J Korean Med Sci.  2023 Sep;38(37):e291. 10.3346/jkms.2023.38.e291.

Conducting and Writing Quantitative and Qualitative Research

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Medical Education, Showa University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
  • 2Department of Biological Sciences, Messiah University, Mechanicsburg, PA, USA

Abstract

Comprehensive knowledge of quantitative and qualitative research systematizes scholarly research and enhances the quality of research output. Scientific researchers must be familiar with them and skilled to conduct their investigation within the frames of their chosen research type. When conducting quantitative research, scientific researchers should describe an existing theory, generate a hypothesis from the theory, test their hypothesis in novel research, and re-evaluate the theory. Thereafter, they should take a deductive approach in writing the testing of the established theory based on experiments. When conducting qualitative research, scientific researchers raise a question, answer the question by performing a novel study, and propose a new theory to clarify and interpret the obtained results. After which, they should take an inductive approach to writing the formulation of concepts based on collected data. When scientific researchers combine the whole spectrum of inductive and deductive research approaches using both quantitative and qualitative research methodologies, they apply mixed-method research. Familiarity and proficiency with these research aspects facilitate the construction of novel hypotheses, development of theories, or refinement of concepts.

Keyword

Deductive Reasoning; Inductive Reasoning; Qualitative Research; Quantitative Research; Study design

Figure

  • Fig. 1 Schematic diagrams of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies.


Reference

1. Developing a hypothesis. Updated 2023. Accessed March 5, 2023. https://opentext.wsu.edu/carriecuttler/chapter/developing-a-hypothesis/ .
2. Chigbu UE. Visually hypothesising in scientific paper writing: Confirming and refuting qualitative research hypotheses using diagrams. Publications. 2019; 7(1):22.
Article
3. Gasparyan AY, Ayvazyan L, Mukanova U, Yessirkepov M, Kitas GD. Scientific hypotheses: writing, promoting, and predicting implications. J Korean Med Sci. 2019; 34(45):e300. PMID: 31760713.
Article
4. Young M, Varpio L, Uijtdehaage S, Paradis E. The spectrum of inductive and deductive research approaches using quantitative and qualitative data. Acad Med. 2020; 95(7):1122. PMID: 31833855.
Article
5. Barroga E, Matanguihan GJ. Correcting language mistakes in qualitative research articles. Cent Asian J Med Hypotheses Ethics. 2020; 1(2):146–151.
Article
6. De Carlo M. Scientific inquiry in social work: Inductive and deductive reasoning (Pressbooks). Updated 2023. Accessed March 6, 2023. https://scientificinquiryinsocialwork.pressbooks.com/chapter/6-3-inductive-and-deductive-reasoning/ .
7. Gasparyan AY, Ayvazyan L, Blackmore H, Kitas GD. Writing a narrative biomedical review: considerations for authors, peer reviewers, and editors. Rheumatol Int. 2011; 31(11):1409–1417. PMID: 21800117.
Article
8. Hong ST. Ten tips for authors of scientific articles. J Korean Med Sci. 2014; 29(8):1035–1037. PMID: 25120310.
Article
9. Gu X, Xu Z. Sustainable development of EFL learners’ research writing competence and their identity construction: Chinese novice writer-researchers’ metadiscourse use in English research articles. Sustainability (Basel). 2021; 13(17):9523.
Article
10. Elnathan R. English is the language of science - but precision is tough as a non-native speaker. Nature. Forthcoming. 2021; DOI: . DOI: 10.1038/d41586-021-00899-y.
Article
11. Yakhontova T. English writing of non-Anglophone researchers. J Korean Med Sci. 2020; 35(26):e216. PMID: 32627440.
Article
12. Shpit EI, McCarthy PM. Addressing discourse differences in the writing of Russian engineering students and international researchers. Lang Teach Res. Forthcoming. 2022; DOI: . DOI: 10.1177/13621688221109809.
13. Aspers P, Corte U. What is qualitative in qualitative research? Qual Sociol. 2019; 42(2):139–160. PMID: 31105362.
Article
14. Munthe-Kaas HM, Glenton C, Booth A, Noyes J, Lewin S. Systematic mapping of existing tools to appraise methodological strengths and limitations of qualitative research: first stage in the development of the CAMELOT tool. BMC Med Res Methodol. 2019; 19(1):113. PMID: 31164084.
Article
15. Noyes J, Booth A, Moore G, Flemming K, Tunçalp Ö, Shakibazadeh E. Synthesising quantitative and qualitative evidence to inform guidelines on complex interventions: clarifying the purposes, designs and outlining some methods. BMJ Glob Health. 2019; 4(Suppl 1):e000893.
Article
16. Ryba TV, Wiltshire G, North J, Ronkainen NJ. Developing mixed methods research in sport and exercise psychology: potential contributions of a critical realist perspective. Int J Sport Exerc Psychol. 2022; 20(1):147–167.
Article
17. Das AK, Datta B. Open science in addressing responsible research and innovation: Evidence from India and other countries. J Scientometr Res. 2020; 9(2s):s14–s23.
Article
18. Christensen MV, Nieminen M, Altenhofer M, Tancoigne E, Mejlgaard N, Griessler E, et al. What’s in a name? Perceptions and promotion of responsible research and innovation practices across Europe. Sci Public Policy. 2020; 47(3):360–370.
Article
19. Resnik DB. International standards for research integrity: An idea whose time has come? Account Res. 2009; 16(4):218–228. PMID: 20183162.
Article
20. Cutri J, Freya A, Karlina Y, Patel SV, Moharami M, Zeng S, et al. Academic integrity at doctoral level: the influence of the imposter phenomenon and cultural differences on academic writing. IJEI. 2021; 17(1):8.
21. Types of research within qualitative and quantitative. Updated 2023. Accessed March 6, 2023. https://libguides.rutgers.edu/c.php?g=337288&p=2273209 .
22. Misra DP, Gasparyan AY, Zimba O, Yessirkepov M, Agarwal V, Kitas GD. Formulating hypotheses for different study designs. J Korean Med Sci. 2021; 36(50):e338. PMID: 34962112.
Article
23. Tenny S, Brannan JM, Brannan GD. Qualitative Study. StatPearls. Updated 2023. Accessed April 15, 2023. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK470395/?report=printable .
24. Borgstede M, Scholz M. Quantitative and qualitative Approaches to generalization and replication: a representationalist view. Front Psychol. 2021; 12:605191. PMID: 33613387.
Article
25. Das MK. An Introduction to qualitative and mixed methods study designs in Health. Indian Pediatr. 2022; 59(5):416–423. PMID: 34338218.
Article
26. Bhangu S, Provost F, Caduff C. Introduction to qualitative research methods - Part I. Perspect Clin Res. 2023; 14(1):39–42. PMID: 36909216.
Article
27. Chai HH, Gao SS, Chen KJ, Duangthip D, Lo EC, Chu CH. A concise review on qualitative research in dentistry. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021; 18(3):942. PMID: 33499023.
Article
28. Baghlaf K. Necessity and relevance of qualitative research in pediatric dentistry. A literature review. Saudi Dent J. 2023; 35(1):31–38. PMID: 36817030.
Article
29. Busetto L, Wick W, Gumbinger C. How to use and assess qualitative research methods. Neurol Res Pract. 2020; 2(1):14. PMID: 33324920.
Article
30. Finn GM, Dueñas AN, Kehoe A, Brown ME. A novice’s guide to qualitative health professions education research. Clin Exp Dermatol. 2022; 47(12):2090–2095. PMID: 35978555.
Article
31. Östlund AS, Kristofferzon ML, Häggström E, Wadensten B. Primary care nurses’ performance in motivational interviewing: a quantitative descriptive study. BMC Fam Pract. 2015; 16(1):89. PMID: 26205692.
Article
32. Díaz-García O, Herranz Aguayo I, Fernández de Castro P, Ramos JL. Lifestyles of Spanish elders from supervened SARS-CoV-2 variant onwards: A correlational research on life satisfaction and social-relational praxes. Front Psychol. 2022; 13:948745. PMID: 36248522.
Article
33. Sharma MK, Adhikari R. Effect of school water, sanitation, and hygiene on health status among basic level students in Nepal. Environ Health Insights. 2022; 16:11786302221095030. PMID: 35495174.
Article
34. Tuna F, Tunçer B, Can HB, Süt N, Tuna H. Immediate effect of Kinesio taping® on deep cervical flexor endurance: a non-controlled, quasi-experimental pre-post quantitative study. Cranio. 2022; 40(6):528–535. PMID: 32883188.
Article
35. Hyun C, Kim K, Lee S, Lee HH, Lee J. Quantitative evaluation of the consciousness level of patients in a vegetative state using virtual reality and an eye-tracking system: a single-case experimental design study. Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2022; 32(10):2628–2645. PMID: 34486951.
Article
36. Silva Lima R, Silva MA, de Andrade LS, Mello MA, Goncalves MF. Construction of professional identity in nursing students: qualitative research from the historical-cultural perspective. Rev Lat Am Enfermagem. 2020; 28:e3284. PMID: 32520240.
Article
37. Gammeltoft TM, Huyền Diệu BT, Kim Dung VT, Đức Anh V, Minh Hiếu L, Thị Ái N. Existential vulnerability: an ethnographic study of everyday lives with diabetes in Vietnam. Anthropol Med. 2022; 29(3):271–288. PMID: 34844468.
Article
38. Oeljeklaus L, Schmid HL, Kornfeld Z, Hornberg C, Norra C, Zerbe S, et al. Therapeutic landscapes and psychiatric care facilities: a qualitative meta-analysis. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022; 19(3):1490. PMID: 35162518.
Article
39. Anderson H, Stocker R, Russell S, Robinson L, Hanratty B, Robinson L, et al. Identity construction in the very old: a qualitative narrative study. PLoS One. 2022; 17(12):e0279098. PMID: 36520876.
Article
40. Amini R, Shahboulaghi FM, Tabrizi KN, Forouzan AS. Social participation among Iranian community-dwelling older adults: a grounded theory study. J Family Med Prim Care. 2022; 11(6):2311–2319. PMID: 36119239.
Article
41. Green G, Sharon C, Gendler Y. The communication challenges and strength of nurses’ intensive corona care during the two first pandemic waves: a qualitative descriptive phenomenology study. Healthcare (Basel). 2022; 10(5):837. PMID: 35627974.
Article
42. Horton A, Nugus P, Fortin MC, Landsberg D, Cantarovich M, Sandal S. Health system barriers and facilitators to living donor kidney transplantation: a qualitative case study in British Columbia. CMAJ Open. 2022; 10(2):E348–E356.
Article
43. Buus N, Moensted M. Collectively learning to talk about personal concerns in a peer-led youth program: a field study of a community of practice. Health Soc Care Community. 2022; 30(6):e4425–e4432. PMID: 35608005.
Article
44. Pyo J, Lee W, Choi EY, Jang SG, Ock M. Qualitative research in healthcare: necessity and characteristics. J Prev Med Public Health. 2023; 56(1):12–20. PMID: 36746418.
Article
45. Introduction to qualitative research. Updated 2023. Accessed March 6, 2023. https://fdocuments.in/document/introduction-to-qualitative-research-powering-to-qualitative-research-scwk.html .
46. Bozhkova T, Musurlieva N, Slavchev D. Comparative study qualitative and quantitative techniques in the study of occlusion. BioMed Res Int. 2021; 2021:1163874. PMID: 34604379.
Article
47. Price PC, Jhangiani R, Chiang IC, Leighton DC, Cuttler C. Correlational Research. Updated 2023. Accessed March 10, 2023. https://opentext.wsu.edu/carriecuttler/chapter/correlational-research/ .
49. Andrade C. The limitations of quasi-experimental studies, and methods for data analysis when a quasi-experimental research design is unavoidable. Indian J Psychol Med. 2021; 43(5):451–452. PMID: 34584313.
Article
50. Harris AD, McGregor JC, Perencevich EN, Furuno JP, Zhu J, Peterson DE, et al. The use and interpretation of quasi-experimental studies in medical informatics. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2006; 13(1):16–23. PMID: 16221933.
Article
51. Alaofè H, Okechukwu A, Yeo S, Magrath P, Amoussa Hounkpatin W, Ehiri J, et al. Formative qualitative research: design considerations for a self-directed lifestyle intervention for type-2 diabetes patients using human-centered design principles in Benin. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022; 19(18):11552. PMID: 36141824.
Article
52. Bareiss W. Editorial tips on publishing qualitative research in medicine & healthcare. Qual Res Med Healthc. 2023; 6(3):11170. PMID: 37440989.
Article
53. Stickley T, O’Caithain A, Homer C. The value of qualitative methods to public health research, policy and practice. Perspect Public Health. 2022; 142(4):237–240. PMID: 35362352.
Article
54. Githaiga JN, Späth C, Sicwebu N, Perera S, Tolla T, Leon N. Critical reflections on conducting qualitative health research during COVID-19: The lived experiences of a cohort of postgraduate students in a South African university. Int J Qual Methods. 2023; 22:16094069221148406. PMID: 36628133.
Article
55. Gaur PS, Zimba O, Agarwal V, Gupta L. Reporting survey based studies-a primer for authors. J Korean Med Sci. 2020; 35(45):e398. PMID: 33230988.
56. Barisone M, Busca E, Bassi E, De Luca E, Profenna E, Suardi B, et al. The family and community nurses cultural model in the times of the COVID outbreak: a focused ethnographic study. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023; 20(3):1948. PMID: 36767312.
Article
57. Loizeau V, Kilpatrick K, Bertrand DP, Rothan-Tondeur M. Exploring strategies for developing enabling environments for people with chronic heart disease: an ethnographic study protocol. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023; 20(3):2680. PMID: 36768045.
Article
58. Ladislav T, Creaner M. Essentials of Qualitative Meta-Analysis. Washington, D.C., USA: American Psychological Association;2022.
59. Ballantine C. The reaffirming of self? Narrative inquiry for researching violence against women and stigma. Violence Against Women. 2022; 28(9):2231–2253. PMID: 34424079.
Article
60. Lavall E, Susin P, Reif KS, Schneider JF, Camatta MW. Narrative interview and reconstruction of biographic case: methodological alternative in nursing research. Rev Gaúcha Enferm. 2023; 43:e20220188. PMID: 36921142.
Article
61. Introducing qualitative hypothesis-generating research (The Yeshiva University Fatherhood Project). Updated 2023. Accessed March 7, 2023. https://pdf4pro.com/download/introducing-qualitative-hypothesis-generating-research-4548b6.html .
62. Amaral G, Figueiredo AS. How to choose a preceptor: aspects to consider based on a grounded theory study. BMC Nurs. 2023; 22(1):90. PMID: 37004086.
Article
63. Neubauer BE, Witkop CT, Varpio L. How phenomenology can help us learn from the experiences of others. Perspect Med Educ. 2019; 8(2):90–97. PMID: 30953335.
Article
64. Kamper SJ. Types of research questions: descriptive, predictive, or causal. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2020; 50(8):468–469. PMID: 32736498.
Article
65. Venkatesh Aravindh R, Thirupathi S. Data analysis in social sciences: comparison between quantitative and qualitative research. IJMRSS. 2019; 6(1):5–6.
Article
66. Quantitative and qualitative research-difference. Updated 2023. Accessed March 7, 2023. https://www.studyandexam.com/quantitative-qualitative.html .
67. Kotronoulas G, Miguel S, Dowling M, Fernández-Ortega P, Colomer-Lahiguera S, Bağçivan G, et al. An overview of the fundamentals of data management, analysis, and interpretation in quantitative research. Semin Oncol Nurs. 2023; 39(2):151398. PMID: 36868925.
Article
68. What is research hypothesis? Updated 2023. Accessed March 7, 2023. http://researcharticles.com/index.php/what-is-research-hypothesis/ .
69. Bates G, Le Gouais A, Barnfield A, Callway R, Hasan MN, Koksal C, et al. Balancing autonomy and collaboration in large-scale and disciplinary diverse teams for successful qualitative research. Int J Qual Methods. 2023; 2:1–15.
Article
70. Schoonenboom J. The fundamental difference between qualitative and quantitative data in mixed methods research. Forum Qual Soc Res. 2023; 24(1):11.
71. Hammersley M. Are there assessment criteria for qualitative findings? A challenge facing mixed methods research. Forum Qual Soc Res. 2023; 24(1):1.
Full Text Links
  • JKMS
Actions
Cited
CITED
export Copy
Close
Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
Similar articles
Copyright © 2024 by Korean Association of Medical Journal Editors. All rights reserved.     E-mail: koreamed@kamje.or.kr