research process and problem formulation jeremy kees, ph.d

Research Process and Problem Formulation

Jeremy Kees, Ph.D.

Tonight’s Agenda

• Guest Speaker

• Research Process

• Andreasen Article

• Problem Formulation

• Secondary Research (Hank’s Project)

Review from last week…

• Marketing research is the marketer’s link to understanding the consumer and the external environment

• The SOLE purpose of marketing research is to inform decisions

• Every research project is different...

Research Process: Problem Formulation

• Perhaps the most important step in the research process

• Drives decisions related to research design, measurement, sampling, analysis, etc.

Research Process: Problem FormulationStage in the Process

Typical Questions

Formulate problem • What is the purpose of the study (i.e., to solve a problem? Identify an opportunity?)

• Is additional background information necessary?

• What are specific research questions and what information is needed to make the decision?

• How will the information be utilized?

• Has a decision already been made?

• Should research be conducted?

“Attacking the Obesity Epidemic: An Examination of the Potential Health Benefits of Nutrition Information Provision in Restaurants,” American Journal for Public Health (forthcoming)

• Formulate Problem– Obesity is the 2nd leading cause of preventable death in the US– What can be done?– Can the provision of nutrition information help consumers make

better (healthier) food consumption decisions? (decision problem)– How good (accurate) are consumers at estimating the nutritional

content of restaurant foods? and Can providing objective nutrient information improve food evaluation and choice (research problems)

– State hypotheses to be tested based on theory• Based on Expectancy disconfirmation theory:

– H3a: When objective nutrition information is less favorable than consumers’ expect, nutrition information provision will have a greater negative influence on product attitudes and purchase intentions and a greater positive influence on perceived likelihood of weight gain and heart disease.

Research Process: Problem Formulation

Research Process: Determine Research Design

• Dictated by the problem or research question

• Exploratory Research

• Descriptive Research

• Causal Research

Research Process: Determine Research DesignStage in the Process

Typical Questions

Determine research design

• How much is already known?

• Can a hypothesis be formulated?

• What types of questions need to be answered?

• What type of study will best address the research questions?


• Determine Research Design– Two research problems (questions) require two designs

– How good (accurate) are consumers at estimating the nutritional content of restaurant foods?

• Simple survey that asks participants to estimate nutritional content of common restaurant foods

– Can providing objective nutrient information improve food evaluation and choice

• Between-subjects experiment

Research Process: Determine Research Design

Research Process: Design Data Collection & Forms

• Secondary research – not necessary

• Survey Research– Lots of ways to collect data

• Measurement– Constructs / Variables

Research Process: Design Data Collection & FormsStage in the Process

Typical Questions

Determine data collection method and forms

Can existing data be used to advantage?

What is to be measured? How?

What is the source of the data?

Can objective answers be obtained by asking people?

How should people be questioned?

Should the questionnaires be administered in person, over the phone, or through the mail?

Should electronic or mechanical means be used to make the observations?

Should structure or unstructured items be used to collect the data?

Should the purpose of the study be made known to the respondents?

Should rating scales be used in the questionnaire?


• Design Data Collection and Forms– Quantitative data needed

– Questionnaires with estimations, multi-item attitudinal/risk/intentions variables

Research Process: Design Data Collection & Forms

Research Process: Design Sample and Collect Data

• Determine your “target market”

• Determine necessary sample size

• Sampling Methodology

• Logistics

• Cost

• Ethics

Research Process: Design Sample and Collect DataStage in the Process

Typical Questions

Design sample and collect the data

• Who is the target population?

• Is a list of population elements available?

• Is a sample necessary?

• Is a probability sample desirable?

• How large should the sample be?

• How should the sample be selected?

• Who will gather the data?

• How much supervision is needed?

• What operational procedures will be followed?

• What methods will be used to ensure the quality of the data collected?


• Design Sample and Collect Data– Adult Sample

• Recruited by undergrads

• Mail panel

Research Process: Design Sample and Collect Data

Research Process: Analyze and Interpret the Data

• Edit / clean / code the data

• Analyze

• Interpret

Research Process: Analyze and Interpret the DataStage in the Process

Typical Questions

Analyze and interpret the data

• Who will handle the editing of the data?

• How will the data be coded?

• Who will supervise the coding and keypunching?

• What tabulations / statistical tests / analysis techniques will be used?


• Analyze and interpret the data– Crosstabs and other simple computations

– ANOVA / MANOVA / Chi-Square

– Results show that most consumers are unaware of high levels of calories, fat, saturated fat, and sodium found in many menu items. Provision of nutrition information on restaurant menus could potentially have a positive impact on public health by reducing the consumption of less healthful foods

Research Process: Analyze and Interpret the Data

Research Process: Prepare Research Report

• Know your audience

• Sell your findings

Research Process: Prepare Research ReportStage in the Process

Typical Questions

Prepare the research report

• Who will read the report?

• What is their technical level of sophistication?

• Are managerial recommendations called for?

• What will be the format of the written report?

• Is an oral report necessary?

• How should the oral report be structured?


• Prepare Research Report– Manuscript prepared for journal submission

Research Process: Prepare Research Report

Form Groups and…

Contrast the process we have just talked about with that of Andreasen

Problem Formulation

• A well-defined study begins with a clearly defined objective“The formulation of a problem is often more essential

than its solution” - Albert Einstein

• Problems versus Opportunities– Planned Change– Unplanned Change– Serendipity

• The problem is rarely clear-cut• Slight variations in research questions can

lead to substantial changes in the research process (so be careful)

Problem Formulation

• Differentiate between a decision problem and a research problem

• Try to get beyond an “info request”

Problem Formulation

Decision Problems Research Problems

Develop package for a new product

Evaluate alternative package designs

Increase store traffic Measure current image of the store

Increase market penetration through the opening of new stores

Evaluate prospective locations

Decide which merchandise will be available for purchase over the Internet

Determine consumers’ confidence in purchasing different categories of products unseen

Problem Formulation (as discussed in Andreasen)• “Actionable marketing research”

– Identify the intended action FIRST; avoid “these are the things that would be nice to know”

• Exceptions: basic, exploratory research that lays the groundwork for future investigation and methodological research

– Close and consistent collaboration between researcher and client (decision maker)

Problem Formulation (as discussed in Andreasen)“Backward Approach”

1. How will the research results be implemented? (i.e., what action will be taken)

2. Determine what information will make up the final report

3. Specify analyses that will need to be done to “fill in the blanks” in the report

4. Determine what kind (format) of data is needed to run the particular analyses (simple as possible)

5. Does this data already exist?6. If primary data is needed, design sampling strategy

and instruments7. Collect data8. Fill in the blanks from above

Problem Formulation (as discussed in Andreasen)• Try to avoid “interesting” or “nice to know”

questions at all costs• Lay out the action alternatives on the front end• What key information in the final report will be

used to make decisions one way or another?• Present the client with hypothetical scenarios to

ensure that the information is actionable– This often leads to more questions that the client hadn’t

thought of previously– It also helps the client:

• commit to the research• deepen their understanding of the nature of the research• minimize surprises• recognize limitations

Andreasan (1985) Take-Aways

• This “backward” process helps us avoid research that does not lead to action (or directly benefit decision making)

• The emphasis on close collaboration with the client helps to ensure maximum usefulness and minimum surprises

How can we apply what we’ve learned this week to Hank’s?

(i.e., homework)

Hank’s Applications

• Use Andreasen’s framework to get at the root of the problem (or be well-prepared to get at the root of the problem next Wednesday)

• Try to acutely identify the problem at hand (and avoid “nice to know” questions)– What information is necessary in order to make a

decision?– Start answering questions

• Determine what course(s) of action will result from our findings– If we find A, what will you do?– What about if we find B?– Make all alternative courses of action explicit

Stages in theResearch Process(ResearchersPerspective)

Determine Research Design

Analyze and Interpret the Data

Design Sample and Collect Data

Formulate Problem

Design Data Collection Method and Forms

Prepare the Research Report

research process and problem formulation jeremy kees, ph.d

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