jof jthe jcritical jliterature jreview jto jstudents’ jresearch jis jdiscussed jin
jChapter j3. jThis jchapter joutlines jwhat ja jcritical jreview jneeds jto jinclude jand jthe jrange jof
jsecondary jand jprimary jliterature jsources javailable. jThe jchapter jexplains jthe jpurpose jof
jreviewing jthe jliterature, jdiscusses ja jrange jof jsearch jstrategies jand jcontains jadvice jon jhow
jto jplan jand jundertake ja jsearch jand jto jwrite jthe jreview. jThe jprocesses jof jidentifying jkey
jwords jand jsearching jusing jonline jdatabases jand jthe jInternet jare joutlined. jIt jalso joffers
jadvice jon jhow jto jrecord jitems jand jto jevaluate jtheir jrelevance jas jwell jas jdiscussing
jplagiarism.
Chapter j4 jaddresses jthe jissue jof junderstanding jdifferent jresearch jphilosophies jincluding
jpositivism, jcritical jrealism, jinterpretivism, jpost jmodernism jand jpragmatism. jWithin jthis,
jthe jfunctionalist, jinterpretive, jradical jhumanist jand jradical jstructuralist jparadigms jare
jdiscussed. jDeductive, jinductive, jabductive jand jretroductive japproaches jto jtheory
6
© Pearson Education Limited 2019
