SAMSUNG ELECTRONICIS

Samsung Electronics is based in Seoul, South Korea and operates in 65 countries

worldwide with 157,000 people working for the company. Samsung Electronics products include
semiconductors, hard drives, digital displays, home electronics, mobile phones, and others. All
Samsung products have the same tone when the device is turned on, so that customers can easily
get used to them and this tone is mentioned when Samsung products are being advertised as well.
The business strategy of Samsung Electronics presents an interesting case due to the fact that the
company has an experience of pursuing both, cost leadership as well as product differentiation
strategies during its lifetime. Specifically, Mitchell (2010) informs that business strategy of the
company was mainly cost efficiency prior to Asian Financial Crisis of 1997, as a result of which
the company came on the verge of bankruptcy, and the situation was changed with Eric Kim
becoming chief marketing officer of the company, who brought dramatic changes to the strategy
of the company pursuing product differentiation strategy.
Smarter Life theme was introduced recently in Samsung that is based on the innovative
approach in improving the companys current products, and introducing new products to the
market. For instance, Android-based Samsung Galaxy Player 50 is to be introduced soon,
containing a range of innovative features the product is expected to change the current media
players market condition significantly.
As a part of the massive initiatives aimed at pursuing product differentiation strategy efficiently
Samsung design staff has been tripled to 400 globally (Singhania, 2006), along with numerous
other measures.
Dramatic change in the strategy of the company has allowed Samsung Electronics to emerge as
one of the main players in all of the markets the company operates in. For instance, Galaxy Tab
produced by Samsung is currently considered to be the only substantial competition to iPad
produced by the market leader Apple.

Samsung (Hangul:; hanja: Korean pronunciation: [sams]) is a South Korean multinational

conglomerate company headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul. It comprises numerous
subsidiaries and affiliated businesses, most of them united under the Samsung brand, and is the
largest South Korean chaebol (business conglomerate).
Samsung was founded by Lee Byung-chul in 1938 as a trading company. Over the next three
decades, the group diversified into areas including food processing, textiles, insurance, securities
and retail. Samsung entered the electronics industry in the late 1960s and the construction and
shipbuilding industries in the mid-1970s; these areas would drive its subsequent growth.
Following Lee's death in 1987, Samsung was separated into four business groups Samsung
Group, Shinsegae Group, CJ Group and Hansol Group. Since 1990s, Samsung has increasingly
1

globalized its activities and electronics, particularly mobile phones and semiconductors, have
become its most important source of income.
Notable Samsung industrial subsidiaries include Samsung Electronics (the world's largest
information technology company measured by 2012 revenues, and 4th in market value),[2]
Samsung Heavy Industries (the world's 2nd-largest shipbuilder measured by 2010 revenues),[3]
and Samsung Engineering and Samsung C&T (respectively the world's 13th and 36th-largest
construction companies).[4] Other notable subsidiaries include Samsung Life Insurance (the
world's 14th-largest life insurance company),[5] Samsung Everland (operator of Everland Resort,
the oldest theme park in South Korea)[6] and Cheil Worldwide (the world's 15th-largest
advertising agency measured by 2012 revenues).[7][8]
Samsung has a powerful influence on South Korea's economic development, politics, media and
culture and has been a major driving force behind the "Miracle on the Han River".[9][10] Its
affiliate companies produce around a fifth of South Korea's total exports.[11] Samsung's revenue
was equal to 17% of South Korea's $1,082 billion GDP.[12]

History
1938 to 1970

The headquarters of Sanghoes in Daegu in the late 1930s

In 1938, Lee Byung-chull (19101987) of a large landowning family in the Uiryeong county
moved to nearby Daegu city and founded Samsung Sanghoe (, ). Samsung
started out as a small trading company with forty employees located in Su-dong (now Ingyodong).[14] It dealt in locally-grown groceries and made noodles. The company prospered and Lee
moved its head office to Seoul in 1947. When the Korean War broke out, he was forced to leave
Seoul. He started a sugar refinery in Busan named Cheil Jedang. In 1954, Lee founded Cheil
Mojik and built the plant in Chimsan-dong, Daegu. It was the largest woollen mill ever in the
country.
Samsung diversified into many different areas. Lee sought to establish Samsung as an industry
leader in a wide range of industries. Samsung moved into lines of business such as insurance,
securities and retail. President Park Chung Hee placed great importance on industrialization. He
focused his economic development strategy on a handful of large domestic conglomerates,
protecting them from competition and assisting them financially.[15]
In 1947, Cho Hong-jai, the Hyosung group's founder, jointly invested in a new company called
Samsung Mulsan Gongsa, or the Samsung Trading Corporation, with the Samsung's founder Lee
Byung-chull. The trading firm grew to become the present-day Samsung C&T Corporation. After
a few years, Cho and Lee separated due to differences in management style. Cho wanted a 30
equity share. Samsung Group was separated into Samsung Group and Hyosung Group, Hankook
Tire, and other businesses.[16][17]
In the late 1960s, Samsung Group entered into the electronics industry. It formed several
electronics-related divisions, such as Samsung Electronics Devices, Samsung ElectroMechanics, Samsung Corning and Samsung Semiconductor & Telecommunications, and made
the facility in Suwon. Its first product was a black-and-white television set.

1970 to 1990

The SPC-1000, introduced in 1982, was Samsung's first personal computer (Korean market only)
and used an audio cassette tape to load and save data the floppy drive was optional[18]
In 1980, Samsung acquired the Gumi-based Hanguk Jeonja Tongsin and entered the
telecommunications hardware industry. Its early products were switchboards. The facility was
developed into the telephone and fax manufacturing systems and became the center of Samsung's
mobile phone manufacturing. They have produced over 800 million mobile phones to date.[19]
The company grouped them together under Samsung Electronics in the 1980s.
After Lee, the founder's death in 1987, Samsung Group was separated into four business groups
Samsung Group, Shinsegae Group, CJ Group, and the Hansol Group.[20] Shinsegae (discount
store, department store) was originally part of Samsung Group, separated in the 1990s from the
Samsung Group along with CJ Group (Food/Chemicals/Entertainment/logistics), and the Hansol
Group (Paper/Telecom). Today these separated groups are independent and they are not part of or
connected to the Samsung Group.[21] One Hansol Group representative said, "Only people
ignorant of the laws governing the business world could believe something so absurd", adding,
"When Hansol separated from the Samsung Group in 1991, it severed all payment guarantees
and share-holding ties with Samsung affiliates." One Hansol Group source asserted, "Hansol,
Shinsegae, and CJ have been under independent management since their respective separations
from the Samsung Group". One Shinsegae department store executive director said, "Shinsegae
has no payment guarantees associated with the Samsung Group".[21]
In 1980s, Samsung Electronics began to invest heavily in research and development, investments
that were pivotal in pushing the company to the forefront of the global electronics industry. In
1982, it built a television assembly plant in Portugal; in 1984, a plant in New York; in 1985, a
plant in Tokyo; in 1987, a facility in England; and another facility in Austin, Texas, in 1996. As
of 2012, Samsung has invested more than US$13 billion in the Austin facility, which operates
under the name Samsung Austin Semiconductor. This makes the Austin location the largest
foreign investment in Texas and one of the largest single foreign investments in the United
States.[22][23]

1990 to 2000
Samsung started to rise as an international corporation in the 1990s. Samsung's construction
branch was awarded a contract to build one of the two Petronas Towers in Malaysia, Taipei 101
in Taiwan and the Burj Khalifa in United Arab Emirates.[24] In 1993, Lee Kun-hee sold off ten of
Samsung Group's subsidiaries, downsized the company, and merged other operations to
concentrate on three industries: electronics, engineering, and chemicals. In 1996, the Samsung
Group reacquired the Sungkyunkwan University foundation.
Samsung became the largest producer of memory chips in the world in 1992, and is the world's
second-largest chipmaker after Intel (see Worldwide Top 20 Semiconductor Market Share
Ranking Year by Year).[25] In 1995, it created its first liquid-crystal display screen. Ten years later,
Samsung grew to be the world's largest manufacturer of liquid-crystal display panels. Sony,
which had not invested in large-size TFT-LCDs, contacted Samsung to cooperate, and, in 2006,
S-LCD was established as a joint venture between Samsung and Sony in order to provide a stable
supply of LCD panels for both manufacturers. S-LCD was owned by Samsung (50% plus one
share) and Sony (50% minus one share) and operates its factories and facilities in Tangjung,
South Korea. As of December 26, 2011, it was announced that Samsung had acquired the stake
of Sony in this joint venture.[26]
Compared to other major Korean companies, Samsung survived the 1997 Asian financial crisis
relatively unharmed. However, Samsung Motor was sold to Renault at a significant loss. As of
2010, Renault Samsung is 80.1 percent owned by Renault and 19.9 percent owned by Samsung.
Additionally, Samsung manufactured a range of aircraft from the 1980s to 1990s. The company
was founded in 1999 as Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), the result of merger between then
three domestic major aerospace divisions of Samsung Aerospace, Daewoo Heavy Industries, and
Hyundai Space and Aircraft Company. However, Samsung still manufactures aircraft engines
and gas turbines. [27]
2000 to 2015

The Samsung pavilion at Expo 2012.

In 2000, Samsung opened a computer programming laboratory in Warsaw, Poland. Its work
began with set-top-box technology before moving into digital TV and smartphones. As of 2011,
5

the Warsaw base is Samsung's most important R&D center in Europe, forecast to be recruiting
400 new-hires per year by the end of 2013.[28]

The prominent Samsung sign in Times Square, New York City.

In 2010, Samsung announced a ten-year growth strategy centered around five businesses.[29] One
of these businesses was to be focused on biopharmaceuticals, to which the company has
committed 2.1 trillion.[30]
In December 2011, Samsung Electronics sold its hard disk drive (HDD) business to Seagate.[31]
In first quarter of 2012, Samsung Electronics became the world's largest mobile phone maker by
unit sales, overtaking Nokia, which had been the market leader since 1998.[32][33] On 21 August's
edition of the Austin American-Statesman, Samsung confirmed plans to spend 3 to 4 billion
dollars converting half of its Austin chip manufacturing plant to a more profitable chip.[34] The
conversion should start in early 2013 with production on line by the end of 2013. On 14 March
2013, Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S4.
On August 24, 2012, nine American jurors ruled that Samsung had to pay Apple $1.05 billion in
damages for violating six of its patents on smartphone technology. The award was still less than
the $2.5 billion requested by Apple. The decision also ruled that Apple did not violate five
Samsung patents cited in the case.[35] Samsung decried the decision saying that the move could
harm innovation in the sector.[36] It also followed a South Korean ruling stating that both
companies were guilty of infringing on each other's intellectual property.[37] In first trading after
the ruling, Samsung shares on the Kospi index fell 7.7%, the largest fall since 24 October 2008,
to 1,177,000 Korean won.[38] Apple then sought to ban the sales of eight Samsung phones
(Galaxy S 4G, Galaxy S2 AT&T, Galaxy S2 Skyrocket, Galaxy S2 T-Mobile, Galaxy S2 Epic
4G, Galaxy S Showcase, Droid Charge and Galaxy Prevail) in the United States[39] which has
been denied by the court.[40]
On September 4, 2012, Samsung announced that it plans to examine all of its Chinese suppliers
for possible violations of labor policies. The company said it will carry out audits of 250 Chinese
companies that are its exclusive suppliers to see if children under the age of 16 are being used in
their factories.[41]

In 2013, a New Zealand news outlet reported a number of Samsung washing machines
spontaneously catching on fire.[42] The corporation is expected to spend $14 billion on advertising
and marketing in 2013, with publicity appearing in TV and cinema ads, on billboards, and at
sports and arts events. In November 2013, the corporation was valued at $227 billion.[43]
In May 2014, Samsung announced it will be shutting down its streaming service on 1 July 2014,
also meaning the end of the Samsung Music Hub app that typically comes installed on its
Android phones.[44]
On September 3, 2014, Samsung announced Gear VR, a virtual reality device in collaboration
with Oculus VR and developed for the Galaxy Note 4.[45]
In October 2014, Samsung announced a $14.7 billion investment to build a chip plant in South
Korea. Construction will begin next year with production beginning in 2017. The company has
not yet decided the type of chips to be produced.[46]
In October 2014, Samsung also announced it would invest 633 billion South Korean won ($560
million USD) in the construction of a new 700,000 square metre production complex in Vietnam.
[47]

Samsung plans to launch a new set of services beginning early 2015. The goal of this new suite
of business offerings, dubbed Samsung 360 Services, is to become a help desk of sorts for
businesses IT departments. The customizable services range from technical support to security
solutions for having a Samsung employee embedded in a client's business as an on-site support
manager or technology consultant.[48]
On December 2, 2014, Samsung announced it will sell Fiber Optics to U.S. speciality glass
manufacturer Corning Inc.[49]
Samsung Electronics Inc. is expanding in Silicon Valley with a $300 million facility in San Jose,
California. The 10-story complex will include 1.1 million square feet of floor space, a clean
room for semiconductors and a "fitness center in the sky". The facility will be split between
semiconductor research and development and other sales and marketing functions. It will serve
as the North America headquarters for semiconductor operations.[50]
Acquisitions and attempted acquisitions

Samsung has made the following acquisitions and attempted acquisitions:[51]

Rollei Swiss watch battle
Samsung Techwin acquired German camera-maker Rollei in 1995. Samsung (Rollei)
used its optic expertise on the crystals of a new line of 100% Swiss-made watches,
designed by a team of watchmakers at Nouvelle Piquerez S.A. in Bassequort,
Switzerland. Rolex's decision to fight Rollei on every front stemmed from the close
7

resemblance between the two names and fears that its sales would suffer as a
consequence. In the face of such a threat, the Geneva firm decided to confront. This was
also a demonstration of the Swiss watch industry's determination to defend itself when an
established brand is threatened. Rolex sees this front-line battle as vital for the entire
Swiss watch industry. Rolex has succeeded in keeping Rollei out of the German market.
On 11 March 1995, the Cologne District court prohibited the advertising and sale of
Rollei watches on German territory.[52][53] In 1999, Rollei management bought out the
company
]

Fokker, a Dutch aircraft maker

Samsung lost a chance to revive its failed bid to take over Dutch aircraft maker Fokker
when other airplane makers rejected its offer to form a consortium. The three proposed
partnersHyundai, Hanjin, and Daewoonotified the South Korean government that
they would not join Samsung Aerospace Industries

AST Research
Samsung bought AST (1994) in a failed attempt to break into the North American
computer market. Samsung was forced to close the California-based computer maker
following mass resignations of research staff and a string of losses

FUBU clothing and apparel

In 1992, American fashion entrepreneur Daymond John had started the company with a
hat collection that was made in the basement of his house in the Queens area of New
York City. To fund the company, John had to mortgage his house for $100,000. With his
friends J. Alexander Martin, Carl Brown, and Keith Perrin, half of his house was turned
into the first factory of FUBU, while the other half remained as the living quarters. Along
with the expansion of FUBU, Samsung invested in FUBU in 1995.

Lehman Brothers Holdings' Asian operations

Samsung Securities was one of a handful of brokerages looking into Lehman Brothers
Holdings. But Nomura Holdings has reportedly waved the biggest check to win its bid for
Lehman Brothers Holdings' Asian operations, beating out Samsung Securities, Standard
Chartered, and Barclays.[58] Ironically, after few months Samsung Securities Co., Ltd. and
City of London-based N M Rothschild & Sons (more commonly known simply as
Rothschild) have agreed to form a strategic alliance in investment banking business. Two
parties will jointly work on cross border mergers and acquisition deals.
8

MEDISON Co.,Ltd. ultrasound monitors

In December 2010, Samsung Electronics bought MEDISON Co., a South Korean
medical-equipment company, the first step in a long-discussed plan to diversify from
consumer electronics.

Grandis Inc. memory developer

In July 2011, Samsung announced that it had acquired spin-transfer torque random access
memory (MRAM) vendor Grandis Inc.[61] Grandis will become a part of Samsung's R&D
operations and will focus on development of next generation random-access memory.[62]
Samsung and Sony joint venture liquid crystal displays
On 26 December 2011 the board of Samsung Electronics approved a plan to buy Sony's
entire stake in their 2004 joint liquid crystal display (LCD) venture for 1.08 trillion won
($938.97 million).

Spot, Inc music service

On 9 May 2012, mSpot announced that it had been acquired by Samsung Electronics
with the intention of a cloud based music service.[64] The succeeding service was
Samsung Music Hub.

NVELO, Inc. cache software developer

In December 2012, Samsung announced that it had acquired the privately held storage
software vendor NVELO, Inc., based in Santa Clara, California.[65] NVELO will become
part of Samsung's R&D operations, and will focus on software for intelligently managing
and optimizing next-generation Samsung SSD storage subsystems for consumer and
enterprise computing platforms.

NeuroLogica portable CT scanner

In January 2013, Samsung announced that it has acquired medical imaging company
NeuroLogica, part of the multinational conglomerate's plans to build a leading medical
technology business. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
SmartThings - home automation

On 14 August 2014, Samsung acquired SmartThings, a fast-growing home automation

startup. The company isn't releasing the acquisition price, but TechCrunch reported a
$200 million pricetag when first caught word of the deal in July 2014

Quietside U.S. air conditioner firm

On 19 August 2014, Samsung said it had acquired U.S. air conditioner distributor
Quietside LLC as part of its push to strengthen its "smart home" business. A Samsung
Electronics spokesman said the South Korean company acquired 100 percent of
Quietside, but declined to elaborate on the price or other details.]

Proximal Data data virtualization

3 November 2014, Samsung announced it had acquired Proximal Data, Inc., a San Diego,
California-based pioneer of server-side caching software with I/O intelligence that work
within virtualized systems

LoopPay U.S. mobile payments firm

On 18 February 2015, Samsung acquired U.S. based mobile payments firm "LoopPay" This allows Samsung in smartphone transactions.[70]
YESCO Electronics U.S. based manufacturer of light emitting diode displays
On 5 March 2015, Samsung acquired small U.S.-based manufacturer of light emitting
diode displays, YESCO Electronics, which focuses on making digital billboards and
message signs

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Introduction:
Research is a systemized effort in gain knowledge. It can also be referred to as the search
of knowledge. Research methodology is a technique used to systematically solve a research
problem. It helps the researcher to know which research method and analysis could be utilized to
bring out a possible solution for a research problem. The researcher should know why a
particular technique to the project.

10

The study of conducting research is Research Methodology.

Research:

The word research is composed of two syllables Re and Search.

Re is the prefix meaning Again or over again or a new and Search is the
latter meaning to examine closely and carefully or to test and try.
Together they form, a careful, systematic, patient study and investigation in some
field of knowledge undertaken to establish principles / policies.
Research can also be defined as
1. Search for knowledge
2. Systematic and scientific search for getting relevant answers on any taken up
specific topic.
3. Scientific enquiry into a subject.
4. Research is a movement from the unknown to the known.
5. It is the voyage of discovery
According to Bulmer,
Research is primarily committed to establishing systematic, reliable and valid
knowledge about the social world.

Acc. To Clifford Woody,

Research comprises of

Defining and redefining problems.

Formulating hypothesis (basic idea)

Collecting
11

Organizing

Evaluating datas

Making decisions

Suggesting solutions

Reaching conclusions

Finally, carefully testing the conclusions

To determine whether they fit the formulated Hypothesis.

Research Methods: May be understood as all those methods or techniques that are used
by a researcher for conducting a Research depending upon the methods.
(1) Library Research:
-

analysis of historical records and documents.

Statistical compilation, references, abstracts, guides manipulation (handle with

skill)

(2) Field Research:

Observation, questionnaires, personal, Group or telephonic

interviews, case study.

(3) Laboratory Research:
Group (team) study, use of audio visual tools.
Research Methodology:

is the way do systematically solve the research problem.

In it we study the various steps that are generally adopted by a researcher in

studying his research problem logically.
When we talk of Research Methodology, we not only talk of research methods but
also consider the logic behind the methods we use in the context of our research study
and explain why we are using a particular method or we are not using a particular method

12

or technique so that research results are capable of being evaluated either by the
researcher or others.
Steps:
1) Why a particular research study has been undertaken?
2) How the Research problem has been defined?
3) What way and why the hypothesis (basic idea) has been formulated?
4) Why a particular technique of analyzing data is used? (or) How the data were
collected?
5) How the collected data were interpreted?
6) What deletion was made?
7) What was the conclusion?
Finally what was the solution for the Research problem?

Importance of knowing the subject research Methodology:

1) A student preparing himself for a career of carrying out research as his profession

Will be trained better to do research

Will help him develop disciplined thinking

Will help him observe the field objectively.

Will enable thoroughly to understand the logic behind the research problem.

Will increase the ability to evaluate the results.

Face the evaluated results with confidence.

13

Useful in various fields such as Govt. Business, administration, community

development & social work.

To qualify a Research or study:

To be a Good or perfect one,
The Research adapted should process certain characteristics,
It must as far as possible be 1) Controlled
2) Rigorous
3) Systematic
4) Valid
5) Verifiable
6) Empirical
7) Critical
1. Controlled:The research problem should not be affected or influenced by external
factors (i.e. variables other than the participating facts).
2. Rigorous: The procedures followed to find answers to questions should be relevant,
appropriate & justified. But the degree of rigiour may vary from one problem to another
problem.
3. Systematic:The investigation should follow a certain logical sequence (Not in a
haphazard manner)
4. Valid & Verifiable:

The findings should be valid & can be verified by you or

others at any time.

5. Empirical: The conclusions drawn should be based on hard evidence, gathered from
real life experiences or observations.
6. Critical:

The process of investigation must be foolproof and free from drawbacks.

The process adapted and the procedures used must be able to withstand any critical
scrutiny.
14

Types of Research
Research can be classified from the view point or perspectives as,
From the view point

Application

objective

Inquiry mode

1) Pure Research

1) Descriptive

1) Quantitative Research

2) Applied Research

2) Correlative

2) Qualitative Research

3) Exploratory
4) Explanatory
1) Pure Research:

(Basic or Fundamental Research)

Gathering, knowledge is termed as pure or basic research. Just to gather

knowledge in order to formulate or generalize theories or policies.
Eg) Research on mathematics.
This types of research adds knowledge to the already existing organized body.
Applied Research:

To find an immediate solution for a pressing practical problem.

Eg: Social, economical and political trends prevailing in a country.

Applied Vs Fundamental Based on the objectives of Research:
1) Descriptive Research:

Survey or fact finding enquires of different kinds. It describes the

actual prevailing state of affairs, existing at present.

15

Otherwise known as ex post facts means existing position of facts /

issues.

Here the variable influencing the research has no control or the

researcher has no control over the variables.

Eg: Frequency of shopping, customer preference etc.

2) Correlative Research:

Goes on to discover the existing relationship or interdependence

between two or more aspects / variables.

Otherwise known as comparative study.

Investigates association between variables.

Eg: Sum of humour and job satisfaction, (related variable)
Research problem is workers turnover

Analytical Research:
The researcher has to use facts / information already existing and analyze these
data to make a critical evaluation.
Eg: document study / historical evidence.
Descriptive Vs Analytical Research:
Explanatory Research:
Attempts to clarify or explain why and how, any particular research problem
arises and can be solved.
4. Exploratory Research:

Study undertake to explore a new area or an unknown

destination.
16

III. Based on the Inquiry Mode:

1) Quantitative Research:

Relates to aspects that can be quantified and expressed in terms of

quantity.

Otherwise known as structured Research.

In this type of Research, the objectives, design, sample and all the other
factors influencing the research is pre determined.

The research problem and its solution will be expressed in terms of quantity and
hence statistical and economic analysis is adapted in this type of Research.
Quantitative Research:

Otherwise known as unstructured research.

The aspects related to quality / kind or texture.

Eg: Behaviour science

Apart from the above, other types of Research are,

Conceptual Research: Research related to some abstract idea or theory

Used by philosophers or thinkers for developing new concepts.

Empirical research
(based on experiments or experience)

Otherwise known as experimental type of Research.

The result obtained by adapting Empirical Research is considered to be most

powerful (evidence enclosed)

Based on the time consumed to complete a particular research,

17

a) one time Research: restricted to a single time period.

b) Longitudinal Research:

Conducted over several time period.

Qualities of a Researcher
Top 10 qualities of a Researcher

1) Ananalytical mind:

Constant analysis on a variety of factors.

2) A people person :

For respondents to get the best out of interviews /

focus groups.
3) The ability to stay calm:

especially when you have pressing deadlines. Keep

well focused and think logically there will always be an end point.
4) Intelligence :

Researcher requires critical analysis, but most of all

common sense.
5) Curiosity:

Have curiosity and be passionate about developing deeper to

unearth more insight.

6) Quick thinker:

Things dont always go as you plan, so you need to be able

to think fast.
7) Commitment:

Research is a tough job, the hours may be long, the

deadlines short.
8) Excellent written and verbal communication skills:

So that different

audience can clearly understand the findings.

9) Sympathetic:

Having a sympathetic ear when listening to some

respondents (cry etc) is a good skill, to have.

10) Systematic:

Check, check and check again. Spending a proper amount of time

for checking always pays.

According to Micheal Foster,
18

1) Truthful data / facts desire for accuracy of observation.

2) No expressions like approximately, almost or nearly.
3) Should poccess alert mind. Nature is constantly changing, be keen and watchful
to notice such changes, no matter how small or insignificant they may.
4) Scientific inquiry desire for knowledge it requires moral courage, Steadfast
(constant / not changing) endurance (to tolerate the difficulty, suffer patiently)
-

When a research scientist feel defeated or completely lost, he needs immense

courage and the sense of conviction (found guilty)

Significance or Importance of Search

1) Doubt is better than over confidence for it leads to inquiry, inquiry leads to
invention. Process or the three stages of research to bring out economic policies.
1) Investigation of prevailing economic structure with the available
facts.
2) Analyse or diagnose the data.
3) Prediction for future developments.
2) Research encourages scientific and inductive thinking.
Eg:- Role of Research in :
1) Econ omics:
Researches done on applied (production and sales of goods in a profitable
manner) economics is increasing in modern days. Govt. & business sectors
have become more complex, they face several operational problems to solve
this problems, Research is

carried on.

To frame Govt. economic policies.

19

 Govt. budget a formulation depends on the analysis of needs & desires

of the people, available of revenues needs research.
Decision making requires proper research.
Allocation of a countries scarce resource also needs research.
2) Business Decisions:
In business sectors there are both planning and operational problems.
a) Problems Research:

Investigation of the present structure

and development of the market relating to purchase, production,

promotion and sales.
b) Operational Research:Relates

to

application

of

logical,

mathematical and analytical techniques to solve market problems

there by minimize cost and profit maximization.
c) Motivational Research:

Helps to determine people behavior

or consumer response.
All the above three are responsible for business decision making.
3) Social sectors:

To gain knowledge on unknown aspects and do something

better and more efficiently.

Social scientist gain their knowledge for their own sake and for the development
of the society.
1.

Formulating the Research problem:a) The formulation of a general topic into a specific Research problem thus

constitutes the first step in a scientific inquiry.

Two steps are involved in formulating the Research problem,
a) Understanding the problem thoroughly.
20

b) Rephrasing the same into meaningful terms from an analytical point of view.
1. Identify a broad field or subject area of interest to you.
2. Dissect the broad area into small area.
3. Select what is of most interest to you.
4. Raise Research questions.
5. Formulate objectives
6. Assess your objectives
7. Double check
The best way to understand the problem is to discuss with his own
colleague or guide.
Examine all available literatures to get himself acquainted (get used
to ) with the selected problem.
Review two types of literature
Conceptual literature :
Concerning concepts & theories
Empirical Literature : Concerning studies made earlier which are similar to the one
proposed.
Outcome of the review will be the knowledge so as to pre determine what data or
materials are available for operational purposes.
Next step the Researcher rephrases the problem into Analytical or operational
terms.
PUT THE PROBLEM INTO SPECIFIC TERMS
This step is of greatest importance in the entire research process.
21

The problem to be investigated must be defined unambiguously or clearly.

Prof W.A. Neiswanger States,
The statement of the objective of the Research problem is of basic importance
because,
(i)

It determines the data which are to be collected

(ii)

Characteristics of the relevant data

(iii)

Choice of techniques to be used in these explorations

(iv)

Frame a Final report

Step II
Extensive Literature Survey:
A brief summary of the problem should be written down.
Make extensive literature survey
Sources of survey can be, journals, bio-graphics, Govt. reports, books, conference
proceedings etc.
Based on the nature of the problem.
Earlier study if any which is similar to the study in hand should be carefully
studied.
A Stage III:
Developing Hypothesis :

(Development of working Hypothesis)

State in clear terms the working hypothesis (Basic Idea of the Research problem)
It is a tentative assumption in order to test to logical or empirical consequences.
Provide the focal point for research.
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 Hypothesis should be very specific and very well limited to the place of research
in hand because it has to be tested.
Hypothesis guides the researched by limiting the area of Research and keep him
on the right track.
It sharpens his thinking and focuses attention on important facets of the problem.
It indicates the type of data required for the study.
Type of methods of data analysis done.
How to develop working Hypothesis?
1) Discuss with collogues / experts, about the problems, its origin, its objectives and
solutions.
2) Examination of data/ records if available.
3) Review similar studies / similar problems.
4) To secure greater insight into the practical aspects of the problem conduct
personnel investigation or field interviews.
STEP IV:
Preparing the Research Design:
Research design is the conceptual structure within which research is conduction.
It constitutes the blue print for the collection, measurement and analysis of data.
The function of the Research design is to provide relevant evidence with minimal
expenditure of effort, time and money. It provides an outline of what the researcher is
going to do in terms of 1) Framing the hypothesis, 2) its operational implications and 3)
finally data analysis
The Research design highlights certain decision,
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1) The nature of the study

2) Purpose of the study
3) Location where the study would be conducted
4) The nature of data required
5) From where the data would be collected
6) The techniques of data collection that would be used
7) What time period the study would cover
8) The type of sample design that would be used
9) The method of data analysis that would be adapted
10) The manner in which the report would be prepared
Type of Research Design : 4 types
1) Sampling Research Design :

Deal with selection of relevant items

2) Observational Research Design:

Deals

with

the

observations

(field

observations) that is to be made.

3) Statistical Research design: Deals with the information on the data collected &

analysed.
4) Operational Research Design:

How the above three are carried out.

Determining sample Design:

All the items considered in any field of inquiry constitutes a universe or
population. Study of the entire population without leaving out a single item is
known as Census Study
This type of census study is practically not possible.
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 So we select few items from the entire population for our study purpose. The
items so selected constitutes what is technically called sample.
The way of selecting such a sample is known as the Sample Design.
These samples can be either probability samples or non probability samples.
Probability:

Each item in the population has on equal chance of being selected

for the study.

1) Simple random sampling
2) Systematic random sampling
3) Stratified random sampling
4) Cluster / area random sampling.
Non Probability sampling:

All the items do not have an equal chance of being selected

for the study.

The selection depends upon the convenience & judgment of the Researcher.
Mixed sampling:

When more than one type of sampling technique is used for

a study, it is mixed sampling.

The sample design to be used in a Research study must be decided by the
researcher considering the nature of the study.
6.

Collecting the Data:

Gathering appropriate data which are made use in Research study.
Data can be collected in several ways either through (1) Experiment (or) (2)
through surveys.
In experimental means, when a researcher conducts a research, some
quantitative measurements are observed, based on which, he examines the
truth of the underlying hypothesis.
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 In case of surveys, data are collected by

1) By observations
2) Through personnel interview
3) Through telephone interviews
4) By mailing of questionnaires
5) Through schedules / enumerators
The Researcher should select one of these methods of collecting the data taking in
account the
1) Nature of investigation
2) Objective & scope of Inquiry
3) Financial Resources
4) Time frame
5) Desired degree of Accuracy.
6) Execution of the Project: (Putting a plan)
Important step in Research study.
See that the project is executed in a systematic manner and in time.
Eg) If the survey done in a project is via Questionnaire the answers can be
machine coded / processed
If interview were conducted, make sure that the interviewers is well trained
to keep the survey as much as realistic as possible.
8. Analysis of Data :

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 After the data are collected the researcher turns to the task of analyzing the
data the analysis of data require closely related operations, like coding,
Editing & Tabulation.
The wide data collected should be condensed into small manageable groups,
for easy analysis.
Coding:

The collected data are transformed into symbols that may be

tabulated or counted.
Editing: Unwanted & irrelevant data will be removed.
Tabulation:

Technical procedure where the data are put in the form of

tables.
Research Design:
The most important step after defining the Research problem is preparing the
Research Design
Research design is the conceptual structure within which the research is
conducted.
It constitutes the BLUE PRINT for collection, measurement and analysis of
data.
Research design provides an answer to the question, what the Researcher is going
to do with regards to framing hypothesis, its operational implications and how to
analyse the data?
Research Design: - Decisions
Highlights certain decisions,
1) Nature of the study
2) Purpose of the study
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3) Location where the study would be conducted

4) Nature of DATA required
5) From where the DATA can be collected
6) Time period of the study
7) Type of sample design to be used
8) Techniques of data collection
9) Methods of Data Analysis
10) Preparation of Report.
Research Design
May be sub divided into,
1) Sampling design: Deals with, the method of selecting items for the study.
2) Observational design:

Relates to the condition under which the observations are to

be made.
3) Statistical Design:

Deals with the no of items selected or the study and

how the selected data will be analysed.

4) Operation design:

The technique by which the sampling, observational and

statistical designs can be carried out.

Research Design Features :
1) Helps to identify the type and source of information needed for the study.
2) Specifies the methods to be adopted in collecting & analyzing data.

HYPOTHESIS
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A Research hypothesis is a predictive statement, which is capable of being tested

using scientific methods, which involves independent and dependent valuables. (eg) the
female students perform as well as the male students.
This statement is a hypothesis that can be objectively tested and verified.
It is a proposition that can be put to test in order to examine its validity.
Characteristics of Hypothesis
1) A hypothesis should be precise and clear. If not clear, the inferences will not be
reliable.
2) It must be capable of being put to test.
3) It should state the relationship between the variables, in case relational
hypothesis.
4) It should be stated in a simple language.
5) It should be consistant and derived from all known facts.
6) Hypothesis must be amenable to testing within a reasonable period of time
7) Hypothesis should explain what it actually

to explain. (the solution for the

Research problem). The explanation should be on empirical reference.

Concepts Relating to Testing of Hypothesis
1) Null Hypothesis & Alternative
Hypothesis (Statistical Analysis)
Null Hypothesis:

Denoted by H0. If both the variables (say male or female) or (Head

or Tail) are equally good, it is Null Hypothesis.

Alternative Hypothesis:

Denoted by Ha or H1. If one variable is considered superior

to other or vice versa or if there is a difference, it is alternative hypothesis.

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Mean Population (u) or (p)

Total / No. of variables
Null Hypothesis
Ho :

u = 100

Alternative Hypothesis
Ha

u = 100

Ha

u > 100

Ha

u < 100

Aspects to be considered while formulating Null Hypothesis

1) The researcher always tries to reject Null hypothesis since Alternative Hypothesis
should be proved.
2) Null hypothesis when it is actually true, when rejected involves great risk, the
level of significance should be considered.
3) Null hypothesis should be very specific (No approximation)
The level of significance:

Important concept of hypothesis testing.

It is a certain percentage chosen with great care, reason and thought

(eg) let us consider the level of significance to be 5%. It means the Researcher
takes a risk of rejecting Null hypothesis (Ho) by 5% when Ho is actually true.

3.

Decision Rule

The researcher should make a decision, if to accept or Reject Ho.

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The decision rule should be decided on the number of items to be tested and the
basic of which to accept or reject.

4.

Type I and Type II Errors

(i)

Researcher may reject Ho, when it is true Type I Error (which must have been
accepted).

(ii)

Researcher may accept Ho, when it is false Type II Error (which must have been
rejected)

5.

One tailed and Two tailed Tests:

(i)

One tailed test rejects the Null hypothesis when the sample mean is either greater
or lower than the hypothesized value of the population mean.
Two tailed Test:

When the sample mean is both greater and lower than the

hypothesized value of the population mean.

Procedure for Hypothesis Testing:
1. Testing hypothesis refers whether the formulated hypothesis is valid or not
2. Whether to Accept or Reject Null Hypothesis.
(i)

Making a formal statement:

(ii)

(iii)

Making a formal statement of the null hypothesis and alternative hypothesis.

Selecting a significant level of testing

A pre-determined level of significance should be specified.

Either 5% or 1% level can be considered for the purpose.

Deciding the Distribution to use:

Choice should be made generally relates to Normal distribution or tdistribution.

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(iv)

(v)

Selection of random sample & computing an Appropriate value

Selection of Random sample

Computing suitable value

Drawing a sample for furnishing Empirical data.

Calculation of Probability:

(v)

The diverged results from the expected results, when Ho is true.

Comparing the probability:

By making a comparison with the assumed significance level.

If the value is less than or equal to Ho, in case of one-tailed test, Ho is

rejected. Here type I error is committed.

If the value is greater than the mean, Ho is accepted.

Were type-I error is

committed.

compile, compare & compute the data and come out with the inference.

Null Hypothesis:

The null hypothesis is the proposition or proposal that implies no

effect on the phenomena.

Alternative Hypothesis:

is the one predictive statement that implies some effect on

the phenomena.

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