A note on descriptive research: for MBA and Housing Studies students (information from perplexity.ai)
My question 1: "What is descriptive research all about with reference to MBA and Housing Studies dissertation projects?"
The reply: "Descriptive research in the context of MBA and Housing Studies dissertation projects is primarily about systematically describing the characteristics, behaviors, and attributes of a particular population, situation, or phenomenon without manipulating variables. It aims to answer the "what," "where," "when," and "how" questions but not the "why" questions. This type of research is non-experimental and involves observation and measurement to provide a comprehensive and accurate picture of the topic under study.
In MBA dissertations, descriptive research is often used to understand business phenomena such as customer preferences, market trends, or organizational behaviors by collecting quantitative and qualitative data through surveys, observations, or case studies. The data is then analyzed using descriptive statistics to identify patterns, trends, or relationships without attempting to establish cause-effect links.
In Housing Studies dissertations, descriptive research helps in understanding housing affordability issues, housing market trends, or the impact of housing policies by describing the situation based on empirical data. For example, a study might describe the housing challenges faced by international students or residents in a certain area using surveys and descriptive analysis to inform future policy recommendations.
Key points about descriptive research in these dissertations include:
It provides baseline information and a foundation for further research.
It involves data collection methods like surveys, observational studies, and case studies.
It is cost-effective and relatively easy to replicate.
It does not manipulate variables but simply observes and describes.
Its purpose is to describe characteristics, frequencies, trends, and categorizations relevant to the research questions.
Thus, descriptive research is valuable in MBA and Housing Studies dissertation projects for gaining detailed understanding and presenting a factual overview of the subject matter in a systematic way that supports decision-making and future research directions."
My question 2: "Please clarify the topic a bit more with regard to the following research themes:
The reply: "To clarify descriptive research with regard to your specific research themes:
MBA-related theme: "To learn more about consumer buying experience in Hong Kong shopping mall under a weak economy in 2025"
Descriptive research here would aim to systematically describe how consumers are behaving and what their buying experiences are in Hong Kong shopping malls during the current weak economic period.
This includes detailing consumer shopping patterns, preferences, influences, and barriers they face (e.g., price sensitivity, store selection, experiential factors).
The research might capture data through surveys or interviews asking consumers about their frequency of visits, spending habits, satisfaction levels, and adaptations to economic challenges (e.g., turning to e-commerce or cross-border shopping).
Contextually, Hong Kong malls are facing economic pressures such as declining retail sales, increased vacancies, and competition from online platforms and mainland cities. Descriptive research would provide a snapshot of how consumers currently interact with these malls, what changes have occurred, and what experiential or service factors matter most to them under economic constraints.
This foundational understanding helps MBA researchers analyze consumer behavior aspects without testing cause-effect but by outlining clear patterns and trends relevant to managerial strategies and business adaptation.
Housing studies-related theme: "To learn more about Gen Z's living experience in co-living apartments in Hong Kong in 2025"
Descriptive research in this theme would aim to paint a detailed picture of Gen Z residents' lived experiences in co-living apartments, such as their social interactions, satisfaction with amenities, privacy concerns, affordability, and community feeling.
The research could involve surveys, interviews, or observational studies collecting data on various dimensions of daily life, challenges, and benefits experienced by this demographic group.
It would describe characteristics such as the demographics of residents, length of stay, motivations for choosing co-living, and how these living arrangements relate to Gen Z's lifestyle preferences and economic realities.
This is important to provide a factual basis for understanding housing trends and potentially informing policy or development strategies that address Gen Z's needs in the evolving housing market.
It does not seek to explain why certain patterns occur but provides thorough descriptive data on this cohort's realities in co-living contexts in Hong Kong.
In summary, for both MBA and housing studies dissertations, descriptive research focuses on systematically describing the current realities in 2025 of consumer buying behaviors in shopping malls (amid economic struggles) and Gen Z's living circumstances in co-living apartments, respectively. It relies on data collection to map out main features, experiences, and trends as they stand, providing a solid evidence base for further analytical or strategic work."
My question 3: "What are the originality, academic and practical values of descriptive research with reference to the two examples provided (one MBA-related and one Housing Studies-related)?"
The reply: "The originality, academic, and practical values of descriptive research for the two examples—an MBA-related study on consumer buying experience in Hong Kong shopping malls under a weak economy in 2025, and a Housing Studies-related study on Gen Z's living experience in co-living apartments in Hong Kong in 2025—can be outlined as follows:
1. MBA-related: Consumer Buying Experience in Hong Kong Shopping Malls under a Weak Economy
Originality:
Provides a timely and context-specific picture of consumer behavior during an economic downturn, a period that may not have been extensively studied in recent years.
Captures unique consumer responses and adaptations to economic challenges in the specific environment of Hong Kong malls in 2025.
Enhances understanding of consumer experience in a transforming retail landscape shaped by digital shifts and economic pressures.
Academic Value:
Contributes empirical data that fills gaps in the literature on consumer behavior under economic stress, especially in Hong Kong’s retail context.
Offers insights that help develop or refine theories related to consumer psychology, adaptive behaviors, and retail management in weak economies.
Serves as a foundation for comparative studies or future research exploring causal relationships or intervention strategies.
Practical Value:
Provides retailers and mall managers with actionable knowledge about consumer preferences, pain points, and satisfaction factors during economic downturns.
Informs strategies to improve customer engagement, tailor marketing efforts, and optimize mall services to retain and attract shoppers.
Helps policymakers understand the retail sector's challenges, potentially guiding interventions to support sustainable retail environments.
2. Housing Studies-related: Gen Z’s Living Experience in Co-Living Apartments in Hong Kong
Originality:
Offers fresh empirical insights into an emerging housing trend—co-living—among a specific demographic (Gen Z) in a high-density, high-cost city like Hong Kong.
Documents the lived experiences and subjective perceptions of a generation with distinct housing preferences and economic constraints.
Captures data in 2025, reflecting the most recent shifts in lifestyle, economic factors, and housing market dynamics.
Academic Value:
Enriches the body of knowledge in housing studies by providing detailed descriptive data about new living arrangements and generational housing preferences.
Supports theoretical exploration of urban living, community building, and socio-economic factors influencing housing choice.
Establishes a data-driven foundation for longitudinal or causal studies and policy evaluation research.
Practical Value:
Assists housing developers, property managers, and urban planners in designing co-living spaces and services that better meet Gen Z’s needs and expectations.
Provides policymakers with evidence to formulate supportive housing policies and programs targeting younger populations.
Helps social service organizations and community groups understand and address challenges related to shared living, privacy, and social integration.
In both cases, descriptive research offers novel, context-aware data that not only fills academic gaps but also supports practical decision-making by stakeholders, making it a valuable research approach for these contemporary topics in MBA and Housing Studies dissertations."
My question 4: "Are there limitations of the descriptive research in this case, as being "descriptive" does not seem to suggest any "sophisticated" analytical efforts involved for this type of dissertation projects?"
The reply: "Yes, descriptive research has several limitations, especially in the context of MBA and Housing Studies dissertation projects like the two examples you provided. The main limitations include:
Lack of Causal Explanation:
Descriptive research focuses on describing "what" is happening rather than explaining "why" it happens. It does not establish cause-and-effect relationships.
For the MBA example (consumer buying experience in a weak economy), it will describe consumer behaviors and preferences but cannot explain the underlying motivations or economic factors causing those behaviors.
Similarly, for the Housing Studies example (Gen Z co-living experiences), it can describe living conditions and attitudes but not why Gen Z makes those choices or how co-living influences well-being causally.
Limited Analytical Sophistication:
The approach is largely observational and tends to rely on basic statistical tools such as means, percentages, and frequencies.
It does not involve sophisticated modeling, hypothesis testing, or predictive analytics that are often expected in more advanced MBA or social science research.
This can sometimes be perceived as less rigorous or less insightful in terms of deeper analysis.
Potential for Bias and Sampling Issues:
Descriptive studies may suffer from biases related to sample selection, inaccurate respondent reporting, or observer effects.
These biases can impair the representativeness and generalizability of the findings.
Static Picture in a Dynamic Environment:
Results may become outdated quickly, especially in fast-changing contexts like retail markets or housing trends.
It offers a snapshot at one point in time without capturing longitudinal or evolving patterns.
Limited Depth for Complex Social Phenomena:
Descriptive research may struggle to fully capture complex, multifaceted social behaviors or attitudes, reducing the depth of insights about human factors in housing or consumer behavior.
While descriptive research is valuable for providing foundational knowledge, it typically requires follow-up studies with other methodologies (e.g., exploratory, explanatory, experimental) to deepen understanding and address causes, mechanisms, or to test interventions.
In sum, despite its usefulness, descriptive research in these dissertation projects is somewhat limited by its inability to explain causality, its relatively simple analytical approach, and potential issues with bias and temporal relevance. These limitations should be openly acknowledged in the research, along with suggestions for future, more complex research approaches to build on the descriptive findings."
My question 5: "Does a descriptive research-type of dissertation project allow for some minor theory-driven analysis effort to make it more attractive (e.g. more sophisticated in research skill practice) as a dissertation project?"
The reply: "Yes, a descriptive research-type dissertation project can incorporate some minor theory-driven analysis to enhance its academic rigor and demonstrate more sophisticated research skills. While the core purpose of descriptive research is to systematically describe the characteristics and patterns of a phenomenon, integrating theoretical frameworks or concepts can provide valuable structure and depth to the study.
Here’s how theory-driven efforts can be integrated into descriptive research dissertations:
Guiding Research Questions and Hypotheses: Even descriptive studies can formulate hypotheses or expectancies based on existing theories. These hypotheses guide data collection and help focus descriptive analysis on theoretically relevant variables or patterns.
Use of Theoretical or Conceptual Frameworks: The dissertation can employ a relevant theory or conceptual framework to organize the literature review, frame the research questions, and interpret descriptive findings. This framework acts like a "blueprint" to connect the various parts of the research and to situate the descriptive data within larger academic discussions.
Theory-Informed Interpretation: After presenting descriptive statistics or qualitative descriptions, the researcher can relate findings back to theory, offering insights about how the observed patterns reflect, support, or challenge existing theoretical ideas.
Moderate Analytical Sophistication: Descriptive research may also employ correlational or comparative descriptive methods, exploring relationships or differences among key variables without claiming causality, thus showing analytical capabilities beyond purely basic description.
Adding Depth in Qualitative Descriptions: In qualitative descriptive approaches, theoretical lenses might emerge or be adapted during data analysis to help categorize or explain participant experiences more richly.
In sum, while the fundamental nature of descriptive research limits causal inference and experimental manipulation, incorporating theoretical frameworks and theory-driven analysis makes the dissertation more academically robust and attractive. This blended approach reflects a higher level of research skill and scholarly engagement without departing from the core descriptive methodology.
This means your MBA or Housing Studies descriptive dissertation can enhance its value and demonstrate sophisticated research practice by thoughtfully employing theory to inform research design, data collection focus, and nuanced interpretation of descriptive findings."
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