ABSTRACT

Despite their apparent similarities, the differences between market research and social scientific data are marked. Research in the two provinces is undertaken in quite different circumstances, and wholly separate criteria are applied in determining what needs to be done, how and why. Are, then the data on food consumption produced by market research usable by social scientists interested in food choice? After all, since they have been produced at considerable cost it seems sensible to draw on them (especially in straitened times) rather than incur the expense and effort of undertaking further primary research. This chapter considers the question, showing that, ironically perhaps, the matter turns on the manner in which marketing research must stand in sharp contrast to academic research. It is written as a note for the uninitiated among academic social scientists.