Explain the Term Qualitative Inquiry

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The Answer is Many descriptions of qualitative inquiry begin with a comparison between qualitative and quantitative "methods." In this contrast, quantitative methods are conceptualized as procedures that quantify a phenomenon in some way, usually via counts, distributions, or other statistical measurements or manipulations. Qualitative methods, in contrast, are procedures that qualify or characterize the essence of a phenomenon, often through "thick" narrative description (e.g., written accounts of behaviors and social interactions and their meanings within specific contexts). While this procedural distinction highlights an important difference between quantitative and qualitative approaches, it does not explain why and under what circumstances one would employ qualitative inquiry. Moreover, the procedural distinction overlooks fundamental differences between qualitative and quantitative approaches that are rooted in philosophy of science. When we speak of "quantitative" or "qualitative" methodologies, we are, in the final analyses speaking of an interrelated set of assumptions about the social world which are philosophical, ideological, and epistemological. They encompass more than simply data gathering techniques.

Explain the Term Qualitative Inquiry

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