Chapter 2: Quantitative,
Qualitative and Mixed Research
A PowerPoint presentation by Roger Pence
Learning Objectives

Describe the characteristics of quantitative research

List and explain the different types of variables used in
quantitative research

Explain the difference between experimental and
nonexperimental research

Describe the characteristics of qualitative research

List and explain the differences among the different
types of qualitative research

Describe the characteristics of mixed research
What is a research
paradigm?
 The
set of shared perspectives, values,
assumptions, concepts and practices
shared by a community
 An
approach to thinking about and doing
research
What is meant by the
“incompatibility thesis”?

A notion or belief that both quantitative and
and qualitative research cannot exist in the
same research study. (An either-or position)

The incompatibility thesis has been pushed
out of favor by pragmatism, which states
that whichever approach, even a mixture,
that best answers the question should be
used.
The Research Continuum
Quantitative
research
Mixed
research
Qualitative
research
Salient characteristics of
the three paradigms
Quantitative
Mixed
Qualitative
• Uses numerical
data
• A “narrow-angle
lens”
• A Blend of both
numerical and
naturalistic
observation
• Borrows from
both ends of the
continuum
• Observes qualities
in their “natural
setting”
• Uses verstehen
“wearing the
other person’s
shoes”
Emphasis of each
Research Paradigm
Feature
Qualitative
Research
Mixed Research
Scientific Method
Confirmatory or
Confirmatory or
“top-down”
Exploratory
Hypothesis testing
Exploratory or
“bottom-up”
Hypothesis
generation
View of Human
Behavior
Behavior is
regular and
predictable
Behavior is fluid,
dynamic,
situational, social,
contextual,
personal
Most Common
research
objectives
Describe, explain, Multiple
predict
objectives
Behavior
somewhat
predictable
Qualitative
Research
Explore, discover,
construct,
describe
Research Paradigm
Emphasis Continued…
Feature
Quantitative
Research
Mixed Research
Qualitative
Research
Focus
Narrow-angle
lens
Specific
hypothesis testing
Multilens focus
Examines breadth
and depth to learn
what is going on
Interest
General laws
Connection
between the local
and the general
Local: particular
groups and people
Nature of
Observation
Controlled
conditions
Cause and Effect
Study in more
than one context
Study in natural
environments,
contexts, multiple
factors
Research Paradigm
Emphasis Continued…
Feature
Quantitative
Research
Mixed Research
Qualitative
Research
Nature of reality
Objective
Pragmatism and
realism
Subjective,
personal, socially
constructed
Form of data
collected
Quantitative data
based on
measurement
Multiple forms
Qualitative data
based on
interviews,
observations,
notes
Nature of data
Variables
Mixture of
variables, words,
images
Words, images,
categories
Research Paradigm
Emphasis Continued…
Feature
Quantitative
Research
Mixed Research
Qualitative
Research
Data Analysis
Identify statistical
relationships
Quantitative and
qualitative
combination
Search for
patterns, themes,
holistic features
Results
Generalizable
findings
Provision of
viewpoints
Present multiple
perspectives
Form of Final
Report
Statistical Report
Mixture of
numbers and
Narrative
Narrative report
with contextual
description and
direct quotations
from participants
Quantitative Research
Methods Terms

Variable:

Constant:

Quantitative Variable:

Categorical Variable:

Independent Variable:

Dependent Variable:
Condition or characteristic that can take on different
values or categories
A single category of a variable
Varies by degree or amount (e.g. income)
Varies by type or kind (e.g. religion)
Presumed to change another variable
Influenced by independent variable
Quantitative Research:
Cause and Effect

Changes in independent variable produce changes in
dependent variable (one changes causes another)

Example: More fertilizer produces bigger plants
Small
plants
Add
fertilizer
Bigger
plants
Quantitative Research
Terms: Other Variables

Intervening Variable: A variable that stands between the independent
and dependent variable and may also explain changes observed in the
dependent variable
X
I
Y
Moderator Variable: Changes the relationships between other
variables (e.g. teaching delivery and personality style)
Quantitative Research:
Experimental Research

Used to determine cause and effect relationships
through manipulation of independent variable.

Must consider extraneous variables (a variable that
may compete with the independent variable and
change the experimental outcome)


What if the results are due to some other factor?!
Must also consider confounding variables (variable
that was not controlled)

Sorry, we couldn’t do anything about that!
Quantitative Research:
Non-Experimental Research

No manipulation of the independent variable and no
random assignments to groups

Causal-comparative research: Primary independent
variable of interest is a categorical variable (like
religion, gender, etc.)


More difficult to establish cause and effect relationships
Correlational research: Primary independent
variable of interest is quantitative (how does an
amount of an independent variable change the
dependent variable?)
Quantitative Research:
Correlation Coefficients

Positive correlation: When the variable move in the same direction

Negative correlation: When the variables move in opposite directions

Strength of correlation: Ranges from +1 to -1 with 0 representing no
correlation at all
Qualitative Research
Methods
 Phenomenology:
How does the
experience of a phenomenon affect something?

Example: How does divorce affect learning?
 Ethnography:
Interest in how a group’s
culture influences a question.

Example: Do skateboarders have a better innate
understanding of physics?
Qualitative Research
Methods
 Case
Study Research: Detailed
account(s) of one or more cases

Example: Students using filmmaking to learn science
 Grounded
theory: Generating and
developing a theory from qualitative research

Example: Factors that affect student’s homework turn-in
rate
 Historical
Research: Research about
people, places and events from the past

Example: How did Sputnik affect science education?
Mixed Research

Fundamental principle of mixed research:
It is
wise to collect multiple sets of data using different research
methods to “cover holes” that might exist with only one type of
research.



Allows confidence to be placed in findings arrived at from more than
one angle.
If data suggests conflicting conclusions, then more research will be
needed to explore the phenomenon.
The mixed approach often best answers questions in a complex and
ever-changing world.