Compare Qualitative vs Quantitative Language
Qualitative language, that is language that is not quantifiable and thus dwells in the realm of the sort of academic criticism and research "that produces findings not arrived at by means of statistical procedures or other means of quantification," remains a critical mode of expression, even in areas of study of the social sciences where "hard data" is a must. (Hoepfl, 1997, p.13) "Where quantitative researchers seek causal determination, prediction, and generalization of findings, qualitative researchers seek instead illumination, understanding, and extrapolation to similar situations. Qualitative analysis results in a different type of knowledge than does quantitative inquiry. " (Hoepfl, 1997, p.13). But one must take precautions to make sure that the subjective nature of qualitative language does not impede, but rather facilitates understanding of a subject. To take just one example of how the qualitative association of words, can skew perceptions, note the recent debate in the American public discourse over eliminating the tax on estates. Proponents called the tax a 'death tax,' implying an unfair tax on death, while opponents of eliminating the tax called it an 'estate tax,' as estate has associations of wealth and family
Also, even the apparently pre-existing categories that exist in data-based analysis are part of qualitative language. When one attempts to analyze different 'gendered' responses, and divides test subjects into men and women, one is engaged in a distinction that is located in language and culture in a qualitative fashion-of if one fails to break down responses into different demographic groups, there is also a certain qualitative statement being made, that cultural or gender distinctions are not important to the data being reported or recorded. Furthermore, being mindful of qualitative biases as researchers and readers not only enable one to analyze reports more effectively, but also to be more reflectively and rigorously self-critical about one's own biases when setting up a study, reading a document, reflecting upon the results gleaned from a personal or professional investigation. Language thus can radically skew a debate, and the debate between quantitative and qualitative methodologies, as competing positions, persists. But it is also possible to lie with statistics, thus it is important to recognize the limitations of viewing quantitative and qualitative methods as completely different or competing approaches, and one as superior to the other. (Custer, 1996, p. 4). Ideally, the student of qualitative language as well as quantitative data must thus have a sound knowledge of the ways language can deployed to frame particular analytical and authorial biases to ta
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Approximate Word count = 997
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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