Psychological sets for scientific observation

Citation

Prince, M. (2011), "Psychological sets for scientific observation", Qualitative Market Research, Vol. 14 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/qmr.2011.21614caa.001

Psychological sets for scientific observation

Article Type: Guest editorial From: Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, Volume 14, Issue 3

About the Guest Editor

Melvin PrincePhD from Columbia University is Professor of Marketing at Southern Connecticut State University. He teaches graduate courses in marketing research, consumer behavior and advertising. He has four books to his credit, including the award-winning Consumer Research for Management Decisions. He is Co-editor of the forthcoming Sage book, Leading Edge Marketing Research: 21st Century Principles and Practices. His articles have previously appeared in such journals as Journal of Advertising, Journal of Advertising Research, Journal of Business Venturing, Journal of Economic Psychology, Business Horizons, and Business Strategy Review. A major theme of his articles include cutting-edge issues in research methodology, such as the reliability of positioning studies, innovative approaches to focus groups, and potentials of mixed methods studies. He is a member of the Editorial Review Board of the Journal of Business Research and also has served as Review Editor of the Journal of Marketing Research. Past academic appointments include teaching and research positions at Brandeis University, Fordham University, Pace, Iona College, and Quinnipiac University. Dr Melvin Prince is also President of Prince Associates and provides analytic counsel to research companies and their clients. His previous industry experience includes marketing research directorships at advertising agencies, manufacturing companies, and the media. He worked in this capacity for BBDO and Marsteller agencies, National Brand Scanning, J.B. Williams and Scholastic Magazines. He is a member of the American Marketing Association, American Statistical Association, Association for Consumer Research, and the Society for Consumer Psychology, a division of the American Psychological Association. He has delivered addresses before the Advertising Research Foundation, the Association of National Advertisers, and the Market Research Council.

One cannot observe everything closely, therefore one must discriminate and try to select the significant. When practicing a branch of science, the ‘trained’ observer deliberately looks for specific things which his training has taught him are significant, but in research he often has to rely on his own discrimination, guided only by his general scientific knowledge, judgment or perhaps an hypothesis he entertains – Beveridge (1957).

The extreme value of even simple observations may be misunderstood or simply ignored by positivist researchers. Observations can link sense-perceptual and intuitional aspects to evoke significant discovery patterns. As W.I.B. Beveridge has noted, total reliance on perspectives of probability and mathematics may lead researchers to overlook strategic and fruitful connections between real-world phenomena. Slender associations from observational experiences may be extremely meaningful when interpreted from an experiential and theoretical framework. Exploitation of these subtle relationships requires a speculative and contemplative mindset to search for clues that lead to more complete understanding.

The main purpose of this special issue of Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal is to serve as platform for the elucidation of a variety of observational techniques. Additionally, the intention is to demonstrate what such techniques may accomplish beyond other modes of data collection and analysis.

Radical innovations in technology and global business are provoking increased diversity and complexity in marketing research. To meet these challenges, this issue focuses on:

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  observational approaches through video and photography;

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  observation by means of gathering and using data via mobile telephones;

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  observation of content on internet corporate and consumer web sites; and

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  methods for creation of retail atmospherics.

The first paper of this special issue is Michael Basil’s contribution on “Use of photography and video in observational research.” Basil examines a variety of observational research uses of photography and video in a number of disciplines. The introduction of both subjective and objective perspectives is underscored.

The strengths of the method lie in overcoming the fleeting nature of most observations. The weakness of the method is the lack of understanding as to how visual data may be used in the research context.

The second paper in this special issue is “Mobile phones as an extension of the participant observer’s self: reflections on the emergent role of an emergent technology” by Wendy Hein, Stephanie O’Donohoe, and Annmarie Ryan. Ethnographic research makes use of mobile phones to support and enhance participant observation.

Mobile phone research access facilitates the translation of social constructionism and interpretivism. Unknowns and caveats in this developing field may result in unanticipated consequences for future research.

Ramazan Nacar and Sebnem Burnaz present the third paper, “A cultural content analysis of multinational companies’ web sites.” This study reexamines its appropriateness in terms of cultural values and the degree to which it supports global brand management decisions. Hofstede’s value systems are used in the content analysis. The study has implications for optimal localization of foreign company web sites.

An interesting paper by Ágnes Hofmeister-Tóth and Peter Nagy, “The content analysis of advergames in Hungary,” is the fourth paper. This work content analyzes protocols from children involved in advergames – their brand loyalties and brand trust. Differences and similarities of varied formats of advergames are examined, including type, brand, prize, and special features.

The final paper, “Technique of collage for store design atmospherics,” written by Amel Dakoumi Hamrouni and Maha Touzi concerns the simulation of a consumer observational experience using consumer exposure to collages. Consumer drawings and sentence completions are analyzed via a holistic analytic perspective.

Work on this special issue has been most rewarding. I wish to thank Professor Len Tiu for her guidance and stimulating collegiality over the course of this intriguing project.

Melvin PrinceGuest Editor