Psychology

Qualitative and Quantitative techniques are two distinct types of data collection that  often lean one upon the other for help in perfecting laboratory research. Qualitative data involves words and quantitative data involves numbers, and there are some researchers who feel that one is more scientific than the other.

Another major difference between the two is that qualitative research is inductive and quantitative research is deductive. In qualitative research, a hypothesis is not needed to begin research. However, all quantitative research requires a hypothesis before research can begin.

An additional difference between qualitative and quantitative research is the underlying assumptions about the role of the researcher. In quantitative research, the researcher is ideally an objective observer that neither participates in nor influences what is being studied. In qualitative research, however, it is thought that the researcher can learn the most about a situation by participating andor being immersed in it. These basic underlying assumptions of both methodologies guide and sequence the types of data collection methods employed.

Although there are clear differences between qualitative and quantitative approaches, some researchers maintain that the choice between using qualitative or quantitative approaches actually has less to do with methodologies than it does with positioning oneself within a particular discipline or research tradition. The difficulty of choosing a method is compounded by the fact that research is often affiliated with universities and other institutions.   However, it is only by using both, in clear and unbiased ways, that new knowledge and the ideas which help to form and improve our futures can be  achieved.