Chapter 2

Quantitative and Qualitative

Approaches
Dr. William M. Bauer

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 Key Ideas
 Configurations of research
 Development of quantitative research
 Development of qualitative research
 Definitions of qualitative and
quantitative research
 The relationship between the
research process and qualitative and
quantitative research

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 Three Configurations of
Research
Study A
Study C
Qualitative Qualitative
Characteristics Characteristics
Quantitative
Characteristics
Quantitative
Characteristics

Study B Research studies may

Quantitative include characteristics of
Characteristics both approaches, but they
Qualitative are weighted more heavily
Characteristics one way or the other.

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 The Development of
Quantitative Research:
Historical Trends
 Statistical Procedures
 Test and Measurement Practices
 Research Designs

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 Historical Trends: Statistical
Procedures
 Correlational procedures
 Comparing groups
 Cause/Effect relationships

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 Historical Trends: Testing and
Measurement
 Testing mental abilities (late 19th
century)
 Measuring achievement (e.g. SAT)
 Predicting achievement from
standardized measurements

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 Historical Trends: Research
Designs
 Educational Surveys (late 19th
century)
 Simple Experiments (early 20th
century)
 Multiple groups and tests (by 1935)
 Longitudinal designs
 Books on research design (e.g.
Kerlinger 1964)
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The Development of Qualitative
Research: Major Themes
 Philosophical Ideas
 Procedural Developments
 Advocacy Practices

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 Qualitative Research:
Philosophical Ideas
 Naturalistic Inquiry or Constructivism
 consider the participants point of view
 describe participant’s view within a
setting or context
 This is an alternative perspective to
traditional research

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 Qualitative Research:
Procedural Developments
 Central Phenomenon rather than
research question or hypothesis
 Methods such as interviews,
observations and interviews
 Designs such as case studies,
grounded theory and narrative

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 Qualitative Research:
Advocacy Practices
 The qualitative researcher is not
objective, politically neutral observer
 The qualitative researcher is an
observer of the human condition
 The meaning of the research is
plural, political and open
 The project is collaborative and
participatory

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 Characteristics of Quantitative and
Qualitative Research in the Process of
Research
Quantitative Steps in the Qualitative
Characteristics Research Process Characteristics
Description of trends and Exploratory/ Understanding
Explanation Oriented
Identifying a Problem a Central Phenomenon
•Major Role •Minor Role
•Justify Problem Reviewing the Literature •Justify Problem
•Specific and Narrow •General and Broad
•Measurable/Observable Specifying a Purpose •Participants’ Experience
•Pre-determined Instruments •Emerging Protocols
•Numeric Data Collecting Data •Text or image data
•Large numbers •Small Number
•Statistical •Text Analysis
•Description of Trends Analyze and Interpret Data •Description/Themes
•Comparisons/Predictions •Larger meanings of findings
•Standard and Fixed Report and Evaluate •Flexible and Emerging
•Objective and Unbiased •Reflexive and Biased

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Definitions of Qualitative and
Quantitative Research
Quantitative Qualitative Research
Research Quantitative research is an
inquiry approach useful for exploring
Quantitative research is an
and understanding a central
inquiry approach useful for
phenomenon. To learn about this
describing trends and explaining
phenomenon, the inquirer asks
the relationship among variables
found in the literature. To
participants broad, general
conduct this inquiry, the questions, collects the detailed
investigator specifies narrow views of participants in the form of
questions, locates or develops words or images, and analyzes the
instruments using statistics. From information for description and
the results of these analyzes, the themes. From this data, the
researcher interprets the data researcher interprets the meaning of
using prior predictions and the information drawing on personal
research studies. The final report, reflections and past research. The
presented in standard format, structure of the final report is
display researcher objectivity and flexible, and it displays the
lack of bias. researcher’s biases and thoughts.
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 Characteristics of Quantitative and
Qualitative Research in the Process of
Research
Steps in the Two Approaches Research Designs
Research Process
Quantitative
Identifying a Problem Qualitative
Quantitative
Reviewing the Literature Qualitative •Experimental
Quantitative •Correlational
Specifying a Purpose Qualitative •Survey

Quantitative
Collecting Data Qualitative
•Mixed
Quantitative •Action
Analyze and Interpret Data Qualitative •Ethnography
•Grounded
Quantitative Theory
Report and Evaluate Qualitative •Narrative

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Quantitative Designs and Uses
Intervention Non-Intervention
Research Research

Explaining whether an Associating or

intervention influences relating variables
an outcome for one in a predictable
group as opposed to pattern for one Describing trends for
another group group of the population of
individuals people

Experimental Correlational Survey

Research Research Research

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Qualitative Research Designs
and Uses

Exploring common
Exploring the shared Exploring individual
experiences of
culture of a people stories to describe
individuals to
group the lives of people
develop a theory

Ethnographic Grounded Theory Narrative

Research Research Research

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Combined Designs and Uses

Combining quantitative and Using quantitative

qualitative data to best and qualitative data
understand and explain a for individuals to
research problem. study problems that
they face in their
setting

Mixed Method Action

Research Research

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