R -C5 Assign

All these hypotheses have systematically targeted all the three major variables within the research topic.

Quality of research questions and hypothesis

According to the layout of how the researcher has approached the research topic in relation the hypothesis I would say its spot on. The foremost important thing when coming up with research questions or hypothesis is identifying both the dependent and independent variables, and in some cases mediating variable. The research on this note was spot on, he or she was able to identify the main variables in the topic and from this variable he or she came up with relevant research questions and hypothesis that will be measure and tested to either justify or not justify the hypothesis to find raw facts (Prasadet al., (2001). The other aspect of ensuring hypothesis reflect the research topic is showing the systemic relationship between the variables you are trying to research on, on this the researcher was also spot on, he or she systematically arranged the each variables and showed the relationship between each variable independently and later went on to show the mediating roles of the variables (Uzkurt et al., 2013).

The other quality of good research questions and hypothesis is that they are realistic and can be measured. Hypothesis need to answer or quantify a variable that is intended to be measured. The researcher set clear research questions that related well with the topic and most importantly can be realistically measured. Each research question can be answered by most form of research approaches, which is a big positive. The other aspect is the scope of research within which the hypothesis and research questions are set need to be slightly narrow for more accurate and precise data to be collected. In this case the research was also on track in that the scope of the research was slightly narrow with a few movable aspects that can easily be measured to give precise and accurate information.

The other aspect of a good research question and hypothesis is its specificity, that is, the manner in which it is specific (Wallace, 2013). Specifically targeting certain variables in a research helps create a systematic sense and organization. The research was specific to pick the three most commonly used measures of firm performance which were the firm’s profitability, its market share and its market value. The researcher also avoided lead questions when coming up with the research questions this ensured that the research works into narrowing context as well. It allowed the researcher to focus on the nitty gritty aspects of the research without bombarding the research with a lot of research questions and working frames. Specificity also ensures continuity of the research, the research becomes fluid and it becomes easy to keep track of all the questions, hypothesis and findings that go in line with the research questions and hypothesis. This allowed the researcher to arrive to his or her specific targets which were then answered realistically to give out data that were in the findings (Wallace, 2013).

Testing the hypothesis

The research methodology used was a survey based research where they collected data with the aid of questionnaires from 154 branches of the ten most noticeable banks in Turkey. The questionnaire was designed in a manner that focused on each research question; it also focused on the variables present in the research topic. The independent variable being organizational culture was measured by the innovative organization culture scale developed by Chang and Lin (2007). They developed 4 working construct in which they categorized characteristics of organizational culture as cooperativeness, consistency, innovativeness, and effectiveness. The aspects of the innovative organization culture scale contain of six questions and a five-point Likert scale was used to rate these items from 1 = strongly agree to 5 = strongly disagree (Uzkurt et al., 2013).

For mediator variable which is Innovation in the banking process was measured by the innovation scale developed by Darroch and Jardine (2002). The innovation measures used were incremental innovations, innovations that offered advantages or benefits to consumers; and innovations that had a degree of risk the business. The researcher also importantly included the perspective of the consumers. which allowed to calculate the consumer base perspectives of innovation It consists of 11 items with a five-point Likert scale was employed to rate these items from 1 = strongly agree to 5 = strongly disagree (Uzkurt et al., 2013).

Finally was the Dependent variable which was the company performance, this was measure through several perspectives within the questionnaire financial and non-financial, business unit performance, or organizational performance; judgmental and objective. The three items that were also used to measure firm performance categorically included profitability of the organization, the market share, and the market value which are the most commonly used and also acceptable parameters of firm performance (Glynn & Raffaelli, 2010). Since this was a judgmental score or measure the questionnaire tried to inquire from the correspondents for their individual assessment of the firm performance in relation to their competitors which basically ranged from poor to excellent. There was a minor category within the questionnaire that collected data on the demographic variable which was basically from the demographic characteristics and job position of each of our respondents (Uzkurt et al., 2013).

Data was then collected from the already selected sample population, after which it was organized, analyzed and then presented to give a picture that addressed all the research questions that were previously set.

They then went on to test their hypothesis where they majorly used regression analysis. They used Baron and Kenny (1986) regression procedure to examine the mediation consequence of innovation that was present on the relationship between organizational culture and firm performance (Uzkurt et al., 2013). The regression analysis procedure proposed that the independent or explanatory variable which was organizational culture should be related independently or separately to both, the dependent variable and the mediator variable, firm performance and innovation respectively. Organizational culture was put as an independent variable in the regression analysis while innovation on the other hand was included as both a mediator and dependent variable. Based on the analysis of the correlation results we developed a premise that suggested that organizational culture is associated to both organizational innovation and the firm performance. In case the regression coefficient related with organizational culture is inconsequential when both the organizational culture and innovation are simultaneously encompassed as explanatory variable in a regression equation, then it was presumed that innovation had a mediating role on the relationship between organizational culture and firm performance. The regression analysis technique and procedure allowed us to show clear correlation between the variables and show the clear mediating role of innovation to both the independent and dependent variables organizational culture and firm performance respectively (Glynn & Raffaelli, 2010).

The regression analysis helped to test for all the four hypotheses that were present in the research which then yielded clear results.

Evaluations of the Variables

As for my overall take on this research study there are few points I would definitely want to comment on. First there are not really any variables within the scope of the research that the researcher failed to look at, in fact the research measured all the three main variable that is the independent, dependent and mediator variable (Organizational culture, firm performance and innovation respectively) in a systematic manner, he went on to also measure all the subsequent variables that describe the dependent variable (firm performance). The researcher formulated research questions that revolved around his variables and sort to find the association between the dependent variable (firm performance) and independent variable (Organizational culture), association between the dependent variable (firm performance) and mediator variable (innovation), the relationship between the independent variable (Organizational culture) and the mediator variable(innovation) and finally how the mediator variable(innovation) mediates the association between the dependent (firm performance) and independent variable (Organizational culture) (Uzkurt et al., 2013).

This was followed by a thorough hypothesis setting that looked into all the variables and their relationships. As you can see above there are no new variables that can be added in relation to the scope of the research.

Evaluations about the topic under study

Overall there are several aspects I have learned about this research study. First I have come to learn that for a precise and accurate analysis it is important to have a narrow scope that address the points in question directly, this will help to set specific research questions that are realistic and can be answered easily. The other aspect I learned in the process is that the questionnaire should address each measurable variable separately in an organized manner to ensure the flow of onward questioning that will help get accurate findings.

When it comes to analysis and testing hypothesis that have a mediator variable it is recommended to use regression analysis and correlation coefficients that will help you come up with a clear picture as to the significance of the relationship of the variables (Wallace, 2013). To add to this I also learnt that for accurate findings it is important to independently measure each variable before coming up with a relationship coefficient, this way an individual can follow up the research step by step and understand how each variable exists and how they link up with one another (Glynn & Raffaelli, 2010).

In general I have come to understand that innovation and the culture of the organization play a massive part in the performance of any business, actually the higher the innovativeness the better the chances of having a successful company. Innovation can easily gave a company a competitive advantage over its rivals, this coupled with a good and health organizational culture then the company becomes successful without a doubt (Uzkurt et al., 2013). With the rise in competition within the business environment such competitive advantages will a long way to ensure a company or organization retains and/or increases their customer flow, increase market value, increases profit margins and overall increases its market share, this will also result to out doing all the firm’s rivals and competitors.

References

Glynn, M. A., &Raffaelli, R. (2010). Uncovering Mechanisms of Theory Development in an Academic Field: Lessons from Leadership Research. Academy of Management Annals, 4, 359-401. doi: 10.1080/19416520.2010.495530

Prasad, S., Rao, A., & Rehani, E. (2001). Developing hypothesis and research questions. Retrieved from http://www.public.asu.edu/~kroel/www500/hypothesis.pdf

Uzkurt, C., Kumar, R., SemihKimzan, H., &Eminoğlu, G. (2013). Role of innovation in the relationship between organizational culture and firm performance: A study of the banking sector in Turkey. European Journal of innovation management, 16(1), 92-117.