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THE HYPOTHETICO-DEDUCTIVE METHOD 31

can be solved. The network of associations identified among the variables would
then be theoretically woven together with justification as to why they might influ-
ence the problem. This process of theory formulation is discussed in greater
detail in Chapter 5.
One might wonder at this juncture why a theory has to be formulated each
time a problem is investigated, and why one cannot act on the information con-
tained in the previously published research findings, as one surveys the litera-
ture. There are a couple of reasons for this. One is that different studies might
have identified different variables, some of which may not be relevant to the sit-
uation on hand. Also, in the previous studies, some of the hypotheses might have
been substantiated and some others not, presenting a perplexing situation.
Hence, problem solving in every complex problem situation is facilitated by for-
mulating and testing theories relevant to that particular situation.

Hypothesizing
Hypothesizing is the next logical step after theory formulation. From the theo-
rized network of associations among the variables, certain testable hypotheses or
educated conjectures can be generated. For instance, at this point, one might
hypothesize that if a sufficient number of items are stocked on shelves, customer
dissatisfaction will be considerably reduced. This is a hypothesis that can be
tested to determine if the statement would be supported.
Hypothesis testing is called deductive research. Sometimes, hypotheses that
were not originally formulated do get generated through the process of induc-
tion. That is, after the data are obtained, some creative insights occur, and based
on these, new hypotheses could get generated to be tested later. Generally, in
research, hypotheses testing through deductive research and hypotheses genera-
tion through induction are both common. The Hawthorne experiments are a good
example of this. In the relay assembly line, many experiments were conducted
that increased lighting and the like, based on the original hypothesis that these
would account for increases in productivity. But later, when these hypotheses
were not substantiated, a new hypothesis was generated based on observed data.
The mere fact that people were chosen for the study gave them a feeling of
importance that increased their productivity whether or not lighting, heating, or
other effects were improved, thus the coining of the term the Hawthorne effect!

Further Scientific Data Collection

After the development of the hypotheses, data with respect to each variable in
the hypotheses need to be obtained. In other words, further scientific data col-
lection is needed to test the hypotheses that are generated in the study. For
instance, to test the hypothesis that stocking sufficient items will reduce cus-
tomer dissatisfaction, one needs to measure the current level of customer satis-
faction and collect further data on customer satisfaction levels whenever
sufficient number of items are stocked and made readily available to the cus-
tomers. Data on every variable in the theoretical framework from which