Students

FOBE830 – Quantitative Research Approaches in Business and Economics 1

2019 – S2 Evening

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor
Sophia Su
sophia.su@mq.edu.au
Lecturer
Shahin Sharifi
shahin.sharifi@mq.edu.au
Lecturer
Nidthida Lin
nidthida.lin@mq.edu.au
Lecturer
Peter Petocz
peter.petocz@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
4
Prerequisites Prerequisites
(Admission to MActPrac or MBkgFin or MCom or MIntBus) and permission by special approval
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Co-badged with FOBE730
Unit description Unit description
This unit provides students with an introduction to quantitative research approaches within business and economics. It seeks to develop students' understanding of the contexts in which quantitative research can be undertaken and the ability to analyse, conduct, and evaluate quantitative forms of research.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • Review and interpret the basic rationale and application of relevant quantitative approaches and analyses in disciplinary contexts of management, accounting and marketing research.
  • Formulate appropriate hypotheses and propose the most appropriate research design for a research project.
  • Use specific statistical techniques to analyse data and explain present results.

General Assessment Information

Instructions in regard to how to submit each assessment will be provided on iLearn.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Research paper critique 15% No 02/09/2019
Research proposal 30% No 11/10/2019
Data analysis and reporting 55% No 12/11/2019

Research paper critique

Due: 02/09/2019
Weighting: 15%

This assignment requires students to provide a critical review of a research paper and draw an appropriate conclusion from their critical analysis. More information will be provided on iLearn in due course. 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Review and interpret the basic rationale and application of relevant quantitative approaches and analyses in disciplinary contexts of management, accounting and marketing research.

Research proposal

Due: 11/10/2019
Weighting: 30%

This assignment requires students to develop a research project on a topic of their own choice using the survey method. More information will be provided on iLearn in due course. 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Review and interpret the basic rationale and application of relevant quantitative approaches and analyses in disciplinary contexts of management, accounting and marketing research.
  • Formulate appropriate hypotheses and propose the most appropriate research design for a research project.

Data analysis and reporting

Due: 12/11/2019
Weighting: 55%

This assessment will provide students with raw data in a general business discipline to analyse and to write an analytical report in response to the given research questions. More information will be provided on iLearn in due course. 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Use specific statistical techniques to analyse data and explain present results.

Delivery and Resources

This unit is structured around attendance at one 3 hour seminar per week. The class timetable can be found on the university web site https://timetables.mq.edu.au/. All important information including weekly seminar lectures, assessment details, important announcements and staff contact details can be found at the unit iLearn website. 

The following are recommended books related to the unit. They are available in the library.

  • Singleton, JR., R. A. and Straits, B. C. (2017) Approaches to Social Research, 6th edition, Oxford University Press. 
  • Hayes, A. F. (2017). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach. Guilford Publications. 
  • Wooldridge, J. M. (2020) Introductory Econometrics A Modern Approach, 7th edition, Cengage Learning. 

Unit Schedule

Class week

Date

Topics

Content

1

SSu

30 July

Introduction to research

 

Research flow:

  1. Defining the problem
  2. Developing a research approach
  3. Formulating a research design
  4. Collecting data
  5. Preparing and analysing data
  6. Preparing and presenting the report results &findings

 

2

SSu

6 August

Elements of Research Design

Origins of research topics;

Units of analysis;

Types of variables;

Relationships;

Stating problems and hypotheses (include explanations of different types of hypotheses).;

Research purposes and research design (leading to the next week topic)

 

3

SSu

13 August

Formulating a research design I

Measurement conceptualisation

Measurement operationalisation

Levels of measurement

Validity and Reliability

 

4

SSu

20 August

Formulating a research design II

Why Sampling

Population definition

Sampling designs including probability sampling (i.e. Simple random sampling vs systematic sampling vs stratified sampling vs cluster sampling) and Nonprobability sampling (convenience sampling, purposive sampling, quota sampling).

Factors affecting choice of sampling testing

 

5

SSu

27 August

Data collection using survey

Survey design and administration

Introduction to Qualtrics

 

6

SSu

3 Sep

Introduction to SPSS

Enter survey data in SPSS

Demonstrate key tabs in SPSS

Descriptive statistics

 

7

PP

 

10 Sep

Analysing and reporting I

Data preparation

Testing for normality and distributional assumptions

Exploratory factor analysis

Reliability and validity testing

 

Mid session break 16th to 29th Sep

 

8

pp

1 Oct

Analysing and reporting IV

Hypotheses testing

Types of tests:

One-sample t-test

Independent-samples t-test

Paired-samples t-test

 

9

NL

8 Oct

Analysing and reporting II

ANOVA

Cross-tabulation

Correlation

Regression

 

10

NL

15 Oct

Analysing and reporting III

Multiple regression analysis

Logistic regression

 

11

SS

22 Oct

Analysing and reporting V

Multiple moderated regression analysis

Multiple mediated regression analysis

 

12

SS

29 Oct

Analysing and reporting VI

Multiple moderated and mediated analysis (moderated mediation analyses)

 

13

NL/SS

5 Nov

Consultation -Data Analysis

 

By appointment

Note:

SSu: Sophia Su

PP: Peter Petocz

SS: Shahin Sharifi

NL: Nidthida Lin

 

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Undergraduate students seeking more policy resources can visit the Student Policy Gateway (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/student-policy-gateway). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

If you would like to see all the policies relevant to Learning and Teaching visit Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central).

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/getting-started/student-conduct​

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to improve your marks and take control of your study.

Student Services and Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

Student Enquiries

For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au

If you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Graduate Capabilities

PG - Discipline Knowledge and Skills

Our postgraduates will be able to demonstrate a significantly enhanced depth and breadth of knowledge, scholarly understanding, and specific subject content knowledge in their chosen fields.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Review and interpret the basic rationale and application of relevant quantitative approaches and analyses in disciplinary contexts of management, accounting and marketing research.
  • Formulate appropriate hypotheses and propose the most appropriate research design for a research project.
  • Use specific statistical techniques to analyse data and explain present results.

Assessment tasks

  • Research paper critique
  • Research proposal
  • Data analysis and reporting

PG - Critical, Analytical and Integrative Thinking

Our postgraduates will be capable of utilising and reflecting on prior knowledge and experience, of applying higher level critical thinking skills, and of integrating and synthesising learning and knowledge from a range of sources and environments. A characteristic of this form of thinking is the generation of new, professionally oriented knowledge through personal or group-based critique of practice and theory.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Review and interpret the basic rationale and application of relevant quantitative approaches and analyses in disciplinary contexts of management, accounting and marketing research.
  • Formulate appropriate hypotheses and propose the most appropriate research design for a research project.
  • Use specific statistical techniques to analyse data and explain present results.

Assessment tasks

  • Research paper critique
  • Research proposal
  • Data analysis and reporting

PG - Research and Problem Solving Capability

Our postgraduates will be capable of systematic enquiry; able to use research skills to create new knowledge that can be applied to real world issues, or contribute to a field of study or practice to enhance society. They will be capable of creative questioning, problem finding and problem solving.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Review and interpret the basic rationale and application of relevant quantitative approaches and analyses in disciplinary contexts of management, accounting and marketing research.
  • Formulate appropriate hypotheses and propose the most appropriate research design for a research project.

Assessment tasks

  • Research paper critique
  • Research proposal

PG - Effective Communication

Our postgraduates will be able to communicate effectively and convey their views to different social, cultural, and professional audiences. They will be able to use a variety of technologically supported media to communicate with empathy using a range of written, spoken or visual formats.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • Formulate appropriate hypotheses and propose the most appropriate research design for a research project.
  • Use specific statistical techniques to analyse data and explain present results.

Assessment tasks

  • Research proposal
  • Data analysis and reporting