Qualitative and Quantitative Research

Qualitative and Quantitative Research

Question 1

While undertaking Research, scholars often find themselves in a fix in differentiating between Qualitative Research and Quantitative research methods since, to many, they make a mistake of using the two terms interchangeably, which usually distorts the meaning of the intended message. The two words have different rights from their purpose. Qualitative Research refers to exploratory Research. Most researchers use Qualitative Research to understand any underlying opinions, motivations, and reasons (Firestone, 1987). Therefore researchers use Qualitative Research if they need to have insight into a specific problem or when they need hypotheses or ideas developed for a potential Quantitative Research (Yilmaz, 2013). Quantitative Research, on the other hand, is used when a problem needs to be quantified. Quantification can be done by a generation of numerical data or data which can be used or instead transformed into useful statistics (McCusker & Gunaydin, 2015). Quantitative Research helps researchers to quantify defined variables such as attitudes, opinions, behaviors, and more (McCusker,& Gunaydin, 2015). It is through the use of measurable data that Quantitative Research helps researchers formulate facts and also uncover specific patterns in Research.

Data

One of the most distinctive differences between Qualitative Research and Quantitative Research is data (Antwi, & Hamza, 2015). Qualitative data cannot be counted since it includes texts, videos, photos, and many more. Quantitative data, on the other hand, can be calculated; hence, it can be referred to as numerical. Research indicates that Qualitative data is mostly unstructured. This means that it is not grouped or ordered in a logical way (Antwi & Hamza, 2015). However, through analytic methods such as coding, qualitative data can be turned into structured data. Quantitative data, on the other hand, is usually structured. Qualitative data is generally collected from smaller sized samples as compared to quantitative data (Bryman, 2017). The reason behind this is Qualitative Research is not bent on seeking statistical significance, but Quantitative Research is. Qualitative Research is very rich in directional insights especially when a researcher needs information on topics such as people’s feelings, thoughts, emotions, and much more Quantitative Research, on the other hand, is more abundant in information such as trends, hence allowing the researcher to be in a position of deriving numerical facts (Hammersley, 2017).

On a lighter note, quantitative Research explains what were the actions of the user, while Qualitative Research helps to learn the reason why the users did it (Brannen, 2017). The methodology used by the two types of Research is different also. Qualitative Research uses methods such as observation of the respondents and interviews supported by privileged witnesses, while Qualitative Research uses structured questionnaires (Brannen, 2017). Quantitative Research requires the use of representative samples, but they are not a necessity in qualitative Research.

Question 2

Depression is one of the most common psychological disorders, and it can be described as a mood disorder that involves a feeling of persistent sadness as well as a loss of interest (Staneva, Bogossian, & Wittkowski, 2015). Research indicates that it is usually different from fluctuations of mood, which is generally experienced as part of a healthy life (Staneva, Bogossian, & Wittkowski, 2015). A difference exists between Qualitative Research and Quantitative Research, so are the findings on a similar research topic (Krumm, Checchia, Koesters, Kilian, & Becker, 2017). Qualitative Research conducted on depression revealed that there were many essential elements regarding depression which could not be uncovered without the use of Quantitative analysis.

One of the discoveries of the qualitative Research on depression was the feelings attributed to it.

Research indicates that depression brings about intense feelings of aggression as well as irritability. This one of the most common symptoms among those suffering from depression. Another discovery was undergoing (Chambers, Cook, Thake, Foster, Shaw, Hutten, & Ricketts, 2015). Research indicated that most of those interviewed showed their overwhelming experience of suffering. The sample also indicated their experience of loneliness as well as isolation. Most of those suffering from depression, too, the research suggests that they were struggling to understand the suffering they were going through (Lascelles, Marzano, Brand, Trueman, McShane, & Hawton, 2019). The Research also indicated that what came last after undergoing all the emotional suffering is seeking therapy.

As the information indicates, the information that surfaced after the qualitative Research was about people’s feelings. This is information that requires no numerical explanation.

Qualitative Research, however, failed to explain some aspects which are essential in understanding more about depression. There is a need, for example, to know how many people in terms of figures are suffering from depression globally. There also needs to be a percentage of those suffering along with age differentiation. Having the data for which gender is most vulnerable is also very important to help treatment procedures (Parkinson, Eatough, Holmes, Stapley, & Midgley, 2016). Numerical data on how progressive the disorder is a long time is essential. This will help discover which years and times were most affected. A statistical chart of how countries are also affected would go a long way to help understand how distributed the disorder is. Depression is mostly as a result of other diseases. As such, there is a need for the Research to figuratively indicate which different conditions are likely to cause depression, at what rate, and how often, which should be all described in terms of figures and charts. All this information was not available in the qualitative Research but can be handy if quantitative Research was conducted.

Objectivism

Objectivism can be described as the tendency to emphasize the independence of the mind as well as what is external. Further research also indicates that it is the belief that particular things especially what is referred to as amoral truth independently, exist of human perception of their knowledge (Antwi,& Hamza,2015). Qualitative research is more of positivity as compared to quantitative analysis. A qualitative researcher always believes that there is a world full of possibilities out there that need to be identified through scientific methods. Qualitative research is more of positivism, whereas quantitative analysis is about facts at hand.

Ontology

In social science research, ontological questions are usually related to what real nature is. In this regard, two central contrasting positions stand. Objectivism, which research indicates that it is the glue holding the possibility of reality (Tuli, 2010). Objectivism also holds that or instead, it assumes that reality is the product of the social process (Tuli, 2010). Research further indicates that a positivist researcher regards existence as real, and it is out there waiting to be discovered. Positivist orientation holds that people can use their senses and observation skills to observe this reality as well as any discoveries made by another researcher about the existence of their actions, which is expressed as statements of facts. Researchers who believe to be positivists disregard themselves as variables in their research; hence, they remain detached from their research. Such researchers believe in a philosophical basis which holds that the world exists, what remains is for researchers to use their quantitative methods to ensure they discover it. Hence for reality to be believed, it must be represented quantitatively, which is numerically for the numbers to speak for themselves (Tuli, 2010).

Further research indicates that interpretive researchers that are qualitative researchers disagree with this concept since they see reality as a human construct. According to the research paradigm referred to as interpretative, humans tend to make their existence also referred to as social realities. As a way of proofing positivist wrong, interpretive researchers use qualitative research methodologies to conduct an investigation, interpret the results, and also describe social realities. After the description is done, the findings are reported through words and not numbers.

Therefore, the ontology of constructivists claims multiple, socially, or individually constructed reality, that will need contextual study as well as holistic study. Constructivist believes that both the participant and the researcher usually create their existence as well as knowledge. A positivist ontology, on the other hand, claims objectivity, singularity, and reality that will be used and studied without the researcher’s perspective (Tuli, 2010). Researchers with an interpretivist paradigm are usually guided to ensure they use in-depth interviews, observation techniques, as well as discussion in a group to allow better data collection as well as data analysis, which is not numerical. Positivist paradigm researchers, on the other hand, are usually guided to use tests, questionnaires, checklists and inventories as a way of collecting data and more so use of statistical or numerical techniques of data analysis.

It is, therefore, preferable to indicate that qualitative research has a world view or rather a philosophical school of thought that is interpretivism, which is characterized by constructionist ontology and well as interpretivist epistemology (Tuli, 2010). Quantitative research, on the other hand, has a world view that is of positivism, which is characterized by objectivist or realist ontology as well as empiricist epistemology (Tuli, 2010).