Theft in the Workplace

Insights associated with research design methods

Employees and customers in nearly every type of business steal over a billion dollars a week from unknowing employers. The "cheating culture" has created an atmosphere that dissuades whistle blowers from coming forward to expose this costly practice. This paper will explain which research design would be the most effective way to combat theft in the workplace. This discussion will include drawbacks in the singular design approach. We will also detail the power of using both the quantitative and qualitative designs when combating theft in the workplace.

There are two types of research method qualitative and quantitative. Qualitative research design basically uses the verbal data that has been collected over time. Collected data has been reviewed and interpreted for purpose of a research project. This type of research has a very wide range of data that is available. The primary goal of qualitative research design is to provide data and details about what the research is about.

Quantitative research focuses more in counting and identifying elements that are needed for the actual research project. This approach provides more detailed explanation of what has been observed. This type of approach is focused on details for the actual project of combating theft in the workplace. Collecting all data and identifying the most important elements enables an employer to create the conclusion.

Both qualitative and quantitative research methods could be combined to make the research provide more insights than just one method alone. The text mentions that qualitative research has been known to be susceptible to human error and bias in data collection and interpretation (Cooper & Schindler, 2011). Qualitative methods of research are to explore an issue while answering several questions regarding the issue. Designs for qualitative research that is used frequently are individual depth interviews and case studies. Quantitative methods of research are a method that could be used to prove or disprove a hypothesis by finding the relationships between the independent and dependent variables. Designs for quantitative research are more precise and mostly measure consumer opinions, behaviors, and attitudes.

Choosing the right research method would depend on the information needed and how much time is available. The success of any business research project depends upon the effectiveness of the research design. The research design is an important aspect of a research project and outlines the methods the research team will use to collect, analyze, and report all of the data and results needed to form conclusions and answer research questions as well as outline the timeframe, purpose, and environment of the study. Understanding the pros and cons to the various methods will allow the research team to implement only those methods that would be