Qualitative and quantitative methods are similar in their reliance on research questions and selected data collection and analysis tools. In terms of differences, qualitative methods are non-representative, based on the textual information, and conducted to examine the phenomenon in detail. In contrast, quantitative methods are objective, findings can be discussed in the context of the large population, results are usually in the numeric form, and their reliability is high.
Such articles as “The “Bad Parent” Assumption: How Gender Stereotypes Affect Reactions to Working Mothers” by Okimoto and Heilman (2012) and “The Lived Experience of Family Members of Persons Who Compulsively Hoard: A Qualitative Study” by Sampson (2013) were selected.
The article by Okimoto and Heilman (2012) is a clear example of the quantitative research because the authors formulated hypotheses regarding perceptions of working mothers, conducted experiments, utilized statistical tools to analyze the numeric data, and tried to generalize the results as applicable to the large population of mothers. Sampson (2013) used interviews and the phenomenological analysis typical of qualitative researches, and the identification of themes was used as a traditional method to work with the textual data.
Scientific merit qualities can be effectively applied to the article by Okimoto and Heilman (2012) because it added the new objective information to the knowledge base on perceptions of working mothers in families; it added to the advanced theories in terms of discussing the role of gender stereotypes; and it is characterized by such features as testability, reliability, objectivity, and generalizability.
The findings indicate that working mothers are often perceived as bad parents, especially in the workplace. The findings provoke questions on working mothers’ attitudes to such judgments. For this further study, it is possible to use the qualitative methodology and the focus group to learn subjective visions.
References
Okimoto, T. G., & Heilman, M. E. (2012). The “bad parent” assumption: How gender stereotypes affect reactions to working mothers. Journal of Social Issues, 68(4), 704-724. Web.
Sampson, J. M. (2013). The lived experience of family members of persons who compulsively hoard: A qualitative study. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 39(3), 388-402. Web.