Research Methodologies
Quantitative, Qualitative, and Mixed
Methods
By Wylie J. D. Tidwell, III, Ph.D.
www.linkedin.com/in/wylietidwell3
Consider . . .
• “The research design is the ‘blueprint’ that
enables the investigator to come up with
solutions to these problems and guides him or
her in the various stages of the research”
(Frankfort-Nachmias & Nachmias, 2008, p. 89)
Frankfort-Nachmias, C., & Nachmias, D. (2008). Research Methods in the Social Sciences (7th ed.). New York, NY: Worth.
Methodologies
Qualitative Research
Definition
• Creswell (2003) describes qualitative research
as a procedure of research that relies on text
and image data collection, which draws a
diverse inquiry to the research plan
– More so, this research method requires closer
attention to the interpretive nature of the study
and situating the research with political, social,
and cultural context of the readers, participants,
and even the researcher of the study (Creswell,
2007).
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Definition
• Qualitative research typically grows out of indepth interviews, specific observations, or
written documents (Patton, 2002).
• Consider that “a questionnaire or interview
that asks both fixed choice [or closed]
questions and open-ended questions is an
example of how quantitative measurement
and qualitative inquiry are often combined”
(Patton, 2002)
Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Approach of Qualitative Research
•
•
•
•
Qualitative research – different assumptions/
approach than quantitative research
Emphasis on seeing the world from the eyes
of the participants
Strive to make sense of phenomena in terms
of the meanings people bring to them
Holistic emphasis – studying the person,
group, culture in the natural setting
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© 2007 Pearson Education
Canada
Table 1.2, Qualitative and Quantitative
Research Contrasted
QUALITATIVE
QUANTITATIVE
Multiple realities
Single reality
Reality is socially constructed
Reality is objective
Reality is context interrelated
Reality is context free
Holistic
Reductionistic
Strong philosophical perspective
Strong theoretical base
Reasoning is inductive
Reasoning is deductive and
inductive
Discovery of meaning is the basis
of knowledge
Develops theory
Cause-and-effect relationships are
the bases of knowledge
Tests theory
© 2007 Pearson Education Canada
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Table 1.2, Qualitative and Quantitative
Research Contrasted (continued)
QUALITATIVE
QUANTITATIVE
Theory developed during study
Theory developed a priori
Meaning of concepts
Measurement of variables
Process oriented
Outcome oriented
Control unimportant
Control important
Rich descriptions
Precise measurement of variables
Basic element of analysis is words
Basic element of analysis is
numbers
Uniqueness
Generalization
Trustworthiness of findings
Control of error
© 2007 Pearson Education Canada
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Three Qualitative Methods
TABLE 6.1
COMPARISON OF QUALITATIVE METHODS
METHOD
STUDY FOCUS
ANALYTIC
FOCUS
DISCIPLINES
Ethnography
culture/cultural
group
describe a
culture/cultural
group
Cultural
Anthropology
Grounded
Theory
cultural groups
generate theory
about a basic
social process
Sociology/
Symbolic
Interaction/
Criminology
Phenomenology
individual
experience
discern the
essence of the
lived experience
Philosophy/
Psychology/
Sociology
© 2007 Pearson Education Canada
6-9
Three Qualitative Methods:
Ethnography
• Focus: study human behaviour in the
cultural context in which it is embedded
• Ethnography is the work of describing a
culture – the way of life of a cultural group
– Associated with Cultural Anthropology
• Example: David Counts and Dorothy Ayer
Counts: “An Ethnography of RVing Seniors”
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© 2007 Pearson Education
Canada
Three Qualitative Methods:
Grounded Theory
• Focus: develop a theory to explain underlying
social processes of a cultural group
• Useful in areas where little is known or when a
new perspective is needed
– Used for exploratory, descriptive studies
• Because the theory emerges from the data, it is
said to be grounded in the data
– Foundation in Symbolic Interactionism
• Example: Kerry Daly and the social construction
of fatherhood
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© 2007 Pearson Education
Canada
Three Qualitative Methods:
Phenomenology
• Focus: reveal the meaning of the lived experience
from the perspective of participants
• Describe the essences of lived experience
– Essences: elements related to the true meaning of something
that gives common understanding to the phenomenon under
study
– Conveyed with descriptive language
– Drawn from Philosophy; used across disciplines
• Example: J.E. Solchany: A phenomenological
study of women’s preadoptive experiences
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Canada
Approaches to Data Analysis:
1. Ethnographic Data Analysis
• The ethnographer integrates data analysis
into the data collection process while in
the field
– Helps the ethnographer to guide his/her
participation and observations in the field
• While in the field, the researcher conducts
four levels of analysis simultaneously
A.
B.
C.
D.
Domain Analysis
Taxonomic Analysis
Componential Analysis
Theme Analysis
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© 2007 Pearson Education
Canada
Ethnographic Data Analysis:
A. Domain Analysis
• The researcher is moving from observing a
social situation (set of behaviours carried out
by people in a social situation) to discovering
the cultural scene
• Cultural domain – categories of meaning that
include smaller categories
– Strive to identify the semantic relationship in the
observations made
• E.g., x is a kind of y; x is the result of y; x is a part of y
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© 2007 Pearson Education
Canada
Ethnographic Data Analysis:
B. Taxonomic Analysis
• More in-depth analysis in which the
researcher is searching for larger categories to
which the domain may belong
• A taxonomy is a set of categories organized on
the basis of a single semantic relationship
– Major difference: the taxonomy shows more of
the relationships among things inside the cultural
domain
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© 2007 Pearson Education
Canada
Ethnographic Data Analysis:
C. Componential Analysis
• Componential analysis looks for contrasts
among the cultural categories in the domains
– “Systematic search for the attributes (components
of culture) associated with cultural categories”
(Spradley)
– Uses idea of mail to explain. In our culture, we can
classify our mail – e.g., junk mail (flyers, notices,
etc.), bills, magazines, personal letters – because
each cluster has an attribute that conveys
meaning. Not visible to someone from another
culture
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© 2007 Pearson Education
Canada
Ethnographic Data Analysis:
D. Theme Analysis
• Cultural themes are recurrent patterns in the
data that are used to connect domains
– Themes are assertions that apply to numerous
situations and have a high degree of generality
• Spradley suggests a number of universal
themes, such as social conflict, cultural
contradictions, informal techniques of social
control, managing impersonal social relations,
acquiring and maintaining status, solving
problems, etc.
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© 2007 Pearson Education
Canada
Methodologies
Quantitative Research
• Quantitative methods “use theory deductively
and places it toward the beginning of the plan
for a study . . . [it] becomes a framework for
the entire study . . .” (Creswell, 2003, p. 125).
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
• See handout!
Defining Surveys
• Survey Design
– To provide a quantitative description of
trends, attitudes, or opinions of a population
• Components of a Survey Method Plan
– The Survey Design
– The Population and Sample
– Instrumentation
– Variables in the Study
– Data Analysis and Interpretation
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
A Survey Method Plan
• The Survey Design
– Provide a rationale for using a survey
– Indicate the type of survey design:
• Cross-sectional (data collected at one point in time)
• Longitudinal (data collected over time)
• The Population and Sample
– Specify the characteristics of the population (size, sampling
frame)
– Specify the sampling procedures
• Single stage or multi-stage
• Random or convenience
– Use a sample size formula to determine the needed sample size
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
A Survey Method Plan
• Instrumentation
– Provide detailed information about the survey instrument
• How developed, Pilot testing
• Sample items, Types of scores
– Describe the validity and reliability scores of past and/or current
uses of the instrument
• Validity: whether one can draw meaning and useful inferences
from scores on the instruments
• Reliability: whether scores resulting from past use are internally
consistent, have high test-retest correlations, and result from
consistent scoring
– Describe steps for administering survey and ensuring a high
response rate
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Defining Experiments
• Experimental Design
– To test the impact of a treatment on an outcome, controlling for
other factors that might influence that outcome
• Components of an Experimental Method Plan
–
–
–
–
–
Participants
Variables
Instrumentation and Materials
Experimental Procedures
Threats to Validity
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
An Experimental Method Plan
•
Participants
– Describe the selection of participants
• Random or convenience
– Describe the assignment of participants to groups
• Random or not; Consider matching participants
– Describe the procedures for determining the number of participants per
group
•
Variables
– Clarify the groups
– Identify the independent variable(s), including the treatment variable
– Identify the dependent variable(s), the outcomes
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
An Experimental Method Plan
•
Instrumentation and Materials
– Discuss instruments
• development, items, and scales
• reliability and validity reports of past uses
– Thoroughly discuss materials used for the treatment
•
Experimental Procedures
– Identify the type of experiment
• Pre-experimental, true experiment, quasi-experiment, and single-subject
designs
– Identify the type of comparisons: within-group or between-subject
– Provide a visual model
• X = treatment
• O = observation
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
An Experimental Method Plan
• Consider Threats to Validity
– Threats to internal validity: procedures, treatments, or
experiences of the participants that threaten the researcher's
ability to draw conclusions about cause and effect
– Threats to external validity: characteristics of the sample,
setting, or timing that threaten the researcher's ability to
generalize the conclusions to a population
– Threats to statistical conclusion validity: inadequate
statistical power or violation of statistical assumptions that
threaten the researcher's ability to draw statistical inferences
– Threats to construct validity: inadequate definitions and
measures of variables that threaten the researcher's ability to
measure relevant constructs
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Threats to Validity (Tables 8.5 & 8.6)
•
Threats to Internal Validity
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
History
Maturation
Regression
Selection
Mortality
Diffusion of treatment
Compensatory/resentful
demoralization
– Compensatory rivalry
– Testing
– Instrumentation
•
Threats to External Validity
– Interaction of selection and
treatment
– Interaction of setting and
treatment
– Interaction of history and
treatment
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
An Experimental Method Plan
• The Procedure
– Describe in detail the procedure for conducting the experiment
– Procedures for pre-test post-test control group design
• Measure dependent variable as a pre-test
• Assign participants to matched pairs based on scores
• Randomly assign one member of each pair to the control and
experimental group
• Expose experimental group to the treatment
• Measure dependent variable as a post-test from both groups
• Compare groups statistically
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Methodologies
Mixed Method Research
The Nature of Mixed Methods
Research
• Describe this approach in your proposal
– Trace its history
– Provide a definition
• Mixed methods research is an approach to inquiry that combines
or associates both qualitative and quantitative forms. It involves
philosophical assumptions, the use of qualitative and quantitative
approaches, and the mixing of both approaches in a study. Thus, it
is more than simply collecting and analyzing both kinds of data; it
also involves the use of both approaches in tandem so that the
overall strength of a study is greater than either qualitative or
quantitative research (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2007).
– Discuss the challenges with this approach
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Planning Mixed Methods
Procedures
Timing
Weighting
Mixing
Theorizing
No
Sequence
Concurrent
Equal
Integrating
Explicit
Sequential Qualitative
first
Qualitative
Connecting
Implicit
Sequential Quantitative
first
Quantitative
Embedding
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Data Collection Procedures
• Identify the types of quantitative and
qualitative data
• Develop a rigorous sampling procedure
that may include aspects of both random
and purposeful sampling
• Provide details in a visual diagram of your
study
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Data Analysis and Validation
Procedures
•
•
Match data analysis to the mixed methods strategy of inquiry
Popular procedures include:
–
–
–
–
–
•
Data transformation
Explore outliers
Instrument development
Examine multiple levels
Create a matrix
Validation procedures:
– Quantitative procedures (e.g., validity and reliability of scores)
– Qualitative procedures (e.g., check accuracy of findings)
– Mixed methods procedures (e.g., legitimation of the mixed methods
study)
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Report Presentation Structure
• Report structure follows from the mixed methods
strategy of inquiry
– Sequential study:
• Organize the report into sections ordered to match the phases of
the study
– Concurrent study:
• Organize the data collection into separate sections
• The analysis and interpretation may be combined
– Transformative study:
• Use either a sequential or concurrent report structure
• Advance the advocacy issue at the beginning and an agenda for
change at the end
Creswell, J. (2003). Research Design (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.