Qualitative vs. Quantitative Research Methods in Business

Introduction

Today, two of the primary methods of collecting relevant information and interpreting it to benefit business operations are qualitative and quantitative methodologies. Although these two research methodologies share some commonalities, they differ in terms of what types of data are used for analysis and how the resulting analysis is applied in real-world settings. The purpose of this paper is to provide a review and reflection on these two research methodologies in order to develop timely, informed recommendations for business practitioners concerning which research strategy is optimal for their purposes. A summary of the research on qualitative and quantitative methodologies, along with key findings concerning their use in real-world business situations, is presented in the conclusion.

Qualitative Methodology

Business practitioners in companies of all sizes and types are frequently faced with complex problem situations that defy easy explanations. Identifying which qualitative methodology is best suited for their purposes and needs is therefore the first step. In sum, qualitative research relies on text, pictures, recordings, empirical observations, and virtually any other non-numeric data to answer a guiding research question. In this regard, Chong and Yeo (2015) advise that "qualitative research is a practice of examining studied subjects in natural settings and then transforming and making sense of the studied phenomenon through the interpretation of gathered field notes, photographs, conversations, and other similar representations" (p. 258). Although making sense of any studied phenomenon is a universal objective, the case is different in organizational settings because the phenomenon of interest may not be particularly relevant to business practitioners' lives outside their jobs. This means that in the majority of cases, the answers needed for a given research question will require a design that transcends business practitioners' personal experiences and interests.

While this process involves extra effort on the part of business practitioners, they will invariably enjoy a significant return on their investment by gaining a better understanding of how qualitative research designs can be used to make sense of the studied phenomenon. Business practitioners also have several different qualitative research strategies available, depending on what type of questions and answers they require. Researchers have noted that "rather than by logical and statistical procedures, qualitative researchers use multiple systems of inquiry for the study of human phenomena including biography, case study, historical analysis, discourse analysis, ethnography, grounded theory and phenomenology" (Qualitative research, 2018, para. 2).

A brief description of each selected qualitative research design is presented in Table 1 below.

Table 1: Brief Description of Selected Qualitative Research Designs

Biography: This research design draws on written histories of an individual's life and may overlap with the case study approach.

Case study: This design involves "research in which one studies a few people or cases in great detail over time" (Neuman, 2008, p. 530).

Historical analysis: This research design "examines different cultures or periods to better understand the social world [and] the development of a concept, social theory, or set of findings over time" (Neuman, 2008, p. 536).

Discourse analysis: According to Zeeman and Poggenpoel (2002), discourse analysis "has its roots in linguistics, literary studies, and anthropology [and] does not describe and explain the world [or] make any claim on the truth [but is rather] a reflexive process that is directed at change and progress" (p. 97).

Ethnography: This research design uses field research to collect detailed data concerning various cultures, typically — but not always — those different from the researcher's own (Neuman, 2008). As Creswell (2003) explains, "an ethnography is a description and interpretation of a cultural or social group or system [in which] the researcher examines the group's observable and learned patterns of behavior, customs, and ways of life" (p. 58).

Grounded theory: This research design is a form of social theory based on empirical observations of specific, concrete details (Neuman, 2008).

Phenomenology: This research design generally "describes the meaning of the lived experiences for several individuals about a concept or the phenomenon" (Creswell, 2003, p. 51). The overarching objective of this type of research design is to develop an improved understanding of the fundamental elements involved in real-world experiences (Creswell, 2003).

Taken together, it is clear that the qualitative research designs described above require different approaches and usually produce vastly different results. Furthermore, in sharp contrast to the conventional criteria established for the validity of quantitative research, there remains a profound lack of consensus concerning the criteria that should be applied to qualitative research (Newman & Benz, 1998). Consequently, applying any of these qualitative research designs must take into account their respective limitations in order to achieve the best possible results. This also means that business practitioners may need to consider a quantitative research design, which remains the gold standard in research today, as discussed further below.

Quantitative Methodology

Like qualitative methodologies, quantitative methodologies seek to answer guiding research questions as completely as possible, but the latter relies strictly on some type of numeric measure for this purpose (Neuman, 2008). Given the ability of computer-based applications to process even enormous amounts of quantitative data, it is not surprising that there are also a number of different quantitative research designs available to business practitioners today, including those briefly described in Table 2 below.

Table 2: Brief Description of Selected Quantitative Research Designs

Surveys: This design is perhaps the most commonly used quantitative research design. Neuman (2008) defines it as "social research in which one systematically asks many people the same question, then records and analyzes their answers" (p. 546).

Correlational design: According to Groat and Wang (2013), "broadly speaking, [correlational designs] seek to clarify patterns of relationships between two or more variables, that is, factors involved in the circumstances under study" (p. 269). The variables in correlational designs are not controlled — for example, an analysis of the relationship between intelligence quotient and the prevalence of clinical depression (Quantitative approaches, 2018). Groat and Wang (2013) also note that "correlational design is distinct from qualitative design [and] although both strategies focus on naturally occurring patterns, qualitative research is more attentive to the holistic qualities of phenomena" (p. 269).

Experimental: This design involves "research in which one intervenes or does something to one group of people but not to another, then compares results from the two groups" (Neuman, 2008, p. 535). Commonly used experimental designs include randomized, crossover, and nested (Quantitative approaches, 2018).

Quasi-experimental: This is "an experimental design [that is] a variation on the classical experimental design" that business practitioners "use in special situations or when they have limited control over the independent variable" (Neuman, 2008, p. 542). Quasi-experimental designs "test for causality with suboptimal variable control; independent variable not manipulated" (Quantitative approaches, 2018, para. 6). Commonly used quasi-experimental designs include pre- and post-tests, post-test only, and interrupted time-series (Quantitative approaches, 2018).

Descriptive: The key focus of this design is "observational [to] describe 'what is' [and] variables are not controlled" (Quantitative approaches, 2018, para. 4). Typical descriptive designs include comparative, cross-sectional, and longitudinal (Quantitative approaches, 2018).

Ex post facto: According to Black's Law Dictionary (1990), this term simply means "after the fact — by an act or fact occurring after some previous act or fact, and relating thereto" (p. 580). This research design therefore draws on archived numeric measures of various types concerning issues of interest to business practitioners.

Conclusion

It is reasonable to conclude that virtually everyone has been involved in some type of qualitative and quantitative research at some point in their lives, even if it was informally and intuitively performed. Everyone has compared others based on their clothing and hairstyles, for example, and all but the most affluent consumers routinely compare prices when shopping for groceries or other products. Any mistakes or erroneous conclusions drawn from these types of informal analyses, however, carry far fewer and less severe consequences than they do when applied to an organizational setting.

Business practitioners cannot afford to use a seat-of-the-pants approach to conducting the research they need to achieve and maintain a competitive advantage. The extent to which they fail to apply the most appropriate research design will likely be the extent to which they fail in this regard. More to the point, there is nothing especially mysterious, arcane, or even difficult about quantitative and qualitative research. A comprehensive understanding of these research traditions and how they are best used represents an essential part of any business practitioner's professional skill set.

While it is easy to assume that what has worked well in the past will work equally well in the future, the pace of change today has never been greater. Identifying and applying optimal research designs in organizational settings has therefore assumed new importance and relevance. Business practitioners who invest the time to understand the full range of research methodologies available to them will be far better positioned to respond effectively to the complex challenges of the modern marketplace.

References

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