Ethics and professional standards: Quality standards

 

This paper describes the key challenges of moving offshore. The various issues that market research companies are evaluating in reference to outsourcing are examined. The focus is from a quality persp ...

The early research industry was experimental, experiential and built around key individuals' skills. It is now far too often a 'process' with rules and procedures, resulting in a commoditised context ...

Argues that quality standard schemes such as IQCS and MRQSA, widely seen as final rubber stamps of quality, often conceal weaknesses in research practice which, if known to clients, would cast serious ...

Today one can choose between several different software packages for management of web access panels. These software packages can be exellent tools, but building and maintaining a good panel is still ...

Conducting representative online market research requires three preconditions: high internet penetration among the survey population; a reliable sampling frame (e.g., an access panel); valid sampling ...

Early initiatives of many industry bodies (ESOMAR, MRS, ADM, SYNTEC, MOA) have proactively taken initiatives to formulate guidelines for online research. However, as the industry was then still learn ...

This paper describes a fully automated quality monitoring system that in essence aims to ‘take the researcher out of research’. By reengineering the traditional research process, it is possible to eli ...

Angela Dale, of the Economic and Social Research Council, outlines the methodological developments in the academic sector, with specific exploration of the themes of the Research Methods Programme, th ...

Within the community of survey researchers there has been an increasing awareness that the total survey error approach has only partially realised its objective of setting up a model to estimate the t ...

A split run test was performed to assess the impact of mail questionnaire colour on response rates. A total of 4,250 questionnaires were mailed, half on pastel yellow paper stock and half on white, to ...

Traces the growth of the research market in the UK and across Europe since 1982, and discusses future prospects. The author has been responsible for the AMSO trend report since the early 1980s. Resear ...

This paper describes the motivating factors of a large and a small sized research firm in becoming ISO 9000 certified. It provides a short introduction of the basic aim, requirements and misunderstand ...

The author discusses the Service Standard for Market Research, a major initiative in the industry, principally driven forward by AMSO.

This paper seeks to show that the market research industry in the UK has had two distinct phases in which it has thought very hard about quality. These phases can be linked with different aspects of p ...

In this paper the authors argue that it is inevitable that initiatives such as BS5750 will continue to pick off the more concrete, tangible aspects of the market research process that most readily len ...

Discusses whether it would be advisable for market research practitioners to be certified (i.e. have to obtain a professional qualification). Arguments pro and con, and previous attempts to study this ...

An article arguing that market research companies must pay serious attention to improving quality of service. The BS5750 accreditation is only a start and not a substitute for the enthusiasm and total ...

The author discusses a hidden but significant factor in the conduct of research and teaching in marketing. He suggests that physics, a ‘proper’ science, has exerted a malign influence on the perceptio ...

The paper suggests that even high-level research has not yet fully understood consumer values and beliefs. A web-based survey was undertaken to explore these factors and its methodology and findings a ...

The paper suggests that today’s pressures can compel researchers to conduct research using traditional methodologies and approaches, without assessing other factors and more recent changes. In particu ...

The paper presents an analysis of market research job ads both for clients and agencies, using a systematic content analysis procedure as a qualitative research technique. Implications for personnel, ...

This brief article examines research validity assessment, emphasising the importance of sampling standards and measurement methodology. It further suggests that external validation, meta-analysis, rep ...

Using data from the 1996 USA Survey of Income and Program Participation Incentive Experiment, the paper investigates whether the use of monetary incentives affects the completeness and accuracy of inf ...

The paper notes that there is no single, coherent set of validity and reliability tests for case study research, whereas there is for qualitative and quantitative research. In response, an argument fo ...

This article suggests a number of factors that should be considered to ensure that best practice is being followed. For example, has counter-evidence been taken into account? Have alternative explanat ...