Quantitative and Qualitative Research aims at establishing new information. It is a systematic approach of collecting and interpreting information aimed at improving the knowledge base (Suanders et al: 2009, p 5). Research strategy implies a broad orientation as to how to conduct any research. According to Creswell 2004(cited in Duffy & Chenail: 2008), research could be classified into quantitative research and qualitative research. At its simplest form, the former transforms human encounters into numbers while the latter transforms such experiences into words.
However the difference between quantitative and qualitative research are more pronounced than just correlating to quantification. They can symbolize two discrete forms of research strategy based on the association between the theory and research, epistemological and ontological orientations. Epistemology refers to what should be considered as “acceptable knowledge” for a speciality and whether the social sciences could be researched applying the same doctrines and processes as the natural science. (Bryman & Bell: 2011, p. 15), while ontology refers to the nature of existence based on the researcher’s perceptions of how the world functions and the commitment to these perspectives (Suanders et al: 2009, p 110). Quantitative research strategy emphasises on collecting and analysing numerical data using statistically valid systems which would generate measurable and if possible generalizable inferences (Anderson: 2009, p.
45). Furthermore this research demonstrates a deductive tactic to the association between theory and research. In deductive approach, a hypothesis/ hypotheses would be generated based on the association between a particular domain and the constituted theory w. .terparts. Core differences b/n the articles Research design and data collectionThe research design employed by Jacoby et al (2005) and Woywode (2002) is a comparative cross-national study.
Comparative research design could support both quantitative and qualitative research. In the former, the study would involve examining specific phenomena between two or more entities and the related variables to compare their outcomes in diverse sociocultural situations using similar research methods amongst two or more countries. The purpose of such a study is to probe into similarities and dissimilarities or to establish in-depth knowledge of the social representativeness in different national settings. Here cross-sectional design format would be employed to collect data using questionnaire or structured interview. The qualitative strategy in comparative design would involve
