SEMINAR IN ECONOMICS(ECON 470)
SPRING Semester
Dr. Nayef N. Al-shammari
LECTURE:
Monday & Wednesday @ 2:00-3:15
Office Hours:
Day & Time: Monday & Wednesday 12:30- 1:30or by appointment
Email:
Home Page:
GENERAL INFORMATION
-Absenteeism:university regulations governing absenteeism are applied to all students. This involves a first warning after 3 hours (Two Class), a second warning after additional 3 hours absence (Four Classes) and a failure notice for any absence beyond the six hours (Five Classes). It should be noted, however, that the student losesone pointforeach one missing class (No excuses allowed for any circumstances)
-Make up policy:No a make-up exam for any circumstances.
-Plagiarism and cheatingare strictly prohibited by university policies as well as academic ethics. Violators will be reported to university administration for appropriate action.
- WARNING: Mobile phones must be turned off during the lecture. Violators will be dismissed from class.
Schedule of Exams and Grade Distribution & Scale
Category / Weight / Grading ScalePresentations related to Readings / 30% / Grading / Total Point
Scale
A / 95≥ TP
A- / 90≥TP>95
B+ / 87≥TP>90
B / 83≥TP>87
B- / 80≥TP>83
C+ / 77≥TP>80
C / 73≥TP>77
C- / 70≥TP>73
D+ / 65≥TP>70
D / 60≥TP>65
F / TP<60
First Empirical Paper / 25%
Second Empirical Paper / 25%
Final Presentations for the Empirical Paper( two presentations) / 10%
Discussion and Participation / 5%
Attendance / 5%
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
This course is designed to introducestudents to the research methods that canbe used in most business research andother research related to the socialphenomenon. Since this course is designed for senior level economics majors, it is designed to apply the basic microeconomic andmacroeconomic theory developed in our introductory and intermediate theory courses to the analysis of contemporary policy issues. The material covered in this course should provide both greater depth and breadth to the student’s understanding of economic theory.
The seminar also coversthe research methods to conduct an empirical research in economics including, introduction to thescientific method, research process, ethicsin research, research design,measurement, sampling, data collection,analysis, interpretation and report writing. Precisely:
1. Expose students to research in business
2. Discuss the process of developing a research proposal
3. Expose the students to the various research designs available for business research
4. Expose students to how they can select the appropriate research design for their proposed study
5. Expose students to the different kinds of analysis that can be used to analyze data and how to interpret the output
6. Expose students about the good characteristics of a Research
COURSE OUTLINE
This course is mainly concerned with the following topics:
(Chapter 1): Introduction to Basic Indicators in Economics
-Introduction to Data Collection
- Understanding National Output and Income Indicators
(Chapter 2): Introduction to Research
-Definition of Business Research
-Applied versus Basic Research
-Why should know about research
-Knowledge about Research
-Ethics and Business Research
(Chapter 3):Scientific Investigation
- Hallmarks of Scientific Research
-Hypothetico-Deductive Research
-Deduction and Induction
Readings: Later assigned
(Chapter 4): Technology and Business Research
- Information Needs of Business
-Commonly Used Technologies in Business Research
-Some Software Used in Business Research
- Ethics in Handling Information Technology
Readings: Later assigned
(Chapter 5): The Research Process - The Broad Problem Area and Defining the Problem Statement
- The Broad Problem Area
-Preliminary Information/data Gathering
-Literature Review
-Writing up the Literature Review
-The Problem Statement
- Ethical Issues in the Preliminary Stages of Investigation
Readings: Later assigned
(Chapter 6): The Research Process - Theoretical Framework & Hypothesis Development
- The Theoretical Framework
-Variables
-Hypothesis
Readings: Later assigned
(Chapter 7):The Research Process – Elements of Research Design
- The Research Design
-Purpose of the Study
-Type of Investigation
-Study Setting
-Population to be Studied
-Time Horizon
Readings: Later assigned
(Chapter 8):The Experimental Design
- Lab and Field Experiments
-Manipulation of the Independent Variable
Readings: Later assigned
(Chapter 9):Measurement of Variables: Operational Definition and Scales
- Measurement of Variables
-Operational Definition
-Scale Types
Readings: Later assigned
(Chapter 10):Measurement of Variables: Scaling, Reliability, Validity
- Scaling Techniques Frequently Used
-Goodness of Measures
Readings: Later assigned
(Chapter 11):Data Collection Methods
-Sources of Data
-Data Collection Methods
-Questionnaire Design
-Ethics in Data Collection
Readings: Later assigned
(Chapter 12):Sampling
- Sampling
-Relevant Terms - 1
-Relevant Terms - 2
-Relevant Terms – 3
-Statistics versus Parameters
-Advantages of Sampling
-The Sampling Process
-Sampling Techniques
Readings: Later assigned
(Chapter 13):Data Analysis and Interpretation
- Getting the Data Ready for Analysis
- Data Analysis
-Data Analysis and Interpretation
Readings: Later assigned
(Chapter14):The Research Report
- The Research Proposal
- The Written Report
-Contents of Research Report
-Oral Presentation
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