Primary data gathered for the nursing study are generally qualitative. The data are usually represented as the texts of publications, videos and transcripts of discussions, questions and answers in interviews or questionnaires, etc. The division into qualitative and quantitative approaches arises when a decision is made on how to deal with the findings. In case of a quantitative study, the method of the data analysis and quantification is usually determined before data collection. Usually, the purpose is to demonstrate the existence of the predicted relationships in the data. Therefore, in order to confirm the hypothesis, the data is passed through a kind of numerical "filter". A researcher who is sticking with a qualitative approach, considered that at this stage the most of the important information is lost.
The advantages of qualitative methods are an open perception of the diversity of the phenomenology of the social, medical and/or psychological phenomena; more in-depth analysis; economy; it is not limited by the defined variables and allows researcher to build new theories ("Qualitative research isn’t as scientific as quantitative methods", 2011). Disadvantages are high probability of subjectivity in the analysis; the complexity of the analysis of the data; the need for the participation of highly qualified researchers.
The advantages of quantitative methods are greater coverage; the possibility of large generalizations; the relative ease of processing results. Disadvantages: the analysis is bound by the given concepts of the research; it is impossible to investigate the phenomena that do not fit into the original concept.
Summing up, the qualitative research is subjective, while the quantitative research is objective. Qualitative research is inductive and quantitative is deductive. The results of the quantitative research are generalisable, while the results of qualitative research are not generalisable. The reliability and validity of quantitative research significantly depend on the sample size (larger is better). The qualitative research can be applied on smaller sample sizes ("NORR | Web Links | Nursing Research/Theory", 2016).
References
NORR | Web Links | Nursing Research/Theory. (2016). Nursing.utexas.edu. Retrieved 15 March 2016, from https://nursing.utexas.edu/norr/html/links/research_qua.html
Qualitative research isn’t as scientific as quantitative methods. (2011). kmusial. Retrieved 15 March 2016, from https://kmusial.wordpress.com/2011/11/25/qualitative-research-isnt-as-scientific-as-quantitative-methods/
