Question

3. Preparing Formal Business Reports (Part II)

Gather secondary data by reading what others have experienced and observed. You should begin nearly every research project by researching secondary sources to gather information that has already been written about your topic.

1.You are in a library gathering information from secondary sources, and you want to find a current print resource that can supplement information from a book. What source should you use?

Observations

Indexes

Periodicals

2._______is a major provider of online indexes and databases.

EBSCO

Google Chrome

3.What problems might you encounter when using the Web for research? Check all that apply.

Time-consuming searches

Unreliable content

Undocumented sources

Lack of search tools

Lack of current news

4.What types of research can blogs, wikis, and online sources be used for?

Secondary and primary research

None

Only informal research

5.You can gather primary data from firsthand experience by using surveys, interviews, observation, or experimentation. You will need primary data to provide a complete picture. Familiarize yourself with methods for generating and using primary data, and decide what you will do to avoid researcher bias.

Read each scenario, and answer the question that follows it.

After gathering data on the effectiveness of company meetings, you decide to conduct a survey to obtain measurable qualitative and quantitative feedback. You will mail a survey to several companies.

What are some disadvantages to using this type of data collection? Check all that apply.

Respondents’ return rate may be too high to manage.

Respondents may exaggerate or distort facts.

Respondents do not have enough time to consider their answers.

Respondents may not represent an accurate population sample.

Response rates may be low.

6.You are asked to write a report on a topic for which little or no information is available. You decide to conduct interviews with several experts or veterans in the field.

What should you do to maintain a professional impression during the interviews?

Call and confirm arrangements before the interview.

Locate an expert.

Avoid taking notes but listen carefully.

7.Sharon is writing a report for her company on interaction and communication between employees and customers. She decides to observe the company’s telemarketers as they sell a new line of tires. She is hoping to acquire qualitative examples that will enrich the data she has already gathered. She sits and watches the telemarketers for an hour and then leaves.

What could she have done to make her observations more complete and accurate?

She could have instructed the telemarketers on how to respond to calls.

She could have listened carefully but avoided taking notes.

She could have taken notes on events, actions, and settings.

Answer 1

1.You are in a library gathering information from secondary sources, and you want to find a current print resource that can supplement information from a book. What source should you use?

Periodicals

2._______is a major provider of online indexes and databases.

EBSCO

3.What problems might you encounter when using the Web for research? Check all that apply.

Unrelated content

Undocumented sources

4.What types of research can blogs, wikis, and online sources be used for?

Secondary and primary research