Thesis Seminar I: Business Research Methods

Course code: BUS 435/2

Term and year: Fall 2026

Day and time: Thursday, 11:15-14:00

Instructor: Emel Yarimoglu, Ph.D.

Instructor contact: emel.yarimoglu@aauni.edu

Consultation hours: Thursday, 14:00-14:30

 

Credits US/ECTS	3/6	Level	Bachelor
Length	15 weeks	Pre-requisite	MTH222, FIN304, MGT245, MKT248
Contact hours	42 hours	Grading	Letter grade

1.    Course Description

The primary aim of this course is to introduce students to the quantitative and qualitative research methods used in business and related disciplines. Basic knowledge of these methodological approaches is critical to comprehension of academic publications, the evaluation of empirical research and the design of academic or corporate research projects. Next to elements of data collection, organization, analysis and interpretation, students will be taught how to work with relevant databases, literature, and how to comply with citation and ethical standards.

2.    Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:

●        Understand the fundamental research approaches used in business.

●        Find and use relevant academic literature for the problem in hand.

●        Find and use credible sources of information for a chosen company, industry or market. 

●        Identify correct research design. 

●        Collect, organize and present relevant primary data, both qualitative and quantitative.

●        Perform qualitative and quantitative analysis of the primary data and get correct results.

●        Perform appropriate and critical interpretation of the results.

3.    Reading Material

Required Materials

Textbook:

·         Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill (2019), Research Methods for Business Students, Pearson, ISBN 1292208783, 9781292208787 (available for loan in the AAU Library)

 

Required articles:

·         1. Kivunja, C. (2016). How to Write an Effective Research Proposal for Higher Degree Research in Higher Education: Lessons from Practice. International Journal of Higher Education, 5(2), 163-172. (available on NEO)

·         2. Jesson, J. K., & Lacey, F. M. (2006). How to do (or not to do) a critical literature review. Pharmacy education, 6(2), 139-148. (available on NEO)

·         3. Patton, M. (1990). Qualitative evaluation and research methods (pp. 169-186). Beverly Hills, CA: Sage. (available on NEO)

·         4. Elo, S., & Kyngäs, H. (2008). The qualitative content analysis process. Journal of advanced nursing, 62(1), 107-115. (available on NEO)

·         5. Barrie Gunter, David Nicholas, Paul Huntington, Peter Williams, (2002),"Online versus offline research: implications for evaluating digital media", Aslib Proceedings, Vol. 54 Issue 4 pp. 229 – 239. (available on NEO)

·         6. Ferrando, P. J., Morales-Vives, F., Casas, J. M., & Muñiz, J. (2025). Likert Scales: A Practical Guide to Design, Construction and Use. Psicothema, 37(4), 1-15. (available on NEO)

 

It is required for students to gain the access to AAU online databases. Access will be provided by AAU Library: students need to visit AAU Library in person; it is strongly recommended to do so in the first week of semester or before (the registration takes around 14 days). Access is required after 3^rd week of semester. Relevant databases:

·         Academic databases (JSTOR, PROQUEST, SpringerLink etc.)

·         Industry data databases - (statistical offices, World Bank, OECD)

·         Daily press and magazines databases (Ebsco, PressReader)

Recommended Materials

·         Turner, D. W. (2010). Qualitative Interview Design: A Practical Guide for Novice Investigators. The Qualitative Report, 15(3), 754-760. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2010.1178

·         Kozinets, Robert V. (2002), “The Field Behind the Screen: Using Netnography for Marketing Research in Online Communities,” Journal of Marketing Research, 39 (February), 61-72. (available on NEO)

4.    Teaching methodology

The course will consist of 14 interactive lectures. Students will read required readings in advance (as set in the schedule below) and submit their responses (assignments R1-9). In parallel, students will work on their major assignments (A1-A4) and get both individual and group feedback. In the classroom, the main topics will be supplemented by short case studies, problems, and further readings. At the end of the semester, students will present their group work individually and equally using PowerPoint presentations. There will be one main presentation on the board, each student will be responsible of one part and should present this part. However, all students in the group will be responsible of the entire presentation and should answer all questions related to the presentation.

5.    Course Schedule

Date	Class Agenda
Session 1   Sep 3	Topic: Introduction to research Description: Purpose of research, outputs, process. Types of research and basic terminology. Links to MGT430 Thesis Seminar II and thesis writing. Reading: Saunders Chapter 1 Research Process Assignments/deadlines: A1 assigned, R1 - Due before the class in NEO
Session 2   Sep 10	Topic: Research topic and research proposal Description: How to find the right topic and refine a question? Why / how is existing research useful? Understanding the problem, definitions, theory (concepts, relationships), using empirical findings (results from specific contexts). How to perform literature review? Reading: Saunders Chapter 2 Research Topic Assignments/deadlines: R2 – Due before the class in NEO
Session 3   Sep 17	Topic: Finding, identifying and using the right literature Description: How to perform literature review? (cont.). Work with publication databases. Introduction to citation standards and ethics; citations (in-text vs. footnotes). Bibliography/citation apps. Reading: Saunders Chapter 3 Literature Review Assignments/deadlines: R3 – Due before the class in NEO
Session 4   Sep 24	Topic: A1 presentations and feedback Description: Defining research topic, research aim, research objectives, research questions Reading: Required articles number 1 and 2 Assignments/deadlines: A2 assigned
Session 5   Oct 1	Topic: Formulating the research design Description: Quantitative and qualitative designs, characteristics, interview, focus groups, survey, experiment.   Reading: Saunders Chapter 5 Assignments/deadlines: R4 – Due before the class in NEO
Session 6   Oct 8	Topic: Collecting primary data using research interviews Description: What is qualitative research? What kind of research questions may be answered by this type of research? What methods & data may be used? Interview types, design, questions; observation  Reading: Saunders Chapter 9-10 Assignments/deadlines: R5 – Due before the class in NEO
Session 7   Oct 15	Topic: A2 presentations and feedback Description: Adjusting the research questions after literature review Reading: Required articles number 3 and 4 Assignments/deadlines: A3 assigned
Session 8   Oct 22	Topic: Qualitative data analysis Description: analytical implications of qualitative data, interactive nature of qualitative analyses, qualitative analysis techniques, thematic analysis, template analysis, content analysis Reading: Saunders Chapter 13 Assignments/deadlines: R6– Due before the class in NEO
Oct 29	Mid-term break
Session 9   Nov 5	Topic: Selecting samples Description: Sampling techniques, probability and nonprobability sampling Reading: Saunders Chapter 7 Assignments/deadlines: R7 – Due before the class in NEO
Session 10   Nov 12	Topic: A3 presentations and feedback Description: Qualitative research was executed and presented in class Reading: Required articles number 5 and 6 Assignments/deadlines: A4 assigned
Session 11   Nov 19	Topic: Collecting primary data using questionnaires Description: Questionnaire modes, survey question types, measures from literature, survey design Reading: Saunders Chapter 11 Assignments/deadlines: R8 – Due before the class in NEO
Session 12   Nov 26	Topic: Quantitative data analysis Description: Planning, collecting, organizing data Reading: Saunders Chapter 12 Assignments/deadlines: R9 – Due before the class
Session 13   Dec 3	Topic: Writing and presenting your project report Description: Structure the project report, writing style, giving the presentation, poster presentation Reading: Saunders Chapter 14 Assignments/deadlines: A4 presentations next week!
Session 14   Dec 10	Topic: A4 presentations and evaluation of research projects Description: Presenting the research project and evaluating the process of undertaking a research project and writing up a paper. Reading: none Assignment: none

6.    Course Requirements and Assessment (with estimated workload)

Assignment	Workload (hours)	Weight in Final Grade	Evaluated Course Specific Learning Outcomes	Evaluated Institutional Learning Outcomes*
Attendance	42 hours	0 %	Active participation; engagement in team tasks.	2; 3
Reading Assignment (R1-9) (individual)	18 hours	18%	Ability to understand the essence of the problem. Ability to formulate relevant questions.	1
A1: Topic, Aim, RQs (individual)	20 hours	19%	Ability to identify and process relevant data. Ability to perform analysis and interpretation.	1; 2
A2: Literature review (individual)	20 hours	19%	Ability to collect and process relevant literature. Ability to create a literature review.	1; 2
A3: Interview (qualitative) research (individual)	25 hours	22%	Planning, collection and organization of data. Analysis. Ability to present results in a clear and comprehensive way.	1; 2; 3
A4: Survey (quantitative) research (individual)	25 hours	22%	Planning, collection and organization of data. Analysis. Ability to present results in a clear and comprehensive way.	1; 2; 3
TOTAL	150	100%

*1 = Critical Thinking; 2 = Effective Communication; 3 = Effective and Responsible Action

7.    Detailed description of the assignments

Reading Assignment (R1-9):

Every week, after the class, a reading material will be assigned to you on NEO. Each student should read and write a response to questions at the end of the reading assignment. Responses to the questions should be written on a separate MS Word document, which should be submitted to NEO (always prior to class). The scope of responses should be around 150-200 words. Responses will be discussed in the following class, and each student is responsible for producing discussion environment by answering the questions based on their own perspectives.

 

Assessment breakdown Reading Assignment

Assessed area	Percentage
Content of the assignment, quality and correctness of answers in the assignment	80%
Timely submission on NEO before the class	10%
Discussing the answers in class and answering the questions asked by the professors	10%

 

Assignment 1 (A1): Selecting the topic, defining the aim, specifying the objectives, and finding the Research Questions (RQs).

Each student in the group should read at least two articles on the selected topic. You can use scholar.google.com and zenodo.org to find scholarly publications. Individually find a topic covering a topic of your choice, define the aim of your research, show research objectives and formulate research questions:

1. Find a research topic and company, define aim of the research, and explain its importance.
2. Formulate RQs: Based on your research aim, specify research objectives and formulate the Research Questions based on these objectives.
3. Present these studies in 5 minutes in the class. The assignment should be submitted on NEO before the class in PowerPoint presentation. The presentation can include bullets, paragraphs, tables, figures, and images (only if images are related to the subject).

 

Assessment breakdown Assignment 1

Assessed area	Percentage
Part a.	40%
Part b.	40%
Part c.	20%

 

Assignment 2 (A2): Literature review with academic sources.  

1. Write a literature review based on at least 5 academic articles (per person) related to your topic. First read those articles, and also other sources such as books, statistics, and industry data, then interpret them by your own words and statements. Do not copy and paste from any sources. Present the sources at the end of each title/subject. 
2. As part of the literature review, explain how the research question you chose in Assignment 1 (A1) fits into the existing literature on the topic and if it aims to fill in some gap in the existing literature. Describe how you would formulate your research question differently in A1. If you need any changes in research questions you can reshape them in this stage.
3. Create totally a different literature review using generative AI, explicitly include the prompts you used, and then in the second part of the literature review write a reflection of your use of AI, discuss strong and weak points of the text generated by AI, etc.
4. Present these studies covering all the above-described steps during the class in 20 minutes in PowerPoint presentation. The assignment should be submitted on NEO before the class in PowerPoint presentation. The presentation can include bullets, paragraphs, tables, figures, and images (only if images are related to the subject). After presentations, the groups will be formed based on similar topics and the group topic will be finalized.  

 

Assessment breakdown Assignment 2

Assessed area	Percentage
Part a.	40%
Part b.	20%
Part c.	10%
Part d.	30%

 

Assignment 3 (A3): Execution and presentation of qualitative research.  

Individually perform semi-structured interviews or focus groups for analyzing the topic you have chosen in the previous assignment. Identify the right sample. Interview or focus group questions should be found from previous studies and the sources of the studies should be shown separately. Also, each  group can formulate 2-3 questions. After finalizing the questions, perform pilot and modify the questions if needed. Each student should conduct the qualitative research (online or in-person) with at least 3 relevant respondents. After taking approvals from the professor, process these interviews, analyze, and present the main findings. Produce a short research paper summarizing the whole process. Use Zotero or other bibliography management tool for references. Present your work at class in 15 minutes.

 

Recommended structure:

●        Introduction (research aim and research question)

●        Literature review

●        Data collection

●        Sampling technique and sample size

●        Data analysis technique

●        Findings

●        Discussion and Conclusion

●        References

 

The assignment should be prepared in PowerPoint. Only one group member should submit the presentation. It should be submitted to NEO on the day of presentation, just before the class. The presentation can include bullets, paragraphs, tables, figures, and images (only if images are related to the subject). Each student will be graded separately.

 

Assessment breakdown Assignment 3

Assessed area	Percentage
Introduction, research aim and research questions, literature review	10%
Data collection, sampling, data analysis	30%
Findings and Conclusion	30%
References	10%
Presentation (Timely submission is important!)	20%

 

Assignment 4 (A4): Execution and presentation of quantitative research.  

Individually perform a field study using a questionnaire. Pick your sample and consider its limitation. The questionnaire will consist of three different section. In the first section, each student should formulate at least 2 questions. In the second section, construct/measure/scale questions should be taken from previous studies showing the original resources. Each student should find relevant construct questions adding at least one construct related to the topic and prepare the survey. Perform pilot. Adjust possible errors. Decide on survey technique (online or face-to-face). At least 30 survey participants should be reached by each student. After taking approvals from the professor, conduct the survey, analyze data, and present the main findings. Produce a short research paper summarizing the whole process. Use Zotero or other bibliography management tool for references. Present your work at class in 15 minutes.

 

Recommended structure:

●        Introduction (research aim and research question/hypothesis)

●        Literature review

●        Data collection

●        Sampling technique and sample size

●        Data analysis technique

●        Findings

●        Discussion and Conclusion

●        References

 

The assignment should be prepared in PowerPoint. Only one group member should submit the presentation. It should be submitted to NEO on the day of presentation, just before the class. The presentation can include bullets, paragraphs, tables, figures, and images (only if images are related to the subject). Each student will be graded separately.

 

Assessment breakdown Assignment 4

Assessed area	Percentage
Introduction, research aim and research questions, literature review	10%
Data collection, sampling, data analysis	30%
Findings and Conclusion	30%
References	10%
Presentation (Timely submission is important!)	20%

 

8.    General Requirements and School Policies

General requirements

All coursework is governed by AAU’s academic rules. Students are expected to be familiar with the academic rules in the Academic Codex and Student Handbook and to maintain the highest standards of honesty and academic integrity in their work. Please see the AAU intranet for a summary of key policies regarding coursework.

Course specific requirements

There are no special requirements or deviations from AAU policies for this course.