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Writing Guides

Generalizability & Transferability

Main Page

Introduction

Generalizability Overview

Transferability Overview

Inter-relationships

Generalizability

Definition

Generalizability: Example

Considerations

Potential Limitations

Transferability

Definition

Example of a TransferableStudy

Considerations

Potential Limitations

Synthesis

Generalizability and

Transferability: A

Comparison

Generalizability,

Transferability:

Controversy, Worth, and

Function

Applications to ResearchMethods

Case Study

Ethnography

Experimental Research

Survey

Qualitative vs. Quantitative

Debate

Key Terms

Annotated Bibliography

Related ResourcesPrint-Friendly Page

Authors & Contributors

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The Qualitative versus Quantitative Debate

In Miles and Huberman's 1994 book Qualitative Data Analysis,quantitative researcher Fred Kerlinger is quoted as saying, "There's nosuch thing as qualitative data. Everything is either 1 or 0" (p. 40). Tothis another researcher, D. T. Campbell, asserts "all researchultimately has a qualitative grounding" (p. 40). This back and forthbanter among qualitative and quantitative researchers is "essentiallyunproductive" according to Miles and Huberman. They and many otherresearchers agree that these two research methods need each othermore often than not. However, because typically qualitative datainvolves words and quantitative data involves numbers, there are

some researchers who feel that one is better (or more scientific) thanthe other. Another major difference between the two is thatqualitative research is inductive and quantitative research is deductive.In qualitative research, a hypothesis is not needed to begin research.However, all quantitative research requires a hypothesis beforeresearch can begin.

Another major difference between qualitative and quantitativeresearch is the underlying assumptions about the role of theresearcher. In quantitative research, the researcher is ideally anobjective observer that neither participates in nor influences what isbeing studied. In qualitative research, however, it is thought that theresearcher can learn the most about a situation by participating and/or

being immersed in it. These basic underlying assumptions of bothmethodologies guide and sequence the types of data collectionmethods employed.

Although there are clear differences between qualitative andquantitative approaches, some researchers maintain that the choicebetween using qualitative or quantitative approaches actually has lessto do with methodologies than it does with positioning oneself within aparticular discipline or research tradition. The difficulty of choosing amethod is compounded by the fact that research is often affiliated withuniversities and other institutions. The findings of research projectsoften guide important decisions about specific practices and policies.The choice of which approach to use may reflect the interests of those

conducting or benefitting from the research and the purposes forwhich the findings will be applied. Decisions about which kind ofresearch method to use may also be based on the researcher's ownexperience and preference, the population being researched, theproposed audience for findings, time, money, and other resourcesavailable (Hathaway, 1995).

Some researchers believe that qualitative and quantitativemethodologies cannot be combined because the assumptionsunderlying each tradition are so vastly different. Other researchersthink they can be used in combination only by alternating betweenmethods: qualitative research is appropriate to answer certain kinds of

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questions in certain conditions and quantitative is right for others. Andsome researchers think that both qualitative and quantitative methodscan be used simultaneously to answer a research question.

To a certain extent, researchers on all sides of the debate are correct:each approach has its drawbacks. Quantitative research often "forces"responses or people into categories that might not "fit" in order tomake meaning. Qualitative research, on the other hand, sometimesfocuses too closely on individual results and fails to make connections

to larger situations or possible causes of the results. Rather thandiscounting either approach for its drawbacks, though, researchersshould find the most effective ways to incorporate elements of both toensure that their studies are as accurate and thorough as possible.

It is important for researchers to realize that qualitative andquantitative methods can be used in conjunction with each other. In astudy of computer-assisted writing classrooms, Snyder (1995)employed both qualitative and quantitative approaches. The study wasconstructed according to guidelines for quantitative studies: thecomputer classroom was the "treatment" group and the traditional penand paper classroom was the "control" group. Both classes containedsubjects with the same characteristics from the population sampled.

Both classes followed the same lesson plan and were taught by thesame teacher in the same semester. The only variable used was thecomputers. Although Snyder set this study up as an "experiment," sheused many qualitative approaches to supplement her findings. Sheobserved both classrooms on a regular basis as a participant-observerand conducted several interviews with the teacher both during andafter the semester. However, there were several problems in using thisapproach: the strict adherence to the same syllabus and lesson plansfor both classes and the restricted access of the control group to thecomputers may have put some students at a disadvantage. Snyderalso notes that in retrospect she should have used case studies of thestudents to further develop her findings. Although her study had

certain flaws, Snyder insists that researchers can simultaneouslyemploy qualitative and quantitative methods if studies are plannedcarefully and carried out conscientiously.

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Qualitative versus Quantitative Debate http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/research/gentrans/p

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