Using a scholarly journal resource to explore research methodology, it was discovered how researchers Erica Gilbert and Alan K. Reichert explored how financial analysis techniques have changed over the decade 1985 to 1995 for the purpose of identifying trends in financial management. The areas of the research project explored include the purpose of the research (identification of new techniques used in decisionmaking), the business problems under investigation (new decisionmaking techniques and trends in corporate financial management), and the research methodology (industry surveying and statistical outcomes) employed to conduct the research project.