Regarding qualitative and quantitative research, Aspers and Corte (2019)
Sample Solution
Qualitative and quantitative research are two different approaches to gathering and analyzing data. Qualitative research is more focused on understanding the meaning of people's experiences and behaviors, while quantitative research is more focused on measuring and quantifying those experiences and behaviors.
Full Answer Section
There are many areas of research where qualitative research is better suited than quantitative research. Here are a few examples:
- Understanding human behavior: Qualitative research can be used to understand the motivations, beliefs, and experiences that underlie human behavior. For example, qualitative research has been used to understand the experiences of people who have been through traumatic events, the motivations of people who commit crimes, and the beliefs of people about different cultures.
- Exploring complex topics: Qualitative research can be used to explore complex topics that are difficult to quantify. For example, qualitative research has been used to explore the concept of love, the nature of creativity, and the experience of death.
- Getting a holistic view: Qualitative research can be used to get a holistic view of a topic by looking at it from multiple perspectives. For example, qualitative research has been used to understand the experiences of people living in poverty, the impact of climate change on communities, and the challenges faced by refugees.
- Uncovering hidden meanings: Qualitative research can be used to uncover hidden meanings that may not be apparent from quantitative data. For example, qualitative research has been used to understand the symbolism of dreams, the hidden meanings of advertisements, and the ways in which people use language to communicate.
Of course, there are also many areas of research where quantitative research is better suited than qualitative research. Here are a few examples:
- Testing hypotheses: Quantitative research can be used to test hypotheses about the relationship between variables. For example, quantitative research has been used to test the hypothesis that there is a correlation between poverty and crime, or that there is a causal relationship between smoking and lung cancer.
- Making predictions: Quantitative research can be used to make predictions about future events. For example, quantitative research has been used to predict the outcome of elections, the impact of climate change, and the spread of diseases.
- Benchmarking: Quantitative research can be used to benchmark the performance of different organizations or individuals. For example, quantitative research has been used to benchmark the performance of schools, hospitals, and businesses.
- Making decisions: Quantitative research can be used to make decisions about policies, programs, and interventions. For example, quantitative research has been used to inform decisions about how to allocate resources, how to design interventions, and how to evaluate the effectiveness of those interventions.
Ultimately, the best approach to research depends on the specific question being asked and the type of data that is needed to answer that question. In some cases, qualitative research may be the better choice, while in other cases, quantitative research may be the better choice.
In my opinion, qualitative research is better suited for research topics that are exploratory, complex, or require an understanding of the meaning of people's experiences. For example, qualitative research would be a better choice for research on the following topics:
- The experiences of people living with mental illness
- The motivations of people who join terrorist organizations
- The impact of climate change on indigenous communities
- The meaning of love
Quantitative research is better suited for research topics that are hypothesis-driven, require measurement, or can be used to make predictions or decisions. For example, quantitative research would be a better choice for research on the following topics:
- The relationship between poverty and crime
- The effectiveness of different educational interventions
- The spread of diseases
- The impact of a new marketing campaign