| Qualitative | Quantitative | |
|---|---|---|
| Epistemology | Focuses on the inclusion of human value and subjective interpretation. | Focuses on only those aspects which are observable and quantifiable |
| Ex: Study of Somo tribal by Megerata Mead | Ex: Durkhiem suicide | |
| Their findings are more reliable in nature, due to the in-depth and thick description of events | Validity of quantitative methods are higher, due to the | |
| Two results are not easy to compare. | Easy to compare two results. | |
| These results are not easy universalise, generalized | Yes, can do | |
| School of thought | Favorite of non Positivist | Favorite of Positivist |
| Quantitative | Qualitative |
|---|---|
| Social facts | Empathetic description of social reality: |
| Statistical data | |
| Generalization and replicability: | Contextualism: |
| Correlation: look for correlation between different social facts. (e.g.) Durkhiem study of Suicide. | Emphasis on processual dimension |
| Causation: | Flexibility: research strategy which is relatively open and unstructured. |
| Collective Conscious | Personal conscience |
(C) Criticism of Non positivist
The terms respondent and informant are often used interchangeably; however they are separate terms. Respondent connotes quantitative research and informant connotes qualitative research.