Chap 1
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Selection of a research approach
o Research approaches plans and procedures for research spanning the steps from
broad assumptions to detailed methods of data collection, analysis, and interpretation
o Selection of a research approach, use:
 Philosophical assumptions researchers bring to the study
 Research designs (procedures of inquiry)
 Specific research methods of data collection, analysis and interpretation
 Also nature o research problem or issues being addressed, researcher’s personal
experiences, and audiences for the study
Three Approaches to Research
o Qualitative and quantitative approach not rigid; study tends to be more qualitative than
quantitative or vice versa; Mixed method studies resides in the middle of this continuum
because it incorporates elements of both qualitative and quantitative approaches
 Qualitative
 Process of research involves emerging questions and procedures, data
collected in participants’ setting. Data analysis building from particulars
to general themes, and researcher interpret meaning of data
 Final report has flexible structure
 Honors an inductive style of research, focus on individual meaning, and
importance of reporting the complexity of a situation
 Quantitative
 Dominate research in social sciences rom late 19th century to mid 20th
century
 Approach of testing objective theories by examining relationship among
variables variables measured for data analysis using statistical
procedures
 Fina report has a set structure intro, literature and theory, methods,
rsults, discussion
 Those who engage in this form of research want to test theories
deductively, building protections against bias, control for alternative or
counterfactual explanations, and generalizing and replicating findings.
 Mixed methods
 Approach to inquiry involving collecting quantitative and qualitative
data, integrating both, and use designs involving philosophical
assumptions and theoretical frameworks.
 Core assumption: integrating qualitative and quantitative data yields
more insight beyond what is provided by either methods alone
3 components involved in an approach
o In each above definition, 2 important components approach to research involve
philosophical assumptions and distinct methods or procedures (intersection of
philosophy, research designs, and specific methods)
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When planning a study, researchers need to think about philosophical worldview
assumptions they bring to the study, research designs related to this worldview, and
specific methods or procedures of research translating the approach into practice.