Business Research Methods is an excellent resource for all students of business research, providing both breadth and depth to this very important topic. The format and structure, along with the supporting online resources and real examples, make this a very accessible and helpful resource to all those interested in business, management and leadership research. - Dr Jean-Anne Stewart, Henley Business School
Still the most accessible text available on research methods. - Dr Orna O'Brien, University College Dublin
A superb introduction to social science research that combines the soundness of philosophy of science with an elegant presentation of critical aspects in social research practice for anybody interested in finding out reliable answers about management and business phenonmena' - Dr Nuno Oliveira, London School of Economics and Political Science
Emma Bell is Professor of Management and Organization Studies and Director of the Centre for Economics and Management at Keele University.
PART ONE ; 1. The nature and process of business research ; 2. Business research strategies ; 3. Research designs ; 4. Planning a research project and formulating research questions ; 5. Getting started: reviewing the literature ; 6. Ethics and politics in business research ; PART TWO ; 7. The nature of quantitative research ; 8. Sampling ; 9. Structured interviewing ; 10. Self-completion questionnaires ; 11. Asking questions ; 12. Structured observation ; 13. Content analysis ; 14. Secondary analysis and official statistics ; 15. Quantitative data analysis ; 16. Using SPSS for Windows ; PART THREE ; 17. The nature of qualitative research ; 18. Sampling in qualitative research ; 19. Ethnography and participant observation ; 20. Interviewing in qualitative research ; 21. Focus groups ; 22. Language in qualitative research ; 23. Documents as sources of data ; 24. Qualitative data analysis ; 25. Computer-assisted qualitative data analysis: using NVivo ; PART FOUR ; 26. Breaking down the quantitative/qualitative divide ; 27. Mixed methods research: combining quantitative and qualitative research ; 28. E-research: Internet research methods ; 29. Writing up business research