Marketing Research, Global Edition, 8/E

Alvin C. Burns, Louisiana State University
Ronald F. Bush, University of West Florida



Marketing Research: The Fundamentals

The Eighth Edition of Marketing Research continues to provide students with a “nuts and bolts” introduction to the field of marketing research. Intended for students with no prior background in marketing research, the book teaches the basic fundamental statistical models needed to analyze market data.

This new edition has been condensed and reorganized for a more streamlined approach. An integrated case study throughout the text helps students relate the material to the real world--and their future careers. All information has been updated to offer the most current insights on forces shaping marketing research, such as the impact of social media and mobile technologies.

New To This Edition

A Current and Streamlined Approach to Marketing Research
• Influence of Social Media is based on research and discussion with marketing professionals to give students the latest information on industry practices regarding growing platforms.
• Mobile Marketing Research allows students to grasp a rapidly expanding technology that’s having a huge impact on the industry today, which provides faster access to information than traditional research methods.
• International Perspectives allow students to compare marketing research from around the globe.
• Presentation of Industry Data is featured in a completely rewritten Chapter 2, which now provides an international perspective on marketing research practice.
• Presentation of Ethical Perspectives treats ethics the way they are treated in the industry, providing excerpts from the Code of Marketing Research Standards by the Marketing Research Association (MRA). This introduces students to areas of ethical sensitivity in the field to apply in their future careers.

Pedagogical Features Reinforce Core Concepts Throughout
• UPDATED! Marketing Research Insights illustrations and descriptions reflect new and current issues and practices in the industry within four essential categories: practical applications, social media applications, ethical considerations, and global applications.
• UPDATED! Full integration with SPSS 2.0 teaches students how to use the latest version of SPSS, a gold standard tool in marketing research.
• UPDATED! A General Motorscase study carried throughout the book connects core concepts from every chapter, demonstrating how students can formulate problems and analyze data. By reading about a manager that has to determine the kinds of automobiles the market will demand in the future, students learn how to examine attitudes and opinions that might influence consumer choice, determine the best models, and identify market segment differences between different models.
• UPDATED! End-of-Chapter Cases have been updated throughout the book to reflect the most current material in the book.
• Insights from Marketing Research Professionals give students a more academic and realistic perspective of marketing research.

Table of Contents

• Introduction to Marketing Research
• The Marketing Research Industry
• The Marketing Research Process and Defining the Problem and Research Objectives
• Research Design
• Secondary Data and Packaged Information
• Qualitative Research Techniques
• Evaluating Survey Data Collection Methods
• Understanding Measurement, Developing Questions, and Designing the Questionnaire
• Selecting the Sample
• Determining the Size of a Sample
• Dealing with Field Work and Data Quality Issues
• Using Descriptive Analysis, Performing Population Estimates, and Testing Hypotheses
• Implementing Basic Differences Tests
• Making Use of Associations Tests
• Understanding Regression Analysis Basics
• The Research Report