Business Research Analysis

Hi,

Will provide more supportin material and a sample paper also.

Regards,

AssessmentBrief – Postgraduate

Module Code:

BM0421

Module Title:

Business Research Analysis

Distributed on:

TBC

Hand in Date:

Please do not enter a date in this bo

. Please advise the relevant programme office of the preferred week for hand in.

Instructions on Assessment:

(Some basic instruction if required here)

Important note about ARNA regulations

The regulations specify that students must complete every assessment component contributing to the modules on their programme. This applies to all forms of assessment as defined in the module descriptor. Please note that:

· if any assessment component is not completed, students will be failed in the module even if the module pass mark has been achieved;

· if the requirements for referral specified in section 5 of ARNA1 are met, a resit opportunity will be given;

· if unable to complete an assessment component because of extenuating circumstances, students should follow the procedure described in the Student Guide to Extenuating Circumstances

This change was approved by Academic Board on 12 October 2009 in consultation with the Students’ Union. Students should consult their Programme Leader or Guidance Tutor if they have any queries. Independent advice and support is also available from the Students’ Union Advice & Representation Centre (

su.advice@northumbria.ac.uk

) or from a student adviser in Student Services.

1ARNA and the Student Guide to Extenuating Circumstances Affecting Assessed Work are available from

http://www.northumbria.ac.uk/sd/central/ar/lts/assess/assproc/assdocstud/

Word limits and penalties for assignments

If the assignment is within +10% of the stated word limit no penalty will apply.

The word count is to be declared on the front page of your assignment and the assignment cover sheet. The word count does not include:

· Title and Contents page	· Reference list	· Appendices	· Appropriate tables, figures and illustrations
· Glossary	· Bibliography	· Quotes from interviews and focus groups.

Please note, in text citations [e.g. (Smith, 2011)] and direct secondary quotations [e.g. “dib-dab nonsense analysis” (Smith, 2011 p.123)] are INCLUDED in the word count.

If this word count is falsified, students are reminded that under ARNA page 30 Section

4 this will be regarded as academic misconduct.

If the word limit of the full assignment exceeds the +10% limit, 10% of the mark provisionally awarded to the assignment will be deducted. For example: if the assignment is worth 70 marks but is above the word limit by more than 10%, a penalty of 7 marks will be imposed, giving a final mark of 63.

Students are advised that they may be asked to submit an electronic version of their assignment.

Time limits and penalties for presentations

The time allocated for the presentation must be adhered to. At the end of this time, the presentation will be stopped and will be marked based on what has been delivered within the time limit.

Submission of Assessment:

All assignments must be submitted via the Postgraduate Programme Office. Each assignment must be accompanied by an Assessed Work Form which must be completed in full. The assignment will not be accepted by the Postgraduate Programme Office unless the form is completed correctly.

Marked assignments will be returned to students. It is advisable to retain a copy of your assignment for you own records. Your mark will be returned on the Assessed Work Form via the Postgraduate Programme Office.

Referencing your work

The APA method of referencing uses the author’s name and the date of the publication. In-text citations give brief details of the work you are referring to in your text. References are listed at the end of the text in alphabetical order by the author’s name. The general format of an electronic journal reference in the APA style is shown below:

Coutu, D. (2009). Why Teams Don’t Work. Harvard Business Review, 87(5), 98-105. Retrieved 29th April 2012 from EBSCO

http://searchebscohost.com

Author/s name and initials are listed first, followed by year of publication in brackets. Then there is the title of article and the journal where the article appears, which is in italics. Then state the volume and issue number (in brackets) along with the pages where article can be located. Finally add the date the article was retrieved and then the name of the database, followed by the web address. Wherever possible use the homepage URL rather than the full and extended web address.

For further information on why it is important to reference accurately go to the Referencing and Plagiarism topic in Skills Plus available from the Library website:

www.northumbria.ac.uk/skillsplus

You will find other useful help guides on Skills Plus to help you with the skills involved in writing your assessments and preparing for exams.

For further information on the APA style of referencing see the Concise Rules of APA style and the APA website

http://www.apastyle.org/learn

Plagiarism and Cheating

Your attention is drawn to the University’s stated position on plagiarism. THE WORK OF OTHERS, WHICH IS INCLUDED IN THE ASSIGNMENT MUST BE ATTRIBUTED TO ITS SOURCE (a full bibliography and/or a list of references must be submitted as prescribed in the assessment brief).

Please note that this is intended to be an individual piece of work. Action will be taken where a student is suspected of having cheated or engaged in any dishonest practice. Students are referred to the University regulations on plagiarism and other forms of academic irregularity. Students must not copy or collude with one another or present any information that they themselves have not generated.

(Some basic instruction if required here)

For further information on Plagiarism, see the Referencing and Plagiarism topic on Skills Plus.

www.northumbria.ac.uk/skillsplus

(Some basic instruction if required here)

Mapping to Programme Goals and Objectives:

This assessment will contribute directly to the following Postgraduate programme goals and objectives. (Insert an ‘X’ in boxes where applicable, referring to appropriate programme specification for mapping details)

Goal One: Be independent, reflective critical thinkers

					1.	Demonstrate awareness of their personal strengths and weaknesses through critical reflective practice.
			2.	Understand and challenge personal patterns of thinking and behaving.

Goal Two: Be culturally and ethically aware

Demonstrate their ability to work in diverse groups and teams.

Reflect on their own ethical values.

Goal Three: Have developed leadership and management capability

Demonstrate their personal contribution to team effectiveness.
Communicate complex issues effectively.
3.	Demonstrate decision making and problem solving skills.
4.	Carry out presentations and lead discussions.

Goal Four: Have developed and applied knowledge of international business and management theory

Acquire, interpret and apply knowledge of international business, management and organisational functions.

Goal Five: Have developed a range of research skills and project capabilities

	x	Plan and complete a major individual piece of research on a contemporary business, management or leadership topic of their choice.
Demonstrate skills of analysis and synthesis in the application of research methods to the exploration of contemporary business issues.

Goal Six: Have developed specialist knowledge about the theory and practice of your programme of study

Demonstrate specialist functional knowledge in relation to your programme of study.

Assessment Criteria (NBS)

General Assessment Criteria

Trait

Fail

1 – 39

Fail

40 – 49

Fail

50 – 54

Pass

55 – 59

Pass

60 – 69

Commendation

70 – 100

Distinction

Knowledge and Understanding

Work not submitted OR Work giving evidence of serious academic misconduct (subject to regulations in ARNA Appendix 1) OR Work showing no evidence of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to level 7. None of the learning outcomes are met.

Work is not acceptable and provides little evidence of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to level 7. Few of the learning outcomes are met.

Work is not acceptable in providing evidence of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to level 7. However a majority of the learning outcomes are met and others are nearly satisfied

Adequate work providing evidence of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to level 7 but only at a bare pass level. All learning outcomes are met (or nearly met and balanced by strengths elsewhere).

Satisfactory work providing evidence of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to level 7. All learning outcomes are met.

Commendable work providing evidence to a high level of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to level 7. All learning outcomes met, many are more than satisfied.

Excellent work providing evidence to a very high level of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to level 7. All learning outcomes met, many at high level. Marks at the high end of this range indicate outstanding work where all learning outcomes are met at a high level.

Structure, Alignment and Research

Inadequate in some of the following aspects or seriously inadequate in at least one: use of relevant material; development of analysis and structure of argument; evaluation of theory; application of relevant theory, research methods and findings to the problem in question; presentation of information to the intended audience.

Adequate in most but not all of the following aspects: use of relevant material; development of analysis and structure of argument; evaluation of theory; application of relevant theory, research methods and findings to the problem in question; presentation of information to the intended audience.

Adequate in all of (or most of, with balancing strength elsewhere): use of relevant material; development of analysis and structure of argument; evaluation of theory; application of relevant theory, research methods and findings to the problem in question; presentation of information to the intended audience.

Satisfactory in all or most of: use of relevant material from a variety of sources; development of analysis and structure of argument; evaluation of theory; application of relevant theory, research methods and findings to the problem in question; presentation of information to the intended audience.

Good in all or most of: use of up-to-date material from a variety of sources; development of analysis and structure of argument; critical evaluation of relevant theory, research methods and findings to the problem in question; presentation of information to the intended audience.

Excellent in all or most of: use of primary sources of literature from a range of perspectives; development of analysis and structure of argument; critical evaluation and creative use of theory, research methods and findings; presentation of information to the intended audience.

Module Specific Assessment Criteria

Trait

Fail

1 – 39

Fail

40 – 49

Fail

50 – 54

Pass

55 – 59

Pass

60 – 69

Commendation

70 – 100

Distinction

Knowledge and Understanding

Structure, Alignment and Research

No appropriate quantitative techniques applied.	An attempt is made to apply quantitative techniques, but these are either the wrong techniques are incorrectly applied.	Correct techniques are applied but there are many errors and very little interpretation of the results.	Correct techniques employed, few major errors but numerous minor errors. Limited interpretation of the results.	Correct techniques employed, no major errors but some minor errors. Full interpretation of the results.	All correct techniques employed, limitations of the techniques fully explained. Very few minor errors, detailed interpretation of results including limitations.	All correct techniques employed, limitations of the techniques fully explained. Virtually no errors, extensive narration of the techniques and interpretation of results including limitations.
Poor structure, not aligned with assignment brief. No research employed.	Structure does not meet requirements for the most part. Extremely limited research grounding.	Structure has major errors and some key research concepts are missing.	Coherent structure, with acknowledgement of key research concepts.	Good structure, relevant research employed where appropriate.	Structure and narration guide the reader through the work very effectively, current research is critically appraised to a high degree.	Assignment makes full use of current research to support arguments. Excellent structure and presentation.

Note:
For those assessments or partial assessments based on calculation, multiple choice etc. Marks will be gained on an accumulative basis. In these cases, marks allocated to each section will be made clear.

Students must retain an electronic copy of this assignment and it must be made available within 24 hours of them requesting it be submitted.

Assignment Brief:
In this assignment you are required to complete these parts:

Part 1
Total 40 marks

(a) Develop a questionnaire (15 marks)

(b) Discussion of distribution method and associated documents [250 words] (10 marks)

Part 2
Total 60 marks

Data analysis, findings and managerial implications [1750 words] (60 marks)

The word count should be declared on the front page of the assignment.

Scenario

Tynecastle Business School (TBS) is part of the University of Tynecastle, located in the North East of England. It has a reputation regionally, nationally and internationally. The Business School uses its reputation to build and maintain relationships with organizations.. This is key to its philosophy which could be described as “leading business, business led”. TBS runs a suite of 4-year Business and Management programmes; the modules for years 1 and 2 are shown below. Year 3 involves a 12-month placement (work experience) with an external organisation and is managed by a full-time Placements Unit within TBS, with year 4 being taught back within the University.

Year One

Financial and Management Accounting

Business Operations

Introduction to Marketing

Introduction to Management

Business Environment and Organisations

Quantitative Methods for Business

Year Two

Performance Management	Information Management	Preparation for Placements and Graduate Employment
Markets and Customers	International Finance	International and Global Business

Part 1 (a) – Develop a questionnaire (15 marks)

You are a self-employed professional analyst and have been commissioned by the Placements Unit, within Tynecastle Business School (TBS) to undertake an important market research exercise involving their placement organisations. You have two months to design a questionnaire, disseminate this with support from the Placements Unit, code the survey returns, analyse the data and provide a report for the Head of the Unit.

The Placements Unit is interested in determining organisational perception of the degree programmes. Broadly, the Placement Unit would like to know what organisations think of the following:

· the degree content,

· the work skills developed by the students,

· the appropriateness and preparedness of these students for the working/professional environment,

· the levels of support provided by the Placements Unit and TBS.

This is intended to help assess the extent to which students are prepared for graduate level work during their placement year. You are required to develop a short questionnaire (a maximum of three pages) to assess the various issues described here. You should use the above information along with any further research you may wish to do to decide on the questionnaire content.

The questionnaire should be presented in an appendix to the assignment.

Part 1 (b) – Discussion of distribution method and associated documents

(10 marks)

In this section you should discuss how the questionnaire should be distributed in accordance with the wishes of the Placements Unit. The Placements Unit will distribute this questionnaire to all organisations on its database electronically, which will involve 1200 potential respondents. Assess the benefits and challenges of using this method of questionnaire dissemination, including methods for tackling non-response.

You should also design a full and appropriate coding plan for your questionnaire and include any other supporting documentation.

The coding plan and any supporting documentation should be presented in an appendix to the assignment.

Part 1 (c) – Critical evaluation of your questionnaire 1000 words (15 marks)

In this section of the assignment you are required to provide a critical evaluation of the questionnaire you have developed). The evaluation of the questionnaire will consider your design decisions: the structure, presentation, types of questions used and supporting instructions for the potential respondents. You should justify your design decisions by considering the case scenario presented above and your justification should be supported with reference to Research Methods textbooks and journal articles.

Important information: The questionnaire and associated documentation
do not count
towards the word limit because they are included in the appendices. You are
not
going to use your questionnaire to collect data and the questionnaire you design should not aim to collect the data as presented in Part 2 below, which involves a different perspective of the placement experience (i.e. that of the students, not the organizations). You will be provided with a set of data in Part 2. Although the general scenario is the same for Parts 1 and 2 of this assignment, there is
not
a direct link between your questionnaire and the data in Part 2.

Part 2 – Data analysis, findings and managerial implications [1750 words] (60 marks)

For this part of the assignment, you have been provided with a data set consisting of 375 responses from a survey carried out by the Placements Unit, Tynecastle Business School. The placements run for 12 months, commencing in June of each year. The survey was undertaken in May 2012, by post supported by a stamped-addressed envelope and two emails, the first to introduce the survey ahead of its arrival by post, the second as a reminder to students to participate. The students were given three weeks to complete the questionnaire.

The data represents a response rate of 68.2% of the students who undertook the placement in the academic year 2011/12. The population profile consisted of 44% males, 9% mature students, 43% taking a placement in the city or surrounding region and 33% in London, with 30% taking work in each of the manufacturing and finance arenas.

The data can be found in the Excel file BM0421_SEM2_2012_13.xls and the SPSS file BM0421_SEM2_2012_13.sav, both of which are available from the module’s site on the e-learning portal (Blackboard).

Data provided:

The data consists of 375 responses as follows:

· The respondent ID number, recorded as 1 to 375 inclusive.

· Gender of student (1= female, 2 = male).

· Age of student on commencement of the placement (students aged 23 and over would have been aged 21 and over on commencement of their degree programme and are defined as mature).

· Placement location (1 = City of Tynecastle, 2 = Northern Region, 3 = Greater London, 4 = Rest of England).

· Placement sector (1 = manufacturing, 2 = retail/distribution/services, 3 = banking/finance/related industries).

· Placement salary (£k)

· The number of visits made by the placement tutor (2 is the expected number).

· The number of additional telephone calls made to the student whilst on placement (beyond arranging the visits).

· The number of years experience the placement organisation has in providing opportunities for students from Tynecastle Business School.

· The number of other students on placement at the site where the student is located (these may not necessarily be from the Business School or University).

· The satisfaction rating awarded by the student to the placement (1 = very poor to 10 = excellent). Note: You should treat satisfaction as a quantitative variable.

Analysis required:

In this section of the assignment, marks will be awarded for a justification of the displays, measures and tests undertaken, alongside their full interpretation.

For each section in your report, provide the Head of the Unit with a brief summary of the managerial implications of the results (this is particularly important when a null hypothesis has been rejected).

You should show the main results using Excel/SPSS tables and graphs, but these must be relevant and fully explained. Give an explanation with your tables and graphs. Do not attempt Multiple Regression (if relevant to the questions set). It is recommended that you set out your answers as we have done in the workshops. Any very large tables or graphs should be placed in the appendices of your report. Where hypothesis tests are undertaken, you should state the significance level you have used.

You are required to carry out the following analysis:

Overview of the respondents

Provide a summary of the respondents’ profile in terms of gender, age maturity, sector and location of placement experience.

To what extent does sector and geographic location associate with gender?

(12 marks)

Salaries achieved by the students

Describe the salary data using an appropriate graphical display and relevant summary statistics.

The Placements Unit are aware that the mean annual salary for a student from the University of Tynecastle undertaking a placement is £15,500. For students from Business Schools throughout the UK the mean annual placement salary is £16,750. To what extent, if any, are the salaries awarded to placement students from Tynecastle Business School different to these figures? Are there any implications or limitations regarding this salary assessment?

Do the salaries paid to placement students from Tynecastle Business School differ by age maturity? Do salaries differ by sector?

Are there any particular limitations that are evident from this assessment of placement salaries?

(20 marks)

Satisfaction with placement experience

Describe the satisfaction data using an appropriate graphical display and relevant summary statistics.

Does the level of satisfaction experienced by the student differ by personal characteristics? What, if any, are the implication of these results for the students and the Placements Unit?

To what extent is satisfaction influenced by salary, number of visits or organisational experience? Support your answer using appropriate statistics and graphical presentations. What are the implications, if any, for the Placements Unit here in supporting students and organisations?

Develop and evaluate an appropriate simple regression model to predict an expected satisfaction level from a student at an organisation that has 15 years experience working with TBS who is being paid £17,500 and receiving 2 visits.

Are there any particular limitations that are evident from this assessment of placement satisfaction?

(28 marks)

Total Part Two (60 marks)

End of assignment

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2 20 2 2 15.1 2 1 8 1 8

1 21 2 2 15.3 2 0 0 0 1

1 20 4 3 16.3 2 1 2 1 7

1 20 1 2 14.7 2 1 5 0 9

2 26 4 1 15.1 2 1 2 1 3

2 20 1 1 15.7 2 1 7 1 8

1 20 3 1 19.2 2 2 2 0 7

2 20 4 1 15.7 2 1 4 1 7

1 20 2 2 15.5 2 1 4 0 7

1 21 2 1 15.5 2 1 0 2 3

1 22 2 2 15.3 1 1 0 0 3

1 22 2 3

2 1 4 1 5

2 20 2 2 14.7 2 1 3 0 6

1 21 3 2

2 1 3 1 5

1 20 4 2 15.1 2 1 1 0 1

2 20 4 1 15.7 2 1 2 0 2

1 21 3 3 19.8 2 0 3 0 3

1 20 3 3 18.5 2 0 5 1 6

1 20 1 2 15.1 1 1 7 2 9

2 32 2 1 15.3 2 1 5 1 8

1 20 2 2 15.5 2 1 7 1 9

1 24 2 3 16.7 2 1 6 2 8

1 22 2 1 15.3 2 2 1 0 4

1 20 3 2

2 1 3 0 5

2 22 3 1 17.4 2 1 1 0 5

1 20 4 2 15.5 2 1 5 0 8

2 20 1 1 15.5 2 1 2 1 7

1 20 2 2 15.7 2 1 4 0 8

1 21 3 3 18.5 2 1 0 1 2

1 20 4 1 14.9 2 1 4 0 5

2 20 3 3 19.9 2 1 3 0 1

1 20 4 1 15.5 2 1 5 1 7

2 21 4 1 15.3 2 1 6 2 8

2 21 1 1 14.9 2 1 2 0 3

1 21 1 2 14.7 2 1 7 0 7

2 20 4 1 15.5 2 1 0 0 1

1 20 1 2 14.7 2 1 7 1 8

1 20 4 2 15.3 2 1 8 2 9

1 21 4 3 16.1 1 1 6 1 8

2 21 3 1 18.5 2 1 5 1 8

2 20 1 3 16.7 2 1 6 0 7

2 21 3 1 18.7 2 1 1 0 1

1 20 4 2 15.5 1 1 4 2 6

1 21 2 2 14.9 2 1 3 0 7

1 26 1 2 15.1 2 1 0 1 1

2 21 3 3 19.2 2 1 1 1 5

1 20 4 1 14.9 2 1 3 2 7

2 20 2 1 15.3 1 1 5 0 6

2 20 3 3 20.9 1 1 4 0 1

2 21 2 2 15.7 2 0 6 0 9

2 20 3 3 20.9 2 1 2 0 4

1 20 4 1 15.5 2 1 5 1 6

2 31 3 1

2 1 1 1 4

1 27 4 2 14.7 2 0 0 0 3

1 20 2 1 15.5 2 1 3 0 5

1 20 4 2 15.3 2 1 2 1 7

2 20 4 1 15.1 2 0 0 0 1

1 22 4 1 15.1 2 0 1 0 1

1 30 4 1 15.3 0 1 2 0 5

2 21 2 1 15.3 2 1 8 1 7

2 20 4 2 15.7 2 1 4 1 1

1 20 2 3 17.5 2 1 3 1 4

2 20 3 2

1 1 4 0 5

2 21 3 2 17.4 2 1 1 0 4

1 20 3 3

2 0 3 0 5

2 20 3 1 18.2 2 1 0 0 1

2 20 3 3 20.9 2 0 0 0 2

2 20 3 3

2 1 6 0 6

2 20 3 2 19.5 1 1 2 0 3

1 30 3 3

2 1 4 2 8

1 20 4 2 14.7 2 1 3 1 7

1 25 2 2 15.1 1 1 6 0 9

1 20 4 2 14.7 0 2 4 0 6

1 20 3 3 21.3 2 2 3 0 7

1 24 1 1 15.1 2 1 6 1 8

2 22 2 1 15.5 2 0 5 0 9

1 22 4 1 14.9 2 1 0 1 3

1 30 4 2 15.5 1 1 2 0 5

1 22 3 2 18.1 2 1 7 0 8

1 24 3 2 18.7 2 1 0 0 2

2 21 1 1 15.7 2 1 6 0 8

1 20 4 2 15.5 2 1 0 0 1

2 23 2 2 15.3 2 1 2 3 6

1 20 1 2 15.3 2 1 5 0 7

1 32 1 2 15.5 2 1 8 1 7

1 20 2 2 15.7 2 1 5 2 7

2 22 1 1 14.7 2 1 7 2 8

1 23 4 3 17.5 2 1 4 1 2

1 21 3 2 18.8 2 0 6 1 8

1 21 1 2 15.5 2 1 5 3 6

2 20 3 2 18.9 2 1 2 2 7

2 20 3 3 18.9 2 1 2 0 7

2 20 2 1 15.5 2 1 4 0 7

1 20 2 2 14.9 2 1 4 2 7

2 21 3 3 20.9 2 1 4 0 3

2 24 4 1 15.5 1 1 6 1 7

1 20 3 3

2 0 7 1 9

2 20 4 1 15.3 2 1 1 0 3

1 23 2 2 15.3 2 1 5 0 8

1 21 1 2 14.7 2 1 3 2 5

2 20 3 3 18.5 2 1 2 0 1

2 20 3 3 18.8 2 1 2 0 3

1 30 2 2 14.9 2 1 0 2 7

1 30 4 2 15.7 2 1 6 0 8

2 26 3 3

2 1 5 0 6

1 21 4 1 14.9 2 0 2 0 2

2 21 2 1 14.9 3 1 2 1 6

1 20 2 2 14.9 2 1 6 1 7

2 20 4 2 14.9 2 2 1 0 2

1 20 2 2 14.7 2 1 3 0 7

1 23 1 2 15.5 2 2 8 1 8

1 20 2 2 15.7 2 1 2 1 7

2 21 2 2 15.3 2 1 2 0 7

1 21 1 2 15.7 2 1 2 0 10

1 20 4 3

2 0 4 0 7

2 22 3 2 18.5 2 1 6 1 8

2 20 4 1 15.7 2 1 5 0 5

2 24 1 1 14.7 2 1 4 1 7

1 20 3 1 18.2 0 1 0 0 1

1 20 2 2 15.1 0 1 4 1 9

1 22 3 3 15.5 2 1 4 0 6

2 24 3 3 18.3 2 1 4 0 7

1 20 4 2 15.1 2 1 1 0 1

1 20 2 1 14.9 2 1 6 1 8

1 20 1 1 14.9 0 1 2 0 9

2 20 3 3 19.2 2 1 6 2 8

1 20 4 2 15.1 2 1 15 2 10

1 22 1 3 16.7 2 1 4 0 9

1 20 4 2 14.9 2 1 3 1 6

2 20 4 2 15.3 2 1 2 0 5

1 23 4 2 14.7 2 1 2 0 5

2 20 3 3 19.8 1 1 1 1 2

1 20 3 2 18.7 2 1 1 1 4

1 20 3 2 17.6 2 1 2 2 5

2 25 2 3 16.3 2 1 7 1 7

2 20 2 2 15.7 2 1 7 2 9

1 20 2 3

2 1 2 2 4

1 20 2 2 15.5 2 0 6 1 9

2 21 3 3 18.8 2 1 7 1 8

1 20 3 2

2 1 7 1 9

1 20 2 2 15.7 1 1 4 1 6

1 21 1 1 15.1 2 1 4 2 6

2 20 1 1 15.5 2 0 4 0 3

1 20 1 3 17.5 2 1 3 0 8

1 21 3 1 18.5 2 1 4 0 3

ID	Gender	Age	Location	Sector	Salary	Visits	Calls	Years	Others	Satisfaction
2																														0	3	1	8	7
																				21	1	9				6			5
																											20	20.9
																							4	23	15
													22						15.1
	18
	17
																		15.5
									24		18.6
							10
11		19
	12
13
14																	14.9
21.1
16
												30
															15.7
	18.0
							18.2
		25												14.7
								26								15.3
	27
28
29					18.8
			17.7
	31
		32
33							16.3
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42								18.5
43				17.9
44
45
46						19.5
47			19.8
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57		20.5
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67	15.9
68
69				17.6
70
71				17.5
72								16.7
73
74									18.1
75
76
77	20.1
78
79
80
81
82		21.3
83
84			18.4
85
86
87
88				17.3
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103	21.2
104		20.3
105	20.0
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119		22.1
120
121
122		16.9
123
124				19.2
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138			19.0
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146	20.6
147
148			17.8
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162	19.3
163				18.7
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182		19.4
183
184
185
186
187
188		20.2
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212		19.9
213
214
215
216	19.7
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242		16.1
243
244			17.4
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254		18.3
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283			18.9
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293	19.1
294
295	19.6
296
297
298	21.4
299
300	21.5
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308
309
310
311
312
313
314
315
316
317
318
319
320
321
322
323
324
325
326
327	20.8
328
329
330
331
332
333
334
335	21.6
336
337
338
339
340
341
342
343
344
345	17.1
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362
363
364
365
366
367	16.5
368
369
370	17.2
371
372
373
374
375

Sheet2

Sheet3

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

What is Referencing?
Referencing is providing
information on the sources that you
have used.
In-text citation.

Reference list

For Example…

*
What is Referencing
You need to reference your sources both in the text of your assignment and this is called in-text citation.
You also need to provide a reference list at the end of your assignment.
The references are listed in alphabetical order.
NEXT SLIDE FOR EXAMPLE

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

3 Reasons for Referencing
Academic
To show the wide variety of sources you have used
To show that you have used relevant sources
To support the ideas and arguments you discuss in your work

Practical
to help a reader to trace the sources you have used
to help you to retrace the sources you have used in the past

Legal
to avoid plagiarism

*
Why do it?

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

In text citation and reference list
According to RMIT (2005) referencing an information source used in an academic work means to employ a standardised method of acknowledging that source.

Pears & Shields (2005) state that the two principal methods of citation used in higher education are the Harvard (Author–date) system and the British Standard or Numeric system.

Reference
Pears, J. & Shields, G. (2005) Cite them right: the essential guide to referencing and plagiarism. Newcastle upon Tyne: Pear Tree Books

RMIT university library info-trek (2005) Available at: http://www.rmit.edu.au/library/info-trek/referencing. (Accessed: 24th October 2006).
In-text citation
In-text citation
Reference list

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Referencing a book
Author (surname followed by initials)
Year of publication (in round brackets)
Title (in italics)
Edition (only include the edition number
if it is not the first edition)
Place of publication: Publisher
Series and volume number (if relevant).

e.g.
Saunders, M. Lewis, P. Thornhill A. (2007) Research methods for business students . 4th edn. Harlow: Financial Times Prentice Hall.

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Referencing a Journal Article (print)

Author, surname followed by initials
Year of publication (in round brackets)
Title of article (in quotation marks)
Title of journal (in italics)
Issue information, Volume, part number,
month or season
Page reference.

e.g.
Brown, R. (2004) “Consideration of the origin of Herbert Simon’s theory of satisficing”, Management Decision, 42 (10) pp.1240-1256.
Referencing an electronic journal is slightly different from the print –the Quick Guide to Referencing to ensure you record all the information.

*
This is the correct citation order for your journal article reference

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Referencing an extract from an internet database
Author
Year of publication (in round brackets)
Title of extract (in quotation marks)
Name of Database (in italics)
[Online] (in square brackets)
Available at: URL
(Accessed: date).

e.g.
Euromonitor (2005) ‘World market for retailing’, Euromonitor Global Market Information Database [Online]. Available at: http://www.euromonitor.com/GMID/default.asp (Accessed: 14 September 2008).

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Or ask for further help!!

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

We can provide alternative formats of this presentation on request. Please email ask4help@northumbria.ac.uk

Sample/BM0421 A S2-2

Assessment Brief – Postgraduate

Module Code:

BM0421

Module Title:

Business Research Analysis

Distributed on:

TBC

Hand in Date:

Please do not enter a date in this box. Please advise the relevant programme office of the preferred week for hand in.

Instructions on Assessment:

(Some basic instruction if required here)

Important note about ARNA regulations

· if any assessment component is not completed, students will be failed in the module even if the module pass mark has been achieved;
· if the requirements for referral specified in section 5 of ARNA1 are met, a resit opportunity will be given;
· if unable to complete an assessment component because of extenuating circumstances, students should follow the procedure described in the Student Guide to Extenuating Circumstances1.

1ARNA and the Student Guide to Extenuating Circumstances Affecting Assessed Work are available from
http://www.northumbria.ac.uk/sd/central/ar/lts/assess/assproc/assdocstud/

Word limits and penalties for assignments

If the assignment is within +10% of the stated word limit no penalty will apply.

The word count is to be declared on the front page of your assignment and the assignment cover sheet. The word count does not include:

· Title and Contents page

· Reference list

· Appendices

· Appropriate tables, figures and illustrations

· Glossary

· Bibliography

· Quotes from interviews and focus groups.

Please note, in text citations [e.g. (Smith, 2011)] and direct secondary quotations [e.g. “dib-dab nonsense analysis” (Smith, 2011 p.123)] are INCLUDED in the word count.

If this word count is falsified, students are reminded that under ARNA page 30 Section 3.4 this will be regarded as academic misconduct.

Students are advised that they may be asked to submit an electronic version of their assignment.

Time limits and penalties for presentations

The time allocated for the presentation must be adhered to. At the end of this time, the presentation will be stopped and will be marked based on what has been delivered within the time limit.

Submission of Assessment:

Referencing your work

Coutu, D. (2009). Why Teams Don’t Work. Harvard Business Review, 87(5), 98-105. Retrieved 29th April 2012 from EBSCO
http://searchebscohost.com

For further information on why it is important to reference accurately go to the Referencing and Plagiarism topic in Skills Plus available from the Library website:

www.northumbria.ac.uk/skillsplus

You will find other useful help guides on Skills Plus to help you with the skills involved in writing your assessments and preparing for exams.

For further information on the APA style of referencing see the Concise Rules of APA style and the APA website
http://www.apastyle.org/learn

Plagiarism and Cheating

Your attention is drawn to the University’s stated position on plagiarism. THE WORK OF OTHERS, WHICH IS INCLUDED IN THE ASSIGNMENT MUST BE ATTRIBUTED TO ITS SOURCE (a full bibliography and/or a list of references must be submitted as prescribed in the assessment brief).
Please note that this is intended to be an individual piece of work. Action will be taken where a student is suspected of having cheated or engaged in any dishonest practice. Students are referred to the University regulations on plagiarism and other forms of academic irregularity. Students must not copy or collude with one another or present any information that they themselves have not generated.

(Some basic instruction if required here)

For further information on Plagiarism, see the Referencing and Plagiarism topic on Skills Plus.

www.northumbria.ac.uk/skillsplus

(Some basic instruction if required here)

Mapping to Programme Goals and Objectives:

Goal One: Be independent, reflective critical thinkers

Demonstrate awareness of their personal strengths and weaknesses through critical reflective practice.

Understand and challenge personal patterns of thinking and behaving.

Goal Two: Be culturally and ethically aware

Demonstrate their ability to work in diverse groups and teams.

Reflect on their own ethical values.

Goal Three: Have developed leadership and management capability

Demonstrate their personal contribution to team effectiveness.

Communicate complex issues effectively.

Demonstrate decision making and problem solving skills.

Carry out presentations and lead discussions.

Goal Four: Have developed and applied knowledge of international business and management theory

Acquire, interpret and apply knowledge of international business, management and organisational functions.

Goal Five: Have developed a range of research skills and project capabilities

Plan and complete a major individual piece of research on a contemporary business, management or leadership topic of their choice.

Demonstrate skills of analysis and synthesis in the application of research methods to the exploration of contemporary business issues.

Goal Six: Have developed specialist knowledge about the theory and practice of your programme of study

Demonstrate specialist functional knowledge in relation to your programme of study.

Assessment Criteria (NBS)

General Assessment Criteria

Trait

Fail

1 – 39

Fail

40 – 49

Fail

50 – 54

Pass

55 – 59

Pass

60 – 69

Commendation

70 – 100

Distinction

Knowledge and Understanding

Work is not acceptable and provides little evidence of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to level 7. Few of the learning outcomes are met.

Work is not acceptable in providing evidence of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to level 7. However a majority of the learning outcomes are met and others are nearly satisfied

Satisfactory work providing evidence of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to level 7. All learning outcomes are met.

Commendable work providing evidence to a high level of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to level 7. All learning outcomes met, many are more than satisfied.

Structure, Alignment and Research

Module Specific Assessment Criteria

Trait

Fail

1 – 39

Fail

40 – 49

Fail

50 – 54

Pass

55 – 59

Pass

60 – 69

Commendation

70 – 100

Distinction

Knowledge and Understanding

No appropriate quantitative techniques applied.

An attempt is made to apply quantitative techniques, but these are either the wrong techniques are incorrectly applied.

Correct techniques are applied but there are many errors and very little interpretation of the results.

Correct techniques employed, few major errors but numerous minor errors. Limited interpretation of the results.

Correct techniques employed, no major errors but some minor errors. Full interpretation of the results.

All correct techniques employed, limitations of the techniques fully explained. Very few minor errors, detailed interpretation of results including limitations.

All correct techniques employed, limitations of the techniques fully explained. Virtually no errors, extensive narration of the techniques and interpretation of results including limitations.

Structure, Alignment and Research

Poor structure, not aligned with assignment brief. No research employed.

Structure does not meet requirements for the most part. Extremely limited research grounding.

Structure has major errors and some key research concepts are missing.

Coherent structure, with acknowledgement of key research concepts.

Good structure, relevant research employed where appropriate.

Structure and narration guide the reader through the work very effectively, current research is critically appraised to a high degree.

Assignment makes full use of current research to support arguments. Excellent structure and presentation.

Note:
For those assessments or partial assessments based on calculation, multiple choice etc. Marks will be gained on an accumulative basis. In these cases, marks allocated to each section will be made clear.

Students must retain an electronic copy of this assignment and it must be made available within 24 hours of them requesting it be submitted.

Assignment Brief:
In this assignment you are required to complete these parts:

Part 1
Total 40 marks

(a) Develop a questionnaire (15 marks)

(b) Discussion of distribution method and associated documents [250 words] (10 marks)

Part 2
Total 60 marks

Data analysis, findings and managerial implications [1750 words] (60 marks)

The word count should be declared on the front page of the assignment.

Scenario

Tynecastle Business School (TBS) is part of the University of Tynecastle, located in the North East of England. It has a reputation regionally, nationally and internationally. The Business School uses its reputation to build and maintain relationships with organizations.. This is key to its philosophy which could be described as “leading business, business led”. TBS runs a suite of 4-year Business and Management programmes; the modules for years 1 and 2 are shown below. Year 3 involves a 12-month placement (work experience) with an external organisation and is managed by a full-time Placements Unit within TBS, with year 4 being taught back within the University.

Year One

Financial and Management Accounting

Business Operations

Introduction to Marketing

Introduction to Management

Business Environment and Organisations

Quantitative Methods for Business

Year Two

Performance Management

Information Management

Preparation for Placements and Graduate Employment

Markets and Customers

International Finance

International and Global Business

Part 1 (a) – Develop a questionnaire (15 marks)

The Placements Unit is interested in determining organisational perception of the degree programmes. Broadly, the Placement Unit would like to know what organisations think of the following:

· the degree content,

· the work skills developed by the students,

· the appropriateness and preparedness of these students for the working/professional environment,

· the levels of support provided by the Placements Unit and TBS.

The questionnaire should be presented in an appendix to the assignment.

Part 1 (b) – Discussion of distribution method and associated documents
(10 marks)

You should also design a full and appropriate coding plan for your questionnaire and include any other supporting documentation.

The coding plan and any supporting documentation should be presented in an appendix to the assignment.

Part 1 (c) – Critical evaluation of your questionnaire 1000 words (15 marks)

Important information: The questionnaire and associated documentation
do not count
towards the word limit because they are included in the appendices. You are
not
going to use your questionnaire to collect data and the questionnaire you design should not aim to collect the data as presented in Part 2 below, which involves a different perspective of the placement experience (i.e. that of the students, not the organizations). You will be provided with a set of data in Part 2. Although the general scenario is the same for Parts 1 and 2 of this assignment, there is
not
a direct link between your questionnaire and the data in Part 2.

Part 2 – Data analysis, findings and managerial implications [1750 words] (60 marks)
For this part of the assignment, you have been provided with a data set consisting of 375 responses from a survey carried out by the Placements Unit, Tynecastle Business School. The placements run for 12 months, commencing in June of each year. The survey was undertaken in May 2012, by post supported by a stamped-addressed envelope and two emails, the first to introduce the survey ahead of its arrival by post, the second as a reminder to students to participate. The students were given three weeks to complete the questionnaire.

The data can be found in the Excel file BM0421_SEM2_2012_13.xls and the SPSS file BM0421_SEM2_2012_13.sav, both of which are available from the module’s site on the e-learning portal (Blackboard).

Data provided:

The data consists of 375 responses as follows:

· The respondent ID number, recorded as 1 to 375 inclusive.

· Gender of student (1= female, 2 = male).

· Age of student on commencement of the placement (students aged 23 and over would have been aged 21 and over on commencement of their degree programme and are defined as mature).

· Placement location (1 = City of Tynecastle, 2 = Northern Region, 3 = Greater London, 4 = Rest of England).

· Placement sector (1 = manufacturing, 2 = retail/distribution/services, 3 = banking/finance/related industries).

· Placement salary (£k)

· The number of visits made by the placement tutor (2 is the expected number).

· The number of additional telephone calls made to the student whilst on placement (beyond arranging the visits).

· The number of years experience the placement organisation has in providing opportunities for students from Tynecastle Business School.

· The number of other students on placement at the site where the student is located (these may not necessarily be from the Business School or University).

· The satisfaction rating awarded by the student to the placement (1 = very poor to 10 = excellent). Note: You should treat satisfaction as a quantitative variable.

Analysis required:

In this section of the assignment, marks will be awarded for a justification of the displays, measures and tests undertaken, alongside their full interpretation.

You are required to carry out the following analysis:

Overview of the respondents

Provide a summary of the respondents’ profile in terms of gender, age maturity, sector and location of placement experience.

To what extent does sector and geographic location associate with gender?

(12 marks)

Salaries achieved by the students

Describe the salary data using an appropriate graphical display and relevant summary statistics.

Do the salaries paid to placement students from Tynecastle Business School differ by age maturity? Do salaries differ by sector?

Are there any particular limitations that are evident from this assessment of placement salaries?

(20 marks)

Satisfaction with placement experience

Describe the satisfaction data using an appropriate graphical display and relevant summary statistics.

Does the level of satisfaction experienced by the student differ by personal characteristics? What, if any, are the implication of these results for the students and the Placements Unit?

Are there any particular limitations that are evident from this assessment of placement satisfaction?

(28 marks)

Total Part Two (60 marks)

End of assignment

Z:\NBS Admin\Document Templates\Documents\Learning and Teaching\Assessments\Assignment brief templates 2012-13\Assessment brief PG 2012-13
Page 9 of 9

Sample/BRA_asignment_final x

BM0421

Assignment

Instructor: Andrew Robson

Word count: 3295

(
BUSINESS RESEARCH ANALYSIS
MSc
BUSINESS WITH MANAGEMENT
)

CONTENTS

PART A

Introduction

Questionnaire Evaluation

2.1.Design

2.2. Question types

2.3.Wording and instruction

2.4.Data collection method

PART B

Respondent profile

Summary

Male representativeness

Threatened Description

Is there association between

Bus users

Description No_Uses

Mean comparison

A means difference ?

Price

a) Donation Description

b)Mean donation confidence intervals

c) Correlation

d) Variable selection to explain Donation

e) Regression model

Part C

Findings

Recommendations

Statistical analysis

4. Questionnaire Limitations

Reference list

Appendixes

Appendix 1.Cover letter and questionnaire

Appendix 2.Coding plan

PART A

1. Introduction

This document discusses Tyne and Wear University strategy for ensuring students safety.TWU introduced a Safety bus to transport first year undergraduate students from campus and university accommodation elsewhere in the city.
To assess its success, the safety officer will send a questionnaire by post to students and the assessment will be done on the data collected.The university wishes to target the view of 1,000 students in four weeks period and the collected data will be analyzed by TWU marketing team during 6 weeks.

The first part critically evaluates the questionnaire.Further it discusses the appropriate sampling technique to target these 1,000 students followed by appropriate data collection method.The second part presents the collected data analysis.

2. Questionnaire Evaluation

Brown(2001) believed that questionnaire is a cost effective and efficient way of data collection.Every respondent reads same wording so data collected is expected to be reliable and standardized. Good designed questionnaires can produce true and valid information. Sekaran(2003) shares the same view and adds that a questionnaire is a methodical set of written questions edited by researchers who recognize essential details to ask about and can assess the collected data.Questionnaire structure is equally important for respondents as clearly and concise written questionnaires motivate respondents to spend time filling it in and it gives them a clear idea of what is the research purpose (Carter & Thomas,1997)

2.1.Design

Questionnaire designing is important in a pilot survey as it acts as a base for its efficiency. This questionnaire covers various aspects of students’ satisfaction such as price and feeling of safety at night.Besides it identifies the relative importance of various factors in their perception of satisfaction.The questionnaire is designed to appear as short as possible to encourage participants to complete it.(Gillham,2000)
The questionnaire asks students about three areas:
1) Personal details
2) Satisfaction level and their overall experience
3) Student feeling of safety at night, their experience of crime and their recommendation to new students

In personal details section, students must select their gender, age group and nationality.Their feeling of safety at night might differ depending precedent criteria. Further under the satisfaction level section, students must rate different factors such as safety bus timekeeping. It will capture students’ feelings about TWU service and help them react accordingly. Additionally, students must rate their general feeling of safety and describe their experience of crime in the city. Finally, students must describe things they do to ensure their security and if they will recommend Newcastle to other students.

Non-positive questions are avoided and no warnings are given before any question as both might affect respondent’s behavior.(Smith et al, 2008) Questions are arranged in a flow so that respondents understand the purpose of the questionnaire.

2.2. Question types

A range of questions can be used such as open ended, close ended, multiple choice and dichotomous questions(Baker, 2003;Hussey and Hussey,2000) The questionnaire is made of all these types but uses multiple choice a lot because it helps to save respondents ‘time and diminishes misunderstanding(Kothari,2010) Besides, as respondents give a definite value as their response, it becomes easier for the researcher to code.(Lee and Lings, 2008)
The questionnaire includes multiple grid questions in which similar questions and corresponding answers are arranged in a grid format.Besides saving space it makes the answering easy as respondents are able to answer based on a range of positive and negative.(De Vaus,2002) Likert scales question also facilitate respondents answering as they can select options which closely match their opinion, as the options given are more descriptive. This is also easy to code and analyze.(Lee and Lings, 2008)
In case of open ended question, respondents can provide their opinion which can be beneficial for TWU but coding is difficult and time consuming. Besides, respondents sometimes misinterpret the question or answer the question they want rather than the one asked(Collis and Hussey, 2009) This questionnaire must include open ended questions to gather students’ opinion about the service and modify it accordingly.
As most of questions have possibilities of getting a single answer such as gender, living area, it is comparatively easy for coding.
Lee and Lings(2008)and Sekaran and Bougie (2010) recommended to use a variety of questions to maintain participants interests since it would increase the data effectiveness of the information collected.Therefore the high number of similar questions in this questionnaire is a limitation.

2.3.Wording and instruction

Words used in a questionnaire influence respondents’ interest so all the questions are written in simple format and the wording is easy to understand.Questions are clear and straightforward which make respondents comfortable.This gives them ease to answer in a precise manner (Neelankavil,2007) Even the questionnaire has clear instructions in each section therefore respondents can progress easily.(Bougie and Sekaran, 2010)

2.4.Data collection method

Mailing paper,face to face or telephone interviews and email are the four data collection methods available.(Groves et al, 2011)This questionnaire is distributed by post. It is cheaper, increases anonymity, allows reaching wider geographical areas and eliminates any interviewer bias.However response rates are low, there is no possibility of clarification, late return is likely to happen and response conditions are not controlled.(Robson et al,2008; Anderson, 2009)
Online questionnaire seems more appropriate since it allows a quick and inexpensive primary data collection and it is useful in getting high response rate.Data collected can be linked to electronic database which can facilitate its analysis.However since respondents have little support from the research team the response rate volume can be low.(Robson et al, 2008) Mailing should be avoided during holiday when many respondents will not be at home. Since internet is available mostly everywhere, using electronic method might increase respond rate. However if one still wants to use mailing method a systematic follow up procedure is essential to reduce holiday impact on postal surveys.(DeVaus,2002)
Covering letters and follows up increase response rate and early return.TWU should contact students after sending questionnaires.(Anderson,2009)Covering letters make clear the research aim, the organization purpose and guarantee respondent anonymity.TWU offers an addressed envelope with a stamp and the raffle as incentives to increase response rate.Before sending questionnaires it is recommended to conduct a pilot test to check effectiveness and identify possible weaknesses.(Robson et al,2008)

PART B

3. Respondent profile
a) Summary

The majority of respondents are female (54.85%) and 45.15% are male.

Respondents are mostly Home students with 79.34%

Respondents are mostly from Nx2 with 41.07% and Nx4 with 25.51%

b) Male representativeness

· One categorical variable from a single population
· Simple random sampling.N>>n with N population size and n sample size
· 5% significance level
Chi square tests whether male observed proportion in sample differs significantly from hypothesized proportion.
Ho: No difference exists between proportions observed and hypothesized
H1: A difference exists between proportions observed and hypothesized

Table 0: Test Statistics

Gender

Chi-Square

3.684a

Asymp. Sig.

.055

(
a. 0 cells (.0%) have expected frequencies less than 5. The minimum expected cell frequency is 196.0.
)

Sig 0.055 is greater than 0.05.
H0 accepted at 5 % significance level.

Males proportion who responded is representative of the total population proportion.We can carry out the analysis at 5% significance level.

c) Threatened Description

Threatened,qualitative discrete variable,bar chart used

Graph 1:
Graph 1 shows that majority of students feel threatened Occasionally or Often

Table 1
: distribution of the variable threatened

Threatened

Frequency

Percent

Valid Percent

Cumulative Percent

Valid

Never

14.0

Occasionally

154

39.3

53.3

Often

132

33.7

87.0

Always

13.0

100.0

Total

392

100.0

It seems that 86 % of students feel threatened (graph1/table1)
· Occasionally 39.3%

· Often 33.7%
· Always 13%

Graph2

Table 2 : Gender * Threatened Crosstabulation

Threatened

Total

Never

Occasionally

Often

Always

Gender

Male

Count

177

Expected Count

24.8

69.5

59.6

23.0

177.0

% within Gender

17.5%

48.0%

27.7%

6.8%

100.0%

Residual

6.2

15.5

-10.6

-11.0

Female

Count

215

Expected Count

30.2

84.5

72.4

28.0

215.0

% within Gender

11.2%

32.1%

38.6%

18.1%

100.0%

Residual

-6.2

-15.5

10.6

11.0

Total

Count

154

132

392

Expected Count

55.0

154.0

132.0

51.0

392.0

% within Gender

14.0%

39.3%

33.7%

13.0%

100.0%

Female seems to feel more threatened than male (graph2/table2). Feeling of insecurity is:
· Always: 18.1% female against 6.8% male
· Often: 38.6% female against 27.7% male
· Occasionally: 32.1% female against 48% male
Chi-squared test will show if the percentages are significantly different.

(
Graph 3
)

Table 3 : Origin * Threatened Crosstabulation

Threatened

Total

Never

Occasionally

Often

Always

Origin

Count

121

107

311

Expected Count

43.6

122.2

104.7

40.5

311.0

% within Origin

14.5%

38.9%

34.4%

12.2%

100.0%

Residual

1.4

-1.2

2.3

-2.5

Count

Expected Count

4.1

11.4

9.8

3.8

29.0

% within Origin

13.8%

34.5%

44.8%

6.9%

100.0%

Residual

-.1

-1.4

3.2

-1.8

International

Count

Expected Count

7.3

20.4

17.5

6.8

52.0

% within Origin

11.5%

44.2%

23.1%

21.2%

100.0%

Residual

-1.3

2.6

-5.5

4.2

Total

Count

154

132

392

Expected Count

55.0

154.0

132.0

51.0

392.0

% within Origin

14.0%

39.3%

33.7%

13.0%

100.0%

From graph 3/table 3 it seems that:
· UK, EU and International students are mostly Occasionally and Often unsafe
Chi-squared test will show if percentages are significantly different.

(
Graph 4
)
Table 4 : Postcode * Threatened Crosstabulation

Threatened

Total

Never

Occasionally

Often

Always

Postcode

NX1

Count

Expected Count

6.2

17.3

14.8

5.7

44.0

% within Postcode

18.2%

47.7%

29.5%

4.5%

100.0%

Residual

1.8

3.7

-1.8

-3.7

NX2

Count

161

Expected Count

22.6

63.3

54.2

20.9

161.0

% within Postcode

19.3%

42.2%

29.8%

8.7%

100.0%

Residual

8.4

4.8

-6.2

-6.9

NX3

Count

Expected Count

6.5

18.1

15.5

6.0

46.0

% within Postcode

8.7%

30.4%

43.5%

17.4%

100.0%

Residual

-2.5

-4.1

4.5

2.0

NX4

Count

100

Expected Count

14.0

39.3

33.7

13.0

100.0

% within Postcode

3.0%

42.0%

33.0%

22.0%

100.0%

Residual

-11.0

2.7

-.7

9.0

Other

Count

Expected Count

5.8

16.1

13.8

5.3

41.0

% within Postcode

22.0%

43.9%

12.2%

100.0%

Residual

3.2

-7.1

4.2

-.3

Total

Count

154

132

392

Expected Count

55.0

154.0

132.0

51.0

392.0

% within Postcode

14.0%

39.3%

33.7%

13.0%

100.0%

From graph 4/table 4 it seems that the feeling of insecurity is:
· Often: 43.5% for NX3 and 43.9 for Other.
· Occasionally:47.7% for NX1, 42.2% for NX2 and 42% for NX4.
Chi-squared test will show if percentages are significantly different.

d) Is there association between

Threatened and Gender,Threatened and Origin,Threatened and Postcode. Given we deal with 2 categorical variable,the extend of the association is assessed using Chi-square for statistical independence(Levine et al, 2005)

Threatened and Gender

Work at 5% significance level.

H0: No association exists between Threatened and Gender

H1: An association does exist between Threatened and Gender

Table 5: Chi-Square Tests

Value

Asymp. Sig. (2-sided)

Pearson Chi-Square

22.129a

.000

Likelihood Ratio

22.777

.000

Linear-by-Linear Association

19.630

.000

N of Valid Cases

392

a. 0 cells (.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 23.03.

Sig value (2-tailed) 0.000 < 0.05 and 0<0.01 Ho rejected at 5% and 1% significance level. A clear significant association exists between Threatened and Gender. Compared to male, female (table 2) feel significantly: · more threatened “Always” or “Often” · less threatened “Occasionally” Threatened and Origin Work at 5% significance level. H0: No association exists between Threatened and Origin. H1: An association exists between Threatened and Origin. Table 6: Chi-Square Tests Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-sided) Exact Sig. (2-sided) Exact Sig. (1-sided) Point Probability Pearson Chi-Square 7.268a 6 .297 .297 Likelihood Ratio 7.143 6 .308 .329 Fisher's Exact Test 6.869 .325 Linear-by-Linear Association .450b 1 .502 .517 .264 .026 N of Valid Cases 392 a. 2 cells (16.7%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 3.77. b. The standardized statistic is .671. Fisher exact test is used since 2 cells have expected count less than 5. Exact sig 0.325 >0.05
Ho is accepted at 5% significance level.No significant association exists between Threatened and Origin.

Threatened and Postcode

Work at 5% significance level.

H0: No association exists between Threatened and Postcode

H1: An association exists between Threatened and Postcode

Table 7 : Chi-Square Tests

Value

Asymp. Sig. (2-sided)

Pearson Chi-Square

35.680a

.000

Likelihood Ratio

39.727

.000

Linear-by-Linear Association

13.586

.000

N of Valid Cases

392

a. 0 cells (.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 5.33.
The sig value 2 tailes 0.000.

Sig (2sided) =0 < 0.05 and 0<0.01 Ho rejected at 5% and 1% significance level. A clear significant association exists between Threatened and Postcode. Compared to students coming from NX1, NX2 and NX4, students from NX3 and Other feel significantly (table 4): · More “Often” unsafe · Less “Occasionally” unsafe 4. Bus users a) Description No_Uses Graph 5: Histogram of No_ uses It seems that : · possible values of number uses is between 0 and 10. · data are centered around the value 3 · distribution is symmetric and normal · values 8, 9 and 10 have lower frequencies Graph 6: Boxplot Q3=4 number of uses. Q1=2 number of uses. Therefore 50% of respondents used 2, 3 or 4 times the bus. Inter-quartile range= 2 Median=3. Central position of the median indicates the central tendency.Symmetric distribution. Whiskers go from minimum value 0 to maximum value 7 5 outliers coded o, might be data capture mistake. Table 8: Descriptives of No_Uses Statistic Std. Error No_Uses Mean 2.96 .093 95% Confidence Interval for Mean Lower Bound 2.77 Upper Bound 3.14 5% Trimmed Mean 2.89 Median 3.00 Variance 3.402 Std. Deviation 1.845 Minimum 0 Maximum 10 Range 10 Interquartile Range 2 Skewness .538 .123 Kurtosis .379 .246 Skewness coefficient (-1<0.538<1) indicates reasonable level of symmetry. Since median, mean and mode(=3,from Excel) have similar values, it confirms a suitable measure of central tendency. b) Mean comparison n > 30 therefore normal distribution assumed

One Sample t-test
used to test the mean difference in number of uses between sample and known value of population mean (2)
Work at 5% significance level

Ho: µ=2

H1: µ # 2

Two-sided alternative test because lower and upper possibilities considered

Table 9: One-Sample Statistics

Mean

Std. Deviation

Std. Error Mean

No_Uses

392

2.96

1.845

.093

392 answers are valid for variable No-Uses.
On average 2.96 uses/respondent/year

Table 10: One-Sample Test

Test Value = 2

Sig. (2-tailed)

Mean Difference

95% Confidence Interval of the Difference

Lower

Upper

No_Uses

10.269

391

.000

.957

.77

1.14

Sig (2-tailed)=0.000 ; 0.000<0.05 and 0.000<0.01 Ho rejected at 5% and 1% significance level. It is highly improbable that respondents come from a population which uses the bus 2 times per year per student. The mean of uses is significantly more than 2. c) A means difference ? No_Uses vs gender n1 (female) >30; n2(male) >30
No_Uses quantitative variable normally distributed. Central limit theorem applied.

Independent sample Test
used

to test the mean (µ1 and µ2) difference in number of uses between male and female.
Work at 5% significance level.
H0: µ1 = µ2
H1: µ1 ≠ µ2

Table 11: Group Statistics

Gender

Mean

Std. Deviation

Std. Error Mean

No_Uses

Male

177

3.02

1.942

.146

Female

215

2.90

1.763

.120

Table 12: Independent Samples Test

Levene’s Test for Equality of Variances

t-test for Equality of Means

Sig.

Sig. (2-tailed)

Mean Difference

Std. Error Difference

95% Confidence Interval of the Difference

Lower

Upper

No_Uses

Equal variances assumed

.759

.384

.642

390

.521

.120

.187

-.248

.489

Equal variances not assumed

.636

359.626

.525

.120

.189

-.252

.492

Levine Test sig 0.384>0.05. Therefore equality of variances assumed.

Sig (2- tailed) 0.521 > 0.05.
Ho accepted at 5% significance level.
Insufficient evidence to suggest that a difference exists in means number of uses between male and female.On average, male and female use at the same frequency the bus.

No Uses vs Origin

n1 (UK)> 30 ; n3 (international) >30
Since n2 (EU) < 30, Kruskal-Wallis Test should be used to test if populations means are equal. Work at 5% significance level. Ho: µ1 = µ2 = µ3 H1: At least one of µ1, µ2 and µ3 is different from the others Table 13:Ranks Origin N Mean Rank No_Uses UK 311 197.39 EU 29 209.07 International 52 184.14 Total 392 Table 14:Test Statisticsa,b No_Uses Chi-Square 1.024 df 2 Asymp. Sig. .599 a. Kruskal Wallis Test b. Grouping Variable: Origin Sig value 0.599 > 0.05.
H0 accepted at 5% significance level.
No difference in mean number of uses according to origin.On average EU, UK or International students use the bus at same frequency.

No Uses vs Postcode

One-way Anova used to test the difference in means number of uses among five postcodes.
Work at 5% significance level.

Ho: µ1 = µ2 = µ3= µ4= µ5

H1: At least one of µ1, µ2, µ3, µ4 and µ5 is different from the others

Table 15: Descriptives

No_Uses

Mean

Std. Deviation

Std. Error

95% Confidence Interval for Mean

Minimum

Maximum

Lower Bound

Upper Bound

NX1

3.57

1.634

.246

3.07

4.06

NX2

161

3.20

1.692

.133

2.94

3.47

NX3

3.04

1.861

.274

2.49

3.60

NX4

100

2.97

1.883

.188

2.60

3.34

Other

1.20

1.553

.242

.71

1.69

Total

392

2.96

1.845

.093

2.77

3.14

(
Test of homogeneity of variances show that Sig 0.807 > 0.05. Therefore
populations
variances are equal.

Tukey
post hoc test is appropriate.
)

Table 16: Test of Homogeneity of Variances

No_Uses

Levene Statistic

df1

df2

Sig.

.402

387

.807

Table 17: ANOVA

No_Uses

Sum of Squares

Mean Square

Sig.

Between Groups

153.969

38.492

12.664

.000

Within Groups

1176.294

387

3.040

Total

1330.263

391

From Anova, sig 0.000< 0.05 and 0<0.01.Therefore Ho rejected at the 5% and 1% significant level . One or more of the means is not equal to the others under consideration. Post hoc test results provided below are relevant. Post hoc tests Table 18: Multiple Comparisons No_Uses Tukey HSD (I) Postcode (J) Postcode Mean Difference (I-J) Std. Error Sig. 95% Confidence Interval Lower Bound Upper Bound NX1 NX2 .363 .297 .737 -.45 1.18 NX3 .525 .368 .610 -.48 1.53 NX4 .598 .315 .321 -.27 1.46 Other 2.373* .378 .000 1.34 3.41 NX2 NX1 -.363 .297 .737 -1.18 .45 NX3 .161 .291 .981 -.64 .96 NX4 .235 .222 .828 -.37 .84 Other 2.010* .305 .000 1.17 2.85 NX3 NX1 -.525 .368 .610 -1.53 .48 NX2 -.161 .291 .981 -.96 .64 NX4 .073 .311 .999 -.78 .92 Other 1.848* .374 .000 .82 2.87 NX4 NX1 -.598 .315 .321 -1.46 .27 NX2 -.235 .222 .828 -.84 .37 NX3 -.073 .311 .999 -.92 .78 Other 1.775* .323 .000 .89 2.66 Other NX1 -2.373* .378 .000 -3.41 -1.34 NX2 -2.010* .305 .000 -2.85 -1.17 NX3 -1.848* .374 .000 -2.87 -.82 NX4 -1.775* .323 .000 -2.66 -.89 *. The mean difference is significant at the 0.05 level. Table 19: No_Uses Tukey HSDa,b Postcode N Subset for alpha = 0.05 1 2 Other 41 1.20 NX4 100 2.97 NX3 46 3.04 NX2 161 3.20 NX1 44 3.57 Sig. 1.000 .341 Means for groups in homogeneous subsets are displayed. a. Uses Harmonic Mean Sample Size = 58.777. b. The group sizes are unequal. The harmonic mean of the group sizes is used. Type I error levels are not guaranteed. The means difference between groups (table 18): · “Other “and those of others groups (NX1 till NX4) is significant. · NX1 till NX4 is not significant. It suggests that on average students from NX1 till NX4 use the bus at the same frequency. On average compared to NX1 till NX4, students coming from Other use the bus less frequently. 5. Price a) Donation Description Graph 7: Donation Table 20: Descriptives Statistic Std. Error Donation Mean 1.040 .0316 99% Confidence Interval for Mean Lower Bound .958 Upper Bound 1.122 5% Trimmed Mean .990 Median .900 Variance .391 Std. Deviation .6251 Minimum .0 Maximum 4.0 Range 4.0 Interquartile Range .8 Skewness 1.413 .123 Kurtosis 3.150 .246 Table 21: Descriptives Statistic Std. Error Donation Mean 1.040 .0316 95% Confidence Interval for Mean Lower Bound .978 Upper Bound 1.102 5% Trimmed Mean .990 Median .900 Variance .391 Std. Deviation .6251 Minimum .0 Maximum 4.0 Range 4.0 Interquartile Range .8 Skewness 1.413 .123 Kurtosis 3.150 .246 Among 392 respondents: 0.4149 (mean - standard deviation) < majority of donations < 1.6651 (mean + standard deviation) Skewness coefficient (1.413>1) indicates a right skewed distribution.

b)Mean donation confidence intervals

Table 20: 99% confidence interval for the mean (μ) is: 0.958<μ<1.122.We can be 99% confident that the population mean amount that student will be willing to pay is between 0.958 and 1.122 pounds.New price (sample mean) is 1.040 pounds which is comprised in the interval 0.958<1.040<1.122.New pricing scheme would be advisable. Table 21: 95% confidence interval for the mean (μ) is: 0.978<μ<1.102.We can be 95% confident that the population mean amount that student will be willing to pay is between 0.978 and 1.102 pounds.New price (mean) is 1.040 pounds (Table 21) which is comprised in the interval 0.978<1.040<1.102.New pricing scheme would be advisable. c) Correlation Donation, Distance_Home, Distance_Public,Rent are continuous quantitative variables. Pearson correlation used to display relationship between two variables.It identifies data strength and spread. Donation vs Distance Home Scatter diagram shows a linear pattern appearing in the points.The dots would be agglomerated very close to the straight line.These points follow an upward direction. We can suppose that a strong, positive linear association exists between Donation and Distance_Home.We can determine whether it is statistically significant. Work at 1% significance level Ho: ρ = 0 (No linear association between Donation and Distance_Home) H1 ρ ≠ 0 (A correlation exists between Donation and Distance_Home) Table 22: Correlations Donation Distance_Home Donation Pearson Correlation 1 .950** Sig. (2-tailed) .000 N 392 392 Distance_Home Pearson Correlation .950** 1 Sig. (2-tailed) .000 N 392 392 **. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). Sig (2- tailed) = 0.000, 0 <0.01 Ho rejected at 1% significance level. A linear correlation exists between Donation and Distance_Home. Correlation coefficient r=0.985 indicates that association between Donation and Distance_Home is strong, positive and statistically significant. The more the distance from TWU to their door (Distance_Home) increases the more their contribution(Donation) increases. Donation vs Distance Public Scatter diagram shows a linear pattern appearing in the points.The dots would be dispersed around the straight line.The points follow an upward direction. We can suppose that a positive linear association exists between Donation and Distance_Public.We can determine whether it is statistically significant. Work at 1% significance level. Ho ρ = 0 (No linear association between Donation and Distance_Public) H1 ρ ≠ 0 (A correlation exists between Donation and Distance_Public) Table 23: Correlations Donation Distance_Public Donation Pearson Correlation 1 .634** Sig. (2-tailed) .000 N 392 392 Distance_Public Pearson Correlation .634** 1 Sig. (2-tailed) .000 N 392 392 **. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). Sig (2- tailed) = 0.000 ; 0<0.01 Ho rejected at 1% significance level. A linear correlation exists between Donation and Distance_Public. Correlation coefficient r=0.634 indicates that association between Donation and Distance_Public is positive and statistically significant. The more the distance from TWU Union to their door (Distance_Public) increases the more their contribution (Donation) increases. Donation vs Rent Scatter diagram doesn’t show a linear pattern appearing in the points. The diagram looks like a random scatter diagram. Work at 5% significance level. Ho ρ = 0 (No linear association between Donation and Rent) H1 ρ ≠ 0 (A correlation exists between Donation and Rent) Table 24: Correlations Donation Rent Donation Pearson Correlation 1 -.099* Sig. (2-tailed) .050 N 392 392 Rent Pearson Correlation -.099* 1 Sig. (2-tailed) .050 N 392 392 **. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). Sig (2-tailed) = 0.05 ; 0.05 >0.05
Ho accepted at 5% significance.

No linear association exists between Donation and Rent.

d) Variable selection to explain Donation

No linear association between Donation and Rent.Therefore variable Rent is rejected.

A linear association exists between Donation and Distance_Home and a linear association exists between Donation and Distance_Public.

However correlation coefficient Donation vs Distance_Home (r =0.985) is nearer to +1 than the correlation coefficient Donation vs Distance_Public (r=0.634).
Therefore Distance_Home is the single continuous quantitative variable which best explains how much students would be willing to pay for the Safety Bus.

e) Regression model

Simple linear regression equation: y = α + βx

Table 25: Model Summary

Model

R Square

Adjusted R Square

Std. Error of the Estimate

.950a

.903

.902

.1953

a. Predictors: (Constant), Distance_Home

R-square 0.903 or 90.3% suggests that 90.3% of the Donation (y) can be explained by variation of Distance_Home (x).

Table 26: Coefficientsa

Model

Unstandardized Coefficients

Standardized Coefficients

Sig.

Std. Error

Beta

(Constant)

.089

.019

4.798

.000

Distance_Home

.200

.003

.950

60.123

.000

a. Dependent Variable: Donation

Value ‘α’ (y-intercept) equal to 0.089 and ‘β’ (slope) equal to 0.200.Given ‘y’ (dependent variable) is Donation and ‘x’ (independent variable) is Distance_Home, the equation is: y= 0.089 + 0.2x
Donation = 0.089 + 0.2 * Distance_Home

New students Forecast

Table 27: Descriptive Statistics

Minimum

Maximum

Mean

Std. Deviation

Distance_Home

392

20.0

4.755

2.9710

Valid N (listwise)

392

Table 28 Profiles of the two new students

Distance_Home (km)

Distance_Public (km)

Rent (£)

Student 1

7.5

740

Student 2

3.5

According to regression model, amount we would expect these students to pay for a single use of the bus is:
1) Student 1, donation (y) with distance home (x=7.5).Since 0.8<7.5<20 (table 27), it is an interpolation: Y=0.089+0.2x Y=Donation=0.089 + 0.2*7.5 Y=Donation=1.589 2) Student 2, donation ( y) with distance home (x=25).Since 25>max 20 (table 27),it is an extrapolation:
Y= Donation = 0.089+0.2*25

Y=Donation =5.089

Student 1 living 7.5 km away could pay 1.589 pounds for a single use of the bus.
Student 2 living 25 km away could pay 5.089 pounds for a single use of the bus.
Forecasts confidence of prediction 90.3%(r square).We are more confident for interpolation(y=1.589).

Part C

The analysis has identified the students’ feeling of safety and their safety bus usage.
1. Findings

Respondent profile

· More than half of respondents are female(54.85%)
· 45.15% of respondents are male
· Most of respondents come from UK (79.34%)
· Most of respondents come from NX2 (41.07%)

Feeling about safety

· 86% of students feel unsafe (occasionally:39.3%; often: 33.7%; always: 13%)
· Feeling of insecurity is strongly linked to gender and affects mostly girls (56.7% of female ,against 34.5% of male,feel at least often unsafe
· Feeling of insecurity is linked to the residence area (NX3 and Other: Often more than 43 % each / NX1, NX2 and NX4:Occasionally: more than 42% each)
· Feeling of insecurity is not linked to student origin
.
Safety bus usage

· The number of uses is on average significantly more than 2 times per year per student Your estimations are widely reached
· On average, male and female use it at the same frequency
· On average the EU, UK or International students use it at the same frequency
· On average students who come from NX1 till NX4 use it at the same frequency
· On average, students coming from Other postcodes use it less frequently (approximately once a year) compared to those coming from NX1 till NX4

Students donation

· For one bus ride,the mean price would be comprised between 0.958 £ and 1.122 £
· For one bus ride, the amount students will be willing to pay is highly linked to the distance between their accommodation and TWU.The more this distance increases the more the price increases
· A tool is available to help you determine a price according to a given distance

2. Recommendations

· Increase security measures for girls:Priority to access the bus.More assistance and supervision during the journey, more security guards, Emergency number for quick intervention

· More prevention to enable girls to ensure their own safety (information)

· Review NX3 bus stops.Feeling of safety is low NX3, therefore need to increase level of security
· Review bus stops for Other.Students from Other feel threatened but they use bus only 1 time a year on average

Possible reasons: lack of bus stops, badly served zone, bus route issues, problem with overall service

· Fix a price according to the distance covered

3. Statistical analysis

Limitation

· Probability level 5 % or 1% of being wrong
· Population normality assumed.If distribution not normal and we don’t know it, results are incorrect
· Sample representativeness assumed as well

· Statistical inference: conclusions drawn from data subject to random variation therefore is it correct?(Robson et al,2011)

Strengths

· Data summarized in short format

· Quantification of confidence we have

4. Questionnaire Limitations

· Students may not agree to answer choices
· Inability to identify actual feedback due to answer choice Other

Reference list

Anderson, V. (2009), Research Methods in Human Resource Management, 2nd edn. London: CIPD.
Baker, M. J. (2003), Business and
management
research: how to complete your research project successfully, Westburn, Helensburgh,
Bougie,R. & Sekaran,U.(2010) Research methods-A skill building approach,5th ed, Chichester: John Wiley and Sons
Brown, J. D. (2001), Using
surveys
in language programs, Cambridge university press, Cambridge
Carter, Y. & Thomas, C.(1997), Research methods in primary care, Radcliffe Medical Press Ltd, Oxon
Collis,J. & Hussey,R.(2009) Business Research-A practical guide for undergraduate and postgraduate students,3rd ed, Hampshire, MacMillan, Palgrave.
De Vaus, D. (2002),
Surveys
in social research, 5th ed, Midland Typesetters, Maryborough.
Gillham, B. (2000), Developing a questionnaire, Continuum, London.
Groves, R. M., Fowler, F. J. & Couper, M. P. (2011),
Survey
methodology, 2nd ed, John Wiley and Sons, Hoboken.
Hussey, J and Hussey, R (2000), Business Research. A Practical Guide for Undergraduate and Postgraduate Students, 2nd Ed,Macmillan Business, Basingstoke
Kothari, C. R. (2010), Research methodology : Methods and techniques, 2nd ed, New age international publisher, New Delhi.
Lee,N. & Lings,I.(2008), Doing Business Research: A guide to theory and practice, Sage Publication, London
Levine, Stephan, Krehbiel, & Berenson. (2005) Statistics for Managers . 4th Edition. New Jersey: Pearson Education.
Neelankavil, J. P. (2007), International
business
research, M.E.Sharpe.Inc, New york.
Robson, A., Pemberton, J. and McGrane, A. (2008), Business Research Analysis. Glasgow: McGraw-Hill.
Robson, A., Pemberton, J. & Mcgrane, A.(2011), Business Research Analysis, 2nd ed, McGrawHill, New York.
Sekaran, U. (2003), Research methods for business: a skill-building approach, 4th ed, Wiley, New York.
Smith, M. E.-S., Thorpe, R., & Jackson, P. R. (2008) Management Research. 3rd Edition. Singapore: Sage Publication.

Appendixes

Appendix 1.Cover letter and questionnaire

A Few Minutes of Your Time Will Help Us Make The Safety bus a

Better Service for you!

Dear Student,

Your response to the enclosed survey is extremely important…

After the introduction of a safety bus to transport undergraduate students from campus to accommodations elsewhere in the city, Tyne and Wear University is conducting a Satisfaction Survey to assess the safety bus success. You were selected at random to receive this survey therefore it is important that you participate

We appreciate your time…

This survey will take approximately 10 minutes to complete. The survey will help us determining your level of satisfaction and make decisions in order to improve the service.

Please complete and return your survey within the next four weeks…

TWU Business School Marketing team will administer this survey and present the results.

Your responses will remain confidential.

Your participation is entirely voluntary. The data collected will only be used to assess the safety bus success and establish priorities for future developments. Only members of the Marketing team will access your answers. This data will be used in the strictest confidence and ID will be deleted so that no student can be individually identified.

You might be the winner of the raffle !

Each completed questionnaire will be entered into a raffle and the winner will be identified thanks to the student ID provided.
Please return your completed survey in the enclosed postage-paid envelope addressed to TWU Business School marketing. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Best Regards,
Business School Marketing Team Tyne and Wear University

(

Coding
)Student Satisfaction Survey: Safety bus.
Tyne and Wear University is collecting information about student’s experiences of the Safety Bus so we can make the services better for you. Please fill it out.
(Please tick the appropriate option to indicate your response like this)
(
1…
)
Student Id

General information

1. (
2
…
)What is your gender?

Male Female

2. (
3…
)What is your age group?

17-19
19-21
21 and above

3. (
4…
)Where do you come from?

UK EU INTERNATIONAL
4. Where do you live ?

(
5…
)

On campus Off campus with a roommate Off campus with family

Off campus alone Other
(
6
…
)
If other specify :

5. What is the distance in km between your term accommodation to TWU Union?

(
7
…
) (

km
)

6. (
8
…
) (

km
)What is the distance in km between your term accommodation to nearest public transport?

(
9
….
) (
£
)
7. How much is your rent per calendar month?

Your opinion about the safety bus

(
10
…
)8.What do you think about the safety bus services provided by the TWU university?

Poor
Below average
Average
Good
Excellent
9. (
11
…
)
(
12
…
)How many times did you use the safety bus since its introduction?

(
12
…
)
(
£
)

10. How much are you willing to pay if you could choose the safety bus price?

11. How would you rate your overall experience with us under the following headings? (Tick the appropriate box)

Nature

Not applicable

Very bad

Poor

Average

Good

Very good

Excellent

Safety bus Timekeeping

(
13
…
)

Driving style

(
14
…
)

Equipments(belts)

(
15
…
)

Assistance

(
16
…
)

Safety bus cleanliness/comfort

(
17
…
)

(
18
…
)

12. How would you describe the road safety used by the safety bus drivers?

Terrible
Very bad
Poor
Average
Good
Very good
(
19
…
)Excellent
If terrible, very bad or poor please give details of why:
13. (
20
…
)Have you been informed by Safety bus drivers that you could not use the service? If so why? (many answers possible)

Too drunk
Bus too full
Hold on food on you
(
21
…
)
Other please specify:
14. (
22
…
) If you couldn’t access the bus for the above reasons, what transport advice have you been given by the drivers? (many answers possible)

Walk home
Call taxi
No advice
(
23…
)Other please specify:
(
24
…
)
For further initiative ,student general feeling of safety at night

15. How would rate your general feeling of safety in the city? (5 the best mark)

1 2 3 4 5

16. (
25
…
)Have you ever experienced a situation in Newcastle in which you felt unsafe or scared?

Never
Maybe once
Only a few
A lot
(
26
…
)If you were ever scared of felt unsafe in Newcastle please briefly state the reason (thief, attack, mugging…)
17. (
27
…
)Do you think Newcastle is a dangerous city?

Yes No
(
28
…
)
18. Would you recommend the following student(s) to come to Newcastle:

A girl by herself
A boy by himself
A group of people

(
29
…
)If you do not recommend new students to come either guys, girls or groups of people please specify why:

(
30
…
)

19. What else would you recommend to new students to ensure their safety ?

(
Return your survey quickly. You might be the winner of the prize.
)

Appendix 2.Coding plan

Column

Question/Variable

Value(s)

Student_ID

Open Question, record text

Gender

Male = 1
Female = 2

Age group

17-19 = 1
19-21 = 2
21-above=3

Country

UK = 1
EU = 2
International = 3

Accomodation

On campus = 1
Off campus with a roommate = 2
Off campus with family = 3
Off campus alone = 4
Other = 5

Other_Accomodation

Open question

Distance accommodation_TWU Union

Open question

Distance accommodation_nearest public transport

Open question

Rent_monthly

Open question

Safety bus services

Poor = 1
Below average = 2
Average = 3
Good=4
Excellent=5

Number of uses

Open question

Donation

Open question

13 to 17

Not applicable = 1,Very bad =2 , Poor=3,Average = 4,Good = 5,Very good=6 , Excellent=7

Road safety

Terrible=1
Very bad = 2
Poor =3
Average=4
Good=5
Very good=6
Excellent=7
Why=8

Details_why

Open question

Access_refused

Too drunk=1
Bus too full =2
Hold on food on you=3
Other=4

Other_reason

Open question

Driver_advice

Walk home = 1
Call taxi =2
No advice =3
Other = 4

Other _advice

Open question

Safety_rating

1=1
2=2
3=3
4=4
5=5

Unsafe_experience

Never = 1
Maybe once =2
Only a few=3
A lot=4
Reason =5

Reason_description

Open question

Newcastle_dangerous

Yes=1
No=2

Student_selection

A girl by herself=1
A boy by himself = 2
A group of people =3

Student_selection_reason

Open question

Recommendation

Open question

Note: Missing values should be left blank in Excel data file.

(
43
) Business Research Analysis

Additional Files/BM0421_assignment_support-1.ppt

Business Research Analysis
BM0421
Week 12 – Assignment Guidance
*

Part A – Overview
The word limit of 1,250 words refer to the body of the assignment.

You are required to present a copy of the questionnaire and its coding plan in an appendix to your assignment.

The words in the body of the assignment relate to the critical justification of the questionnaire and coding plan presented, as well as other supporting documents.

Part A – Hints!
Write in “applied terms” by making reference to the case scenario, avoid writing in a theoretical style.

Credit will be given to additional referencing to research methods texts in support of the arguments you are making.

Think about issues relating to flow, structure, coding, question types, presentation, instructions in your justification.

Do NOT go out and collect data with your questionnaire!

Part B- Overview
The word limit of 1,750 words refers to the body of the assignment.

Any useful graphs and tables should be in the body of this report, not hidden away in the appendices!

The assignment requires you to show how you have selected the relevant graphs, tables, summary statistics and hypothesis tests, so simply submitting Excel or SPSS output with no discussion will result in few or no marks being awarded to this part of the assignment.

Part B is a practical application to a problem, so unlike your essay type subjects and Part A, does not require additional referencing.

Part B – Statistical Analysis
You are required to justify the selection of presentation techniques, summary statistics and hypothesis tests in terms of data types, sample sizes, assumptions that can or cannot be made etc.

For your hypothesis tests, present fully and if significance is found, do provide indication as to why!

Use graphs and tables sparingly within your presentation, sometimes you may be asked specifically, if so, present accordingly, otherwise use your judgement.

Part B – Statistical Analysis – Hints!
Look for key words such as difference (then consider numbers of samples, the relationship between them, sample size etc) or association (consider data types involved).

Present all findings, significant or otherwise!

Part B – Managerial Implications
These are not a repeat of your findings but applications of these findings in the decision making process, this is combined within the section containing the analysis and findings.

Apply your analysis and the case scenario to any findings and discussion, do not pluck ideas out of thin air or make very general observations about the problem.

All results can play a part in this process, significant or otherwise.

General Points I
This is an individual piece of work. Students are likely to discuss the analytical aspects of the assignment (OK – this is a positive part of the learning process), but any written results and recommendations should be undertaken without discussion and without electronically sharing of work.

General Points II
Do not submit any disks, CDs or memory sticks or large appendices of un-annotated Excel/SPSS output, any meaningful output will be used within the body of your answer.
Marking will involve writing on your assignments to provide feedback. Any student who puts individual sheets of paper in their own plastic wallet will have an assignment returned with little or no specific feedback!

Additional Files/BM0421_SEM2_2012_13-2.sav

Additional Files/Decision Flowchart-1.ppt

Decision Flowchart

Additional Files/searching for research method books BM0421-1.ppt

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Searching for books for your assignment
Click on the Library Catalogue

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Type in the title and the author (check your spelling)
Search
Type in the title
Tip: you don’t always need to type in the whole of
a long title
Try searching for the other books recommended on your reading list

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Be aware of publication dates and editions. Choose the correct one (where possible)

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Or identify your keywords from the task or question
Research methods
Business
Questionnaire

Quantitative methods
Statistics

First you need to write down all the words that describe what you are looking for

Your keywords could be:

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Start searching…

Research methods is too broad a search as a keyword. It found over 900 results
Try searching as a Title or add more keywords

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Try Again…

Research methods as a title over 140 results

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Finding the most recent books

Click on the “Sort by” drop down menu and select “date”
Then click on the
‘Z-A’ button. The newest books will be listed at the top

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

What next?
To get the best results you need to combine your search terms together to find information try:
Business research methods
Quantitative methods
Quantitative methods AND business
Business statistics

There are many more variations
Searching as keywords or titles will also have an effect on the results you find.

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Another example

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

1. Check the Location

2. Write down the Shelfmark e.g. 658.00727/BER
3. Check whether it is available to borrow
Final Steps…
4. If this was the book you wanted and all the copies were on loan you could click on “Request” and fill in your Library details. You will emailed when the book is ready for you to collect.

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Another example

Click on ‘connect to full text’ to access the book online. You may be promoted for a username and password

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Find the book on the shelves…
There is a guide when you first come into the Library that tells you which shelfmarks are on which floor
The majority of the Business books are on levels 3, 4 and 5
When you get to the floor look at the end the shelves to find out where the number is you are looking for.
The books are shelved in chronological order and then alphabetically by the letters e.g. 658/PAL comes after 658/PEL

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

Now try it out for yourself!
Access the Library Catalogue via the Library home page www.northumbria.ac.uk/library or from the designated PCs on each floor of the Library

Remember if you have any questions…

Uiversity Library
Library and Learning Services

We can provide alternative formats of this presentation on request. Please email ask4help@northumbria.ac.uk

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