QUANTITATIVE AND

QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
APPROACH

Prepared By : Dr. Anup K. Mishra

Qualitative Measures
 Qualitative research is any research that relies
primarily or exclusively on qualitative measures
 Qualitative research (i.e., measures) used to:
 Generate new theories or hypotheses
 Achieve a deep understanding of an issue

 Develop detailed stories to describe a phenomenon

Qualitative and Quantitative Data
 Qualitative data consists of “words”
 Quantitative data consists of “numbers”
 All qualitative data can be coded quantitatively
 All quantitative data is based on qualitative
judgment
Qualitative Data
 Includes any information that can be captured that
is not numerical in nature (Miles & Huberman,
1994)
 In-depth interviews (individual and group)
 Direct observation (respondent is not queried)
 Written documents (existing documents)
Qualitative Traditions
 Ethnography
 studying a phenomenon in the context of its culture
 Phenomenology
 studying how a phenomenon is experienced by
participants
 Field Research
 researcher observes a phenomenon in its natural state
(“in situ”)
 Grounded Theory (Glaser & Strauss, 1967)
 to develop a theory (“grounded” in observation) about
a phenomenon of interest
Qualitative Methods
 Participant observation
 researcher becomes a participant (i.e., member) in the
culture being observed
 Direct observation
 researcher not a member of the culture being studied but
remains unobtrusive
 Unstructured interviewing
 direct interaction between the researcher and respondent;
no structured interview or set direction
 Case studies
 intensive study of a specific individual or specific context
 Qualitative Quantitative
The aim of qualitative analysis is a In quantitative research we classify
complete detailed description. features, count them, and construct
statistical models in an attempt to
explain what is observed.
The design emerges as the study All aspects of the study are carefully
unfolds designed before data is collected.
Researcher is the data gathering Researcher uses tools (questionnaires
instrument. or equipment) to collect data.
Data is in the form of words Data is in the form of numbers and
(interviews), pictures (videos), or statistics.
objects (artifacts).
Qualitative data is more rich, time Quantitative data is more efficient,
consuming, and less able to be able to test hypotheses, but may miss
generalized. contextual data.
Qualitative v.'s Quantitative
Area of Qualitative Quantitative
comparison Research Research

Type of questions Probing Limited probing

Sample Size small large
Info. Per respondent much varies

Requires skilled Fewer specialist skills

Admin
researcher required

Subjective,
Type of Analysis Statistical
interpretative
Type of research Exploratory Descriptive or causal
Criteria for Judging Research Quality from a
More Qualitative Perspective

Traditional Criteria for Judging Alternative Criteria for Judging

Quantitative Research Qualitative Research

Internal validity Credibility

External validity Transferability

Reliability Dependability

Objectivity Confirmability
Quality of Qualitative Research
 Credibility
 establishing that the results are credible from the perspective of the
participant
 Transferability
 degree to which results can be generalized to other contexts
 Dependability
 description by the researcher of changes within the context that the
research occurs and how these might affect conclusions
 Confirmability
 degree to which others can confirm or corroborate the results
Types of qualitative
research designs
The case study

Ethnography

Grounded theory

Phenomenology

Participatory research
Unobtrusive Measures
 Indirect Measures
 The researcher collects data without the
participant being aware of it
 Attention must be paid to ethical considerations
 Possibilityof deception
 Invasion of privacy

 No informed consent
Unobtrusive Measures (cont’d)
 Content Analysis
 Systematic analysis of text in order to identify
patterns
 Thematic analysis of text
 Indexing

 Quantitative descriptive analysis

Unobtrusive Measures (cont’d)
 Content Analysis (cont’d)
 May involve sampling from the population of
potential texts
 Identification of units of analysis
 Coding of units of analysis
 Limitations
Unobtrusive Measures (cont’d)
 Secondary Analysis of Data
 Re-analysis of quantitative data
 May involve combining information from multiple
data sets
 Can be used for replication or to subject data to
other, more sophisticated analyses
 Limitations
Qualitative Research – some issues
Not everything that can be counted counts, and
not everything that counts can be counted
Albert Einstein
What do you know about
Qualitative Research?
 What have you heard or read about qualitative
research?
 Easy to do
 Not scientific

 Subjective
What do you know about
Qualitative Research?
 What have you heard or read about qualitative
research?
 Inductive: Finding a theory to explain one’s findings
 Interactive research compared to quantitative:
spending time with respondents versus “drive byes.”
 Data collection methods can be somewhat involved
Credibility of Qualitative Inquiry
 Dependent on three distinct but related inquiry
elements:
 Rigorous methods
 fieldwork = yields high quality data – which are
systematically analyzed with attention to issues of
credibility
 Credibility of the researcher
 Dependent on training, experience, track record
 Philosophical belief in the value of qualitative inquiry
 naturalistic inquiry, qualitative
methods , inductive
analysis, purposeful sampling, holistic thinking
Comparing Quantitative &
Qualitative Methodologies
 Which research methodology is represented by
these characteristics (Qual. or quant.)?
 Purpose of the study
 Pose problem/ raise Questions

 Define research population

 Develop time frame

 Collect & analyze data

 Present outcomes
Data Collection
 Once you have identified that a qualitative
methodology best fits your research question,
there are numerous data collection strategies to
select from….
 Some considerations:
 Full & unqualified consent
 Site selection: Can be difficult. Knowing someone can
help get you in
 Should have more than one way of collecting data –
triangulation
 Establishing trust
Data Collection
 Some considerations:
 Access:
 Unqualified access = total access to the research site
 Qualified access = might need to select another research
site/participants
 Informants: insider who knows environment/politics
 Gate keepers (e.g. principal; dept chair, Ad)
 Negotiating: Notes/data belong to you/respondent = confidentiality
 What will you deliver??? Drafts of research writing, final paper,
 Entering with a problem statement does not mean that it will
remain the same throughout the data collection
 Emergent possibilities
Fieldwork
 Possibilities & Pitfalls
 Anxiety producing
 Safe places

 Being unobtrusive
 Researcher wants to be sure not to call attention to
self…blending in is important…those observed should not
even know your are there after a while
 Did you come in with preconceived opinions?
Fieldwork
 Possibilities & Pitfalls
 Establishing & Maintaining rapport
 Rapport: Appearance, speech, behavior, must be
acceptable to research participants
 Know the others’ language
 Nonjudgmental
 Inoffensive
 Patient
 Sense of humor
 CONFIDENTIALITY

 Subjectivity
Fieldwork
 Observations
 How long are you going to be in the field?
 Field notes?

 Videotape?
 Can be highly problematic in schools
 Amount of time in the field site

Not relevant

Researcher’s Focus of Attention All details

in the
field

Amount of time in the field site

Not Important

Figure: Focusing in field research (Adapted from Neuman 1997)

Data Collection Types/Aspects
 Participant-Observation (wide range of
possibilities)
 Helps researcher develop “trusted person” status
 Allows researcher to observe how observed person’s
actions correspond to observed person’ words
 Allows researcher to see the unexpected

 Assists in the development of interview questions –

connecting to known behaviors you have observed
Data Collection Types/Aspects
 Continuum of Participant-Observation:
 Mostly observation to mostly participation
 Where on the continuum you place yourself is directly
related to the questions you are asking, context of
study, and your theoretical framework
 Main Goal of Participant-Observation: To
understand the research setting, participants and
their behaviors
Data Collection Types/Aspects
 Participant-Observation Process:
 Systematic observation & detailed recordings of
environment
 Constant analysis of observations – “What’s
happening here?”
 Evidence of personal bias: Am I being judgmental?
Data Collection Types/Aspects
 Observation
 General methods…
 Studying the setting
 Describing it in detail
 “Making the familiar strange.”
 What do you notice about the participants in their natural
settings?
 interactions? Comparing their words/beliefs to their
actions
 Non verbal feedback? Gestures?
Types of interviews

Life
histories Evaluation

Topical Cultural
Type of Interviews in
Qualitative Research

Focus Qualitative
group
Types of questions

• Experience and behavior questions

• Opinion and value questions
• Feeling questions
• Knowledge questions
• Background/demographic questions
Field notes
 Notebook form
 Needs to be detailed & thorough
 Time consuming when done correctly
 Descriptive and analytic
Field notes
 Field notebook – primary recording tool (confidential)
 Describes environment, people, events, activities,
interactions, researcher ideas, reflections, questions,
exploring researcher bias
 After observation, researcher returns to notes to complete
detailed summaries and expand upon observations
 Descriptive and analytic:
 Accuracy without being judgmental
 Such detail that you can visualize the moment a year later
Field Notes
 Poor example of Field Notes:
 “The class was disorderly and noisy”
 Good example of Field Notes:
 “The 5th grade class contained 15 girls and 12 boys.
When I entered they were in groups of 6. One group
of 4 girls were trying to see who could blow the
biggest bubble with their gum. A group of 5 boys
began imitating a martial arts movie they had seen on
TV…”
Field Notes
 Analytic Notes:
 Observer comments
 Observer Comments to researcher – informal statements
the respondent makes
 Daily reflection
 Thoughts, concerns the researcher has with the setting,
study, emerging themes, etc.
 Researcher acknowledges feelings, problems, ideas,
etc.
Interviewing
 Questions:
 Should be reflective of observations
 What did you learn as a participant-observer?
 Developing
questions - Where should your questions
come from?
 Format?
 RAPPORT
 Structured?
 Open Ended?
 Probing?
 Non- Verbal Messages from respondent
Interviewing
 Requires skill and practice
 Types of questions asked (Patton, 2002)
 Experience and behavior interview questions: What
respondents do or have done
 Opinion and value questions: How respondents think
about their behaviors and experiences
 Feeling questions: Questions that elicit how respondents
react emotionally to or feel about their experiences and
opinions
 Continued…
Interviewing
 Types of questions asked (Patton, 2002)
 Knowledge questions: What respondents know about their
worlds
 Sensory questions: elicit descriptions of what and how they
see, hear, touch, taste, smell the world around them
 Background and demographic questions: Quest. That elicit
respondents’ descriptions of themselves
Interviewing
 Other aspects of interviews
 Key informants: possess special knowledge
 May add information that researcher would otherwise not
have access too.
 Can sensitize the researcher to aspects of the particular
culture being investigated
 Possibilitiesof interviews: rich data, etc.
 Possible pitfalls:
 Interruptions
 redirecting
 poor questions
 researchers inability to follow up/probe
Interviewing
 Sequencing of Questions
 facilitates completeness/comprehensiveness
 Interviewing is not for everyone
 Nature of interactions will change
 Strengths/weaknesses

 Need to be a good listener

 Documents
Interviewing
 Where will interview occur?
 A convenient location for respondent?
 When will you meet? Time of day is important- tired /rushed
 How long do you anticipate it will last?
 How often will you meet?
 Audiotaped?
 Interruptions?
 Transcribing interviews-long , but meaningful process
 Documents:
 Curricular guides, newsletters, transcripts – corroborate
observations/findings LEADING TO trustworthiness
Data Analysis
 Organizing what you have seen, heard, and read,
so that you can make sense of what you have
learned.
 Ongoing throughout study:
 permitsresearcher to focus and shape the study as it
proceeds
 Rudimentary Coding Scheme
 Counting or enumerating items means they must
defined and located within data records
 Categorizing; dividing & subdividing

 Field notes are coded, audiotapes are coded

Data Analysis
 Voluminous
 Computer programs
 Trustworthiness (Reflect on data –What is data
telling you?)
 TRIANGULATION of data sources
 Use of multiple data collection techniques = data collected
in 1 way can be cross checked for accuracy with another
 Prevents researcher from accepting to readily the validity
of initial impressions
 Assists in correcting biases that occur when the researcher
is the only observer
Data Analysis
 Trustworthiness (continued)
 Observations, interviews, documents, etc.
 Researcher bias – continual alertness

 Peer debriefer
 someone who reads your field notes, transcriptions,
interpretations
 Member Checks
 data
sources provided to participants for their review,
comments, expansion of thoughts
Telling the Story
 Maintaining confidentiality – Highest priority
 “Writing is a political act” (Glesne & Peshkin):
 Intended and Unintended consequences
 Can respondents be subjected to unwanted publicity?

 Keeping at it….

 Include…Narratives/vignettes/direct quotations …
support the claims one makes in their findings