Professional Research Methods Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Professional Research Methods - Essay ExampleOther concerns about the applicability of quantitative methodologies to in-dept exam of complex social phenomena include taking the collected selective information out of the real-world setting, poor representativeness and generalisation of data, exclusion of discovery from the realm of scientific inquiry, etc.The institutional structure of business and management inquiry has also reacted to the criticism of the positivist paradigm. Increasing numbers of qualitative studies published domestically and internationally have challenged the traditional view of qualitative research paradigm as the inferior to the more rigorous and reliable quantitative methodological analysis. The aim of this paper is to identify the major research designs and techniques associated with each methodological analysis and to provide explanation on the views about the nature of knowledge (epistemology) and the nature of reality (ontology) underlying these perspect ives.There are various classifications of methods apply in the area of professional research, but the most common classification splits the methods into two large groups, namely quantitative and qualitative research methods.Quantitative methodology employs methods historically applied in the natural (physical) sciences. The primary task of quantitative research is to ensure validity and reliability of results (Dingwall et al, 1998). Examples of quantitative methods widely used in the social sciences and business and management research are survey methods, formal methods (e.g. econometrics), laboratory experiments and several numerical methods (e.g. mathematical modelling) (Myers, 1997).Quantitative research implies standardized questionnaires and methods of data analysis, specific position of the researcher whom is considered external to the research, replicability of the results regardless of the context, etc (Wainer and Braun, 1998). While reliability and validity are the most of ten cited strengths of the quantitative methodology, poor applicability of this methodology to exploration of a phenomenon, which is difficult or impossible to quantify, is considered a serious weakness. The main drawback that limits applicability of quantitative methods is the so-called decontextualization models constructed on the basis of data obtained finished quantitative methods do not take into account certain variables that act in the real world context (Patton, 1987). Qualitative methodology utilizes a realistic approach seeking to understand phenomena in a specific context, such as real world setting where the researcher does not attempt to master the phenomenon of interest (Patton, 2002 39). The broad definition of qualitative research is any kind of research that produces findings not arrived at by means of statistical procedures or separate means of quantification (Strauss and Corbin, 1990 17). Qualitative research reveals findings observed in the real world context where the phenomena being studied unfold naturally (Patton, 2002). The motivation underlying qualitative research is the researchers desire to understand the social and cultural phenomena within the real-world setting. Qualitative methods are designed to