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Observation as in case research. Thus, in this section, we focus our comments on issuess

pertaining to survey research.

Primary data developed through a survey methodology have one very important

advantage over almost all secondary data. That edvantage is that the instrument is developed

specifically to adress and research question. Many marketing strategy question cannot be

adressed with any secondary data source. For example, there are no analogues to market

orientation which has been an important research topic recently (e.g Kohli and Jaworksi,

1990; Narver and Slater, 1990; Deshpande et al., 1993). Although Snow and Hambrick

(1980,p., 535) argued that selft-typing by managers was inferior to using archival data for

identifying current or historical startegic events, subsequent research has shown congruence

between archval measures and managers assessment of marketing conditions ( Keats and

Hitt, 1988), product market strategy (Shortell and Zajac, 1990) and performance (Dess and

Robinson, 1984). Thus, survey research the most appropriate, if not only, approach for

addressing some questions.

However, there are several decision that influence whether the survey research will be

externally and/or internally valid. These decision include : (1) selection of the sample of

appropriate breadth, (2) selection of the sample of appropriate size, (3) determination of the

appropriate level in the organization for data collection and analysis, and (4) development on

valid measures.

Sampling issues

Sample breadth

A substantial portion of marketing strategy research has been concerned with testing

general theories that apply across market bounderies. Exsample include the relationship

between pionering, quality, market share or market orientation and some measure of

performance. Establishing a general relationship between some element of marketing strategy

and performance implies that the relationship can be generalized over a variety of market

settings. This could lead to miximize its external validity.

A prerequisite for axternal validty is internal validity; does the research design control

for the effects of other factors that may effect or obscure the relationship under study? Unless

the research design has adequate controls, there can be little confidence in the finding that

result from the study. Internal validity is challengged by the relativity of strategy (Snow

and Hambrick, 1980, p., 531) which says that strategy conctruct have meaning within an

industry and competitive enviroment rather than across enviroments. For example, the values

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and practices taht constitute a strong market orientation are likely to be quite different in the

costumers financial services industry from those in the forest product industry. Since strategic

constructs are retaive phenomena that are largely influenced by industry condition and

competitors actions, it is difficult to control for industry-specific effect on strategy in board

samples and consequently to achieve internal validity.

The type of research that has the greatest internal validity is the laboratory experiment

where confouding influences are eliminated. While this type of research has been used to

study some strategic decision making issues (e.g Sawyer et al., 1979), it has little relevance

for studying the types of relationsship illustrated in Fing. 1. A reasonable alternative may be

to focus the early stages of research in a single corporation. Business units managers in a

decentralized corporation are likely to have substantial decision making autonomy

(Varadarajan and Clark, 1944) Thus