Survey Design – BUSI 452

CG • Section 8WK • 11/08/2019 to 04/16/2020 • Modified 09/05/2023

Course Description

This course covers important elements for effective survey and questionnaire design. Students will learn how to plan, structure, and write survey material for meaningful market research giving consideration to ethical and social issues. The course will include topics in research techniques and best practices as well as how to use, act on, and follow up research.

For information regarding prerequisites for this course, please refer to the Academic Course Catalog.

Rationale

Today’s rapidly evolving marketplace has caused traditional methods for identifying the needs, wants, and desires of consumers to lose effectiveness. Therefore, the current marketer must rely on a more accurate assessment of how today’s consumers define product and service solutions. This critical data derived from marketing research and designing survey questionnaires, whether for quantitative or qualitative research methods, is the core skill set necessary to ensure accurate and unbiased findings of consumer based research. This course provides the student with the requisite information and opportunity to practice that core skill set.

Course Assignment

Textbook readings and lecture presentations

Course Requirements Checklist

After reading the Course Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in Module/Week 1.

Discussion Board Forums (4)

Discussion boards are collaborative learning experiences. Therefore, the student is required to provide a thread in response to the provided prompt for each forum. Each thread must be 300–500 words and demonstrate course-related knowledge. In addition to the thread, the student is required to reply to 2 different classmates’ threads with thoughtful consideration of the thread topic and marketing application made by the classmate initiating the thread. Each reply must be 250–350 words. Each thread and reply must include biblical integration and at least 2 peer-reviewed source citations in current APA format in addition to the text.

Marketing Research Paper Drafts (4)

The student will write a 1500–1950-word research-based paper in current APA format based on a particular marketing problem within a Fortune 500 company. The paper will attempt to solve the problem using appropriate survey research (e.g., declining sales, customer loss). After identifying the independent and dependent variables based on the business problem, the student will complete the survey research paper in 4 parts: introduction, literature review, the research methodology /questionnaire construction, and final draft. The student will not collect data for this project. The final paper must include at least 10 references in addition to the course textbooks and the Bible.

Marketing Research Paper Draft 1 – Introduction

In 300–350 words, the student will provide an overview of the organization’s marketing problem. The student will then provide the problem statement, the objective/purpose of the research, and the research question the paper will address. The student will identify the independent and dependent variables he/she is trying to measure in the research question. He/she will formulate the hypotheses (null and alternative hypotheses) from the research question and explain the significance of the study. The introduction draft must include at least 3 scholarly resources. The student will revise/correct this assignment after receiving specific instructor comments and then include those changes in Draft 4.

Marketing Research Paper Draft 2 – Literature Review

In 600–650 words, the student will provide a literature review incorporating at least 4 quantitative scholarly or peer-reviewed resources that used surveys to collect the primary data. In addition, the student will explain what statistical method was used to accept or reject the null hypothesis and provide a summary of the results for each research question/hypothesis identified in the research. The student will revise/correct this assignment after receiving specific instructor comments and then include those changes in Draft 4.

Marketing Research Paper Draft 3 – Methodology/Questionnaire Construction

In 600–950 words, the student will write the research methodology for the study and explain which statistical test he/she plans to use to carry out the study. Each section will be labeled: (a) research design, (b) population and sampling procedures, (c) instrumentation, (d) procedures, and (e) limitations. Incorporate at least 3 quantitative scholarly or peer-reviewed resources.
Additionally, the student will develop a 10-question survey based on research identified in the literature review. The questionnaire will measure the independent and dependent variable, be related to the research objectives, and include closed-ended and open-ended questions. The questionnaire will be included in an appendix in Draft 4 and labeled Appendix A. The student will
revise/correct this assignment after receiving specific instructor comments and then include those changes in Draft 4.

Marketing Research Paper Draft 4 – Final Draft

In 1500–1950 words, the student will include in this paper all of the required revisions and/or corrections to Drafts 1–3. **Before the student submits the Final Draft, he/she must ensure the paper is formatted using current APA guidelines. Careful attention must be given to the level of headings in the paper, in-text citations, the reference page, and the appendix labeled Appendix A.

Quizzes (8)

Each quiz will cover the Reading & Study material for the assigned module/week. Each quiz will be open-book/open-notes, contain 7-14 multiple-choice and true/false questions, and have a 1-hour time limit.