module specification

‘Research methods for dissertations and consultancy projects’ teaches social science research methods from a real-world perspective. Students can follow the dissertation or consultancy project pathway so to apply their understanding of research methods to a substantial piece of independent research.

1. Introduction to Research: Academic and Consultancy LO1
2. Theory and Industry Knowledge LO2
3. Quantitative vs. Qualitative Data LO3
4. Research Designs LO3
5. Causal Inference LO3
6. Population Inference LO3
7. Collecting Qualitative Data LO4
8. Collecting Quantitative Data LO4
9. Analysing Qualitative Data LO4
10. Analysing Quantitative Data LO4
11. Writing Up a Dissertation or Consultancy Project LO5

Students shall receive taught instruction for the first ten teaching weeks of the academic year. During this period students shall receive instruction in leisure and tourism research methods through a series of 1 hour lectures followed by a 1 workshop with the module leader, as well as a subject-specific 1 hour seminar with their course team, where students shall focus on critical analysis of subject-specific research articles covering a range of different research designs.

Support continues via (1) 5 weeks of 2 hour ‘check point’ workshops scheduled to reflect expectations of points in the dissertation or consultancy project process that students should be passing through (e.g., How to write the methods chapter will be scheduled for week 16 when it is expected that students will have completed the prior 2 chapters) the (2) allocation of supervisors who provide an individually based mode of support. Students are encouraged to meet with their supervisor frequently. Methodology surgeries shall be available to assist students with technical aspects of their dissertation or consultancy project (e.g., statistical or thematic analysis).

Course teams will be responsible for allocating supervisors at the start of the academic year and supervisors will be responsible for marking all assessment components of their assigned supervisees. The supervision process will commence via feedback to assessment 1.

Upon successful completion of this module students will be able to:

1. Understand the differences between academic and consultancy research
2. Review and critique either existing academic literature or industry knowledge and define a research project in response to a gap in academic literature or industry challenge
3. Design research that appropriately responds to the research question posed
4. Undertake scientifically rigorous data collection and analysis
5. Draw valid conclusions and infer practical implications from the evidence produced

Students have the option of submitting either a dissertation or a consultancy project:
• Dissertation on a topic relevant to degree of study covering the following sections: Introduction, Literature Review, Method, Results/Findings and Discussion.
• Consultancy Project on a topic relevant to degree of study covering the following sections: Overview of the problem, Method, Findings, Conclusions and Recommendations
Word Limits:
• Quantitative Study: 8,000 words plus or minus 10%
• Qualitative or Mixed Methods Study: 10,000 words plus or minus 10%

Core Texts

Robson, C. (2002) Real World Research, 2nd Edition. Wiley (£5.50 2nd hand from Amazon)

Sampson, J. (2017) A Guide to Quantitative and Qualitative Dissertation Research (Second Edition)

Other Texts

Baaij, M.G. (2014) An introduction to management consultancy. London: Sage Publications Ltd.

Feighery, W. & William, G. (2011). Consulting ethics. Annals of Tourism Research, 38(3), 1031-1050. 

Nelson, B., Economy, P. & Albon, P. (2009) Consulting for dummies. Chichester: Wiley.

Newton, R. (2010). The management consultant: Mastering the art of consultancy. Harlow: Financial Times Prentice Hall.

Wickham, L. & Wickham, J. (2016). Management consulting: Delivering an effective project. 5th edition. Harlow: Pearson.
Brandon-Jones, A., Lewis, M., Verma, R., & Walsman, M. C. (2016). Examining the characteristics and managerial challenges of professional services: An empirical study of management consultancy in the travel, tourism, and hospitality sector. Journal of Operations Management, 42, 9-24.

Key Online Resource

The Knowledge Base: www.socialresearchmethods.net