Syndicated Sources

Companies that collect and sell common pools of data designed to serve information needs shared by a number of clients, including competing firms in the same industry; can be classified based on the unit of measurement. Advantages: shared costs (cheaper),

Periodic Surveys

Surveys that collect data on the same set of variables at regular intervals, each time sampling from a new group of respondents.

Panel Surveys

Surveys that measure the same group of respondents over time, but not necessarily on the same variables.

Shared Surveys

Surveys developed and executed for multiple clients, each of whom shares the expenses.

Psychographics

Quantified psychological profiles of individuals.

Lifestyle

A distinctive pattern of living that is described by the activities people engage in, the interests they have, and the opinions they hold of themselves and the world around them (AIO's).

Purchase Panels

A data-gathering technique in which respondents record their purchases in a diary.

Media Panels

A data-gathering technique that involves samples of respondents whose television viewing behavior is automatically recorded by electronic devices, supplementing the purchase information recorded in a diary.

Scanner Data

Data obtained by passing merchandise over a laser scanner that reads the UPC code from the packages.

Volume Tracking Data

Scanner data that provide information on purchases by brand, size, price, and flavor or formulation.

Scanner Panels

Scanner data collected from panel members who are issued an ID card that enables their purchases to be linked to their identities.

Scanner Panels With Cable TV

The combination of a scanner panel with manipulations of the advertising that is being broadcast by cable TV companies.

Audit

A data-collection process derived from physical records or inventory analysis. Data are collected personally by the researcher or by representatives of the researcher, and the data are based upon counts, usually of physical objects. Used to:
- Determine s

Industry Services

Secondary data derived from industrial firms and organizational sources and intended for industrial or institutional use.

Single-Source Data

An effort to combine data from different sources by gathering integrated information on household and marketing variables applicable to the same set of respondents. Provide integrated information on household variables, including media consumption and pur

Qualitative Research

An unstructured, exploratory research methodology based on small samples that provides insights and understanding of the problem setting; generates primary data. It is used to define the problem more precisely, to formulate hypotheses, or to ID/clarify ke

Quantitative Research

A research methodology that seeks to quantify the data and typically applies some form of statistical analysis. Seeks conclusive evidence based on large, representative samples and typically involves some form of statistical analysis; can be treated as co

Direct Approach

A type of qualitative research in which the purposes of the project are disclosed to the respondent or are obvious given the nature of the interview; not disguised. Includes focus groups and depth interviews.

Indirect Approach

A type of qualitative research in which the purposes of the project are disguised from the respondents. Includes projective techniques.

Focus Group

An interview conducted by a trained moderator among a small group of respondents in an unstructured and natural manner. Purpose is to gain insights on issues of interest to the researcher by listening to a group of people from the appropriate target marke

Depth Interview

An unstructured, direct personal interview in which a single respondent is probed by a highly skilled interviewer to uncover underlying motivations, beliefs, attitudes, and feelings on a topic.

Grounded Theory

An inductive and more structured approach in which each subsequent depth interview is adjusted based on the cumulative findings from previous depth interviews with the purpose of developing general concepts or theories. Useful in designing new products or

Projective Technique

An unstructured and indirect form of questioning that encourages respondents to project their underlying motivations, beliefs, attitudes, or feelings regarding the issues of concern. They attempt to disguise the purpose of the research; used in mktg resea

Association Techniques

A type of projective technique in which the respondent is presented with a stimulus and asked to respond with the first thing that comes to mind. Word association is the best known of this technique.

Word Association

A projective technique in which respondents are presented with a list of words, one at a time. After each word is presented, respondents are asked to give the first word that comes to mind. Words of interest are called "test words.

Completion Technique

A projective technique that requires the respondent to complete an incomplete stimulus situation.

Sentence Completion

A projective technique in which respondents are presented with a number of incomplete sentences and asked to complete them.

Story Completion

A projective technique in which respondents are provided with part of a story and required to give the conclusion in their own words.

Construction Technique

A projective technique in which the respondent is required to construct a response in the form of a story, dialogue, or description.

Picture-Response Technique

A projective technique in which the respondent is shown a picture and asked to tell a story describing it.

Cartoon Tests

Cartoon characters are shown in a specific situation related to the problem. The respondents are asked to indicate the dialogue that one cartoon character might make in response to the comment(s) of another cartoon.

Expressive Techniques

Projective techniques in which the respondent is presented with a verbal or visual situation and asked to relate the feelings and attitudes of other people to the situation.

Role Playing

Respondents are asked to play the role or assume the behavior of someone else.

Third-Person Technique

A projective technique in which the respondent is presented with a verbal or visual situation and asked to relate the beliefs and attitudes of a third person to the situation.

Survey Method

A structured questionnaire given to a sample of a population and designed to elicit specific information from respondents. Advantages: ease, reliability, simplicity. Disadvantages: respondents might be unable/unwilling to provide desired information.

Structured Data Collection

Use of a formal questionnaire that presents questions in a prearranged order. Can result in loss of validity for data pertaining to beliefs and feelings.

Sample Control

The ability of the survey mode to effectively and efficiently reach the units specified in the sample.

Response Rate

The percentage of the total attempted interviews that are completed.

Social Desirability

The tendency of the respondents to give answers that might not be accurate but that might be desirable from a social standpoint.

Interviewer Bias

The error due to the interviewer not following the correct interviewing procedures.

Fax Survey

A survey for which the questionnaire is transmitted by a fax machine to respondents.

Mail Panel

A large and nationally representative sample of households that have agreed to participate in mail questionnaires, product tests, and survey research.

Nonresponse Bias

Bias that arises when actual respondents differ from those who refuse to participate in ways that affect the survey results.

Prepaid Incentive

Coupons, money, or some other incentive to participate that is included with the survey or questionnaire; shown to be more effective than promised incentives.

Promised Incentive

Coupons, money, or some other incentive to participate that is sent only to those respondents who complete the survey.

Observation

The recording of behavioral patterns of people, objects, and events in a systematic manner to obtain information about the phenomenon of interest.

Personal Observation

An observational research strategy in which human observers record the phenomenon being observed as it occurs.

Humanistic Inquiry

A special form of personal observation in which the researcher is immersed in the system under study.

Mechanical Observation

An observational research strategy in which mechanical devices record the phenomenon being observed.

Ethnographic Research

The study of human behavior in its natural context that involves observation of behavior and setting along with depth interviews (like gorillas in the mist).

Causality

When the occurrence of X increases the probability of the occurrence of Y. 3 conditions to satisfy: concomitant variation, time order of occurrence of variables, and absence of other possible causal factors.

Concomitant Variation

A condition for inferring causality that requires that a cause, X, and an effect, Y, occur together or vary together as predicted by the hypothesis under consideration.

Experiment

The process of manipulating one or more independent variables and measuring their effect on one or more dependent variables, while controlling for the extraneous variables.

Independent Variables

Variables that are manipulated by the researcher and whose effects are measured and compared (e.g. price levels, package designs, and ad themes).

Test Units

Individuals, organizations, or other entities whose response to independent variables or treatments is being studied (e.g. consumers, stores, and geographic areas).

Dependent Variables

Variables that measure the effect of the independent variables on the test units (e.g. sales, profits, and market share).

Extraneous Variables

Variables, other than the independent variables, that influence the response of the test units (e.g. store size, location, and competitive effort).

Random Assignment

Involves randomly assigning test units to the experimental and control groups. It is one of the most common techniques used to control for the effect of extraneous variables on the dependent variable; attempts to minimize influence of extraneous factors.

Experimental Group

The group exposed to the manipulated independent variable.

Control Group

The control group is not exposed to the independent variable manipulation. It provides a point of comparison when examining the effects of these manipulations on the dependent variable.

Experimental Design

The set of experimental procedures specifying: the test units and sampling procedures, independent variables, dependent variables, and how to control the extraneous variables.

Internal Validity

A measure of accuracy of an experiment. It measures if the manipulation of the independent variables, or treatments, actually caused the effects on the dependent variable(s).

External Validity

A determination of whether the cause-effect relationships found in the experiment can be generalized.

History

Specific events that are external to the experiment but that occur at the same time as the experiment.

Maturation

An extraneous variable attributable to changes in the test units themselves that occur with the passage of time.

Instrumentation

An extraneous variable involving changes in the measuring instrument or in the observers or scores themselves.

Statistical Regression

An extraneous variable that occurs when test units with extreme scores move closer to the average score during the course of the experiment.

Selection Bias

An extraneous variable attributable to the improper assignment of test units to treatment conditions.

Mortality

An extraneous variable attributable to the loss of test units while the experiment is in progress.

Randomization

A method of controlling extraneous variables that involves randomly assigning test units to experimental and control groups by using random numbers. Treatment conditions also are randomly assigned to experimental groups.

Matching

A method of controlling extraneous variables that involves matching test units on a set of key background variables before assigning them to the treatment conditions.

Statistical Control

A method of controlling extraneous variables by measuring the extraneous variables and adjusting for their effects through statistical methods.

Design Control

A method of controlling extraneous variables that involves using specific experimental designs.

Pre-Experimental Designs

Designs that do not control for extraneous factors by randomization.

True Experimental Designs

Experimental designs distinguished by the fact that the researcher can randomly assign test units to experimental and control groups and also randomly assign treatments to experimental groups.

Quasi-Experimental Design

Designs that apply part of the procedures of true experimentation, while lacking full experimental control.

Statistical Designs

Designs that allow for the statistical control and analysis of external variables.

One-Shot Case Study

A pre-experimental design in which a single group of test units is exposed to a treatment, X, and then a single measurement on the dependent variable is taken (X O1).

One-Group Pretest-Posttest Design

A pre-experimental design in which a group of test units is measured twice, once before and once after the treatment (O1 X O2).

Static Group

A pre-experimental design in which there are two groups: the experimental group (EG), which is exposed to the treatment, and the control group (CG). Measurements on both groups are made only after the treatment and test units are not assigned at random (E

Pretest-Posttest Control Group Design

A true experimental design in which the experimental group is exposed to the treatment but the control group is not. Pretest and posttest measures are taken on both groups. Test units are randomly assigned (EG: R O1 X O2 CG: R O3 _ O4).

Interactive Testing Effect

An effect in which a prior measurement affects the test unit's response to the independent variable.

Posttest-Only Control Group Design

A true experimental design in which the experimental group is exposed to the treatment but the control group is not and no pretest measure is taken. Test units are randomly assigned (EG: R X O1 CG: R _ O2); treatment effect=O1-O2.

Time Series Design

A quasi experimental design that infolves periodic measurements on the dependent variable for a group of test units. Then, the treatment is administered by the researcher or occurs naturally. After the treatment, periodic measurements are continued in ord

Multiple Time Series Design

A time series design that includes another group of test units to serve as a control group.

Factorial Design

A statistical experimental design used to measure the effects of two or more independent variables at various levels and to allow for interactions between variables.

Laboratory Environment

An artificial setting for experimentation in which the researcher constructs the desired conditions.

Demand Artifacts

Responses given because the respondents attempt to guess the purpose of the experiment and respond accordingly.

Field Environment

An experimental location set in actual market conditions.

Test Marketing

An application of a controlled experiment done in limited, but carefully selected, test markets. It involves replicating the planned national marketing program for a product in the test markets.

Test Markets

Carefully selected parts of the marketplace that is particularly suitable for test marketing.

Debriefing

After the experiment, the process of informing test subjects what the experiment was about and how the experimental manipulations were performed.