Monday, 13 February 2023

How to refine research objectives for a research proposal for Accounting and Finance study: a note

How to refine research objectives for a research proposal for Accounting and Finance study: a note


The proposal information provided by the student (L) are as follows:

Topic: The effect of the Crisis (Covid-19) on the share price of different industries in HK

Objectives:

O1: Suppose all crises hurt the share price

O2: Evaluate the effect of the crisis on different industries

O3: Evaluate the effect of the unemployment rate among different industries

Research rationale:

Reserve value during Crisis 

Regression model: 

y: Share price float (among different industries (Medical, Tourism, Finance))

x1: Covid-19 severity (Infected numbers)

x2:Performance of those industries (ROA, GOP) (P/E ratio) (EPS)

x3:unemployment rate of each industry

So there are three models for this research.


Review comments are as follows:

First of all: "O1: Suppose all crises hurt the share price": delete it; it is not a research objective at all.

Now, specify two related main research objectives, probably:

Main research objective 1: to evaluate the impact of covid-19 on the share prices of three industries in HK in 2022.

Main research objective 2: to evaluate the impact of corporate financial performance on the share prices of three industries in HK in 2022.

These two main research objectives justify the study of the following three research questions in the form of hypothesis statements:

hypothesis statement 1: the number of yearly reported covid-19 cases (x1) has no effect on the share prices (y) of three industries (ie., industry 1, industry 2 and industry 3 in HK in 2022)

hypothesis statement 2: the financial performance of ROA (x2) .... has no effect on the share price of three industries (ie., industry 1, industry 2 and industry 3 in HK in 2022

....etc  [up to three hypothesis statements covering 3 x variables and 1 y variable]. 

Note: There could be other  control variables (e.g. control variable 1: industry 1; control variable 2: industry 2; control variable 3: industry 3, to consider in the multiple regression formula formulation.


The revised proposal title is: The effect of the Crisis (Covid-19) and corporate financial financial performance on the share price of three industries in HK in 2022


Final comment: Student (L) needs to justify the whole research topic, research objectives and research questions via a  preliminary literature review (including a research gap analysis) and a preliminary desk research.

Sunday, 12 February 2023

Is my Research Methods proposal (Accounting and Finance) an appropriate one: a note

Is my Research Methods proposal (Accounting and Finance) an appropriate one: a note


1. The topic theme is Accounting and Finance related?

2. There are 1-2 main research objectives, which support three research questions (in the form of correlation hypothesis statements).

3. The proposed research method involves usage of correlation analysis, notably multiple regression analysis and the sample size is adequate (e.g. 50 records).

4. The research method proposed utilizes updated secondary data.

5. The topic and research design are supported by some findings from preliminary literature review and desk research, notably via a research gap analysis.

6. The proposal considers a certain number of academic references (e.g. 5-10 academic references), notably a few recent ones (e.g. published over the last 3 years).

7. The research proposal title is in line with the main research objectives.

8. The proposal conforms to the research methods proposal template.

9. The proposal includes a preliminary reference list (and in harvard referencing format).

10. Some checking is done to ensure that the proposed research method is feasible  (e.g. on the availability of the secondary data for research purpose).

11. Avoid data set that produces Excel reports with error code figures (study the four demo files on the subject Google Drive).

12. Evaluate the quality of the research design in terms of internal and external validity.


Students need to pay special attention to the updated requirements from the UK lecturer and other local teaching staff involved.

Saturday, 11 February 2023

e-resource on MS pivot table as a research tool

 e-resource on MS pivot table as a research tool


A. Articles: Pivot table as a research tool

1. on multidimensional data analysis - a conceptual note. [about using Excel pivot table].

2.  using Excel pivot table to study homelessness.

B. Videos: MS Pivot tables

(1) how to create pivot tables. 

(2) pivot table tutorial.


C. Underlying concepts of pivot table as research tool (videos):

1. Video: what is OLAP.

2. Video: on dimensions and measures.