Comapre and Contrast Qualitative and Quantitative Appraoches to Research

This paper primarily concerns qualitative research, but we were asked to compare both qualitative and quantitative methods. During comparison, there are many noted differences in both study designs, but not many similarities. Qualitative research uses a subjective approach with a large sample population. It collects non-statistical data, using an unstructured or semi-structured technique (Nieswiadomy & Bailey, 2018). Quantitative research uses an objective approach and large, random, sampling to ask opinions in a structured way. The findings of quantitative studies are conclusive and used to recommend a final course of action (Nieswiadomy & Bailey, 2018). While it is hard to see similarities between the two, both methods aim to find a solution to a problem or question, the researcher doing the study may affect the outcome and an analysis of the collected data must be done (Souza, 2017). What many don’t realize is the connection amongst the two. You can say, both types of research build upon one another, meaning quantitative studies can quantify results found in qualitative research (Souza, 2017).

“The semi-structured interview is a qualitative data collection strategy in which the researcher asks informants a series of predetermined but open-ended questions”(Ayres, 2008, p. 810).

There has probably been more energy spent on debating the difference, advantages and limitations between qualitative and quantitative research methods, it can be said that this issue has been debated to death with many spending years proving which methods is the best.

Compare and contrast quantitative and qualitative methods on each of the elements listed. Please use scholarly, academic literature to support your response.

The pilot study conducted in this research shows that there were a few problems within the overall design of the interview and therefore the researchers decided to make some minor changes to their design, these changes included altering the questions so they were open ended, they also made the interview less structured in able to gain more focused answers in which they could analyse.

One advantage of a semi structured interview is that in the case of participants who tend to answer questions briefly, the interviewer can ask more open ended questions and cater the structure of the interview for the participant. The interviewer has a choice of which order to ask the questions in and how to ask them. For instance, in the transcript for the interview, the interviewer is being provided with one sentence yes/no replies in the beginning. Then, a few questions later, the interviewer asks a more detailed question that asks the participant how they manage their diabetes and who helps them. This prompts a more detailed response from the participant, who has now been asked to speak more freely about their experience with diabetes. Furthermore, for semi-structured interviews, the interviewers can follow what the participants are saying and modify their questions accordingly. The interviewer can be prompted by something the participant has said, and explore that prompt further in their proceeding questions. For example, when the respondent states that they do their own finger prick blood test, the interviewer then explores that deeper by asking follow up questions such as what equipment the participant uses and the difference in their own materials versus the hospital’s. Furthermore, in a semi-structured interview, the participant might bring up interesting points the interviewer had not come across in their

Business researchers utilize various forms of approaches to analyze and obtain information and data, and two of the most popular approaches used are the qualitative research approach and quantitative research approach. Each approach can be beneficial or in some cases may cause inconclusive results depending on the type of research being conducted and what the nature of the study is. The following will assess two different peer reviewed articles: one which uses a qualitative approach and the other a quantitative approach. It

The researcher asked participants to come to a private office to complete a semi-structured interview with the researcher. The interview guide approved by the IRB and used throughout all the interviews included the following questions:

1) Calcite and halite share many similarities such as being white to transparent, having three cleavage points, and also has roughly the same hardness (calcite has a hardness of three whereas halite has a hardness of 2.5). However, there are also some ways to differentiate between the two. One way to do this, although it is not highly recommended to do this without proper identification, is to taste it. Halite has a salty taste since it is salt. Another way to know what mineral is calcite and which mineral is halite is by looking at their cleavage points. Calcite has rhombohedral cleavage planes (75°) while Halite has a cubic cleavage point (90°).

An interview guide was constructed and then tested through two pilot interviews, during with time frame was evaluated. After these tests were executed, some small adjustments were made in order to better frame the questions. The sample was interviewed during three weeks in March and April 2012, using the semi- structured questions from the interview guide. The authors were aware of the effect that the response to some questions may have on the following responses, if a specific question was posed prior to another. Therefore general rules formulated within qualitative research for the sequence of questions, were followed. (Bryman, 2002). The authors deemed that the first question had

It also creates room for an easy comparison of outcomes, is very convenient for the respondents, and eliminates interviewer variability and possible social desirability as a result of the interviewer’s presence (Bryman & Bell, 2015). However, it is not without limitations as the use of self-administered questionnaires leaves no room for probing the respondents’ answers and the respondents also cannot ask questions in case of ambiguity; it also may not be appropriate for some kinds of respondents. However, the use of validated questionnaires enhances some of these

Another strength of using structured interviews is that their rigid format allows the researcher to keep an emotional distance from the respondent. However, the detachment that is constructed may have a negative effect on the results of the study as the respondent may be used to gaining sympathy from members of society, and then become withdrawn from the

The first interview was conducted as a pilot study, which whilst providing enriched data, was also proposed to determine any flaws and revisions which could then be implemented before continuing the research with the remaining participants and thus giving the overall study a more uniformed and viable approach (Kvale, 2007). However, following this pilot interview the researcher deemed all questions to be appropriate and they were included in the

Researchers employ a number of research methodologies to carry out, test, analyze and describe phenomena they are interested in studying. Among the most widely used methodologies are quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-method (Cozby & Bates, 2012, Garza & Landrum, 2015; Leedy & Ormrod, 2013; Creswell, 2013; Gergen, 2015). Qualitative and quantitative research designs, for example, are types of research approaches that provide clear directions on how to carry out a research plan (Creswell, 2013). The quantitative research design is profoundly deep-rooted in the discipline of psychology where it has been used through the perspective of post-positivist thoughts (Creswell, 2013). On the other hand, the qualitative research design is deeply- rooted in the field of Anthropology, where researchers have developed several naturalistic observational techniques to explain lived phenomena (Bates & Cosby, 2012; Creswell, 2013; Garza & Landrum, 2015). Quantitative and qualitative research designs share several similarities as well as differences in how they can be employed in conducting research procedures (Yilmaz, 2013).

The proposed methodology is a primary qualitative approach of semi-structured interviews. This method has been chosen as the focus of this