Qualitative vs. Quantitative Research

• Research manifests in everyday life

Research Paradigm

• A research paradigm is a cluster of beliefs that influences what should be studied, how research should be done, and how results should be interpreted.
• Qualitative research understands social or human problems by building a holistic picture with words and detailed views.
• Quantitative research investigates social or human problems by testing theories with variables, measured with numbers and analyzed statistically.

Qualitative Research Characteristics

• Primarily concerned with processes rather than outcomes
• Interested in meaning and how people make sense of experiences
• The researcher is the primary data collection and analysis instrument
• Involves fieldwork
• Highly descriptive, deriving meaning from words or pictures
• The process is inductive

Approaches to Qualitative Research

• Phenomenology understands lived experiences' behavioral, emotive, and social meanings.
• Emphasizes individual's experiences, beliefs, and perceptions
• Ethnography studies shared practices and belief systems (culture) of a group in their natural context over a prolonged period.
• Case studies allow in-depth investigation of complex issues within a specific context, based on a small area or limited subjects.
• Discourse/Conversation Analysis studies naturally occurring discourse and extracts shared meanings, with text as the object of analysis.
• Discourse analysis has four themes: discourse as a topic, action, rhetorically organized, and language as constructive.
• Inductive Thematic Theory presents participant stories and experiences accurately and comprehensively.

More Qualitative Research Approaches

• Grounded Theory uses inductive data collection and analysis to construct theories grounded in the data.
• Narrative Analysis focuses on storytelling as the source of data.
• Shifts research focus from "what happened" to "tell me what happened."
• Relates not just to lifespans but also, episodes and interconnections.

Research

• Requires data to be collected, analyzed, and interpreted.
• Aims at contributing to generalizable knowledge
• Must follow the scientific method.

Inductive Reasoning

• Aims to infer theoretical concepts/patterns from observed data
• Also known as Theory Building research

Deductive Reasoning

• Aims to test concepts/patterns known from theory using new empirical data
• Also known as Theory Testing research

Qualitative vs. Quantitative Research

• Qualitative research (inductive) aims to understand the world based on individual experiences and perceptions
• Quantitative research (deductive) aims to understand the world using controlled, value-neutral, generalizable processes
• Both can be done separately or alongside each other

Basic vs. Applied Research

• Basic (theoretical) research tests/generates new theories to advance knowledge
• Applied research uses acquired knowledge to resolve practical issues

Empirical Knowledge

• Information gathered through experience and direct data collection

Nonempirical Knowledge

• Knowledge roots from introspection, vicarious experiences, and analysis

Scientific Knowledge

• A generalized body of laws and theories that explains a phenomenon acquired using the scientific method

Exploratory Research

• Conducted in new areas of inquiry to scope out the magnitude of a phenomenon, generate new ideas, and test feasibility

Explanatory Research

• Provides explanations of an observed phenomenon by answering the 'why' and 'how' questions - attempts to connect the dots of phenomenon

Descriptive Research

• Answers 'who', 'what', 'when', and 'where' questions
• Observations based on the scientific method are more reliable then untrained individuals

Research Design

• A strategic plan answering the research questions, including data collection, analysis, and interpretation

Methodology

• Rationale for the research design, justifying choice of data collection, analysis method, and procedures

Research Method

• A specific set of tools that a researcher uses throughout the study

The Scientific Method

• The scientific method is a cycle

Six Elements in Qualitative Research

• Statement of the problem
• Literature on the research topic
• Scope of the problem
• Importance and relevance of the problem
• Discipline that can be influenced by the study
• General characteristics or profile of the study participants
• Overall goal or aim of the study or answered question

Good Purpose Statement Criteria

• The statement must be in a single sentence only
• Statement must include the purpose of the study
• Statement must include the central phenomenon
• Use qualitative words or terms
• Note the participants, if any
• State the research site

Research Question

• The question should be evocative
• Relevant to the readers

Research Title

• Requires creativity
• Use creativity more than what quantitative research can provide

Title should be:

• A very concise statement
• Identifying the major variables of the study

Significance of the Study

• Researcher to consider what the research rationale is
• Significance of the study is whatever you deemed it to be

Scopes and Limitations

• Are tandem ideas of what and what not the researcher can do

Basic Steps for Scope

• Expressed in terms of focus, locus (place/location), and modus (mode/manner of data-gathering)

Useful Resources

• Textbooks, Manuals/Guides, Encylopedias, Dictionaries, Annual Reviews, Bibliographies, Abstracts, Scholarly Journals, Trade Periodicals

Elements of Citation Style

• American Psychological Association (APA)
• Modern Language Association (MLA)
• American Medical Association (AMA)
• Chicago/Turabian

Steps in Literature Review

• Work closely of your research problem and sub-problems
• Look for related keywords
• Locate related literature
• Make searches with specific keywords
• Create a list of the desired sources
• Find your sources and look them over
• Develop and maintain a systematic tool for recording relevant information.

Research Paper Principles

• Chronological
• Comparison and Contrast
• Spatial Pattern
• Cause and Effect
• Analysis

Ethics of Writing Literature

• Fabrication
• Falsification
• Plagiarism
• Redundant publication
• Unauthorized authorship

Probability Sampling

• Simple random sampling
• Stratified random sampling
• Cluster sampling
• Multistage sampling
• Systematic sampling

Non-probability Sampling

• Purposive sampling
• Convenience sampling
• Snowball sampling
• Quota sampling

Observation Guide

• Used when participants can be observed directly
• Determine the venue
• Prepare yourself to enter the field
• Identify the things to observe
• Prepare all means of data collection and what type of data you will collect
• Organize your data
• Define how long the observation will be
• Determine when you will exit

Types of interviews

• Structured
• Semi-structured
• Unstructured

Iterview Guide Development

• Main research questions

Interview Questions

• Need to be developed
• Primary domains of content
• Types of data needed

Data Cleaning

• Raw data converted to transcripts/usable formats.

Data Exploration

• Broken down into repetitive steps such as: Chunking, clustering, coding, and memoing

Data Interpretation and Presentation (Methods)

• Narrative is a focus of telling a story with results
• Chronological is according to the narrative described by each participant
• Critical Incidents is focused on incidents themselves
• Thematic data can be revolved around a theme
• Visual representation can be presented as charts or tables

Validity

• Checking if the data is supported throughout testing

Types of Validity

• Content validity
• Criterion-based validity
• Construct validity
• Triangulation

Recommendations

• They are suggested actions
• Related to presentation
• Recommendations should be relevant

Ways to make an effective presentation

• Strong and well-written - Message to deliver
• No complex data and jargon for the presentation - Words and Images
• Interact with the audience- Rapport
• Add a small but good impact for the listener at the end- Retention
• Keep you on track with cue cards or guides- Guide and Scripts