Understanding Business and Management Research Methods Coursework - 1

Understanding Business and Management Research Methods - Coursework Example When choosing a model, it is critical to know the theory being applied. Studies indicate that, behind every method, there is always a theory. This paper will discuss the three business and management research methods. The paper will start with the introduction, and then literature review, then analysis and evaluation of different methodological approaches, and finally highlight the main findings. In any research, it is always recommended to choose a single paradigm (qualitative, quantitative, or mixed) for a research work (Anderson, 2009). The selection is based on the pragmatic choices which are time, skills, and overall size of the project. The research methods are based on differences in the nature of reality, relationships to that being researched, role of values, use of language, and overall process of research (Bellamy, 2012). Research methodology is what constitutes a research activity. Bowerman (2013) distinguishes the three research designs as follows Quantitative research: This design is useful for exploring and understanding the meaning behind problems. Data is collected on the participants setting, and the researcher makes interpretation of the data collected (Bowerman, 2013). Quantitative research: The researcher tests theories by examining the relationship amongst variables that can be measured on an instrument to allow numbered data to be analysed using statistical procedures (Bowerman, 2013). Mixed methods: This design combines both qualitative and quantitative forms of research. It concerns the application of qualitative and quantitative methods in tandem, to allow the strength of the study to be greater than either a qualitative and quantitative approach (Bowerman, 2013). When undertaking a business research, a combination of different types and sources of data is required to derive strong findings. The types of data are qualitative and quantitative, and the types of sources are primary and secondary sources (Harwell,