Qualitative vs. Quantitative

Unlike the assumption by many people that quantitative and qualitative research methods are one and the same thing, they are very different as they both use different strategies. This paper reviews qualitative and a quantitative article and explains the similarities between the two showing methodology used and finally showing the importance of the two methods for a manager when making a companys decisions.

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A quantitative article used as an example, in this case, is on Nurse Exposure to physical and non-physical violence, bullying and sexual harassment by Paul E Spector, Zhiqing E.Zhou, Xin Xuan Che on January 2014. For a long time, nurses and other health care professionals have been found to be at a risk of violent exposure, according to Happel and Nachreiner.Et.Al.This violence is either physical or non-physical which comes from rude and insensitive remarks from patients or workmates. Sexual harassment has featured as both a physical and non-physical violence from fellow workmates and also from patients and their visitors. Different research articles were found in the studies done earlier on the matter and two papers from surveys of nurses who had reported their past abuses were used. The results gotten were analyzed separately for each type of violence and, later on, more specific analysis methods were used for the region of violence, sources of violence and the setting. The analysis computed the mean percentage of the nurses assaulted, and 1/3 of the nurses assaulted were found to have been assaulted at the workplace. 36.4 %were physically assaulted while 67.2 were not physically assaulted. More results showed that 37.1% of nurses were bullied, 27.9% were sexually harassed while 50.5 % experienced general violence that could not be classified in the existing parts. Other results on regions, settings and sources were calculated in percentages and tabulated with the mean, standard deviation and range being included too.

Since the results showed how different regions were affected in comparison to others the Asian and Middle East regions which were the regions that were most affected by violence were advised to intervene a lot. Intervention according to this report should be based on the rate of violence. One thing that was confirmed was that violence against nurses was a universal problem that needs to be addressed fast.

The qualitative report included in this article is a qualitative study of the impact of the UK bedroom tax by HYPERLINK "http://jpubhealth.oxfordjournals.org/search?author1=S.+Moffatt&sortspec=date&submit=Submit" S. Moffat, HYPERLINK "http://jpubhealth.oxfordjournals.org/search?author1=S.+Lawson&sortspec=date&submit=Submit" S. Lawson, HYPERLINK "http://jpubhealth.oxfordjournals.org/search?author1=R.+Patterson&sortspec=date&submit=Submit" R. Patterson, HYPERLINK "http://jpubhealth.oxfordjournals.org/search?author1=E.+Holding&sortspec=date&submit=Submit" E. Holding, HYPERLINK "http://jpubhealth.oxfordjournals.org/search?author1=A.+Dennison&sortspec=date&submit=Submit" A. Dennison, HYPERLINK "http://jpubhealth.oxfordjournals.org/search?author1=S.+Sowden&sortspec=date&submit=Submit" S. Sowden and J.Brown. In April 2015, the spare room subsidy was implemented, and it was also known as the bedroom tax revoking controversial feelings among the people. Though the aim was to reduce public spending on housing during the time of its enactment, many did not agree with it. It would, in the long run, affect 660,000 tenants who had reached the working age and lived in social housing facilities. The houses they would live in would be too large for their needs and also 81% of them would lose approximately 12 $ of their weekly income. The government as a way to support its move stated that even though evidence had been provided that income would be lost in this move was good for physical and mental health. Enacting the bedroom rule would, therefore, have a positive impact on health. The bedroom tax also varied from one area to the other as the areas with high levels of employment would be charged higher tax than those in the low employment areas.

This study, therefore, aimed to understand the impact of this bedroom tax to normal tenants in social housing. The study was carried out in the urban neighborhood in the northeast of England, where the population of the resident on social housing is 69%. The method of data collection used in this study was interviewing the tenants affected by this tax. The interviews would either be directly or by use of questionnaires. The interviews were digitally recorded and later transcribed, and each interview lasted between 22 and 88 minutes. The results showed that the impacts gotten could be divided into four groups namely, the meeting of basic needs, health and the well-being of the family, family and community support and the meaning of a home and community. Concerning meeting the basic needs, it was found that most families were finding it hard to do that with the high amount of income they lost due to this tax and they ended up cutting back on other expenses like lighting, cooking and even heating. The mental health and well-being of the participants deteriorated as most of them suffered stress, anxiety, depression or even hopelessness as they worried about how they would meet the needs of their families with the income they had left. Some of them even considered moving to low-income regions to live. Though they described a house as more than a building earlier on they now thought of it as a place that evoked bitter memories, and some of them started being reliant on their friends and families. The results, therefore, concluded that this bedroom tax was having an adverse impact on the residents and if not controlled it would harm the economy by increasing poverty among the people.

A qualitative research mostly looks for explanations regarding a certain issue and to achieve this, it focuses on the reasons, opinions and motivation behind a particular action. A quantitative research quantifies a problem giving statistics that are useable. The sample population is usually large, and the attitudes, opinions, behaviors and many other variables are quantified to get the results. So, while quantitative data tries to come up with explanations regarding what was observed and interpreted, qualitative data aims at confirming whether a hypothesis that had previously been established is true or false.

The methods used in these different types of research are different each designed to meet the needs of the specific research. Quantitative research methodologies include group discussions, interviews and participation.The methods used in qualitative research include online surveys, kiosk surveys, paper surveys, mobile surveys, telephone or face to face interviews, online polls and much more. The sample population also differs in the two types of research. Qualitative research involves a small sample population since the opinion of a small target group is enough to lead to a conclusion. Quantitative research involves a large sample audience to ensure accuracy as the more the responses, the higher the level of accuracy.

Though the two methodologies have many differences, they also have a lot of similarities and can, therefore, be combined to benefit an organization (the enlightened eye, Eisner 1991). Using both the qualitative and quantitative methods of collecting data is very beneficial because quantitative methods ensure that data collected is highly reliable and accurate while the qualitative approach offers information that has details in depth. Each method reduces the others weaknesses and improves its strength when used together and as such managers can be very enlightened if they acquired their information through this way. By understanding the quantitative research methods, managers can explain tabulated data to the interested parties and shareholders who might not have the knowledge. With the analyzed data, the manager may come up with business plans that would be favored by the current statistics. Quantitative data is also helpful to the managers when predicting the future of an organization since it shows the well performing and the underperforming sectors.

Qualitative methods, on the other hand, are important to a manager, especially the one who needs to understand the reasons for the trends in the profit made. Since quantitative methods are about explaining the issues being experienced a manager may use this method to decide on the best areas to invest based on peoples opinions. They will also understand what motivates their clients and put more strength in them to ensure a positive outcome.

In conclusion, it can be seen that both qualitative and quantitative methods have their strengths and weaknesses, but using them together gives a better outcome in the long run which can be used by the managers to take an organization to another level.

References

Moffatt, S., Lawson, S., Patterson, R., Holding, E., Dennison, A., Sowden, S., & Brown, J. (2015). A qualitative study of the impact of the UK 'bedroom tax'. Journal Of Public Health. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/pubmed/fdv031

Newman, I., & Benz, C. (1998). Qualitative-quantitative research methodology. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press.

Russcomm.ru,. (2016). The Advantages Of Employing Quantitative And Qualitative Methods In Intercultural Research: Practical Implications From The Study Of The Perceptions Of Intercultural Communication Competence By American And Russian Managers // Alexei V. Matveev. Retrieved 13 January 2016, from http://www.russcomm.ru/eng/rca_biblio/m/matveev01_eng.shtml

Slevitch, L. (2011). Qualitative and Quantitative Methodologies Compared: Ontological and Epistemological Perspectives. Journal Of Quality Assurance In Hospitality & Tourism, 12(1), 73-81. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1528008x.2011.541810

Spector, P., Zhou, Z., & Che, X. (2014). Nurse exposure to physical and nonphysical violence, bullying, and sexual harassment: A quantitative review. International Journal Of Nursing Studies, 51(1), 72-84. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2013.01.010