Research Methods

Abstract

This paper discusses three common research approaches, qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods, along with the various research designs commonly used when conducting research within the framework of each approach. Creswell (2002) noted that quantitative research is the process of collecting, analyzing, interpreting, and writing the results of a study, while qualitative research is the approach to data collection, analysis, and report writing differing from the traditional, quantitative approaches. This paper provides a further distinction between quantitative and qualitative research methods. This paper also presents a summary of the different research methods to conduct research in quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods studies.