Research Methods

Research plays an essential role in business and in public policy and management. Increasingly, organisations undertake small-scale research projects, to find out about matters relating to the concerns of their organisation or to critically evaluate existing policies. Both commercial firms and government institutions rely upon research to inform their decisions, to test the effectiveness of existing policies, to predict the effects of intended future policies, to understand management processes and decisions and to gain insights into public preferences and opinions about public services.
Whether you are studying this course in order to carry out research in your professional role, to commission and project-manage research conducted by others or to complete a dissertation for your MSc qualification, your ability to appropriately and rigorously design, execute report, and evaluate research is essential.
The range of research issues and research methods available for researchers to use is vast – too vast to be covered in one introductory course. Therefore, this course concentrates on helping you develop a rigorous understanding of the key principles and practice of research that are needed to get a research project up and running.