PFA
Faculty of Business and Law Department of Accounting and Finance ACFI5070/Research Methods Academic Year: 2021-22 Credit value: 15 credits Module coordinator: Neil Lancastle Email:
[email protected] Room:HU3.78 Advice and Feedback hours: Thursday 10am –1pm during October 2021 term - in my office or online via MS Teams Assessment Overview All Students (Campus and Distance Learning) Type Individual Individual Length 2,000 words +/- 10% excluding references and appendices 1,000 words +/- 10% excluding references and appendices Weighting 60% 40% Deadline Thursday 18th November 2021 Thursday 6th January 2022 Return date Thursday 16th December 2021 Thursday 3rd February 2022 Note: all coursework must be submitted electronically via Turnitin by 1159 on the deadline, unless there are mitigating circumstances. Information on penalties and late submissions can be found at DMU (2020a, 2021a). The Faculty is committed to a 20-day turnaround time for the marking and return of coursework. The turnaround time does not include weekends, Bank Holidays or university closure days. Module Outline The module provides students with a broad understanding of business and academic research methods. It is designed to help students prepare for a dissertation project, Executive Company Project or Entrepreneurship Project (hereafter ‘the research project’). Students will be guided on the selection and planning of a suitable research project. The module will review research design, paradigms and ethics, including the broader ethical impact of research. The module covers a wide range of qualitative methods for data collection and analysis, including interviews, questionnaires, focus groups, observation and content analysis. Students will be guided on the financial datasets (Bloomberg and Refinitiv) available at DMU. The module covers a subset of quantitative techniques (using Excel, R and Matlab) including descriptive statistics, one and two-sample tests, ANOVA, chi-squared test, and regression. Lastly, the module provides an overview of mixed methods. Learning Outcomes Brackets refer to assessment task(s) and Global Graduate Competencies Subject-specific knowledge and skills 1. Selection and articulation of an appropriate research project (1; GGC 4) 1. Critical appraisal of the broad academic literature relevant to the research problem (1) 1. Development of an appropriate research methodology for the project (2; GGC 2) 1. Articulation of the skills and competences necessary to collect, analyse and draw sound conclusions from research data (2; GGC 6) Core academic and intellectual skills 1. Project management skills (1) 1. The ability to communicate a research project proposal (1) 1. Capacity for self-managed learning about research methods (2; GCC5) Expected methods of delivery The module will consist of a mixture of lectures, seminars and PC lab sessions. Lectures are recorded and available online. Seminars and PC Labs include a mix of individual and group exercises, including Case Studies and group discussion. Lectures : 12 hours Seminars: 24 hours Self-directed study: 90 hours Assessment: 20 hours Detailed Teaching Plan Week Topic Core Reading 1 Research project selection, planning, design and quality Bryman (Chapters 1, 2, 3) NL 2 Research paradigms and design, ethics, skills needed, writing up your research Bryman (Chapter 4, 5, 6, 16, 27) NL 3 Literature review Qualitative Research 1 Bryman (Chapters 7-12, 17-21) AB 4 Qualitative Research 2 Bryman (Chapters 17-21) AB 5 Qualitative vs Quantitative Case Studies, Focus Groups, and Interviews Bryman (Chapters 22, 23) NL 6 Quantitative Research 1: common pitfalls, descriptive statistics, important distributions Levine (Chapters 5-7) NL 7 Quantitative Research 2: confidence interval estimation, hypothesis testing Levine (Chapter 8, 9) NL 8 Quantitative Research 3: one and two-sample tests Levine (Chapter 10) NL 9 Quantitative Research 4: analysis of variance, chi-square and non-parametric tests Levine (Chapter 11, 12) NL 10 Quantitative Research 5: multiple and linear regressions Levine (Chapters 13, 14) NL 11 Mixed methods Visualisation and presentation of results Bryman (Chapter 24) Levine (Chapter 2) VA 15 Revision VA Module Texts Bryman, A., & Bell, E. (2007). Business research methods (2nd ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Levine, D. M., Stephan, D. F., & Szabat, K. A. (2014). Statistics for Managers (7th ed.). Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education Ltd. The R Network. (2017). An Introduction to R. Available from: https://cran.r-project.org/doc/manuals/r-release/R-intro.pdf Further reading will be provided weekly. Blackboard Blackboard is the University’s Virtual Learning Environment. Material relating to this module including the assessment requirements will be posted there, together with any announcements. Please ensure that you check this regularly and frequently. Assessment There is no examination, but there are two assignments as follows: Assignment 1: Writing a research proposal You should prepare a draft proposal for your intended research project. If you prefer, you can write a proposal for one of the Executive Company Project scenarios in Appendix 2. Your proposal should include the following: 1) An abstract 2) An introduction to the research problem 3) An overview of the relevant literature 4) A critical discussion of research design and quality criteria in general 5) Your main research question, and research design 6) Ethical considerations 7) A project plan, including an analysis of skills needed 8) A summary of your next steps Assignment 2: Applying research methods to your research topic Submit the remainder of your proposal - the proposed sample and methods your research project: 9) An abstract (re-stated, where necessary) 10) Your main research question and research design (re-stated, where necessary) 11) Proposed sample and method(s) The word counts exclude references and appendices. Marking Scheme For the generic marking criteria at postgraduate level (Distinction, Merit and Pass) see DMU (2021b). Assignment 1 · Style – Presentation (10%) The layout should be professional, with an executive summary/abstract (up to 5%) The report should be free from spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors All external quotations should be referenced appropriately All citations should be in accordance with the Harvard system of referencing and should be presented alphabetically (DMU, 2021c) Higher marks will be awarded for appropriate use of tables, graphs and Appendices · Discussion (80%) An introduction to the research problem (up to 10%) An overview of the relevant literature, both theoretical and empirical (up to 20%) A discussion of research design and quality criteria in general (up to 20%) Your main research question and your research design (up to 10%) Ethical considerations (up to 10%) A project plan, including an analysis of skills needed (up to 10%) · Summary (10%) Clear summary of the intended contribution and next steps Assignment 2 · Style – Presentation (10%) The layout should be professional, with an executive summary/abstract (up to 5%) The report should be free from spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors All external quotations should be referenced appropriately All citations should be in accordance with the Harvard system of referencing and should be presented alphabetically Higher marks will be awarded for appropriate use of tables, graphs and Appendices · Methods and Data Analysis (80%) A re-statement of the research problem, research design, and research question (up to 10%) A clearly defined sample (up to 10%) Clear outline of the proposed method(s), with relevant methodological references (up to 10%). Your outline may include i) a discussion of data collection ii) proposals for data analysis and iii) proposals for data visualisation (up to 50%) · Summary (10%) Clear summary of the sample and proposed method(s) The above points are not exhaustive but intended to give you an indication of the requirements for a good proposal. Failure to attempt will result in a mark of 0%. Plagiarism Do not copy text from original sources. The University does not tolerate plagiarism (DMU, 2021d). It is an academic offence, which can lead to a mark of zero (0%) and disciplinary action. Assignment Submission and Format There is no need to submit hard copies. Assignments must be typewritten. You are required to submit in electronic format for both assignments on the relevant Turnitin link using Blackboard be no later than 1159 on the hand-in date. This is used to screen for plagiarism. ALWAYS obtain a receipt for work handed in and keep a copy of the work in case of mishaps. Late Submission and Reassessment Requirements Please refer to the University Regulations for Postgraduate study (DMU, 2021e). References DMU (2020a). Assessment and Feedback Policy. Available from: http://www.dmu.ac.uk/documents/about-dmu-documents/quality-management-and-policy/academic-quality/learning-teaching-assessment/assessment-feedback-policy.pdf DMU (2021a). Deferral of Assessments. Available from: http://www.dmu.ac.uk/dmu-students/the-student-gateway/academic-support-office/deferral-of-assessments.aspx DMU (2021b). DMU generic postgraduate taught mark descriptors. Available from: http://www.dmu.ac.uk/documents/about-dmu-documents/quality-management-and-policy/academic-quality/learning-teaching-assessment/pgt-mark-descriptors.pdf DMU (2021c). Harvard System of Referencing. Available from: https://library.dmu.ac.uk/refguide DMU (2021d). Academic Offences. Available from: http://www.dmu.ac.uk/dmu-students/the-student-gateway/academic-support-office/academic-offences.aspx DMU (2021e). Taught Postgraduate Programmes – University Regulations. Available from: https://www.dmu.ac.uk/about-dmu/quality-management-and-policy/academic-quality/academic-regulations-assessment-boards/academic-regs-assessment-board-homepage.aspx Appendix 1 Dissertation Project Outlines Bankruptcy Prediction in the UK This proposal will outlay the details of a potential research project, investigating the effectiveness of Altman’s (1968) Z-score model for predicting bankruptcy. The main contribution of this paper is to provide additional evidence that the Z-score remains effective. The work of Almamy, Aston and Ngwa (2016) will be mimicked here, and their J-UK model will also be assessed. This longitudinal study will test these models on a sample of approximately 200 German firms. The impact of the 2008 financial crisis: A qualitative analysis of the disclosure included in the financial statements of UK banks for the period 2006 – 2010 This assignment discusses the proposed research methodology to investigate whether Directors of UK’s listed banks increased the volume of disclosure included within the bank’s Annual Reports following the Global Financial Crisis. This proposal considers the work undertaken by Holland Lindop and Zainudin (2016) which attempted to prove that Directors of organisations when faced with criticism will, in the face of the criticism, increase the volume of disclosure to legitimise their own position. Appendix 2 Executive Company Project Scenarios Finance and Marketing Organisation Name: XXXX (Private Finance) Organisation background: XXXX incorporated & founded in 2014 originally to offer bespoke property sourcing services working closely with private clients/HNW Investors looking for discounted deals/portfolios & developments. However, this company has now progressed into XXXX through strategic partnerships with high net worth Investors/Industry professionals & share acquisition focusing primarily on short-term private lending to include property joint ventures, trading & equity brokering. The Founding Director has over 15 years experience in property/finance & hence looking to disrupt & accelerate growth in this sector. Address: Leicester, LE1 Project Outline: (Include a summary of the issue/challenge that you face and the primary tasks that you need to be accomplished between June and August) There could be an opportunity for two students to work on this project collaboratively due to the nature of the business being segmented into 2 sectors being property Investment & private finance. The challenge for any new business or group division is to ensure effective & adequate back office support to ensure the necessary key business components at launch/ongoing are met to include but not limited to: -Creating