CHAPTER 1:

NATURE OF INQUIRY AND

RESEARCH
 LESSON 4:
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN
QUANTITATIVE AND
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
 QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

- IS BASED ON AN APPROACH WHICH SEES THE INDIVIDUAL

AND THE WORLD AROUND HIM/HER AS INTERCONNECTED.
- QUALITATIVE RESEARCH HAS ITS ROOTS IN POSITIVISM.
(WALKER, 2010) A PHILOSOPHIC VIEW FORMULATED IN
EUROPE IN THE 19TH CENTURY. TWO BELIEFS HELD BY
POSITIVISM ARE:

1. GENERAL PRINCIPLES OR LAWS GOVERN THE SOCIAL

WORLD AND
2. OBSERVATION IS THE PRIMARY SOURCE OF DEPENDABLE
KNOWLEDGE.
SIMILARITIES OF QUANTITATIVE AND
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

1. EMPIRICAL RESEARCH IS AIMED AT CREATING NEW

KNOWLEDGE.
2. RESEARCH CREATES KNOWLEDGE BY OBSERVING
PHENOMENA.
3. ALL THE ENTITIES OF INTEREST LIKE ATTITUDES, MOTIVES
AND LEARNING CAN BE INFERRED FROM OBSERVING WHAT
PEOPLE DO OR SAY IN A GIVEN SETTING.
4. ALL RESEARCHERS ARE CONNECTED ABOUT THE
UNIVERSALITY OF IDEAS OR EXPRESSING AN IDEA IN A
GENERAL STATEMENT.
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH DEALS WITH DESIGNS,
TECHNIQUES, AND MEASURES THAT DO NOT PRODUCE
DISCRETE NUMERICAL DATA. ON THE OTHER HAND,
QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH INCLUDES DESIGNS,
TECHNIQUES AND MEASURES THAT PRODUCE
NUMERICAL OR QUANTITATIVE DATA WHICH ANALYSIS IS
MAINLY STATISTICAL.
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

- PRIMARILY AN EXPLORATORY RESEARCH. IT IS USED TO

GIVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF UNDERLYING REASONS
OPINIONS AND MOTIVATIONS.

- IN THE 2000’S IT HAS BEEN CHARACTERIZED BY CONCERN

WITH EVERYDAY CATEGORIZATION AND ORDINARY
STORYTELLING. THE “NARRATIVE TERM”
- THE AIMS VARY WITH THE DISCIPLINARY BACKGROUND IT
EXAMINES THE “WHY” “WHERE” “WHEN” OR “WHO” OF A
GIVEN STUDY. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH HAS A STRONG BASIS
IN THE FIELDS OF SOCIOLOGY, POLITICAL SCIENCE, SOCIAL
WORK AND SPECIAL EDUCATION. A POPULAR METHOD
UTILIZED IN THIS KIND OF RESEARCH IS THE “CASE STUDY”
(GUBRIUM, J.F. AND HOLSTEIN, J.A., 2009)
5 FEATURES OF A QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

1. STUDYING THE MEANING OF PEOPLE’S LIVES, UNDER

REAL-WORLD CONDITIONS; PEOPLE WILL NOT LIMIT BY
THE CONFINES OF A LABORATORY.

2. REPRESENTING THE VIEWS AND PERSPECTIVE OF

THE PEOPLE OR PARTICIPANTS OF THE STUDY IN THE
RESULTS OF THE RESEARCH MIRROR THE VALUES AND
MEANINGS OF THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE THEM, NOT BY
THE RESEARCHER.
3. COVERING THE CONTEXTUAL CONDITION WITHIN WHICH
PEOPLE LIVE THE SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS AND
ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS WITHIN WHICH LIVE. THEY
MAY INFLUENCE ALL HUMAN EVENTS.

4. CONTRIBUTING INSIGHTS INTO EXISTING OR EMERGING

CONCEPTS MAY HELP OR EXPLAIN HUMAN SOCIAL
BEHAVIOR. RESEARCH CAN BE INSTANCES FOR
DEVELOPING NEW CONCEPTS.

5. STRIVING TO SUE SIMPLE SOURCES OF EVIDENCE IS

BETTER THAN RELYING ON A SINGLE SOURCE ALONE.
QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
- IS MORE OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH HARD DATA. THIS
RESEARCH IS USED TO QUANTIFY – THAT IS TO PUT
NUMERICAL EQUIVALENTS TO FINDINGS.

- QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH IS USED TO QUANTIFY THE

PROBLEM BY THE WAY OF GENERATING MATHEMATICAL DATA
OR DATA THAT CAN BE TRANSFORMED INTO USABLE
STATISTICS.
 LESSON 5:
TYPES AND EXAMPLES OF RESEARCH IN DIFFERENT
AREAS/FIELDS
TYPES AND EXAMPLES OF RESEARCH

APPLIED RESEARCH – DESIGNED TO SOLVE PRACTICAL

PROBLEMS OF THE MODERN WORLD, RATHER THAN TO
ACQUIRE KNOWLEDGE FOR KNOWLEDGE’S SAKE; ITS GOAL IS
TO IMPROVE HUMAN CONDITION.

BASIC RESEARCH – AKA FUNDAMENTAL OR PURE

RESEARCH, IS DRIVEN BY A SCIENTIST’S CURIOSITY OR
INTEREST IN A SCIENTIFIC QUESTION.
CORRELATIONAL RESEARCH – REFERS TO THE
SYSTEMATIC INVESTIGATION OR STATISTICAL STUDY OF
RELATIONSHIPS AMONG TWO OR MORE VARIABLES,
WITHOUT NECESSARILY DETERMINING CAUSE AND
EFFECT.

DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH – AKA STATISTICAL

RESEARCH, IT PROVIDES AN ACCURATE
PORTRAYAL OF A CLASS OR A PARTICULAR
INDIVIDUAL SITUATION OR GROUP.
ETHNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH – REFERS TO THE
INVESTIGATION OF A CULTURE THROUGH AN IN-DEPTH
STUDY OF THE MEMBERS OF THE CULTURE

2 APPROACHES TO ETHNOGRAPHY

REALIST – RESEARCHER PROVIDES AN OBJECTIVE

ACCOUNT OF THE SITUATION;
CRITICAL – RESEARCHER SHOWS HIS ADVOCACY FOR
A MARGINALIZED GROUP OR ATTEMPTS TO EMPOWER
THE GROUP BY GIVING IT VOICE.
EXPERIMETAL RESEARCH – IS AN OBJECTIVE, SYSTEMATIC,
CONTROLLED INVESTIGATION FOR THE PURPOSE OF
PREDICTING AND CONTROLLING PHENOMENA AND
EXAMINING PROBABILITY AND CAUSALITY AMONG SELECTED
VARIABLES.

EXPLORATORY RESEARCH – A TYPE CONDUCTED FOR A

PROBLEM THAT HAS NOT BEEN CLEARLY DEFINED.
HISTORICAL RESEARCH – IS ONE INVOLVING ANALYSIS OF
EVENTS THAT OCCURRED IN THE REMOTE OR RECENT PAST.

PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH – IS AN INDUCTIVE

DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH DEVELOPED FROM
PHENOMENOLOGICAL PHILOSOPHY.

ACTION RESEARCH – INVOLVES THE APPLICATION OF THE

STEPS OF THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD IN THE CLASSROOM
PROBLEMS
TYPES OF CASE STUDIES

INTRINSIC – CONDUCTED TO UNDERSTAND A PARTICULAR

CASE THAT MAY BE UNUSUAL OR UNIQUE.

INSTURMENTAL – REPRESENTS SOME OTHER UNDER STUDY

AND THE RESEARCHER BELIEVES THAT THIS CASE CAN
PROVIDE SEVERAL INSIGHTS INTO THAT ISSUE.

MULTIPLE OR COLLECTIVE – USES SEVERAL CASES

SELECTED TO FURTHER UNDERSTAND AND INVESTIGATE A
PHENOMENON, POPULATION, OR GENERAL CONDITION.
CONTENT ANALYSIS – A TYPE OF RESEARCH
APPLIED TO WRITTEN OR VISUAL MATERIALS.
THANK YOU!