Quantitative vs. QualitativeResearch Method Issues

Marian Ford

Erin Gonzales

November 2, 2010

Outline

• Introduction – How to choose?• Quantitative Research – Disadvantages vs. Advantages

• Qualitative Research – Disadvantages vs. Advantages

• History and Trends• Mixed-Methods• So which is better?

Factors to consider

• Field of study• Nature of study• Purpose of the study• Population of the study• Tools readily available– Method and design– Instrument

• Amount of human interaction or characteristics to be studied• Desired implications and results

Quantitative

• Positivist thought – can be verified by observation and experimentation

• Distribution of variables that can be generalized to entire population

• Less interaction between researcher and subjects – more objectivity

• Four categories:– Descriptive design– Correlation– Casual comparative– Quasi-experimental

Disadvantages

• Should only be used if data can be measured by numbers, results quantified

• Instrument or method chosen is subjective and research is dependent upon tool chosen

• Lack of independent thought by researcher when dependent on instrument or mathematics used to extract or evaluate data

• Individuals’ decisions not evaluated based on their culture or social interactions

• Decisions made without regard to individual human thought or choice to predict behavior

• All individuals are measured same way– Experiences– Backgrounds– Intelligence– Ability to change decisions at any

given point in time– Independent though

Criticism

• Inefficient for formulating higher education planning, policy and decision making

• Unable to create procedures based on results• Groups individuals as unemotional subjects (Keller, 1998)– Social influences of individuals needed– Limitations on generalizability – Particular point in time; no account for change of mind

Advantages

• Observations are used throughout studies

• Formulating hypotheses allows for speculation about outcomes; applicable instrument

• Safeguards used to minimize or eliminate bias

• Predicts correlation between objects

• Systematic data collection and analysis

• Generalizable to other institutions for further research

• Recognized criteria for assessment and validity

• More research conducted by this method

Qualitative

• Investigates individual behaviors and characteristics to understand cause and solve issues

• Inductive process to explore new perspectives on previously studied information not completely understood

• Involvement of human subjects; dependent on interaction • Less generalizable to greater population• More accurate description of individuals and groups• Multiple types:

– Interviews– Focus groups– Case studies– Ethnographic studies

Disadvantages

• Strong dependency on sample population– Access– Honest and valid

information• Time and resources needed

for collection and analysis is intensive

• Lack of objectivity and bias by researcher– Inferences made– Incorrect conclusions

• Convenience sampling• Lack of training or

knowledge about methodology

• Lack of ability to produce and comprehend research

• Not recognized

Advantages

• Helps explain relationships in detail; individualistic

• Can help validate quantitative findings by further investigation

• Can help close gap between research and practice– Needs of individuals in

institutions– Study problems more relevant

to policy makers

• Less dependent on instrument

• Can bring change in institutions and society– In-depth– Personalized– Examines specific issues

History and Trends

• Study of five leading higher education journals showed higher volume of quantitative methods vs. qualitative in 1986 and 1989

• Shift has reported increase in qualitative methods in organization and vocational psychology– 40-50 percent decrease in 1983-1988 of quantitative

methods– 10 percent decrease in 1996-1999– Qualitative methods increased from 15-18 percent of

studies to 30-40 percent of studies

History and Trends

• Discovery of Grounded Theory: Barney Glaser– Legitimized alternative methods and research designs– Emphasized the creation of theory out of qualitative data– No longer belief that research was solely to produce

scientific knowledge

• Comparative assessment for research still does not exists

How do you measure what’s best?

• Need a standard of measurement to determine quality• Guidelines are needed to recognize validity of results• Barriers of many different approaches and types of research methods• Two methods can provide complementary results

– Qualitative:• Rich description of issues in field • Lay groundwork for quantitative studies

– Quantitative• Provides accurate data collection and analysis and utilization