Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Sekaran/RESEARCH 4E

8A

Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sekaran/RESEARCH 4E

SOLUTION TO EXERCISE 8.2

Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sekaran/RESEARCH 4E

SOLUTION TO EXERCISE 8.1

Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sekaran/RESEARCH 4E

FIGURE 8.2

Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sekaran/RESEARCH 4E

FIGURE 8.1

Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sekaran/RESEARCH 4E

8F

VARIABLE
A VARIABLE IS ANYTHING THAT CAN HAVE DIFFERING OR VARYING VALUES

The value can differ at various times for the same object or person or at the same time for different objects or persons. Eg; production units Absenteeism Motivation

Types of variables
1. The dependant variable(criterion variable) 2. Independent variable 3. The moderating variable 4. The intervening variable

Variables can be discrete (eg; male/female) Continuous(eg;age of an individual)

Dependant Variable
The dependant variable is the variable of primary interest to the researcher The researchers goal is to understand and describe the dependant variable or explain its variability or predict it Eg; manager is concerned that sales of a new product is not meeting his expectations The dependant variable is sales

Independent variable
An independent variable is one that influences the dependant variable in either a positive or negative way Eg: Research indicates that successful new product development has an influence on the stock market price of the company

Stock market price is dependant variable Success of a new product is independent variable

MODERATING VARIABLE Moderating variable is one that has strong contingent effect on the independent variable-dependant variable relationship
Availability of library book ( Independent variable) performance of students (Dependant variable)

interest & usage ( moderating variable)

Intervening variable An intervening variable is one that surfaces between the time the independent variables start operating to influence the dependant variable and the time their impact is felt on it.

Time t1
Workforce density
(Independent variable )

t2
creative synergy
(intervening variable )

t3
organizational effectiveness
(dependant variable)

Independent variable workforce diversity influences the dependant variable organizational effectiveness , the intervening variable that surfaces as a function of the diversity in the workforce is creative synergy. This creative synergy results from a multiethnic, multiracial and multinational (i.e. diverse) workforce interacting and bringing together their multifaceted expertise in problem solving

Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sekaran/RESEARCH 4E

8G

Goodness of Measures
Goodness of measures attests to the reliability and validity of measures . In a research, we operationally define variables and apply different scaling techniques. It is important to make sure that the instruments that we use in our research do indeed measure accurately the variables they are supposed to.

Item Analysis Item Analysis allows us to observe the characteristics of a particular question (item) and can be used to ensure that questions are of an appropriate standard and select items for test inclusion.

Reliability
Reliability of a measure indicates the extent to which the measurement is without bias(error free) and hence ensures consistent measurement.( consistency and stability)

Validity : Evidence that the instrument , technique or process used

to measure a concept does measure the intended concept

Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sekaran/RESEARCH 4E

TABLE 9.1

Copyright 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sekaran/RESEARCH 4E

FIGURE 9.1