Qualitative and Quantitative Research StarterQuantitative and qualitative research are the two dominant research paradigms or methodologies used in the human and social sciences. Both quantitative and qualitative research are modes of inquiry that use different methods to acquire answers to social phenomena. Purists believe that researchers who use either the quantitative or qualitative approach to research look at how the world is viewed and what is important to know differently from one another. Onwuegbuzie and Leech (2005) state that there are those in the research world who do not advocate the mixing of these two research methods. Researchers who consider themselves pragmatists advocate integrating methods within a single study (Creswell, 1994). Sieber (1973) states that researchers can actually utilize the strengths of both methodologies in any given study in order to understand social phenomena. There has been a recent growth in the mixing of quantitative and qualitative approaches, as researchers look to all available research techniques to address the research questions, rather than promote a preconceived bias toward one methodology or another (Sechrest & Sidani, 1995).
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