QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH.pptx

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1. An Introduction to Quantitative, Qualitative and Mixed Methods Research

2. RESEARCH METHODS Overview • Introduction to Research Methods • What is Qualitative Research? • What is Quantitative Research? • Key differences between both approaches • Mixed Methods

3. An Introduction Research Methods

4. RESEARCH METHODS A useful reminder….

5. What is Qualitative Research?

6. Involves immersion in the situations of everyday life Researcher’s role is to gain an overview of the whole of the culture/situation under study The researcher seeks to capture data from the inside , rather than having preconceived notions of what will be found Qualitative research is interpretive (making sense of what’s happening) Most analysis is done in words Qualitative Research

7. Types of Qualitative Research

8. Generally referred to as a conversation with a purpose Interested in gaining an individuals interpretation of an issue Differs from a conversation in that there is a research purpose, a structure, a method of capturing the responses and a process for analysing the responses Interviews

9. Interviews with a group of individuals (6-8 is the optimum size) Can be more or less structured in the format of the questioning Facilitation of the group discussion by the researcher is key Importance of group dynamics – both positive and negative – that effect the process Observation of the process is as important as the spoken contribution Focus Groups

10. Involves the researcher, either openly or covertly, participating in the lives of those being studied for an extended period of time Various data collection techniques can be used – observation, asking questions, joining in activities Difference between: - insider : participating in the setting - outsider: focusing on the setting Ethnography

11. Various types of documents produced in social life – professional records, newspaper stories, diaries. Often intended as objective statements of fact but are socially constructed There is the surface meaning (of what is said) and the underlying meaning (of what is intended) Documentary Analysis

12. There is a need to ensure that the subjects being studied are appropriate to the research question: Would you interview female victims of domestic violence or police officers? How many individuals/groups/situations need to be studied to make the findings generalisable ? How are the participants in the research recruited and might this bias the findings: Do you interview victims who have never contacted the police? Or only those were the police have prosecuted the perpetrator? Questions about the sample

13. What is Quantitative Research?

14. According to Aliaga and Gunderson (2000) quantitative research attempts to explain things ‘by collecting numerical data that are analysed using mathematically based methods (in particular statistics)’. The important distinction is that quantitative data needs to be numerical (otherwise it can’t be analysed) Quantitative Research

15. As such there are some questions that are particularly suited to collecting numerical data – How many people in the population have a diagnoses of diabetes? What is the average mark of students enrolled on post-graduate courses at QUB or Ulster? Cont …

16. There are also types of data that aren’t naturally numerical but we can transform them e.g. E.g. questionnaires that ask people to rate their mood on a number of statements (e.g. ‘strongly agree’, ‘agree’, ‘disagree’ or ‘strongly disagree’). Each statement may be assigned a number from 1 -4)

17. Sometimes we need to answer population level questions (e.g. how many of those in care have experienced trauma?) Sometimes we need to test a hypothesis (e.g. if X engaged in Y their outcomes would improve by Z% Sometimes we need to know the link between to things (e.g. diet and disease) Advantages of quantitative approaches

18. Types of Quantitative Research?

19. Relatively cheap to administer; if completed with a researcher can confirm or clarify questions May restrict number of respondents; can exclude some of the population e.g. those without phones, those who can’t communicate verbally etc. Survey using questionnaire

20. An experiment is where the researcher intervenes to change something (e.g., gives some patients a drug) and then observes what happens. Example Plying a person with beer to see whether empathy increases or decreases when drunk; Experiments

21. Spend a few minutes trying to develop a quantitative research question Tips – Think about the type of question (relationship or difference between two variables, establish causation etc.) Think about whether the data is numerical or if it can be converted into numbers What data collection tool would you use? Task

22. Is a quantitative methodology appropriate? Is the particular quantitative method ( eg experiment, survey, interviewing, database) fit for purpose? Key Questions

23. Key differences between both approaches

24. Attempts to explain things by collecting and analysing data (Corby, 2006) It tells you if there is a “difference” or a “relationship” but not necessarily why (Miller et al, 2003) Data collected are always numerical and analysed using statistical methods ( Bryman , 2012) Some types of research questions lend themselves better to quantitative approaches than others (Silverman, 2010) Quantitative research focuses on the explanation of data Interested in generalisability Quantitative Research

25. Qualitative research aims to provide a deeper understanding of an issue (Brown, 2010) Understand the ‘meaning’ from the perspective of those engaged in the study (Miller et al, 2003) Increase awareness of our social world (Jones, 1995) Qualitative research focuses on exploration of data Interested in depth not generalisability Qualitative Research

26. Quantitative Questions What proportion of the NI population earns below £12000? Has academic achievement declined in the last 10 years for looked after children? What is the effectiveness of counselling for depression? Qualitative Questions What are the experiences of those living in minimum income households What are the perceptions of looked after children who attend mainstream education The evolving relationship between therapists and their clients during counselling treatment

27. What is Mixed Methods Research?

28. Mixed Methods Research that combines quantitative and qualitative methods within a single project ( Bryman , 2016) Mixed methods research requires a purposeful mixing of methods in data collection, analysis and interpretation (Shorten and Smith, 2017) Offers a framework for combining methods ( Timans et al., 2019) Allows researchers to explore different perspectives and relationships that exist between the intricate layers of multifaceted research questions (Shorten and Smith, 2017) Sometimes researchers use both, and in different ways, but for it to be mixed methods they has to be an interaction between the two approaches