Comparing and Constrasting Research Methodologies

Running head: COMPARING AND CONTRASTING RESEARCH METHODOLOGIES 1

Comparing and Contrasting Research Methodologies for

Business Research

Heber M. Longhurst, CFA

International School of Management

Author Note

Heber Longhurst is studying a Ph.D. in finance at the

International School of Global Management.

Correspondence concerning this paper should be

addressed to Heber Longhurst, [email protected].

COMPARING AND CONSTRASTING RESEARCH METHODOLOGIES 2

Abstract

This paper provides a brief introduction to the distinct types of research methodologies used in business research. The paper begins by introducing and defining qualitative research, quantitative research, and different types of mixed research methodologies and procedures. As no definition of the aforementioned research methodologies would be complete without an examination of their epistemological foundations this paper will also explore the differing epistemological assumptions implicit in the most common research methodologies. Subsequently the paper will evaluate the benefits and shortcomings of quantitativeand qualitative research techniques and procedures. Finallythis paper will explore the role of each type of research in a research project and evaluate when each type of research is most appropriate.

Keywords: qualitative research, quantitative research, mixed methodology research, research techniques and procedures


Research Methodologies

Business management research involves distinct types of research such as qualitative research, quantitative research and mixed research methodologies. According to an article published in the Journal of Management Studies by Dustin J. Bluhm, Wendy Harman, Thomas W. Lee and Terence R.Mitchell (2011) the top American management journals have published more qualitative work in the past ten years than they had published in the previous twenty (p. 1867). However, “in many disciplines, the quantitative paradigm isstill the dominant one” (Fielding & Schreier, 2001, p. 2). Thus, it is important for business researches to venture beyond the more comfortable and traditional realm of quantitative research and understand the applicability, shortcomings, procedures and assumptions underlying both qualitative and quantitative research as well as appropriate and inappropriate mingling of different research methodologies.

Qualitative and Quantitative Research Defined

Quantitative research

The definition for quantitative research is mostly fairly well-known and includes sampling techniques whose findings may be expressed numerically; this type of research usually provides findings which can be manipulatedmathematically. Most forms of quantitative research involvedescriptive or inferential statistics and can include hypothesis testing, making inferences about a population from a sample and forecasting results given key input variables. Creswell (1994) defines quantitative research asthat type of research which explains phenomena by collecting numerical data which are subsequently analyzed using statistics and mathematically based methods (p.4).

As a professor of finance and statistics I most closely associate quantitative research to that type of research which involves arriving at conclusions about the nature of reality, facts, relationships by applying quantitative methods such as statistical sampling, hypothesis testing using standard deviations to determine whether means, mean differences, correlations, standard


deviations etc are statistically significant given different confidence intervals and subsequently using thesestatistical data to make decisions. This type of research is, of course, based on post-positivist empiricism and is very important to the scientific method, but it has its shortcomings which will be detailed further into this paper.

Qualitative research

Qualitative researches are interested in understandinghow people interpret their experiences, how they construct their worlds, and what meaning they attribute to their experiences (Merriam, 2009, p. 5). According to Denzin andLincoln (1994, p. 3), qualitative research focuses on “the interpretation of phenomena in their natural settings to make sense in terms of the meanings people bring to these settings. Qualitative research involves collecting information about personal experiences, introspection, lifestory, interviews, observations, historical interactions and visual text which are significant moments and meaningful in people’s lives”. According to Patton qualitative research is an attempt to grasp the unique interactions in a particular situation, not to predict whatmight occur but rather to understand in depth the meaning brought by the participants regarding what is happening to them at the moment (p. 4). Pope and Mays (1995) also agree that qualitative research is meant to discover the meaningsperceived by the subjects rather than the point of the researcher (p. 6). In other words, whereas quantitative research is more focused on objectively measuring what has happened, estimating populations from samples, forecasting what might happen and arriving at meaningful statistically significant descriptions of reality qualitative research ismore concerned with how people experience and make sense out of these occurrences and how people experience their situations and as such is more subjective and does not fit as easily into traditional statistical research methodologies and practices. Whereas qualitative research is concerned with what objectively is, qualitative researchis more concerned with the social aspects of our world (Bogdan & Biklen, p. 45).


Mixed methods research

In recent years there has been an increased emphasis on mixed-method research, which is research that combines both qualitative and quantitative approaches. According to Creswell (2009) mixed-method research mixes the approaches of both qualitative and quantitative research as well as the philosophical assumptions (p. 4). A researcher needs tobe very careful when utilizing a mixed method approach as the philosophical and epistemological approaches are quite different. However, if it is carried out correctly a researcher can make the results of the findings considerably more robust.

An important concept when dealing with mixed method research is triangulation, according to Fielding and Schreier (2001) there are three main meanings or models of triangulation. The first is the mutual validation of results obtained on the basis of different research methodologies, the second is a means toward obtaining a larger more complete picture of the phenomenon under study and the third alludes to trigonometry in that a combinationof methods is necessary in order to gain any image or actual relevant concept of the phenomenon (the difference between the second and the third model is that the second uses triangulation for a richer or fuller picture and the third requires triangulation in order to obtain any accurate picture) (p. 2).

Philosophical Foundations of Research Methodologies

As I’ve already mentioned, quantitative research is epistemologically more closely allied with empiricist epistemology and in particular with the post-positive school of empiricism. Whereas, qualitative research is moreclosely allied with a constructivist epistemology.

However, as Mkansi and Acheampong point out, this classification is actually quite simplistic. In study of research methodologies, there is actually considerable disagreement over which research methods follow which research methodologies and how important it is to understand the different philosophical frameworks of the distinct research methodologies. “Research philosophy


classifications such as ontology, epistemology and anxiology and their conflicting applications to the ‘quantitative-qualitative debates, are a major source of dilemma to research students in establishing their relevance to subject areas and discipline” (Mkansi & Acheampong, 2012, p. 132).

According to Polit and Beck (2012) quantitative research is based on positivist philosophies (p. 265). Steen and Roberts (2011) further support the assumption that quantitative research is based on positivism, as “the positivist paradigm is considered to be the traditional paradigm underlying the scientific approach. This paradigm assumes that there is a fixed, orderly reality which can beobjectively studied and is associated with quantitative research” (p. 6). They further detail that “the quantitative approach is centered within empirical knowledge, facts, figures, experiments, and is therefore tangible and objective” (p. 6). Alvesson and Skoldberg (2009) add positivism, post-positivism and critical realismand other philosophical stances which support quantitative research (p. 16).

Qualitative research is much more related to the philosophy of constructivism. Lincoln and Guba (2011) postulate that the paradigms one must choose between in performing qualitative research include: positivism, post-positivism, critical theory and constructivism (p. 105). Lincoln and Guba further postulate that there are several paradigms that the researcher must answer such as the ontological question, which is: -what is the form of reality and, therefore what is there that can be known about it?-; the epistemological question or “what is the nature of the relationship between the knower and would-be knower and what can be known?- and the methodological question or – how would the inquirer go about finding out whatever he or she believes can be known?- (p. 108). McNabb(2008) and Denizen and Lincoln (2005) also assert that interpretive and critical paradigms are central to the qualitative approach.

Qualitative QuantitativePhilosophy phenomenology/ positivism/post-


constructivism positivismGoal Understanding/meaning Hypothesis

testing/predictionFocus Quality (features) Quantity (numbers)Methods Ethnography/action

researchExperiments/correlation

Data collection Interviews,observation,

documents, artefacts

Questionnaire,scales, testsinventories

Research design Flexible, emerging Structured, pre-determined

Sample Small, purposeful Large, random,representation

Generalization Unique case selection GeneralizationAnalysis Inductive (by the

researcher)Deductive (bystatisticalmethods)

Importance of combined research methodologies

Up to this point, this paper has highlighted the differences between the different research methodologies. However, as Onwuegbuzie and Leech point out, the prevalenceof the debate within the research community about qualitative versus quantitative research methodologies is unfortunate and can leave students and recent graduates with the impression that they have to be dedicated to one school of thought or the other (p. 376). This, of course, makes the field more divisive than it should be, and can actually limit the effectiveness of the researcher. This perceived incompatibility, which according to Onwuegbuzie and Leech, is derived from the purists’ perception that there are differences in terms of ontology, epistemology, axiology, rhetoric, logic, generalizations and casual linkages (p. 376) is divisive and can indeed be counterproductive as students and researches, especially insocial sciences, feel forced either into the qualitative orthe quantitative camp. While epistemological differences do, in fact, exist and at a deeper philosophical level these differences cannot be simply brushed aside, in the interest of pragmatism it is worth pointing out many aspects of science, research, and day to day living do, in


fact, involve pushing beyond these deeper philosophical considerations of ontology and epistemology. By understanding both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies, students and research professionals can knowbetter when to use qualitative methodologies, when to use quantitative methodologies, when to combine methodologies and how to combine these research methodologies appropriately.

The first step toward reconciling the two research methodologies is recognizing that despite distinct philosophical assumptions, these two methodologies do in fact share many aspects. Purists posit that the two methodsstem from very different epistemological, ontological, and axiological assumptions (Onwuegbuzie and Leech, p. 376). While, the existence of these differences is plain, the argument that these philosophical distinctions automatically implies that the methodologies are irreconcilable is what becomes problematic and divisive. The purists’ claim that the two research methods are irreconcilable leads to the implicit and explicit claim that researches should be mono-method researchers. Situationalists maintain the mono-method stance of the purists in that they don’t advocate mixing research methodologies in the same study. However, they do argue that depending on the specific situation, it could make more sense for the same researcher to use qualitative research methodologies or quantitative research methodologies, as long as these methodologies are not mixedin the same study (p. 376). In other words, situationalistsare likely to contend that certain research questions lend themselves more to qualitative research methodologies and other lend themselves more to quantitative research methodologies (p. 376).

However, those researchers which Onwuegbuzie and Leechrefer to as pragmatists are more likely to make the case for mixing research methodologies, under the contention that the qualitative vs quantitative debate of the last decades includes a false dichotomy. They make the argument that quantitative methods are not necessarily positivist nor are qualitative research methodologies necessarily constructivist or hermeneutic. Thus, the clear distinction


between purists and situationalists on one hand and pragmatists on the other hand, is that pragmatists allow for the combination of both qualitative research methodologies and quantitative research methodologies to beincluded in the same study (p. 377). From a basic epistemological level, those who Onwuegbuzie and Leech refer to as pragmatists researchers, mirror closely the epistemological pragmatists in that while the field of epistemology can be divided by empiricists and rationalists, the epistemological pragmatist believes that ideological purity of one type or another simply isn’t workable in the real world. In other words, that philosophical and epistemological flexibility is necessary in order to be functional. In the field of research, pragmatists ascribe to the philosophy that the research questions should drive the research methodology rather thanthe philosophical assumptions driving the choice of research methodology. As Miles and Huberman assert, “epistemological purity doesn’t get research done” (p. 21).While the researches who ascribe to epistemological purity do maintain a more consistent philosophical approach, this level of purity can in practice be impractical.

At a certain level there is the assumption that quantitative research is more scientific in the sense that positivists claim that the essence of science is objective verification, when in fact there are many subjective decisions that need to be made in the process of the objective research (Onwuegbuzie & Leech, p. 371). In the natural sciences events can be measured with near perfect reliability, however, as finance is derived from the socialscience of economics and marketing is derived from the social science of psychology the study of business needs torecognize and manage the inevitable existence of subjectivity.

Much of the quantitative-qualitative debate is due to polemics which confuse rather than clarifying. There are two research paradigms which claim that qualitative research uses deep and rich observational data while quantitative research uses hard and generalizable data (Onwuegbuzie & Leech, p. 379). However, Onwuegbuzie and Leech claim that there are actually many more similarities


between quantitative and qualitative perspectives than there are differences. They begin by pointing out that bothquantitative and qualitative procedures address research questions through using observations. As Sechrest and Sidani point out, that both quantitative and qualitative research “describe their data, construct explanatory arguments from their data, and speculate about why the outcomes they observed happened as they did” (p. 78). Both sets of researchers use techniques that are similar, both types of researches incorporate safeguards into their research to minimize confirmation bias and other areas which could reduce the validity of the research. Both quantitative and qualitative researches try to apply within-method triangulation (Onwuegbuzie & Leech, p. 379). Other ways in which quantitative and qualitative research are similar are in that quantitative researchers will try to triangulate their data using qualitative elements to justify the data, and qualitative researches will try to support the interview data with observational data (p. 379). It is worth pointing out that even in equity research, which is the domain of this author, which in manyways appears to be quite quantitative and mathematical, we always attempt to ensure that the statistical data have a solid theoretical basis or an economic rational besides themathematical correlation. Once relationships are established we ensure that the mispricing, the arbitrage opportunity is actually monetizeable before taking actions on these research finding.

Meaning is not a function of whether the data collected is quantitative or qualitative, but rather, meaning is extracted through the interpretation of this data, whether the data is numerical, statistical or contextual in the terms of words and insights (Dzurec & Abraham, p. 75). Both quantitative and qualitative researchers select and use analytical techniques with whichthey expect to obtain the most meaning from their data, then they work with this data in order to extract utility in terms of their respective views of reality (p. 76). Furthermore, both qualitative and quantitative researchers utilize techniques to verify their data. Quantitative researches use statistical techniques such as control procedures and random sampling to maximize both the


internal and external validity of their study and qualitative researches increase the auditability or credibility of qualitative research. According to Onwuegbuzie and Leech, these tools include: “triangulation,prolonged engagement, persistent observation, leaving an audit trail, member checking, weighting the evidence, checking for representativeness of sources of data, checking for researcher effects, making contracts/comparisons, checking the meaning of outliers, using extreme cases, ruling out spurious relations, replicating a finding, assessing rival explanations, looking for negative evidence, obtaining feedback from informants, peer debriefing, clarifying researcher bias, and thick description (p. 380).

Another examination of similarities between quantitative and qualitative research, and an argument thatmany might assume is a bit of an oversimplification, is that by Berg where he contends that both qualitative and quantitative data are interchangeable, in that all data arebasically qualitative. Berg states that all data are qualitative in that they both try to capture a raw experience, and in the same sense all data can also be quantified or at least binarized (p. 10). Of course one of the differences between numerical qualitative data or qualitative data that has been binarized and actual quantitative data is that qualitative data which has been converted into numbers is more likely than quantitative data to use nominal or ordinal scales, where nominal scalessimply assign a number to different categories without a larger number representing any degree of superiority over alower number (hedge fund classification scales) and ordinalscales imply that a larger value is superior to a lower value but the intervals aren’t fixed (the credit quality difference between a AAA rated bond and a AA rated bond isn’t the same as the difference between an AA rated bond and an A rated bond). On the other hand quantitative data is more likely to include numbers on the interval and ratioscales, where the interval scale includes data where different intervals actually mean the same thing but the value of zero is not a true zero (temperatures on the centigrade and Fahrenheit scales are interval scales) and the ratio scale includes everything that the interval scale


includes except that zero is now a true zero (temperatures on the Kelvin scale, or monetary units). Of course with data on the ratio scale it is much easier to perform statistical analysis in terms of standard deviations, confidence intervals, statistical hypothesis testing etc.

Onwuegbuzie and Leech point out that just as experimental, quasi experimental and correlation research can sometimes include observational and interview data, in the same way qualitative research can also incorporate empirical data (p. 381). A more eloquent and succinct way to express this idea is when Kaplan who stated that “quantities are of qualities and a measured quality has just the magnitude expressed in its measure” (p. 207). Under this concept, Onwuegbuzie and Leech argue that inferential statistics can actually be performed on qualitative data by simply converting them into numerical scales. It is the opinion of this author, that while qualitative data converted into numerical scales can indeedbe manipulated statistically and inferential statistics canbe performed, that statistical manipulation performed on data scales other than interval or ratio will not initiallyyield the same levels of statistical robustness. The purpose of quantitative analysis or qualitative data shouldnot be the final end of the research, but it can yield incremental validity to the qualitative analysis. It is also worth pointing out that mixed method analyses are not always appropriate or even possible (Onwuegbuzie & Leech, p. 381). Thus, while certain methodologies are usually associated with one type of research or the other, this could be due not to researchers having different goals, epistemological, ontological, axiological assumptions but rather simply because the two groups of researchers have simply operationalized their strategies differently (p. 381).

Qualitative and quantitative research in practice

While the philosophical debate between qualitative and quantitative research is interesting, a researcher should also be familiar with the practical elements involved in carrying out the actual research, such as the tools and procedures used in research.


While different books assign different names to the steps in the research process, in general they follow the same general steps. For example the Mildred F. Sawyer Library at Suffolk University divides the steps into: decide on a topic, develop an overview of the topic, determine the information requirements, organize the information, analyze and evaluate the information, synthesize the information and communicate and present the research (Mildred F. Sawyer Library, “A research process”, “n.d.”). The Olin & Uris libraries at Cornell University Library also state that there are seven steps which they describe as: identify and develop the topic, find background information, use catalogues to find books and media, use indexes to find periodical articles, find additional internet resources, evaluate what you find, citewhat find using a standard format (“Olin & Uris Libraries”,“The Seven Steps”, “n.d.).

Within the first step, which is to identify a topic, the Cornell University Library recommends that you first state your topic as a question; from this you can then develop a testable hypothesis. The next step would be to perform some research and determine what is already known about your topic of study. This step in the research process is known as the literature review, and to enrich this stage in the research process it is recommended that the researcher also use the bibliographies in the research that he or she is reading to discover additional sources ofinformation and insight. The Cornell University Library, next recommends that the researcher find books and other media using University of Congress Call Numbers. (“Olin & Uris Libraries”, “Critically Analyzing”, “n.d.).

After using indices to find periodical articles and finding additional internet resources, the Cornell University Library recommends that researches critically analyze information sources which includes: determining what the author’s institutional affiliation, background andexperience, as well as whether the author is cited by others and if the author is writing from a biased position.In evaluating the date of the publication the researcher can evaluate whether the paper is current or out of date. It can also be helpful to take into account whether there


have been many revisions or editions of the book, or article you are evaluating. University presses are more likely to include scholarly works or at least works whose authors are respected by the university press. It is also useful to determine whether the journal is a scholarly journal or a non-scholarly journal to determine if the source is scholarly, substantive, popular or sensational. Scholarly, academic, peer-reviewed or refereed journals usually have the highest quality standards. Usually for a journal to be categorized as a scholarly journal, it has anabstract or a descriptive summary of the article contents before the main text of the article, they usually have a sober and serious look, they will necessarily cite their sources, they are written by a scholar in the field or by someone who has done research in the field. The language ofscholarly journals is usually quite specialized and assumesthat the reader has a technical background. While scholarly, academic, peer-reviewed and refereed journals are usually treated as being the same type of publication, in the strictest definition of the word, peer-reviewed or refereed journals are a sub-set of scholarly journals wherethe articles are submitted to other scholar, experts or academics that review the article and comment. This, of course, elevates the quality of the research as the peers must agree that the article represents research which is both original and has been properly conducted before the research can be published (“Olin & Uris Libraries”, “Critically Analyzing”, “n.d.).

Substantive news sources are those whose writing styleis directed to any educated audience without assuming any specialized or technical knowledge. Of course, popular or sensational publications are those which should be avoided by researchers. (“Olin & Uris Libraries”, “Critically Analyzing”, “n.d.).

Once the source of the articles has been analyzed the researcher can then investigate the content in terms of theintended audience, objective reasoning, coverage, writing style and evaluative reviews. Of course, the researcher should determine whether the intended audience is too general or too specialized for the needs of the research being undertaken. But it is also important to ascertain


whether the author of the article being examined is being factual, and whether the difference between facts and opinions is clearly stated, whether the information is valid and well researched or whether it is based on questionable an unsupported evidence, it is also important to determine whether the article, note, paper or book uses a logical, rational and methodical way to arrive at their conclusions. Authors that arrive at conclusions which represent radical departures from those of others in their fields should be scrutinized more carefully. And, of course, the point of view or conclusion should be objectiveand impartial (“Olin & Uris Libraries”, “Critically Analyzing”, “n.d.).

It is also quite useful to study whether the work being examined updates other sources, references other sources or whether it takes a broader or narrower view of the topic being studied. It is also useful to determine whether the work is primary research or secondary research as primary research will have the raw data and secondary research will usually have more polished conclusions.

The initial problem and one of the crucial steps in this process, is to correctly define the research problem. According to Hancock, Kate Windridge and Elizabeth Ockleford, “research questions are important because they guide the whole research process” (p. 9). While broad research questions might be interesting, they are often toovague and what is required is often a more specific or precise question in order to proceed appropriately. While in both qualitative and quantitative research the problems are intimately linked but they do make different types of predictions. One of the key differences is that in qualitative research as the study progresses the research question should be refined and reformulated, whereas in quantitative research a reformulation of the question wouldrequire a new study (p. 9).

Daniel J. Boudah, in his book “Conducting Educational Research” states that before the research proposal is created, the researcher needs to identify the research problem and then a question or questions in order to targetthe problem (p. 21). A research problem is the topic that


we need to address, investigate or study, whether descriptively or experimentally. This is the focus or the entire reason for investigating our research. Once the research problem has been identified we need to narrow thisresearch problem down and adequately define the problem. A good research question will also suggest some of the appropriate research methods (p. 24).

Once a research question has been identified, defined and refined the next step is to develop a research hypothesis which is essentially a declarative statement of how you expect the research to turn out (p. 25). A researchhypothesis should be brief, should suggest something that can be tested or investigated and should note important variables (p. 26). A specific research hypothesis is more common in quantitative research than it is in qualitative research, as in qualitative research the results are intended to be emergent (p. 26). In experimental and quantitative types of descriptive research the research question often directly leads to a research hypothesis, which makes it important to verify that the research topic,problem statement, research question and hypothesis use language that is consistent in terms of variables to be used and outcomes which the researcher expects (p. 26).

Some researchers don’t think that a null hypothesis adds value to the research project, while other researchersbelieve firmly in the statistical importance of using a null hypothesis (p. 26).

One the question, problem or hypothesis has been identified, the next task is to conduct a literature review. The literature review has several purposes: to helpfigure out what works, to pursue a topic, problem or question, to pinpoint an area of further study, to provide a rationale or background for study, to survey or analyze the research methodology (p. 27). Once you have determined that your level of focus is adequate (not too broad or too narrow) the next step in the literature review is to determine which types of sources, how much information etc you want to include and then to translate the topic into key terms. One of the challenges that researchers find is that there is often not enough literature to draw from, in


this case the original search terms should be revised, or the topic of study should be revised (p. 37). Then of course the questions should be studied using both primary and secondary sources, additional research (primary or secondary) can be performed to help answer the research question, and ultimately the research should be reviewed bypeers and then published.

Once the literature review has been completed, one of the key tools used to gather primary data is the interview.There are of course, different types of interviews used in the social sciences. Some interviews are rather quantitative in nature as they simply gather data, which can then be manipulated numerically. These types of interviews can be used in economics and measure items such as wages, expenses, savings rates, unemployment, investor and consumer confidence etc. Other interviews can be much more qualitative and gather information about how the interviewed perceive the overall experience. One example ofa qualitative interview is the problem centered interview.

Andreas Witzel in the Forum on Qualitative Social Research states that “the problem centered interview is a theory generating method that tries to neutralize the alleged contradiction between being directed by theory or being open-minded so that the interplay of inductive and deductive thinking contributes to increasing user’s knowledge” (p.1). This type of interview is oriented towardsocial problems and the interviewer ensures that the questioning, re-questioning, orientation and interpretationare all carried out based on the problem centered approach.Other contexts such as education, occupation, gender, class, and regional specific contexts are objective in the sense that they cannot be altered by individual actors (p. 2). The interview can also carry an object-orientation withmore methodical flexibility wherein the researcher can prepare for the interview by holding a focus group discussion in order to obtain a preliminary overview of therange of opinions among the sample to be studied. The process orientation focuses the conversation on the reconstruction of orientations and actions. By following this process interviewees open up as they feel that they are being taken seriously and treated with respect.


Redundancies are welcomed as they provide additional context and re-formulations of what has already been said while contradictions are also highlighted and ironed out.

In conclusion, there is a considerable amount of literature regarding the philosophical differences between qualitative and quantitative research. At an epistemological and philosophical level these differences are of vital importance. However, at the practical level qualitative and quantitative research actually share a lot in terms of methodology and procedures. While different books assign different names to the steps in the research process they all seem to follow similar basic steps. First the researcher should decide on a topic, then develop an overview of the topic, narrow down the topic, perform a literature review, narrow or expand the topic if necessary,perform primary research if necessary, organize the information, evaluate the information, synthesize the information, cite sources appropriately, communicate and publish the research. One of the basic tools used in both qualitative and quantitative research is the interview.


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Comparing and Constrasting Research Methodologies

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