Comparison Of Qualitative And Quantitative Research Approaches

A research refers to  an investigation  undertaken  with an aim of generating knowledge, the tasks of research is to generate the exact  information  that will guide in the decision making  process, the systematic  investigation  involves the gathering of information using the  appropriate instruments of data collection, for example use questionnaire or the  sampling process, quality output of the research requires the accurate analysis and the recording of the  data  that will aid researchers’ decisions .

Qualitative research

According to Merriam,(2009).Qualitative research is a type that concentrates its study by trying to understand  the perspective of the study from the  population, normally, the type of research  obtains their accurate information on opinions, values and the behaviors  in their natural social context, most of the  researchers utilizes the mode of the research because of its flexibility, they allow the   adaptation  and mostly it’s an open ended form of  questionnaire  that enables wider maximizing of data collection. It gives a respondent  freedom to respond  depending on their understanding of the subject under he study

Also the existing relationship between the  participants and the  researcher is a casual thus gives an opportunity of giving the response more elaborately and in the detailed form, the  vigorous flexibility  clearly reflects the  much and deeper understanding of  the problem that is being investigated. Moreover, the other  advantage of qualitative research  is that it clearly highlights the  purpose of the research, on other words they try to understand   how people make the  sense in the views of the world, mostly sociologist use the qualitative research since its interpretation  gives a clear  view of the world  practices which  later  transforms to  human behaviors.

Quantitative   research

It is type of research that  bases it study on the numerical  data in   determining  the generalization of   findings, quantitative research  explain the phenomenon in a  statistical manner.(Parkinson &  Drislane,2011). It essentially  collect  data in numerical way  and the question also   suits the  respondent relatively  quantitative research  naturally studies a certain subject matter in nits natural state, most of its data  is in the form  numbers and so the  end findings can be used in giving  assumptions based on  concepts, at the end it helps give  further prediction of the results ,

The advantage of the quantitative research is that the data   is collected constructively ,it  aids in the hypothesis  construction  since  the research findings  has been replicated in  sub-population  hence the  type of research is useful in obtaining more credible results (Leech,1954).

Similarities of the quantitative and qualitative   research

The existing similarities is that both research tries to  give logic triangulations  in their findings, the change  the findings  by using the variables ,they also help to provide  background information  on the context  of the subject that  is being studied. in addition, they effectively facilitate  the interpretation   between the variables by clearly explaining  the  factors underlying their relationships.

Difference between qualitative and quantitative research

Difference refers to  the state of having disparities  or  being unlike  between two objects, however, despite the two  research being utilized   by sociologist, it has some  character disparities, in qualitative research,  its content is based on  humanistic interpretation whereas the   quantitative  research it  is scientific and objective, moreover  in the analysis. qualitative research   experiences  had  description  has human existence in values of data contribution  and while drawing conclusion it does not need the use of numbers, on the other hand the quantitative research  in its analysis, it uses the numbers  and even percentages  in drawing conclusion,  it accounts the  data  in numerical  form. In conclusion the researcher might opt to use any of the two types of research, it depends on the nature and objectives of the study taken .

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