A Short Course on Transportation Research Methodology

Name of the Lecturer: Ass. Prof. Michael Tsatsaronis

Subject Description:

The course aims to familiarize and to enhance the ability of students in the use of financial, economic, administrative and technological tools necessary to managers and industry leaders, companies and organizations on transportation sector.

In this course we apply in practice the knowledge of the theoretical courses (Economics, Finance, Statistics etc.) with developing research work. The basis of the course comes from the application of the principles of financial management, strategic management and investment projects, industrial economic, financial governance and quantitative methods in transportation and supply chain sector.

Timetable:

Tencent ID: 616 8495 2649

Syllabus:

Lecture 1: Formulating and Clarifying the Research Topic.

Outline the purpose and distinct focus of management research in transportation sector. Place your research project on a basic – applied research continuum according to its purpose and context. Understand the stages you will need to complete (and revisit) as part of your research process.

Lecture 2: Critical Review of The Theoretical Aspects of The Research Subject.

Deciding on the Research Approach and Choosing a Research Strategy. Negotiating Access and Research Ethics. Understand the importance and purpose of the critical literature review to your research project. Know what you need to include when writing your critical review. Be aware of the range of primary, secondary and tertiary literature sources available. Be able to identify key words and to undertake a literature search using a range of methods including the Internet. Evaluate the relevance, value and sufficiency of the literature found. Be able to reference the literature found accurately. Be able to apply the knowledge, skills and understanding gained to your own research project.

Lecture 3: Collecting Data

Selecting Samples. Understand the need for sampling in business and management research. Be aware of a range of probability and non-probability sampling techniques and the possible need to combine techniques within a research project. Be able to select appropriate sampling techniques for a variety of research scenarios and be able to justify their selection. Use a range of sampling techniques. Apply the knowledge, skills and understanding gained to your own research project. Using Secondary Data. Collecting Primary Data Through Observation. Collecting Primary Data Using Interviews. Collecting Primary Data Using Questionnaires.

Lecture 4: Analysing Data

Identify the main issues that you need to consider when preparing quantitative data for analysis and when analysing these data by computer. Recognise different types of data and understand the implications of data type for subsequent analyses. Create a data matrix and to code data for analysis by computer. Select the most appropriate tables and diagrams to explore and illustrate different aspects of your data. Select the most appropriate statistics to describe individual variables and to examine relationships between variables and trends in your data. Interpret the tables, diagrams and statistics that you use correctly. Introduction to Excel for research purposes.

Lecture 5: Student Presentations

Students are requested to present their own research from transportation sector (in terms of group presentations, 5 students per group) using the methodology which adopted during the course. Each research will be presented and discussed during the lecture. Potential research subjects: 1) Transportation Sector Response to Covid – 19 Pandemic, 2) Environmental concerns in the transportation sector, 3) Urban Transport, planning and access inequalities, 4) Future developments in air, land and water transportation, etc.