Chapter One

Question 1

Marketing research

Answer 1

The organization’s formal communication link with the environment.

Question 2

Research process

Answer 2

A general sequence of steps that can be followed when designing and conducting research.

Question 3

Marketing research ethics

Answer 3

The principles, values, and standards of conduct followed by marketing researchers.

Question 4

Advocacy research

Answer 4

Research that is conducted to support a position rather than to find the truth about an issue.

Question 5

Sugging

Answer 5

Contacting people under the guise of marketing research when the real goal is to sell products or services.

Question 6

Normal thinking

Answer 6

A routine way of looking at a business situation. Researchers should offer a new perspective on the situation if possible.

Question 7

Decision problem

Answer 7

The basic problem facing the manager, for which marketing research is intended to provide answers.

Question 8

Discovery-oriented decision problem

Answer 8

A decision problem that typically seeks to answer “What?” or “Why?” questions about a problem/opportunity. The focus is generally on generating useful information.

Question 9

Strategy-oriented decision problem

Answer 9

A decision problem that typically seeks to answer “How?” questions about a problem/opportunity. The focus is generally on selecting alternative courses of action.

Question 10

Research problem

Answer 10

A restatement of the decision problem in research terms.

Question 11

Research request agreement

Answer 11

A document prepared by the researcher after meeting with the decision maker that summarizes the problem and the information that is needed to address it.

Question 12

Research proposal

Answer 12

A written statement that describes the marketing problem, the purpose of the study, and a detailed outline of the research methodology.

Question 13

Request for proposal (RFP)

Answer 13

A document that describes the problem for which research is sought and asks providers to offer proposals, including cost estimates, about how they would perform the job.

Question 14

Exploratory research

Answer 14

Research design in which the major emphasis is on gaining ideas and insights.

Question 15

Descriptive research

Answer 15

Research design in which the major emphasis is on determining the frequency with which something occurs or the extent to which two variables covary.

Question 16

Causal research

Answer 16

Research design in which the major emphasis is on determining cause-and-effect relationships.

Question 17

Hypothesis

Answer 17

A statement that describes how two or more variables are related.

Question 18

Literature search

Answer 18

A search of popular press (newspapers, magazines, and so forth), trade literature, academic literature, or published statistics from research firms or governmental agencies for data or insight into the problem at hand.

Question 19

Depth interviews

Answer 19

Interviews with people knowledgeable about the general subject being investigated.

Question 20

Focus group

Answer 20

An interview conducted among a small number of individuals simultaneously; the interview relies more on group discussion than on directed questions to generate data.

Question 21

Case analysis

Answer 21

Intensive study of selected examples of the phenomenon of interest.

Question 22

Benchmarking

Answer 22

Using organizations that excel at some function as sources of ideas for improvement.

Question 23

Ethnography

Answer 23

The detailed observation of consumers during their ordinary daily lives using direct observations, interviews, and video and audio recordings.

Question 24

Cross-sectional study

Answer 24

Investigation involving a sample of elements selected from the population of interest that are measured at a single point in time.

Question 25

Longitudinal study

Answer 25

Cross-sectional study in which the sample is selected to be representative of the target population and in which the emphasis is on the generation of summary statistics such as averages and percentages.

Question 26

Sample survey

Answer 26

A fixed sample of respondents who are measured repeatedly over time, but on variables that change from measurement to measurement.

Question 27

Field experiment

Answer 27

Research study in a realistic situation in which one or more independent variables are manipulated by the experimenter under as carefully controlled conditions as the situation will permit.

Question 28

Market testing

Answer 28

A controlled experiment done in a limited but carefully selected sector of the marketplace.

Question 29

Standard test market

Answer 29

A test market in which the company sells the product through its normal distribution channels.

Question 30

Controlled test market

Answer 30

An entire test program conducted by an outside service in a market in which it can guarantee distribution.

Question 31

Simulated test market

Answer 31

A study in which consumer ratings and other information are fed into a computer model that then makes projections about the likely level of sales for the product in the market.

Question 32

Secondary data

Answer 32

Information not gathered for the immediate study at hand but for some other purpose.

Question 33

Primary data

Answer 33

Information collected specifically for the Investigation at hand.

Question 34

Primary source

Answer 34

The originating source of secondary data.

Question 35

Secondary source

Answer 35

A source of secondary data that did not originate the data but rather secured them from another source.

Question 36

Decision support system (DSS)

Answer 36

A combination of database, analytical models, and dialog system that allows managers to develop and access customized information.

Question 37

Data mining

Answer 37

The use of analytic techniques to explore the data held within a dataset in order to isolate useful information.

Question 38

Geodemopgraphy

Answer 38

The availability of demographic, consumer-behavior, and lifestyle data by arbitrary geographic boundaries that are typically quite small.

Question 39

Single source data

Answer 39

Data that allow researchers to link together purchase behavior, household characteristics, and advertising exposure at the household level.

Question 40

Motive

Answer 40

A need, want, drive, urge, wish, desire, impulse, or any inner state that energizes, activates, or moves and that directs behavior toward goals.

Question 41

Structured observation

Answer 41

The problem has been defined precisely enough so that the behaviors that will be observed can be specified beforehand, as can the categories that will be used to record and analyze the situation.

Question 42

Unstructured observation

Answer 42

The problem has not been specifically defined, so a great deal of flexibility is allowed the observers in terms of what they note and record.

Question 43

Fixed alternative question

Answer 43

A question in which the responses are limited to stated alternatives.

Question 44

Open ended question

Answer 44

A question for which respondents are free to reply in their own words rather than being limited to choosing from among a set of alternatives.

Question 45

Mail questionnaire

Answer 45

A questionnaire administered by mail to designated respondents with an accompanying cover letter. The respondents return the questionnaire by mail to the research organization.

Question 46

Internet based questionnaire

Answer 46

A questionnaire that relies on the Internet for recruitment and/or completion; two forms include e-mail surveys and questionnaires completed on the Web.

Question 47

Nominal scale

Answer 47

Measurement in which numbers are assigned to objects or classes of objects solely for the purpose of identification.

Question 48

Ordinal scale

Answer 48

Measurement in which numbers are assigned to data on the basis of some order (e.g., more than, greater than) of the objects.

Question 49

Interval scale

Answer 49

Measurement in which the assigned numbers legitimately allow the comparison of the size of the differences among and between members.

Question 50

Ratio scale

Answer 50

Measurement that has a natural, or absolute, zero and therefore allows the comparison of absolute magnitudes of the numbers.

Question 51

Itemized rating scale

Answer 51

A scale on which individuals must indicate their ratings of an attribute or object by selecting the response category that best describes their position on the attribute or object.

Question 52

Summated rating scale

Answer 52

A self-report technique for attitude measurement in which respondents indicate their degree of agreement or disagreement with each of a number of statements.

Question 53

Validity

Answer 53

The extent to which differences in scores on a measuring instrument reflect true differences among individuals, groups, or situations in the characteristic that it seeks to measure, or true differences in the same individual, group, or situation from one occasion to another, rather than systematic or random errors.

Question 54

Relibility

Answer 54

Ability of a measure to obtain similar scores for the same object, trait, or construct across time, across different evaluators, or across the items forming the measure.

Question 55

Response order bias

Answer 55

An error that occurs when the response to a question is influenced by the order in which the alternatives are presented.

Question 56

Assumed consequence

Answer 56

A problem that occurs when a question is not framed so as to clearly state the consequences and thus generates different responses from individuals who assume different consequences.

Question 57

Double barreled question

Answer 57

A question that calls for two responses and creates confusion for the respondent.

Question 58

Funnel approach

Answer 58

An approach to question sequencing that gets its name from its shape, starting with broad questions and progressively narrowing down the scope.

Question 59

Question order bias

Answer 59

The tendency for earlier questions on a questionnaire to influence respondents’ answers to later questions.