Merits And Demerits Of Qualitative And Quantitative Procedures Psychology Essay

Merits And Demerits Of soft And three-figure Procedures Psychology bear witness seek method actings atomic upshot 18 technique(s) for fulfiling data (Harding, 1986) and are principally dichotomized into organism either look ond or soft. It has been argued that methodology has been gendered (Oakley, 1998), with quantitative methods traditionally universe associated with words much(prenominal) as positivism, scientific, objectivity, statistics and masculinity. In contrast, qualitative methods have generally been associated with interpretive, non-scientific, subjectivity and femininity.Quantitative research Techniques and Procedures soft analysis is a adjoin that is a great deal the precursor to quantitative, statistical work a process to establish the tacit underpinnings of an issue explicit a process you stinker exercise to combine your understanding of complex social and human factors that tin can non be tacit with meter a process that economic aids you fig ure disclose what to count and what to evaluate (Kerlin, 1999, p. 1).A common way of conducting quantitative search is using a study. Surveys usually bear upon filling in a questionnaire. There are, of course, much different kinds of quantitative query besides the check out. Observational research involves reflexion or observing various behaviors and patterns. More complicated forms of quantitative research are experimental research or numerical modelling research (Peter J.P. Donnelly J.H, 2000).In the social sciences, quantitative research refers to the systematic empirical investigating of quantitative properties and phenomena and their relationships. The nonsubjective of quantitative research is to develop and employ mathematical models, theories and/or hypotheses pertaining to phenomena. The process of measurement is central to quantitative research because it fork outs the thoroughgoing connection mingled with empirical observation and mathematical expression of quantitative relationships.Quantitative research is utilise widely in social sciences much(prenominal) as psychology, sociology, anthropology, and political science. Research in mathematical sciences such(prenominal) as physics is in addition quantitative by definition, though this use of the edge differs in context. In the social sciences, the term relates to empirical methods, originating in some(prenominal) philosophical positivism and the history of statistics, which contrast qualitative research methods.qualitative methods produce information only on the let onicular shimmys studied, and any more general conclusions are only hypotheses. Quantitative methods can be used to verify, which of such hypotheses are true.qualitative Research Techniques and ProceduresQualitative research is a generic term for investigative methodologies described as ethnographic, naturalistic, anthropological, field, or histrion observer research. It emphasizes the importance of looking at vari ables in the natural backdrop in which they are found. Interaction between variables is cardinal. Detailed data is equanimous through open ended questions that provide direct quotations. The interviewer is an integral part of the investigation (Jacob, 1988). This differs from quantitative research which attempts to gather data by objective methods to provide information about relations, comparisons, and predictions and attempts to remove the investigator from the investigation (Smith, 1983). accord to Andrew (2007), qualitative research is a method of inquiry appropriated in many a(prenominal) different academic disciplines, traditionally in the social sciences, solely also in market research and further contexts. Qualitative investigators bespeak to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the reasons that govern such behavior. The qualitative method investigates the why and how of decision making, not just what, where, when. Hence, smaller but cerebrate sample s are more a lot needed, rather than large samples.According to Andrew (2007), qualitative research is used to denote approaches which are supported by a set of hypotheses concerning the way the social world functions. It deduces many of its basic principles from the lookhot that there are fundamental differences between the science of human world and science of natural world and consequently needs to use typical methods. Here, attention is concentreed upon looking at the world through the eyes of studied objects and upon evolving concepts and theories which are grounded in the collecting data. So, qualitative research connected with own accounts of the individuals of their attitudes and behavior. The significance of qualitative research consists in setting sift on describing, understanding complex phenomena. It investigates, for instance, the relationships and patterns among factors or the context in which the natural action happens. It is concentrated on understanding the full many-dimensional encounter of the subject of investigation.Qualitative methods produce information only on the particular cases studied, and any more general conclusions are only hypotheses (informative guesses). The aim of qualitative research is to deepen our understanding about something, and usually this means going beyond the numbers and the statistics. Qualitative research helps us to give reasons why the numbers grade us what they do. It is often contrasted to quantitative research and they are very often used together to get the bigger picture of what we are act to find out. Qualitative research helps us flesh out the story. face-to-face Interviews and stress GroupsThe most common forms of qualitative research are face-to-face interviews and direction sort outs. Face-to-face interviews are just that Meeting someone in person and discussing various issues. The informant or person you are interviewing whitethorn be an expert in a particular field (e.g. the edit or in chief of a newspaper) or they may be someone who is affected by the issues you are researching (e.g. someone who is HIV positive or who reads the media).Focus groups involve discussions with two or more voice players. While questions for focus groups need to be prepared to guide and focus the discussions, the chemical reactions are often free-ranging, as the participants are encouraged to explore the issues at hand in an in-depth way.While focus groups and interviews will help you develop explanations for quantitative data, some snips they can provide you with quantitative data themselvesBasic Differences between Quantitative and Qualitative Research TechniquesQuantitative and qualitative research methods differ primarily intheir uninflected objectivesthe types of questions they posethe types of data entreaty instruments they usethe forms of data they producethe microscope stage of flexibility built into study designThe key difference between quantitative and qualitativ e methods is their flexibility. Generally, quantitative methods are fairly inflexible. With quantitative methods such as studys and questionnaires, for example, researchers strike all participants identical questions in the identical order. The response categories from which participants may choose are closed-ended or fixed. The advantage of this inflexibility is that it allows for meaning(prenominal) comparison of responses across participants and study sites. However, it requires a thorough understanding of the important questions to ask, the best way to ask them, and the seethe of potential responses.Qualitative methods are typically more flexible that is, they allow greater spontaneity and interlingual rendition of the interaction between the researcher and the study participant. For example, qualitative methods ask mostly open-ended questions that are not necessarily worded in exactly the same way with each participant. With open-ended questions, participants are free t o respond in their own words, and these responses tend to be more complex than simply yes or no.In addition, with qualitative methods, the relationship between the researcher and the participant is often less formal than in quantitative research. Participants have the luck to respond more elaborately and in greater detail than is typically the case with quantitative methods. In turn, researchers have the opportunity to respond at one time to what participants say by tailoring subsequent questions to information the participant has provided. Merriam (1988) provided a basis for differentiating qualitative and quantitative research techniques based on their characteristics.Characteristics of Qualitative and Quantitative ResearchPoint of ComparisonsQualitative ResearchQuantitative ResearchFocus of researchQuality (nature, essence)Quantity (how much, how many)Philosophical rootsPhenomenology, symbolical interactionPositivism, logical empiricismAssociated phrasesFieldwork, ethnographic, naturalistic, grounded, subjectiveExperimental, empirical, statisticalGoal of investigationUnderstanding, description, discovery, hypothesis generatingPrediction, control, description, confirmation, hypothesis testingDesign characteristicsFlexible, evolving, emergentPredetermined, structured rangeNatural, familiarUnfamiliar, artificialSampleSmall, non-random, supposedLarge, random, re innovateativeData collectionResearcher as primary instrument, interviews, observationsInanimate instruments (scales, tests, surveys, questionnaires, computers)Mode of analysis inductive (by researcher)Deductive (by statistical methods)FindingsComprehensive, holistic, expansivePrecise, narrow, reductionistHowever, there is a range of flexibility among methods used in both quantitative and qualitative research and that flexibility is not an indication of how scientifically rigorous a method is. Rather, the degree of flexibility reflects the kind of understanding of the problem that is being act using t he method.Merits of Quantitative AnalysisThe use of surveys permit a researcher to study more variables at one time than is typically possible in laboratory or field experiments, whilst data can be collected about real world environments.The usefulness of a survey is that the information you get is standardized because each respondent the person who fills out the questionnaire is answering the exact same questions. Once you have enough responses to your questionnaire, you can then put the data together and analyze it in a way that answers your research question or what it is you privation to sleep with.Since case studies come with a structured format, different moorages can be compared or canvas comparatively. object lesson studies are typically short (often no more than 5 pages long) and usually only contain the essential information needed to present a situation and, if necessary, to describe and properly analyze a problem.Quantitative data can determine when students ha ve achieved or failed a task, and they can provide national ranking, percentiles, and allow researchers to conduct comparison analyses. Nevertheless, they cannot provide the entireness picture of why a particular student has either succeeded or failed (Burnaford et al., 2001 Gall et al., 1996 and Mc Bride Schostak, 2000).In quantitative research, the researcher neither participates in nor influences what isbeing studied thus, he/she examines the circumstances objectively. In some qualitative research, the researcher may play a more subjective role and participate by being immersed in his/her research. That is, the observer may be the teacher or the facilitator. This role is often the case with when action research, case studies, and focus groups are used in educational research.Advantages of surveysGood for comparative analysis. dissolve get lots of data in a comparatively short space of time.Can be cost-effective (if you use the Internet, for example).Can take less time for respo ndents to complete (compared to an interview or focus group)Specific concrete exampleCan help with problem firmnessAre often interesting to read.Demerits of Quantitative AnalysisA key weakness of quantitative analysis is that it is very severe to realise insights relating to the causes of or processes involved in the phenomena measured. There are, in addition, several sources of bias such as the possibly self-selecting nature of respondents, the point in time when the survey is conducted and in the researcher him/herself through the design of the survey itself.It could be argued that the quantitative researcher is more precise, but theresponse would be that with raft it is not possible to be so precise,people change and the social situation is too complex for numericaldescription. Quantitative research has a mark to clarify whereclarification is not appropriate. (Mc Bride Schostak, 2000, pp. 1-2)Disadvantages of SurveysResponses may not be specific.Questions may be misinterpreted .whitethorn not get as many responses as you need.Dont get full story.Can take time to developDepending on format, may need some level of good writing skillsDo not usually give broad overview of issue at hand.Merits of Qualitative TechniquesThe approaches of the qualitative research differ from the methods of the quantitative research. Quantitative methods have their aim in dividing into clearly defined parts, or variables. When we research an issue which we know how to quantify, for example, what can be quantified for sure, we may leave out the factors which are of the essence(p) to the real understanding of the phenomena under study (Andrew, 2007).Qualitative methods are utile not only in giving rich explanations of complex phenomena, but in creating or evolving theories or conceptual bases, and in proposing hypotheses to clarify the phenomena. Besides, value of the qualitative research consists in validity of the information received people are minutely interviewed so as the ob tained data would be taken as correct and believable reports of their opinions and experiences. Its major disadvantage is that small group of interviewed individuals can not be taken as representative (Andrew, 2007).Case studies involve an attempt to describe relationships that exist in reality, very often in a single(a) organization. Case studies may be cocksure or interpretivist in nature, depending on the approach of the researcher, the data collected and the analytical techniques employed. Reality can be captured in greater detail by an observer-researcher, with the analysis of more variables than is typically possible in experimental and survey research.Another type of qualitative analysis is site visits. Site visits help you understand your research better site visits (e.g. when you visit an organization, a manufacturing plant, a clinic or a housing project) are very useful and sometimes even necessary ways of gaining additional insight and making your theoretical informati on concrete in your mind. They allow you to observe what is going on, and to ask questions you may not have thought about.Qualitative research has a phenomenological focus that can provide an enriched anddetailed description of the participants actions and/or viewpoints (Veronesi, 1997).Advantages of face to face InterviewsCan allow for in-depth knowledge communionHelps to develop the bigger pictureHelps with analysis of resultsGood for networking (e.g. you may be referred to other people to interview).Advantages of Focus GroupsGood for community participation (grassroots input)Helpful in developing ideas and sharing latent, or hidden, knowledge spontaneouslyEnables you to get information from a number of individuals simultaneously.Advantages of Site Visits and ObservationDemerits of Qualitative AnalysisCase studies can be considered weak as they are typically restricted to a single organization and it is difficult to generalize findings since it is hard to find standardized cases with similar data that can be analyzed in a statistically meaningful way.Disadvantages of Face-to-Face InterviewsCan be time consumingMay be difficult to arrange an interview timeCan be difficult to compare and analyze information.Disadvantages of Focus GroupsCan be difficult to set upParticipants may need to be paid lack to be sensitive to who the facilitator isMay need a translatorsometimes difficult to organize and analyze information.Disadvantages of Site Visits and ObservationTake timeCan be expensive (depending how far you need to travel)With observation in particular, you need to be careful how you interpret what you see. With site visits, you may want to make sure you have a guide so that you can ask questionsHowever, the disadvantage of the quantitative as well as qualitative research is that they do not always underpin understanding of multi-dimensional pictures (Andrew, 2007).