Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Research

Types of Research

• Three primary research types: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods.
• Each approach comes with unique characteristics, methodologies, and applications based on the specific research questions.
• Understanding these approaches helps students choose the most appropriate method.

Research Approaches

• Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods are the three types of research

Qualitative Research

• Explores questions of quality related to characteristics or descriptions and address the "what" or "why".
• Qualitative research explores meanings, concepts, definitions, characteristics, metaphors, symbols, and descriptions.
• It employs varied philosophical assumptions, strategies of inquiry, and data methods for collection, analysis, and interpretation.

Quantitative Research

• Quantitative research is the systematic and empirical investigation of observable phenomena using statistical, mathematical, or computational techniques.
• Quantitative research answers the questions "How Many?" and questions related to relationships or differences between phenomena.
• It aims to develop and apply mathematical models, theories, and hypotheses pertaining to a phenomenon.

Mixed Methods Research

• Mixed methods research collects and combines both quantitative and qualitative data.
• It uses unique designs that can incorporate philosophical assumptions and theoretical frameworks.

Qualitative vs. Quantitative Research

Purpose

• Qualitative: Exploring ideas, understanding context, and describing variation or experiences.
• Quantitative: Testing hypotheses, measuring relationships, and generalizing findings.

Data

• Qualitative data includes words, themes, or narratives.
• Quantitative data involves numbers, graphs, and tables.

Analysis

• Qualitative data is analyzed through summarizing, categorizing, and interpreting.
• Quantitative data is analyzed using math and statistical methods.

Sample

• Qualitative research uses few respondents for in-depth exploration.
• Quantitative research uses many respondents for broad generalization.

Questions

• Qualitative questions are open-ended and exploratory.
• Quantitative questions are close-ended or multiple-choice.

Framework

• Qualitative methods are flexible and iterative.
• Quantitative methods are structured (e.g., surveys, questionnaires).

Study Design

• Qualitative design adapts as research progresses
• Quantitative design is fixed and stable from start to finish

Types of Qualitative Research

Narrative Research

• Narrative research examines how stories are told to understand how participants perceive and make sense of their experiences.
• Researchers concentrate on the stories from the individual and arranges these stories often in chronological order.

Phenomenology (Descriptive Phenomenology)

• Phenomenology is one of the most used methods in qualitative research.
• It provides detailed descriptions of lived experiences related to a phenomenon or event.

Grounded Theory

• Grounded theory uses collected data to develop new theories.

Ethnography

• Ethnography is where Researchers immerse themselves in a particular culture or group to describe and understand their cultures.
• Data is collected either through an emic (subjective) or etic (objective) approach.
  • Etic Approach is when the researcher is an objective observer.
  • Emic Approach is when the researcher participates in the ethnographic group.

Case Study

• Case study is a long-term study providing a detailed description of a specific subject's experience, whether a single person, family, group, or community.

Contrasting Qualitative Approaches

Research Focus

• Narrative Research explores the life of an individual.
• Phenomenology understands the essence of the experience.
• Grounded Theory develops a theory grounded in data from the field.
• Ethnography describes and interprets a culture-sharing group.
• Case Study develops an in-depth description and analysis of a case or multiple cases.

Unit of Analysis

• Narrative Research studies one or more individuals.
• Phenomenology studies several individuals who have shared the experience.
• Grounded Theory studies a process, an action, or an interaction involving many individuals.
• Ethnography studies a group that shares the same culture.
• Case Study studies an event, a program, an activity, or more than one individual.

Research Problem

• Narrative Research tells stories of individual experiences.
• Phenomenology describes the essence of a lived phenomenon.
• Grounded Theory grounds theory in the views of participants.
• Ethnography describes and interprets the shared patterns of culture of a group.
• Case Study provides an in-depth understanding of a case or cases.

Nature of Disciplinary Origins

• Narrative Research draws from the humanities (anthropology, literature, history, psychology, sociology).
• Phenomenology draws from philosophy, psychology, and education.
• Grounded Theory draws mainly from sociology.
• Ethnography draws from anthropology and sociology.
• Case Study draws from psychology, law, political science, and medicine.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Qualitative Approaches

Narrative Research

• Advantages
  • Provides a unique way to explore human experiences.
  • Useful for teaching and learning, and for staging future research.
• Disadvantages
  • It is time-consuming
  • Findings can be difficult to generalize.
  • Can be subjective, with the researcher's beliefs influencing the results.

Phenomenology

• Advantages
  • Strong technique to analyze subjective experience and obtain insights into people’s actions and intentions.
• Disadvantages
  • Data gathering and analysis are time-consuming and laborious.
  • Participants may not be able to express themselves articulately.
  • Prone to researcher bias.
  • Findings cannot be generalized.

Grounded Theory

• Advantages
  • Avoids assuming structures are stable.
  • Useful for researchers wanting to explain a process rather than test an established theory.
• Disadvantages
  • Not useful for the application of received theory and for testing hypotheses.
  • Prone to researcher bias.

Ethnography

• Advantages
  • Allows for rich detailed data to be collected.
  • Provides an opportunity for researchers to uncover new unknown ways of thinking.
• Disadvantages
  • Can be expensive.
  • Certain logistics can pose challenges.
  • Rapport may be difficult to create.
  • Prone to researcher bias.
  • Hawthorne effect: Observed when individuals adjust their behavior when they know they are being watched..

Case Study

• Advantages
  • Single cases can be used to develop or disprove a theory.
  • Can be used as a model or prototype.
• Disadvantages
  • Labor intensive.
  • Generates large, diverse datasets that can be hard to manage.
  • Findings cannot be generalized.

Parts of Chapter 1

• Chapter 1 introduces the research paper, it should be engaging and concise.
• The first chapter includes:
  • Introduction
  • Background of the Study
  • Theoretical Framework
  • Conceptual Framework
  • Statement of the Problem
  • Assumptions
  • Significance of the Study
  • Scope and Delimitations
  • Definition of Terms

Introduction

• Establishes the foundation of the research paper.
• States the main research problem and the thesis argument.
• Introduction should cover four main points:
  • Topic or Subject Matter
  • Importance of the Topic
  • Reasons for Choosing the Topic
  • Purpose of the Study

Background of the Study

• The background outlines the events that led the researcher to begin the research.
• Describe the problem and refer to relevant literature in the field.
• It provides an overview of factors that have led to the problem, the problem itself, and its historical significance.

Theoretical Framework

• Uses existing theories as a blueprint to construct the research arguments.
• Present theories that explain or support the research.

Conceptual Framework

• Contains a theoretical explanation of the problem and is the basis for formulating the research hypothesis.
• It shows the researcher's understanding of the relationships between the variables involved.

Statement of the Problem

• The research questions should contain a general statement of the problem and questions or subproblems.

Assumptions

• Assumptions and limitations, are similar to hypotheses in quantitative research
• Assumptions do not need to be proven in qualitative research.
• Limitations are weaknesses or challenges in the study that the researcher cannot control, also acknowledge any limitations to provide transparency

Significance of the Study

• Significance outlines the research paper's rationale, timeliness, and relevance.
• It enumerates the parties that may benefit, and discusses the research's contribution to the field, and if it can solve existing problems or improve unsatisfactory conditions

Scope and Delimitations

• The researcher indicates what they intend to do by enumerating.
• Understanding scope(plans) and delimitations(choices) keeps the study clear and focused.
  • Scope defines what the research plans to cover, like specific topics, timeframe, participants, and the area of focus.
  • Delimitation refers to the decisions to narrow the study

Definition of Terms

• The researcher defines terms with special or unique meanings in the study.
• Two ways to define a term:
  • Conceptual Definition explains a term in theory or general understanding like a dictionary definition.
  • Operational Definition specifies how the term will be measured or applied in the study, and makes the concept usable in research

Literature Review

• A literature review is a summary and analysis of existing research and information on a topic.
• A literature review helps reveal what is missing and demonstrate how the research will contribute something new.
• The purpose of literature review is to:
  • Gain background knowledge about the topic
  • Connecting the study to the current world situation or existing research
  • Shows how the research adds ideas or proves/disproves findings
  • Highlight key theories that support the study
  • Avoid repeating studies already done

Sources of Related Literature

• Three basic types of literature sources:
  • General References direct you to the location of other sources (encyclopedias or indexes).
  • Primary Sources directly report on a person’s experiences or original work (experiments or personal accounts).
  • Secondary Sources report or describe other people's experiences (review articles or textbooks).
• Acceptable sources for literature reviews are listed from most to least acceptable:
  • Website material from professional associations
  • Peer-reviewed journal article is submitted to a scholarly journal, accepted, and published.
  • Edited academic books are a collection of scholarly scientific papers written by different authors.
  • Articles in professional journals
  • Statistical data from governmental or reliable websites

Writing a Literature Review

• Five key steps to writing a literature review:
  • Search for relevant literature using keywords .
  • Evaluate sources to check if credible and relevant. Read key studies and cite sources.
  • Identify themes, debates, and gaps by looking for recurring ideas, arguments between researchers, and areas that need more research.
  • Organize the literature review by:
    • Chronological Order (how ideas developed)
    • Thematic Grouping (by main ideas/issues)
    • Methodological Comparing (based on research methods)
  • Write – Summarize and analyze the studies and show how they connect to your research

Citations

• Citations credit the original authors whose ideas are in research and to show respect for their work and make the research credible.
• Three ways to give proper credit:
  • Acknowledgment is found at the beginning and identifies individuals who have contributed to the paper.
  • References or Bibliography is found at the end and shows a list of all the books, articles, websites, and other sources in research.
  • In-Text Citation includes the author's last name and year of publication with quick references in the review. -Citations, also known as in-text citations, are used to:
  • Show Respect by acknowledging other people's ideas
  • Build Credibility, which proves studies are based on reliable sources
  • Avoid Plagiarism by giving proper credit

Citation Styles

• In writing, there can be different citation styles.
• The APA Style (7th Edition) is defined by the 7th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association and used in psychology.

Two Ways to Cite in Text

• Parenthetical Citation - the citation and is placed inside a parenthesis at the end of a sentence
  • Example: Research has shown that education is important (Smith, 2020).
• Narrative Citation - Included naturally in the sentence.
  • Example: Smith's (2020) research explains that education is important.

Direct Quotations

• Short/Regular Quotation (under 40 words) - Use quotation marks author, year, and page number.
  • Example: “Education is key” (Smith, 2020, p. 23)
• Long/Block Quotations (40+ words): Indent the block quote, do not use quotation marks, and include the citation details.

Based on Number of Authors for the Same Source

• One author: Narrative in-text citation: McCombes (2021) and Parenthetical in-text citation: (McCombes, 2021)
• Two authors: Narrative in-text citation: Cruz and Caringal-Go (2021), Parenthetical in-text citation: (Cruz & Caringal-Go, 2021)
• Three or more authors: follows the first author's name followed by et al., unless would create ambiguity

Unknown auhor

• Use the source's title in the signal phrase or the first two words in parentheses.
• Titles of books and reports are italicized, while titles of articles and web pages are in quotations

Group or Organization as author

• Include the organization in the signal phrase or parenthetical citation the first time, just like an individual person

Citing Multiple Sources in One Parenthesis

• Arrange the sources by the authors' last names alphabetically using semicolons to separate each source

Sources Without Page Numbers

• When quoting from a source without page numbers, details instead.
• Mention the heading/section name and add the paragraph number

Citing Secondary Sources

• Mention the primary source in your paper and include the secondary source in your citation