Is qualitative data as scientific as quantitative?
Posted on: December 9, 2011
Controversially I am going to say yes it is as scientific…words can show just as much as statistical numbers.
Qualitative data includes virtually any information that can be gathered which is not numerical. For instance the information gathered from interviews, direct observation or written documents form qualitative data. It has been described as an attempt to analyse and explain behavior in a rich and understanding way (Exeter University, 2011.
In contrast, quantitative research uses numerical data and usually takes the form of structured techniques…for example questionnaires or computer tasks. Findings are conclusive and usually descriptive in nature.
Quantitative research aims to or support or disprove a hypothesis and to generalise the results to the wider population. However, qualitative research aims to gain an understanding and uncover trends in thought and opinion.
To many, quantitative research is seen as more scientific hands down. However it certainly can’t be said that qualitative research has not helped towards science or psychological research. Just because it doesn’t include statistical analysis does not mean the findings aren’t valid, right? Take Stainton and Besser’s (1998) qualitative study….that had very positive practical implications on research. It enabled them to gain in depth knowledge into the impact of children with an intellectual disability on their families.
Qualitative research provides detail and richness into what is being researched. Say for example two researchers are looking into the effects of drinking alcohol. One researcher uses a quantative method: an online questionnaire, the other researcher users a qualitative method: a semi structured interview. The second researcher, using the qualitative method will gain more of an insight into the research question. They will be able to ask the participant to expand on certain points, or give reasoning for their answers. The first researcher however will be limited on how much detail they can gain from the answers on their questionnaire.
Yes qualitative research has been scrutinized for being subjective and open to interpretation, however methods have been brought in like the inter-rater reliability test. This is when transcriptions of data are checked by others in order to balance out any biases that may occur.
All in all I do not think that the qualitative method is any less scientific that the quantitative method, it is just another method of collecting data.
3 Responses to "Is qualitative data as scientific as quantitative?"
February 9, 2012 at 12:10 am
I completley agree with you on this! Like you say words can show just as much as stats do. I also believe that as psychologists, and we class ourselves as scientists, one of our primary intrests is in understanding behaviours, not only what factors affect our behaviour but also how they make us feel and why they make us feel that way. One of the best ways to observe this is by carrying out a qualitative study, as you say they allow us to gather richer data about the individual themself allowing to see ‘into’ their own emotions and how they interpret how they are feeling and how a stimulus has made them feel.
Although this kind of study is criticised mainly because it is open to interpretation via the use IPA, as the researcher aims to seek out important emerging themes across the transcribe, however what one researcher sees as an important theme another may not. A way around this is to use mixed methods, this involves using a bit of both qualitative and quantative data, this enables researchers to gain a clearer image of what is really going on in the data, Neuman (2010) talks about the advantages and disadvantages of doing this in his paper Social Research Methods: Quantitative and Qualitative Methods.
prpnw 
December 9, 2011 at 5:41 pm
I completely agree with your blog; I think the qualitative method is in no way any less scientific than the quantitative one.
Qualitative gives us rich data, and can tell us WHY people behave the way they do. As with your example of looking into the effects of drinking alcohol, the questionnaire could only tell us things like how much they drink, how often they drink etc, whereas the semi structured interview could give us an insight into WHY the person drinks.
Also, without the qualitative method, it would be almost impossible to conduct a worthwhile observation. If we wanted to see how someone would react in a certain situation, such as Darley and Latane’s study (1968) where students heard someone having an epileptic seizure over an intercom during a group discussion, using the quantitative method could only tell us how many people went to get help, or how it took. But with the qualitative method we could observe their body language, take note of what they say; give ourselves an insight into why they do what they do.