BA585 midterm exam

Question 1.1.

_____ is conducted to address a specific business decision for a specific firm or organization.

(Points : 1)

Basic business research

Qualitative business research

Quantitative business research

Applied business research

Question 2.2.

All of the following are important aspects of the business research process EXCEPT _____.

(Points : 1)

gathering information

idea and theory development

analyzing data

making results publicly available

Question 3.3.

Campbell’s Soup is considering launching a new gumbo product and is testing different recipes with consumers before full commercialization. What type of research is Campbell’s using to determine which soup consumers will like the best?

(Points : 1)

secondary research

basic research

applied research

test research

Question 4.4.

All of the following are factors considered when deciding whether or not research is needed EXCEPT _____.

(Points : 1)

nature of the decision

availability of data

managerial experience

benefits versus costs

Question 5.5.

A business professor is examining the relationship between age and ethical business behavior. The research is not being conducted for any specific business or even industry, but rather it is intended to better understand and predict this behavior across all aspects of business. This professor is conducting which type of business research?

(Points : 1)

basic business research

formal business research

applied business research

abstract business research

Question 6.6.

In general, the ______ important a decision is strategically to the organization, the ______ likely that research will be undertaken.

(Points : 1)

less; more

more; more

more; less

none of these choices

Question 7.7.

Consumer research conducted in the United States indicates that many consumers consider the country of origin when purchasing products, and consumers tend to prefer products that are made in the U.S.A. To determine if consumers in other countries are partial to their own country’s products, what must be done before the empirical findings from the research conducted among U.S. consumers also exist and behave similarly in another culture?

(Points : 1)

reliability assessment

cultural cross-validation

benefit/cost analysis

cultural-monitoring research

Question 8.8.

When a manager decides not to do research because a decision needs to be made before the results of the study can be analyzed, this is an example of which aspect in the determination of the need for marketing research?

(Points : 1)

nature of the decision

time constraints

availability of the data

cost considerations

Question 9.9.

When a manager is trying to decide whether a new product launch decision should be postponed until some additional research can be conducted, which of the following questions should this manager ask himself or herself?

(Points : 1)

Is the proposed research expenditure the best use of the available funds?

Will the information gained by business research improve the quality of the business decision enough to warrant the expenditure?

Will the payoff from the research be worth the dollar expenditures for research?

all of these choices

Question 10.10.

A firm focusing more on how to provide value to customers than on the physical product or production process is embracing which business orientation?

(Points : 1)

marketing orientation

quality orientation

external orientation

value orientation

Question 11.11.

Wal-Mart is the low-cost leader in retail. This company achieves this success by prioritizing efficiency in its distribution process. Which business orientation is Wal-Mart exhibiting when it prioritizes efficiency and effectiveness of the supply chain process (i.e., getting products into the stores) in making decisions?

(Points : 1)

production-orientated

product-oriented

marketing-oriented

technically-oriented

Question 12.12.

_____ is the formal, objective measurement and appraisal of the extent a given activity, project, or program has achieved its objectives or whether continuing programs are presently performing as projected.

(Points : 1)

Monitoring research

Performance research

Comprehensive research

Evaluation research

Question 13.13.

All of the following are business orientations EXCEPT _____.

(Points : 1)

management-oriented

product-oriented

production-oriented

marketing-oriented

Question 14.14.

Which of the following is the first step in developing a business strategy?

(Points : 1)

analyzing firm performance

identifying problems or opportunities

selecting and implementing a course of action

diagnosing and assessing problems or opportunities

Question 15.15.

When conducting research internationally, it is important to _____ research results, which means the researcher verifies that the empirical findings from one culture also exist and behave similarly in another culture.

(Points : 1)

cross-validate

simulate

integrate

cross-analyze

Question 16.16.

When Target stores monitors the sales activities of its retail stores in order to detect any indication of dollar sales changes, this is an example of which type of research?

(Points : 1)

relationship marketing research

total quality management research

basic research

performance-monitoring research

Question 17.17.

Which of the following refers to the way researchers go about using knowledge and evidence to reach objective conclusions about the real world?

(Points : 1)

qualitative method

quantitative method

scientific method

primary method

Question 18.18.

The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) requested research to determine if the financing option the company implemented for a new capital investment initiative achieved the objective of reducing the company’s tax liability. Which type of research is appropriate for evaluating this course of action?

(Points : 1)

basic research

post-hoc research

evaluation research

financial research

Question 19.19.

Which of the following is FALSE regarding business research?

(Points : 1)

Business research covers a wide range of phenomena.

Business research is not considered rigorous enough to apply the scientific method.

The purpose of business research is to provide knowledge to managers.

Business research can be directed toward an element of an organization’s internal operations.

Question 20.20.

Which type of research tries to verify a theory or to learn more about a business concept and is not intended to solve a particular business problem?

(Points : 1)

performance-monitoring research

basic research

total quality management

the scientific method

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Question 21.21.

Which of the following is a method of data collection that is used in surveys?

(Points : 1)

telephone

mail

the Internet

all of these choices

Question 22.22.

Companies, such as Kraft and Procter & Gamble, conduct research to clarify ambiguous situations or discover ideas that may be potential business opportunities. What type of business research is this?

(Points : 1)

inferential

causal

descriptive

exploratory

Question 23.23.

Carol was invited to participate in a research study along with ten other employees to discuss their experiences using the company intranet. The group was asked to discuss their experiences and were encouraged to feed on each other’s comments. What is this type of study called?

(Points : 1)

multivariate research

literature review

pretest

focus group interview

Question 24.24.

Jackie has noticed that when the temperature rises, sales at her clothing boutique also rise. This is an example of _____.

(Points : 1)

concomitant variation

nonspurious variation

linear variation

absolute variation

Question 25.25.

When the researcher has only one or a small number of research objectives that can be addressed in a single study, that study is referred to as a _____.

(Points : 1)

research project

research program

research assessment

research snapshot

Question 26.26.

Which type of association is said to occur when any covariation between a cause and effect is indeed due to the cause and not simply due to some other variable?

(Points : 1)

nonspurious association

spurious association

concomitant association

temporal association

Question 27.27.

When drivers are unaware that a machine is recording how many cars pass a certain intersection that is being considered for a site for a new Wendy’s franchise, this is an example of a(n) _____.

(Points : 1)

obtrusive method

unobtrusive method

experiment

exploratory research study

Question 28.28.

_____ is the process of developing and deciding among alternative ways of resolving a problem or choosing from among alternative opportunities.

(Points : 1)

Business

Business research

Decision making

Verification

Question 29.29.

Which degree of causality means that the cause is necessary and sufficient to bring about the effect?

(Points : 1)

first-degree causality

absolute causality

conditional causality

contributory causality

Question 30.30.

Which of the following means that the decision maker has all information needed to make an optimal decision?

(Points : 1)

certainty

ambiguity

concomitant variation

non-spurious association

Question 31.31.

_____ means that the researcher alters the level of the experimental variable in specific increments.

(Points : 1)

Causality

Testing

Analyzing

Manipulation

Question 32.32.

The Small Business Development Center is conducting an email survey with 25 of its client small businesses to examine the use of mobile marketing applications. This is a precursor to a larger study in which the questionnaire will be sent nationwide to more than 1,000 similar small businesses. This initial small-scale project is known as a _____.

(Points : 1)

testing study

pilot study

preliminary study

test market

Question 33.33.

All of the following are examples of exploratory research techniques EXCEPT _____.

(Points : 1)

previous research

pilot studies

case studies

experimentation

Question 34.34.

Which of the following is a carefully controlled study in which the researcher manipulates a proposed cause and observes any corresponding change in the proposed effect?

(Points : 1)

survey

unobtrusive observation

diagnostic analysis

experiment

Question 35.35.

A researcher has completed the fieldwork of collecting data, and now he is checking the data collection forms for omissions, legibility, and consistency in classification. What is this researcher doing?

(Points : 1)

analyzing the data

editing the data

coding the data

reporting the results

Question 36.36.

A conclusion that when one thing happens, another specific thing will follow is known as a _____.

(Points : 1)

diagnostic analysis

manipulation

causal inference

deliverable

Question 37.37.

Which of the following represents a situation that makes some potential competitive advantage possible for a business?

(Points : 1)

business threat

forward linkage

symptom

business opportunity

Question 38.38.

The Food and Drug Administration is targeting salt in processed foods as a health hazard, and some experts believe the agency will require food manufacturers to limit the amount of salt in processed foods. However, the reduction will occur in phases, with salt content being reduced in steps so that consumers will be weaned off of salt gradually. Carefully controlled research studies are underway in which the salt levels are varied and consumers’ reactions to the taste are measured. This research is an example of a(n) _____.

(Points : 1)

exploratory study

descriptive study

experiment

diagnostic analysis

Question 39.39.

Which of the following involves any procedure that draws conclusions based on measurements of a portion of the entire population?

(Points : 1)

sampling

theorizing

segmenting

causal inference

Question 40.40.

Janna discovers a market segment that is underserved by competitors’ products. For Janna’s company, this segment represents a _____.

(Points : 1)

business threat

business opportunity

backward linkage

test market

Question 41.41.

All of the following are gaps that represent problems EXCEPT _____.

(Points : 1)

actual business performance is less than possible business performance

actual business performance is greater than expected business performance

actual business performance is worse than expected business performance

expected business performance is greater than possible business performance

Question 42.42.

A(n) _____ variable is one that is expected to influence the dependent variable in some way.

(Points : 1)

primary

interactive

independent

first-order

Question 43.43.

A written expression of the key question(s) that a research user wishes to answer is referred to as a _____.

(Points : 1)

problem definition

decision statement

research proposal

hypothesis

Question 44.44.

A researcher is asking managers and line workers questions such as what type of problems they experience, where they are most likely to experience them, who is responsible for them, and how the problems get resolved. Asking these what, where, who, when, why, and how questions to get a better understanding of his client’s business decision-making situation is an example of using _____.

(Points : 1)

peeling techniques

iceberg technique

80/20 techniques

interrogative techniques

Question 45.45.

Once the researcher has identified the key symptoms and identified the key problem(s) from those symptoms, what is the next step the researcher will take in the problem-definition process?

(Points : 1)

determine the unit of analysis

write managerial decision statement and corresponding research objectives

determine the relevant variables and how to measure them

write research questions and/or research hypotheses

Question 46.46.

A researcher is gathering background information to familiarize himself with his new client’s business environment. He is analyzing marketplace conditions and conducting interviews with employees of the company. This researcher is conducting a _____.

(Points : 1)

gap analysis

pre-research analysis

basic analysis

situation analysis

Question 47.47.

Which of the following is a possible unit of analysis in a research study?

(Points : 1)

an employee

a sales region

a zip code area

all of these choices

Question 48.48.

What type of variable is “gender”?

(Points : 1)

continuous variable

primary variable

dependent variable

categorical variable

Question 49.49.

Which type of variable indicates membership in some group?

(Points : 1)

continuous variable

categorical variable

lexicographic variable

dependent variable

Question 50.50.

A(n) _____ involves the gathering of background information to familiarize researchers and managers with the decision-making environment.

(Points : 1)

situation analysis

exploratory review

environmental scan

preliminary analysis

Question 51.51.

Which of the following make defining problems more difficult?

(Points : 1)

situation is recurring or routine

a dramatic change occurs

symptoms are scattered

symptoms are consistent

Question 52.52.

An interview technique that tries to draw deeper and more elaborate explanations from the discussion is called _____.

(Points : 1)

probing

peeling

immersion

ethnography

Question 53.53.

All of the following are types of variables EXCEPT _____.

(Points : 1)

continuous

categorical

constant

dependent

Question 54.54.

A(n) _____ is a process outcome or a variable that is predicted and/or explained by other variables.

(Points : 1)

primary variable

absolute variable

dependent variable

independent variable

Question 55.55.

All of the following are steps in the problem-definition process EXCEPT _____.

(Points : 1)

identify key problem(s) from symptoms

determine the unit of analysis

develop dummy tables

determine relevant variables

Question 56.56.

Which of the following is the most important question a researcher can ask when using a probing technique?

(Points : 1)

How does that make you feel?

Why do you think that is so?

What has changed?

What does _____ make you think of?

Question 57.57.

Sharon is a management professor who received a grant from the American Management Association to study how employees make decisions in cross-functional groups. Sharon’s research is _____.

(Points : 1)

applied business research

dependent business research

funded business research

analytical business research

Question 58.58.

Which of the following is the FIRST step of the problem definition process?

(Points : 1)

determine the unit of analysis

identify the problem

identify key symptoms in the situation

determine the relevant variables

Question 59.59.

In the statement: “Years of sales experience is an important predictor of dollar sales performance,” what type of variable is “dollar sales performance”?

(Points : 1)

dependent variable

categorical variable

classificatory variable

independent variable

Question 60.60.

Todd has prepared a document that includes the deliverables and a definition of the problem for a research client. In this document, he described how he will conduct a survey along with a schedule of costs and deadlines. What is this document called?

(Points : 1)

research proposal

research statement

research blueprint

managerial action statement

Question 61.61.

The process of changing the original form of data to a format more suitable for achieving a stated research objective is called _____.

(Points : 1)

data conversion

reliability assessment

cross-checking

data mining

Question 62.62.

Many retailers mine the databases provided by checkout scanners to identify coinciding purchases or relationships between products purchased and other retail shopping information. This type of analysis is referred to as ____.

(Points : 1)

neural networking

scandowns

database marketing

market-basket analysis

Question 63.63.

What is it called when a researcher compares secondary data from one source with data from another?

(Points : 1)

data conversion

cross-check

data mining

data enhancement

Question 64.64.

Sherrie is interested in average monthly sales for smartphones in the United States. She found information on the Internet that gives annual sales, so she took the annual sales and divided it by twelve to get a monthly average. This is an example of _____.

(Points : 1)

data mining

data division

data conversion

data validation

Question 65.65.

Which of the following data can be purchased from commercial sources?

(Points : 1)

advertising research

market-share data

consumer attitudes and public opinions

all of these choices

Question 66.66.

When a manager reads publications like The Wall Street Journal and BloombergBusinessweek to try to determine changes in consumer behavior and employment issues, this is a form of _____,

(Points : 1)

environmental scanning

model building

database marketing

data mining

Question 67.67.

What term is used by the marketing research industry to refer to diverse types of data offered by a single company?

(Points : 1)

primary data

single-source data

compound data

integrated data

Question 68.68.

Asking a group of households to record their consumption of certain products over a two-year period is an example of _____.

(Points : 1)

model building

database marketing

data conversion

diary panel data

Question 69.69.

_____ involves specifying relationships between two or more variables, perhaps extending to the development of descriptive or predictive equations.

(Points : 1)

Data transformation

Data analysis

Model building

Fact-finding

Question 70.70.

A researcher who is interested in new car sales but who discovers that the secondary data from the U.S. government are in the form of statistics that include both car and light truck sales combined in the data has discovered that the data fail to meet which criterion?

(Points : 1)

Are the data in the correct unit of measurement?

Do the data apply to the time period of interest?

Are the data supplied by a reputable source?

Do the data show evidence of reliability and validity?

Question 71.71.

Lance has noticed that companies that advertise a lot seem to have higher sales than those that do not. His use of secondary data to help specify this relationship is an example of _____.

(Points : 1)

data conversion

validation

reliability

model building

Question 72.72.

The simplest form of secondary-data research is _____.

(Points : 1)

fact-finding

model building

forecasting sales

database marketing

Question 73.73.

Facts observed, recorded, and stored by an entity outside of the researcher’s organization are called _____.

(Points : 1)

proprietary data

external data

internal data

primary data

Question 74.74.

All of the following are producers of external secondary data EXCEPT _____.

(Points : 1)

libraries

trade associations

government

media

Question 75.75.

If the population of a city is 230,000 and its annual per person expenditure on athletic shoes is $45, if there are 64,688 square feet of retail space used to sell athletic shoes in this city, its index of retail saturation is _____.

(Points : 1)

3.56

12.65

159.99

330.06

Question 76.76.

L.L.Bean is a retailer best-known for direct marketing through catalogs and the Internet. Laurie purchased from the retailer quite frequently, but since her daughter started college she hasn’t had as much disposable income and stopped ordering merchandise. The elapsed time since her last purchase triggered an offer for $20 off her next purchase from the retailer. This is an example of _____.

(Points : 1)

database marketing

neural networks

customer discovery

electronic marketing

Question 77.77.

Many companies use powerful computers to dig through volumes of data to discover patterns about their customers and products. This activity is called _____.

(Points : 1)

data mining

data digging

sugging

neural networking

Question 78.78.

Which of the following is TRUE regarding U.S. government sources of secondary data?

(Points : 1)

Most of the data published by the U.S. federal government can be counted on for accuracy and quality of investigation.

Provides a real-time view of business news and financial statistics including stock values, exchange rates, and more.

Provides customer satisfaction ratings for hundreds of large firms doing business in the United States.

Reports market-share data using Universal Product Codes (UPC) and optical scanning at retail store checkouts.

Question 79.79.

Obtaining secondary data is typically ______ and ______ expensive than obtaining primary data.

(Points : 1)

faster; more

slower; more

faster; less

slower; less

Question 80.80.

Which of the following is FALSE regarding sales forecasting?

(Points : 1)

The moving average forecasting is best suited to a dynamic competitive environment.

Accurate sales forecasts frequently come from secondary data research.

Simple moving averages are often applied in practice.

Marketing researchers often use internal company sales records to project sales.

Question 81.81.Anything that may assume different numerical values is considered a(n) _____. (Points : 1)

variable
construct
item
data point

Question 82.82.In theory development, which of the following is the level of knowledge expressing a concept that exists only as an idea or a quality apart from an object?
(Points : 1)

empirical level
primary level
conceptual level
abstract level

Question 83.83.The logical process of establishing a general proposition on the basis of observation of particular facts is known as _____. (Points : 1)

deductive reasoning
generalized reasoning
inductive reasoning
conceptual reasoning

Question 84.84.Which of the following means that something has been examined against reality using data? (Points : 1)

causality
manipulation
empirical testing
spurious association

Question 85.85.The organization of concepts in sequence from the most concrete and individual to the most general is called the _____. (Points : 1)

conceptual hierarchy
ladder of abstraction
conceptual progression
operationalization of constructs

Question 86.86.Empathy is a concept that is not directly observable or measurable but is measured through other measures, such as an individual’s thoughts and behaviors toward others. This is an example of a(n) _____. (Points : 1)

latent construct
empirical construct
secondary construct
higher order construct

Question 87.87.At what level do we “experience” reality? (Points : 1)

empirical level
abstract level
primary level
secondary level

Question 88.88.A formal, logical explanation of some events that includes descriptions of how things relate to one another is called a(n) _____. (Points : 1)

hypothesis
theory
causal statement
empirical study

Question 89.89.Which of the following is an empirical assessment of a concept? (Points : 1)

hypothesis
variable
construct
item

Question 90.90.Self-efficacy, which is a generalized idea about how humans perceive their own abilities, is an example of a(n) _____. (Points : 1)

hypothesis
proposition
concept
abstraction

Question 91.91.Which of the following is a statement explaining the logical linkage among certain concepts by asserting a universal connection between concepts? (Points : 1)

hypothesis
proposition
construct
theory

Question 92.92.When the data from an empirical study are consistent with a research hypothesis, we say that the hypothesis is _____. (Points : 1)

confirmed
conclusive
supported
true

Question 93.93.If all the trees a person has seen in his life have been green and therefore he concludes that all trees are green, which type of reasoning is he using? (Points : 1)

deductive reasoning
inductive reasoning
generalized reasoning
conceptual reasoning

Question 94.94.When a researcher collects data to test the hypothesis that consumers will be more satisfied if a business offers compensation after the consumer complains, we say that _____ testing is being conducted. (Points : 1)

validation
confirmation
observational
empirical

Question 95.95.Psychologists explain that humans’ better recall of information that is presented visually compared to information presented verbally is due to the fact that the information is stored both visually and verbally. Because it is stored using this dual-coding process, it is easier to retrieve from memory. This formal logical explanation of this phenomenon is an example of a(n) _____. (Points : 1)

theory
construct
operationalization
abstraction

Question 96.96.What is the LAST step in the application of the scientific method? (Points : 1)

assessment of relevant existing knowledge of a phenomenon
proposal of an explanation of the phenomenon and statement of new problems raised by the research
design of research to test the hypothesis
acquisition of meaningful empirical data

Question 97.97.What are the two goals of theory? (Points : 1)

speculating and confirming
understanding and predicting
deducting and inducting
abstracting and concretizing

Question 98.98.Which of the following is considered the basic unit for theory development? (Points : 1)

concept
proposition
hypothesis
variable

Question 99.99.A concept that is not directly observable or measurable but can be estimated through proxy measures is called a(n) _____. (Points : 1)

indirect construct
secondary construct
higher order construct
latent construct

Question 100.100.A(n) ____ is a generalized idea about a class of objects that has been given a name. (Points : 1)

variable
theory
node
construct