BUAD 493 Research Methods for Honors Students (Spring 2015)

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA Marshall School of Business BUAD 493 – Research Methods for Honors Students (Spring 2015) T/Th 12:00-1:50 HOH 302 Syllabus Instructors: Prof. Ashok Srinivasan Prof. Vincenzo Quadrini Professor Valerie Folkes Telephone: (213) 821-3633 (213) 740-6521 (213) 740-5056 Email: [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Office hours: M/W 2:30—4:00 pm By appointment Tues. 2-3:00 and by appointment

Course Description The goal of this course is to familiarize students with a set of methods frequently used to conduct research in business. Business research is a systematic and organized process to study “real world” problems and to find solutions for these problems. Knowledge is gained in defining interesting and important research problems, designing research projects, building models, collecting data in a systematic and thoughtful manner, recording and analyzing data, and reaching and reporting conclusions. The class will be divided into 4 modules:

1. The Fundamentals of Research: In this section we will concentrate in understanding what is good research, how to find a good research topics, how to transform a research topic to good research questions and how to conduct the research. Finally, we will concentrate in how to write a good research paper. The instructor for this module is Professor Valerie Folkes. 2. Research application in economic and finance: In this section, we will discuss specific research topics that have received significant attention in economics and finance. The analysis of these topics provides some examples of how to formulate research questions given the topic of interest and how to address them. By going through these examples, students will be able to see in practice how research is conducted. The instructor for this module is Professor Vincenzo Quadrini. 3. Game theory: The instructor for this module is Professor Ashok Srinivasan. 4. Students’ presentations: Students will present their own research proposal. All three instructors will attend the presentations.

Course Prerequisites and Recommended Preparation:

This course is open only to students who have been selected to participate in the Marshall Undergraduate Honors Program in Business Administration. Students who are majoring in

1 Business Administration and who have a GPA of 3.7 or higher are and were successfully interviewed by the director of the program eligible.

Learning Objectives:

By the end of the term, students will learn:

 How to identify a good research problem.  How to refine specific research questions and develop researchable hypotheses  When and why various research methodologies (field studies, experiments, analytical models) are useful, what their limitations are, and what kinds of questions they help us address.  How to derive meaningful conclusions from gathered data.  How to write a research paper.

This class will also provide the honors students with the methodological tools to conduct their own thesis as part of the Honors program.

Required Materials Avinash K. Dixit and Barry J. Nalebuff: Thinking Strategically: The Competitive Edge in Business, Politics and Everyday Life, W. W. Norton & Co. (1993). O’Leary, Zina: The Essential Guide to Doing Your Research Project, Sage (2nd Ed.) (2014). Course reader: available at the Bookstore Reading material posted on Blackboard Instructional Methods The class will consist of lectures, discussions, quizzes, home assignments and a final research project. The course Reader and textbooks cover the theory for all the topics discussed in this course. The lecture notes in PowerPoint will summarize all of the theory and concepts needed for this class. The lecture notes will be posted on Blackboard. Grading The course grade is based on in-class quizzes (there will be two quizzes), case assignments, and class participation, according to the following weights: Class Participation 10% Term Paper – Research Proposal 30% Module Assessment 60% R esearch proposal. The research proposal is due on the date of the final exam. You will propose a research project and describe the method you will use to investigate the issue you propose and describe how you will analyze your findings. The paper should be submitted as a Word document (double-spaced, one inch margins, 12 point font) by noon of May 13, 2015. Each proposal should include a title, a 200 word abstract, a reference list (in alphabetical order by author’s last name), a timetable for completing the study, as well as the text. The proposal will be graded based on its meeting the deadline (late papers will be penalized a full letter grade for each 24 hours they are late), its completeness (it must include all required elements), its creativity and insight, the

2 quality of the literature review (a thorough and critical review of the pertinent literature is needed), the extent to which the proposed research methodology is completely specified and is feasible, the appropriateness of the proposed analysis, and the proposal’s overall communication effectiveness (e.g., the writing is clear and grammatical, the material is well organized). The research proposal may build on work you have performed or are currently engaging in for another class only if you get the approval of the three instructors in advance. Send an email to all three instructors describing the previous or current class, identifying that class’ requirements, specifying the extent to which the work is solely your own and attaching copies of the work you have already done. If you have not been entirely forthright about submitting work performed for another class, your grade will be penalized. You may also write a proposal that builds on work that you have performed or are currently engaged in while collaborating with professor, either as paid work or nonpaid work. As with classwork, you must send an email to the three instructors and get the approval of all three in advance for such a proposal. Module assessment. There are three main modules to this course: research methods, applications in economics and finance and game theory. The fourth module consists of students’ presentation of their own research proposal. Class Participation

It is very important for each student to actively participate in the class discussion. Read the course materials before the class and make sure you are familiar with the main issues to be discussed in class. You will be called upon to participate in class. Your participation is evaluated mainly on the quality of your contribution and insights. Every effort will be made to call on as many students who wish to speak up as possible. The participation credits include class participation and contribution and attendance.

Assignment Submission Policy Assignments must be turned in on the due date/time electronically via Blackboard. Any assignment turned in late, even if by only a few minutes, will receive a grade deduction (for example, if your work is a B+ grade, you will be given a C+ grade). If your internet breaks down on the due date, you must deliver a hard copy at the beginning of class on that day. If you are unable to attend class on that day, make arrangements for it to be delivered to the classroom or to Instructor by the start of class. Late or not, however, you must complete all required assignments to pass this course. Add/Drop Process If you are absent six or more times prior to the second module (the last day to withdraw from a course with a grade of “W”), I may ask you to withdraw from the class by that date. These policies maintain professionalism and ensure a system that is fair to all students. Emergency Preparedness/Course Continuity In case of a declared emergency if travel to campus is not feasible, USC executive leadership will announce an electronic way for instructors to teach students in their residence halls or homes using a combination of Blackboard, teleconferencing, and other technologies. Please activate your course in Blackboard with access to the course syllabus. Whether or not you use Blackboard regularly, these preparations will be crucial in an emergency. USC's

3 Blackboard learning management system and support information is available at blackboard.usc.edu. Notice on Academic Integrity Discussion regarding case assignments is encouraged; however, the final write-up of each case assignment should be of your own. The use of unauthorized material, communication with fellow students during an examination, attempting to benefit from the work of another student, and similar behavior that defeats the intent of an examination or other class work is unacceptable to the University. It is often difficult to distinguish between a culpable act and inadvertent behavior resulting from the nervous tensions accompanying examinations. Where a clear violation has occurred, however, the instructor may disqualify the student's work as unacceptable and assign a failing mark on the paper. There may be additional penalties, including failing the course, in accordance to the university policies, as listed in the SCampus. For Students with Disabilities Any student requesting academic accommodations based on a disability is required to register with Disability Services and Programs (DSP) each semester. A letter of verification for approved accommodations can be obtained from DSP. Please be sure the letter is delivered to your instructor as early in the semester as possible. DSP is located in STU 301 and is open 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. The number for DSP is (213) 740-0776. Course Disclaimer The intention of the team of instructors is to provide you with information, offer practice with skill sets, and enhance your capacity to conduct research projects. The learning environment will be collaborative and supportive; we will learn from one another both in and out of the classroom. To that end, modifications to this syllabus might be warranted as determined by the instructors as we assess the learning needs of this particular class of students.

4 Schedule in Summary: Topics Folkes 1/13 Course introduction and overview 1/15 Developing your research question 1/20 Reviewing the literature 1/22 Basic types of research methods 1/27 Survey data and sampling 1/29 Experiments 2/3 Quantitative data analysis 2/5 Writing the report 2/10 Research proposal presentations Quadrini 2/12 Review of applied statistical methods 2/17 Application 1 – Employment trends in the US 2/19 Application 1 – Continue 2/24 Application 2 – The raising income inequality in the US 2/26 Application 2 – Continue 3/3 Application 3 – The dynamics of US trade 3/5 Application 3 – Continue 3/10 Application 4 – Economic development in poor countries 3/12 Application 5 – Continue Srinivasan 3/24 What is Game Theory? 3/26 Building blocks of game theory-1 3/31 Building blocks of game theory-2 4/2 Sequential vs Simultaneous Moves 4/7 The Prisoner’s Dilemma and other games 4/9 Mixed Strategies and the Minimax theorem 4/14 Strategic Moves and Credible Committments 4/16 Experimental game theory/ GT Presentations 4/21 GT Presentations/Quiz All three instructors 4/23 Presentations 4/28 Presentations 4/30 Presentations 5/13 Research proposal due by noon

5 DETAILED COURSE OUTLINE

Module 1: Introduction to Research Methods and Experiments (Prof. Valerie Folkes) Date Topic Reading Deliverables 1/13 Introduction 1/15 Developing O’Leary, Ch. 3 Use the four-step question generation process described on page 37- Your 38, to develop your research question. Submit this on Blackboard by Research 8 AM. Be prepared to give a 3 minute oral presentation of your Question research question in class. 1/20 Reviewing O’Leary, Ch. 4 the Literature – pp. 58-66, Ch 5 and Ch. 6 1/22 Research O’Leary, Ch. 7 Search the academic literature for sources pertinent to your topic. methods & 8 Identify at least 8 articles published in academic journals since 1980 that are pertinent. Organize these into at least three topics that are relevant to your project. There should be at least two references for each topic. Summarize the relevance of each article in 2-3 sentences as a Word document, with the title of your project, your name and headings. Turn this reference list in to Blackboard by 8AM. 1/27 Survey Data O’ Leary, Ch. Perform an expert interview with a USC prof. who has conducted and sampling 10 & 11 research relevant to your research question. No written product due. 1/29 Experiments Cohn, Fehr Download from our library website and read the Cohn et al. article on and Marechal “Business Culture and Dishonesty in the Banking Industry.” Describe (2014) article one or more hypotheses that you believe are important to pursue and in Nature are feasible to test in a follow-up study to Cohn et al. State the hypotheses formally and explain why they are important to pursue. Turn in this one page paper to Blackboard by 8AM. 2/3 Quantitative O’Leary Ch 13 Data analysis 2/5 Writing the O’Leary Ch. 15 report 2/10 Research Write a proposal for an experiment. Propose one or more hypotheses proposals to test about an issue pertinent to your topic of interest. Explain why these hypotheses are important and interesting to test. Design an experiment to test your hypothesis. Identify the independent variables and the dependent variables. State the hypothesis about the effect of the independent variable(s) on the dependent variable(s). Specify how you would operationalize the independent and dependent variables. Include a flow chart that illustrates the relationships among the variables. In a table or graph, depict the predicted results of your experiment. Turn in this paper to Blackboard by 8AM. Give an oral Power Point presentation using no more than 5 slides (including the title slide). Your performance in this module contributes toward 20% of your grade (20 points). Below are shown the maximum number of points you may receive for each assignment: 1/15 Research Question 2 points 1/22 Literature Review 2 points 1/29 Hypotheses 2 points 2/10 Research proposal 14 points

6 When you submit these assignments on Blackboard, title each file with your last name and the assignment name (e.g., Smith researchquestion.docx; Smith literature.docx). All are due by 8AM. Module 2: Applications in economics and finance (Prof. Vincenzo Quadrini) Date Topic Reading Deliverables 2/12 Review of Handout Problem set: application of statistical methods reviewed in this Statistical posted on meeting. methods Blackboard 2/17 Application 1: Reading Students should read the posted material before class. Some of the Employment material concepts contained in the readings are presented with the use of trends in the posted on technical terms that I will explain in class. US Blackboard 2/19 Application 1: Assignment 1: students are asked to address a particular question (continue) related to the topic of “employment trends” using the statistical methods reviewed in the first meeting of this module. 2/24 Application 2: Reading Students should read the posted material before class. Some of the The rising material concepts contained in the readings are presented with the use of income posted on technical terms that I will explain in class. inequality in Blackboard the US 2/26 Application 2: Assignment 2: students are asked to address a particular question (continue) related to the topic of “income inequality” using the statistical methods reviewed in the first meeting of this module. 3/3 Application 3: Reading Students should read the posted material before class. Some of the The dynamics material concepts contained in the readings are presented with the use of of US trade posted on technical terms that I will explain in class. Blackboard 3/5 Application 3: Assignment 3: students are asked to address a particular question (continue) related to the topic of “international trade” using the statistical methods reviewed in the first meeting of this module. 3/10 Application 4: Reading Students should read the posted material before class. Some of the Economic material concepts contained in the readings are presented with the use of development posted on technical terms that I will explain in class. in poor Blackboard countries 3/12 Application 4: Assignment 4: students are asked to address a particular question (continue) related to the topic of “economic development” using the statistical methods reviewed in the first meeting of this module. There are no exams or quizzes for this module. Your performance for this module will be based on one problem set and four assignments. It contributes toward 20% of your grade (20 points).

Module 3: Game theory (Prof. Ashok Srinivasan) Date Topic Reading Deliverables 3/24 What is game What is Read theory Strategic “Introduction: What is Strategic Behavior?” pp.1-6

7 Behavior? “Ten Tales of Strategy”, pp. 7-30 3/26 The building Dixit & Read blocks of Nalebuff, “Anticipating your Rival Response,” pp. 31-55 game theory Chapter 2 3/31 The building Dixit & Read blocks of Nalebuff, “Anticipating your Rival Response,” pp. 31-55 game theory Chapter 2 4/2 Sequential Vs Dixit & “Seeing through your Rival’s Strategy,” pp. 56-84 Simultaneous Nalebuff, Moves Chapter 3 4/7 The Dixit & Read Prisoner’s Nalebuff, “Resolving the Prisoner’s Dilemma,” pp. 89-118 Dilemma and Chapter 4 Homework 1 Due other games: Equilibrium, truth telling, cooperation, commitment and communicati on 4/9 Mixed Dixit & Read Strategies Nalebuff, “Unpredictability,” pp. 168-198 and the Chapter 7 Minimax Theorem 4/14 Strategic Dixit & Read Moves, Nalebuff, “Strategic Moves” pp. 119-141 Credible Chapters 5 & 6 Read Committmen “Credible Commitments” pp. 142-167 ts Homework 2 Due 4/16 Experimental Chapter 2 in Read Game theory: Behavioral “Ultimatum and Dictator Games”, “Methodological Variables”, What is game Game Theory “Demographic Variables”, and “Culture,” pp. 43-74 Theory Good by Colin F. for? Camerer. pp. GT Team Presentations 43-67 Behavioral Game Theory by Colin F. Camerer. pp. 43-67

4/21 Quiz GT Team Presentations Your performance in this module contributes toward 20% of your grade (20 points). Grading will be based on 2 Homeworks, a Final Quiz, Team Presentations and on-line problems/games.

Module 4: Student presentation (all three instructors) 4/23 Presentations

8 4/28 Presentations 4/30 Presentations Powerpoint slides must be emailed to the Instructors 24 hours prior to the start of the presentation.

Final Deliverable: Written research proposal (all three instructors) Written research proposals must be emailed to all three instructors by noon of May 13, 2005.