NUR504 Week 2 Quantitative and Qualitative Research Review

Choose two scholarly, peer-reviewed articles about research studies.

The articles can be found using the GCU Library or any of the sources recommended in the readings.

Address the following:

1. One article must be an example of a qualitative research study; the other must be a quantitative example.
2. These articles will be utilized for assignments in Modules 3, 4, 6 and 8.
3. Write a 350-500-word statement which includes:
4. A description of why each research study is categorized as quantitative or qualitative.
5. A justification for your selections.
6. The journal page reference for the research study selected and the reasons why it was selected.
7. A link to the selected articles or an attached copy of each article.

APA format is not required, but solid academic writing is expected.

You are not required to submit this assignment to Turnitin, unless otherwise directed by your instructor. If so directed, refer to the Student Success Center for directions. Only Word documents can be submitted to Turnitin.

NUR 504 Week 3 Discussions 1

Describe the quantitative design of the article you selected. Present the strengths and limitations of this type of design according to the textbook and how these are reflected in your study. Contrast the design you have selected with at least one design presented by a classmate in one of your responses.

NUR 504 Week 3 Discussions 2

Describe the qualitative design (or methodology) of the article you selected. Present the strengths and limitations of this type of design according to the textbook and how these are reflected in your study. Contrast the design you have selected with at least one design presented by a classmate in one of your responses.

 

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Quantitative and Qualitative Research Review

Introduction

In today’s academic world, it’s common to hear people say that “quantitative and qualitative research are both important,” or something similar. But what does that mean? And which type of research is better? The answer is actually quite simple: quantitative and qualitative research are different ways of gathering information about a subject. Qualitative research focuses on the subjective experiences of participants while quantitative research focuses more on objective data collection methods like surveys or focus groups. While both types have their strengths and weaknesses, you should know how they work before making any decisions about which method is best for your project!

Definitions of Qualitative and Quantitative Research

• Qualitative research is a method for collecting data based on an in-depth understanding of individuals, groups or organizations.

• Quantitative research is a method for collecting data that can be analyzed to determine patterns and trends.

The Big Picture Qualitative vs. Quantitative

The qualitative and quantitative research methods are two different ways to gather data. Qualitative research involves the collection of information about people, places and things (people, places and things). Quantitative research involves collecting numerical data about individuals or groups of people.

Qualitative researchers typically collect their information through interviews, focus groups or other types of conversation-based activities while quantitative researchers use surveys or questionnaires in order to obtain quantitative data from respondents.

When to Use Qual or Quant

• Quantitative research is best suited for situations where you need to answer specific questions. For example, if you’re trying to determine whether or not people prefer a certain brand of cereal over another, quantitative research will give you the data needed to make that determination.

• Qualitative research is best suited for situations where you want to understand the meaning behind the data. For example, if someone asks “What do women want?” and one person says they want chocolate chip cookies while another says they want chocolate chip ice cream then this would be an example of qualitative data because it’s based off personal opinions rather than facts or numbers on how many people prefer which type of treat!

• Quantitative research can also be used in tandem with qualitative studies so that both types of information can be collected together; however it’s important that researchers keep track of what type they’re asking about since each method has different requirements (e.g., there are no statistical norms when conducting qualitative interviews).

Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Quantitative and Qualitative Research

Quantitative research is more objective and scientific. It’s also the best way to make a generalization about the relationship between variables. Quantitative research can be used to find relationships among variables, predict outcomes or outcomes based on previous studies (called regression analysis), test hypotheses about causal assumptions underlying your theory, and generate new theories. Qualitative research is subjective because it relies on personal interpretation of data instead of objective numbers for comparison purposes or statistical significance tests—but it does allow researchers to “think outside the box” when developing their ideas about what might happen next!

Strengths of Qualitative Research

• It allows you to explore people’s experiences, beliefs and opinions.

• It is good for exploring new topics.

• Qualitative research can be used to understand complex issues that may not be easily quantifiable or measurable.

Weaknesses of Qualitative Research

• The researcher can’t control the situation.

• The researcher can’t control the participants.

• The researcher can’t control the data.

• The researcher can’t control the results, which are based on what you find out in your research and not on anything else (e.g., luck). That’s why we don’t talk about “conclusions” here; it’s more like an opinion or evaluation of something that has happened in your project than it is about whether or not something actually happened at all!

Strengths of Quantitative Research

There are many strengths to quantitative research. The first is its precision, which means that it can detect relationships between variables more accurately than qualitative research. This can be useful when you want to make causal inferences or test hypotheses about causality.

Additionally, quantitative research allows for the application of statistical methods such as regression analysis and hypothesis testing (e.g., “I predict that if I increase my budget by $100 million dollars then we will have double digit increases in sales and profits). In contrast with qualitative methods where researchers must rely on interviews or observations alone without any supporting evidence for their claims (i.e., “I believe that people like having their hair cut by my stylist because she has always been available when they need her”), quantitative methods provide better support for one’s ideas because they allow researchers access both the underlying data (i.e., “who did I interview?”) as well as the methodologies used while collecting these data.”

Weaknesses of Quantitative Research

• Quantitative research is expensive and time-consuming.

• Quantitative research can be unreliable, especially when it comes to large-scale studies.

• It’s often difficult to interpret the results of quantitative studies because they’re based on numbers instead of words or pictures.

• The scale of a study can make it hard to replicate; if you want your findings replicated in other places, you’ll have to do it yourself!

Conclusion

In conclusion, our intention is not to be a litany of criticisms of qualitative or quantitative research. Rather, we want to convey that both are important and can be used interchangeably depending on the specific situation. We hope you will choose the method that best fits your purpose!