Ch4 - Exploratory Research

A projective technique involves the use of a vague hypothesis that an individual is asked to describe, expand upon, or build a structure around. a. True b. False

F

Exploratory studies are very inflexible with regard to methods. a. True b. False

F

Focus groups are less susceptible to executive and researcher biases than most other exploratory techniques. a. True b. False

F

In case analysis, cases that reflect extremes of behavior are bad candidates for study. a. True b. False

F

In general, exploratory research is appropriate for any problem about which much is known. a. True b. False

F

The goal of exploratory research is to discover facts and figures. a. True b. False

F

When conducting depth interviews, the questions should be general. a. True b. False

T

Exploratory research for Capitol Brewing seems to indicate that sales for dark lager are down for all breweries. This is an example of which kind of problem? a. A firm problem b. A consumer problem c. A perception problem d. An industry problem e. An ethical problem

d. An industry problem

A hypothesis is a statement that specifies how two or more measurable variables are related. a. True b. False

T

Almost all marketing research projects should start with a literature search. a. True b. False

T

Focus group respondents are usually selected so that the group is relatively homogeneous. a. True b. False

T

Group interaction is the key aspect that distinguishes focus groups interviews from depth interviews. a. True b. False

T

Like focus groups, nominal groups are a terrific technique for generating new ideas. a. True b. False

T

Research investigators often follow their intuition in an exploratory study. a. True b. False

T

Researchers can't afford to devote the bulk of the research budget to exploratory research. a. True b. False

T

You are the product manager for Buckstars Coffee, a nationally distributed brand. Buckstars has been declining in absolute level of sales for the last four consecutive months. You ask the marketing research department to do a study to determine why sales have declined. The most appropriate research strategy is a. an experimental study. b. a field experiment followed by an exploratory study. c. an experimental study followed by a descriptive study. d. an exploratory study. e. a descriptive study involving a field survey of actual and potential customers.

d. an exploratory study.

The success of the case analysis approach depends upon the researcher's ability to interpret the diverse mass of information that is collected across cases. a. True b. False

T

Which of the following is NOT what exploratory research is used for? a. Better formulating the manager's decision problem b. Getting a definitive answer c. Increasing the researcher's familiarity with the problem d. Clarifying concepts e. None of these statements are false; they are all true.

b. Getting a definitive answer

Which of the following is NOT one of the common projective method techniques? a. Word association b. IQ testing c. Sentence completion d. Storytelling e. Role playing

b. IQ testing

A technique for searching for statistical patterns in datasets is a. ethnography b. benchmarking c. data mining d. projective methods e. case analyses

c. data mining

With any form of exploratory research, the usefulness of a technique for generating insights depends on the _____________ of the analysis. a. depth and breadth b. subjectivity and maturity c. quality and objectivity d. cost and duration e. cause and effect

c. quality and objectivity

_______ methods encourage respondents to reveal their own feelings, thoughts, and behaviors by shifting the focus away from the individual through the use of indirect tasks. a. Proactive b. Protective c. Pronounced d. Prolonged e. Projective

e. Projective

Exploratory research that attempts to draw from the knowledge and experience of those who have relevant information to the issue driving the research is an example of a. focus groups. b. data mining. c. nominal groups. d. case analyses. e. depth interviews.

e. depth interviews.

The primary difference between nominal groups and focus groups is that nominal groups require a. more participants. b. less time. c. little or no moderation. d. complete anonymity. e. written responses from participants.

e. written responses from participants.

The market research team at Initech was asked to discover how to address deficiencies in the TPS reporting process. The team is studying the processes used by Globex, which has a world-class TPS reporting process. The research technique being used in this case is a. benchmarking. b. ethnography. c. ethnography. d. data mining. e. depth interview.

a. benchmarking.

Using different ads in different geographic areas and investigating which ad generated the highest sales is an example of ________ research design. a. causal b. exploratory c. longitudinal d. descriptive e. panel

a. causal

The key feature that distinguishes focus groups from depth interviews is a. group interaction. b. the presence of a researcher. c. the expertise of the participant(s). d. the time required to do one. e. All of these are correct.

a. group interaction.

One of the major difficulties experienced with projective methods arises a. in the interpretation of the replies. b. when trying to secure the respondent's cooperation. c. in the lack of experience of the respondents with these techniques. d. in the distorted frame of reference of the interviewers. e. There are no problems with projective methods.

a. in the interpretation of the replies.

The general purpose of exploratory research is to gain _________ so that problems and opportunities can be more clearly defined. a. insights and ideas b. facts and figures c. buy-in and support d. definitive data e. tactical advantage

a. insights and ideas

A weakness of focus groups has to do with how the results are a. interpreted. b. gathered. c. used. d. All of these are correct. e. None of these are correct.

a. interpreted.

The time to stop having focus groups is when a. the research budget has been exhausted. b. they show diminishing returns. c. you get definitive answers to your research problem. d. you've completed five focus groups. e. All of these are correct. .+3

b. they show diminishing returns.

A _______ brings together a small number of individuals to talk about a topic of interest to the researcher. a. depth interview b. focus group c. data mining d. case analysis e. None of these are correct.

b. focus group

Finding answers and drawing conclusions is better left to more ______ research. a. informal b. formal c. exploratory d. consumer e. scientific

b. formal

Exploratory studies do not involve a. the analysis of selected cases. b. probability sampling plans. c. experience surveys. d. good luck. e. a search of published statistics.

b. probability sampling plans.

Although focus groups vary in size, most consist of ______ members. a. 1-2 b. 3-4 c. 8-12 d. 15-18 e. 20 or more

c. 8-12

In general, the first step in conducting exploratory research is to a. assemble a focus group. b. perform an experience survey. c. conduct a literature search. d. perform an analysis of selected cases. e. narrow a group of hypotheses to one specific hypothesis for investigation.

c. conduct a literature search.

Which of the following best represents the objective of the moderator in conducting a focus group? a. Strictly following the moderator's guidebook b. Allowing for a free-flow of ideas that are unrestricted and therefore more conducive to creativity c. Striking a balance between stimulating natural discussions while ensuring the group does not wander too far from the topic d. To include as many people as possible in a particular group; this enables the results to be more representative e. The moderator must be completely unfamiliar with the purpose of the research.

c. Striking a balance between stimulating natural discussions while ensuring the group does not wander too far from the topic

Exploratory studies typically a. consume most of the research budget. b. are large-scale and highly structured. c. are small-scale and flexible. d. All of these are correct. e. None of these are correct.

c. are small-scale and flexible.

The study of selected examples of the phenomenon about which insights are needed is a. benchmarking. b. ethnography. c. case analysis. d. data mining. e. depth interview.

c. case analysis.

Capitol Brewing Inc.'s management is very concerned with declining sales of their major product, a dark ale, and has asked for help understanding the reasons. The most appropriate way to begin is with a. causal research. b. descriptive research. c. exploratory research. d. exploratory and causal research. e. descriptive and causal research.

c. exploratory research.

Which of the following is one of the quickest and least costly ways to conduct exploratory research? a. Focus group b. Data mining c. Benchmarking d. Literature search e. Case analysis

d. Literature search

Which of the following statements about depth interviews in NOT true? a. They are used to conduct exploratory research. b. They don't require a random sample. c. They are usually informal. d. They often yield a final, conclusive answer to the problem. e. All of these are correct.

d. They often yield a final, conclusive answer to the problem.

The president of the Cola Beverage Company is very concerned with declining sales of the company's flagship beverage and has asked for your assistance in finding the reason for the decline. The most appropriate way to begin this research project is with a. a survey of consumers. b. an experiment in which price is systematically varied. c. descriptive research. d. exploratory research. e. causal research.

d. exploratory research.

A small group of people brought together to discuss a topic of interest to researchers is known as a(n) a. task force. b. guidance committee. c. experience group. d. focus group. e. development group.

d. focus group.

A hypothesis a. is a broad, vague problem statement. b. cannot be discovered during research. c. is only found in causal research. d. is an educated guess about how two or more variables are related. e. does not have clear implications for testing the relationship between variables.

d. is an educated guess about how two or more variables are related.

Candidates for depth interviews could include a. current customers. b. members of the target market. c. executives and managers of the company. d. wholesalers and retailers. e. All of these are candidates for depth interviews.

e. All of these are candidates for depth interviews.

Benefits of focus groups include a. ideas that can drop "out of the blue". b. snowballing ideas. c. more spontaneous responses than in one-on-one interviews. d. easy interpretation of responses. e. All of these choices are correct.

e. All of these choices are correct.