Qualitative Research - "is an approach to research that is primarily concerned with studying the nature, quality, and meaning of human experience. It asks questions about how people make sense of their experiences, how people talk about what has happened to them and others, and how people experience, manage, and negotiate situations they find themselves in" (Willig, 2016).
Quantitative Research - "involves the gathering of numerical data which are often subjected to statistical analysis. Qualitative research aims to be objective in its methods, application, and analysis, and also more reliable (in that it is easier to repeat these studies and obtain similar results) than using qualitative research methods" (Crawford, 2009).
Mixed Methods Research - "is an approach to a research problem that leverages the advantages of both qualitative and quantitative research methods to better understand the subject than any individual approach could offer on its own. It recognizes that qualitative and quantitative data can each contribute to different aspects of understanding a problem, and it integrates both approaches within a holistic methodological approach" (Harper, 2013).
This chart compares qualitative and quantitative research, and will show you how to recognize both types of research.
Qualitative Research | Quantitative Research |
---|---|
Understanding and interpreting social interactions and behavior |
Testing theories, describing with statistics, and making predictions |
Specially chosen small groups |
Randomly selected large groups |
Words |
Numbers |
Subjective |
Objective |
Observations and interviews |
Experiments and surveys |
Open-ended questions |
Controlled responses |
Narrative report |
Statistical results |
Qualitative vs. Quantitative Research. (2018). Retrieved from https://guides.erau.edu/qualitative-quantitative
Crawford, G. (2009). Quantitative research. In S. H. Callahan, The SAGE dictionary of leisure studies. London, UK: Sage UK. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.gardner-webb.edu/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/sageukdicles/quantitative_research/0?institutionId=5562
Creswell, J. W. (1998). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five traditions. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishing.
Harper, G. M. (2013). Mixed methods research. Salem press encyclopedia. Retrieved from Bulldog OneSearch.
Qualitative vs. Quantitative Research. (2018). Retrieved from https://guides.erau.edu/qualitative-quantitative
Willig, C. (2016). Qualitative research. In L. H. Miller (Ed.), The Sage encyclopedia of theory in psychology. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.gardner-webb.edu/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/topic/qualitative_research?institutionId=5562