Research On Subjective Experiences Of A Social Environment, Based On Individual Perspectives Essay

According to Yin (2003), there are two types of research approach. This includes quantitative research approach and qualitative research approach. A quantitative research emphasizes on transforming the data to numbers, quantities and statistics to formulate facts and to uncover patterns in a research. It addresses research purposes through empirical analysis that involve numerical measurement, the relationship between variables and analysis approaches (Zikmund et al., 2010). The sample size being investigated is typically large (Anderson, 2006). Quantitative research mainly uses questionnaires, surveys and other equipment to collect numerical or measurable data (Anderson, 2006). On the other hand, a qualitative research typically emphasizes words more than numbers

Quantitative research is generally done using scientific methods, which includes the following steps: developing models, theories, and hypotheses of what the researcher expects to find, developing

Quantitative research methods are objective as it uses measurements and analysis of statistical data to answer the study question. The researchers’ opinions do not affect the outcome of the study, ensuring that the study is unbiased. Another advantage is quantitative research uses numbers and statistics which is understood universally (Houser,2008).

According to Schneider, Elliot, LoBiondo-Wood & Haber (2004), qualitative research methods, search for the meaning and understanding of human experiences in a naturalistic setting. A researcher obtains subjective facts in order to explore the experiences of each participant (Schneider, Elliot, LoBiondo-Wood & Haber 2004). As a result, qualitative research is a means in which a researcher gains an insight into the participant's point of view concerning their personal experiences; in order gain an understanding of the information given. Therefore this allows a researcher to collect subjective information to create a description of the phenomenon (Vishnevsky & Beanlands 2004).

The method of qualitative research become key method in the human and social science and also in the education and health science. The definition of qualitative research is a research using methods such as participant observation or case studies which result in a narrative, descriptive account of a setting or practice. Sociologists using these methods typically reject positivism and adopt a form of interpretive sociology (Parkinson & Drislane,2011). It involves the research using data that do not indicate ordinal values. Furthermore, qualitative research includes the different kinds of data collection, techniques of analysis and diversity of theoretical frameworks (Guest; Namey & Mitchell, 2013). According to Creswell(2013) ‘’the final written report or presentation includes the voices of participants, the reflexivity of the researcher, a complex description and interpretation of the problem, and its contribution to the literature or a call for change.

“Researchers who use quantitative research method seek objectivity through testable hypotheses and carefully designed studies, and gather date that can be reported in numbers and statistics” (Crawford, 2016, p. 66). According to Crawford (2016, p. 66) “conclusions from this study are drawn from statistics and generalized to populations of interest”. Unlike qualitative that helps to eliminate opinions and thoughts, quantitative quantify opinions and thoughts and they obtain results from a larger sampling population. As I had previously stated on my discussion board “Quantitative researcher’s collection methods include many different kinds of surveys for example; online surveys, paper surveys, online polls, face-to-face interviews, telephone interviews, and etc”(myself). “They use the surveys to measure attitudes, behaviors, and opinions” (myself).

Quantitative research: In quantitative researches, surveys are conducted to collect numerical data. Most of the surveys include close-ended questions which are less time consuming. It is quite easy to collect such data as consumers tend to be more co-operative. The collected data is further analyzed for a proper conclusion.

There are different ways in which researcher defines quantitative and qualitative research. Quantitative research is a social research that uses experimental methods, questionnaires, numerical data and explains observations usually in tables or charts from. Quantitative research can define the relationship between two or more studies.

Quantitative research is to find a way to solve the problem as result generating numerical data or data that use as statistical data. This type of research is used to look at the attitudes, opinions, and behaviours and

A quantitative research is the collection and collation of solid information. A quantitative research question is any question that provides data that can be quantified. The data that quantitative research generates often takes the form of numbers and figures or “yes” and “no” answers. Responses to quantitative research question always lie within a discrete range so they can collated in a database, plotted on a graph, or quantified.

In particular, qualitative researchers tend to focus more on the social-constructed reality and the contextual influence, interaction and constraints between the researcher(s) and the participants. They are interested in finding answers to questions that focus on the “social construction of experience and how meaning is created” (Cooper & White, 2012, p. 15). However, quantitative researchers “emphasize measurement and analysis, and focus on product rather than process” (Cooper & White, 2012, p. 15). Quantitative researchers perceive reality as observable and external so that they are interested in conducting research which is based on measurement or calculation. Therefore, it is the ontological and epistemological beliefs that usually drive the methodological preferences, but what helps the researchers make their final decisions about research methods is the guiding research question(s). Sechrest and Sidani (1995) point out the commonality that both methodologies “describe their data, construct explanatory arguments form their data, and speculate about why the outcomes they observed happened as they did (p. 78)”. Both research methodologies need to address issues of either validity or credibility, make the data unbiased and the research design as rigorous as possible.

“Qualitative research focuses on gaining insight and understanding about an individual’s perception of events” (Nieswiadomy, 2012). There are six common qualitative designs: phenomenological, ethnographic, grounded theory, historical, case study, and action research. Phenomenological studies are based on human “lived” experiences and what the experience means to the person being studied. The researcher has to put aside their own personal ideas or belief systems in order for them to be able to concentrate on the person in the study. Ethnographic studies which was used in this study, the researchers went in to the “field” to observe people of various cultures and ethnicities interacting together in their own environment. “Ethnographers study how people live and how they communicate with each other”

Qualitative research is investigations which use sensory methods such as listening or observing to gather and organize data into patterns or themes. Qualitative research deals more often with language than numbers. Methods of gathering information might be focus groups or interview panels. It uses a flexible research design and utilizes an inductive process to formulate a theory. The idea is to get in depth information from the participants. The purpose is to understand and interpret social interactions.

Qualitative research is a broad term for exploratory methodologies described as ethnographic, anthropological, naturalistic, field or participant observation research. It addresses the significance of looking at variables in the natural setting in which they are found in research. Relations between variables are essential parts of the research. Detailed data is collected through open ended questions from the respondents. The interviewer is a fundamental part of the research (Jacob, 1988).

1. Quantitative Research – Research that goes through a specific method to reach a conclusion, based upon a hypothesis, research problem, gathering of data, analyzing and interpreting the data using statistical means. One way quantitative research is used in educational practice is looking at test scores among a specific group of individuals, and comparing data outcomes with other groups to notice trends.