Running head: RESEARCH METHODS 1 2 An analysis of quantitative and qualitative research methods PSY 326 Instructor Jessica Wyman November 30th, 2015 Research is work undertaken in a systematic basis in order to gain deeper understanding about a subject. The scope of subjects that can be researched is only limited by the Human imagination. Throughout the ages, research has been crucial to the scientific and technological advancement of humanity. Research enables us to open new frontiers and to devise new applications. The general motives of research are to solve existing or new problems, reaffirm the results of previous work, confirm facts, develop theories, and support theorems among other reasons. There are many different methods of conducting research. This differentiation is necessitated by the need to have distinct ways of collecting and analyzing information. Generally, research methods fall into two categories, qualitative research, and quantitative research. Qualitative research is primarily an exploratory form of research. Researchers use qualitative research in order to gain a deeper understanding of the underlying concepts, opinions, reasons, and motivations surrounding the issue under research. Qualitative research helps to provide insight about the problem and enables one to develop relevant hypotheses. Qualitative research is usually conducted as a precursor to quantitative research. In order to gain a deeper understanding of the topic at hand, qualitative research uses structured and semi structured data collection methods. Quantitative research is another method of conducting research. This research method is concerned with generating numerical data, which is then used to create statistical information from which inference is gained. Quantitative research quantifies the opinions, behaviors, attitudes, and other defined variables. The main objective of quantitative research is the quantification of data. Within qualitative and qualitative research, there are certain crucial concepts that apply to both methods of research. The predictor variable is the variable that is manipulated by researchers in order to observe its effects on the dependent variable. The predictor variable is important in an experimental research, the researcher gains inference on the nature of the research problem by directly changing the predictor variable. Thus, the results of this type of research are the changes observed in the dependent variable. In a non-experimental research, the researcher does not attempt to control the predictor variable. Instead, the nature of the relationship between the predictor and the dependent variable is obtained from observation and interpretation. The first peer-reviewed journal on research methods pertains quantitative research it was published in the modern language j.

1. Running head: RESEARCH METHODS
1
2
An analysis of quantitative and qualitative research methods
PSY 326
Instructor Jessica Wyman
November 30th, 2015
Research is work undertaken in a systematic basis in
order to gain deeper understanding about a subject. The scope
of subjects that can be researched is only limited by the Human
imagination. Throughout the ages, research has been crucial to
the scientific and technological advancement of humanity.
Research enables us to open new frontiers and to devise new
applications. The general motives of research are to solve
existing or new problems, reaffirm the results of previous work,
confirm facts, develop theories, and support theorems among
other reasons. There are many different methods of conducting
research. This differentiation is necessitated by the need to have
distinct ways of collecting and analyzing information.

2. Generally, research methods fall into two categories, qualitative
research, and quantitative research.
Qualitative research is primarily an exploratory form of
research. Researchers use qualitative research in order to gain a
deeper understanding of the underlying concepts, opinions,
reasons, and motivations surrounding the issue under research.
Qualitative research helps to provide insight about the problem
and enables one to develop relevant hypotheses. Qualitative
research is usually conducted as a precursor to quantitative
research. In order to gain a deeper understanding of the topic at
hand, qualitative research uses structured and semi structured
data collection methods.
Quantitative research is another method of conducting
research. This research method is concerned with generating
numerical data, which is then used to create statistical
information from which inference is gained. Quantitative
research quantifies the opinions, behaviors, attitudes, and other
defined variables. The main objective of quantitative research is
the quantification of data.
Within qualitative and qualitative research, there are
certain crucial concepts that apply to both methods of research.
The predictor variable is the variable that is manipulated by
researchers in order to observe its effects on the dependent
variable. The predictor variable is important in an experimental
research, the researcher gains inference on the nature of the
research problem by directly changing the predictor variable.
Thus, the results of this type of research are the changes
observed in the dependent variable. In a non-experimental
research, the researcher does not attempt to control the
predictor variable. Instead, the nature of the relationship
between the predictor and the dependent variable is obtained
from observation and interpretation.
The first peer-reviewed journal on research methods
pertains quantitative research it was published in the modern
language journal in 2014. The journal article aims to build on a

3. growing line of inquiry into quantitative methodologies in
conducting research about second language. The article analyzes
two previous research papers conducted and shows how to apply
quantitative methods to the data collected in the previous
researches. The article further posits that quantitative research
helps researcher to derive further inference on the data they
collect. The research design used in the article is quantitative. It
quantifies data from the previous research conducted. As the
journal article only analyses the data from previous work done,
the authors do not manipulate any variables and thus the
research design is non-experimental. The aim of the article is to
provide clarity on the nature of quantitative research (Gass &
Plonsky, 2011).
The second peer-reviewed source is also concerned with
quantitative research. It is an empirical assessment of the
methodological quality in the acquisition of second languages.
The article posits that there is a strong correlation between the
quality of a research and the results. A research conducted in
the proper manner will yield proper results and vice versa. The
journal article was written after an extensive analysis of 7951
research subjects. The researchers took a quantitative approach
to tackling the research topic. The researchers simply tabulated
the results into statistically significant information (Plonsky,
2014). The research design was non-experimental, as the
researchers did not manipulate the predictor variable. The
motive of this particular research was to provide direction to
future research practices.
The third peer-reviewed source is titled, Definitions and
Predictors of Successful Aging: A Comprehensive Review of
Larger Quantitative Studies. The article is a review of previous
Quantitative researchers conducted on the nature of aging in the
American population. The researcher analyzed peer-reviewed
reports of data studies about adults over age 60. The researchers
then categorized the independent variables in the previous
reports. The researchers found that the mean proportion of
adults who are aging successfully is 35.8% (Depp & Jeste,

4. 2006). The researchers actively collected information from the
previous reports, which they organized into meaningful
statistical information. The nature of their operation suggests
that it was a quantitative research. As the researchers were
obtaining their information from a secondary source of
information, their chosen research design is non-experimental.
The aim of the journal article is to analyze quantitatively,
information about aging adults in order to determine how habits
such as smoking affect successful aging.
The second batch of peer-reviewed articles are concerned
with qualitative research methods, the first source is a treatise
on the nature of qualitative research. It states that qualitative
research should be divided into three stages. The first stage is
the design cycle, in this stage research question are formulated,
literature is reviewed, theories are incorporated and a
conceptual framework for conducting the research is created.
The second stage is the ethnographic cycle; this stage describes
the core tasks of the qualitative research. The final stage of all
qualitative research exercises is the analytic exercise cycle, in
this stage the researchers analyze the data that they have
collected in previous stages. The approach that the authors have
taken in tackling the subject matter is qualitative. The authors,
through their work, aim to impart the proper qualitative
research methodologies. This will help future researchers who
wish to gain a deeper understanding of qualitative research
(Hennink, Hutter, & Bailey, 2011).
The second article concerned with qualitative research is
titled, the foundation of qualitative research practice. In it, the
authors outline the philosophical underpinnings of qualitative
research. The authors of the book claim that there is no singular
way of conducting qualitative research and as such, they only
provide general guidance. The authors further state qualitative
research is especially suited to social science researchers (Jane
Ritchie, Nicholls, & Ormston, 2014). In elaborating research
methodologies, the authors follow a qualitative approach. There
are numerous different research examples given by the authors.

5. They use a combination of experimental and non-experimental
research designs in order to highlight the versatility of
qualitative research. Like the first source on qualitative
methodology, this source also provides guidance on qualitative
research.
The third peer-reviewed source on qualitative research is
titled the elephant in the living room, extending the
conversation about the politics of evidence. It is an attempt by
the authors to establish the importance of qualitative
methodology in the evidence based research movement. It states
that standards for the evaluation of quality are interpretive
practices that should follow the rules of qualitative research
(Denzin, 2009). The author has taken a non-experimental
approach. The aim of the author is to provide ethical and moral
criteria for judging qualitative research.
References
Denzin, N. ( 2009). Qualitative Research, The elephant in the
living room: or extending the conversation about the politics of
evidence. University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign.
Depp, J. (2006). Definitions and Predictors of Successful
Aging: A Comprehensive Review of Larger Quantitative
Studies. The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.
Gass, & Plonsky. (2011). Quantitative Research Methods, Study
Quality, and Outcomes: The Case of Interaction Research.
Journal of research in laguage studies.
Hennink, M., Hutter, I., & Bailey, A. (2011). Qualitative
Research Methods. SAGE publications.
Jane Ritchie, J. L., Nicholls, C. M., Ormston, R., & Ritchie.
(2014). Qualitative Research Practice: A Guide for Social
Science Students and reserchers . SAGE publishers .
Plonsky. (2014). Study Quality in Quantitative L2R esearch A
Methodological Synthesis and Call for Reform. Modern lanuage
Journal.

6. Running Head: Slow Wave Sleep 1
Psychology 2
Slow wave sleep

7. Analyzing the effects of slow wave sleep on memory
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PSY 326
Instructor Jessica Wyman
November 23rd , 2015
The tittle of the study is “Sleep, Memory, and Aging: The
Link between Slow-Wave Sleep and Episodic Memory Changes
from Younger to Older Adults” written by Michael K. Scullin. It
aims to uncover the relationship between slow wave sleep and
the ability of humans to retain memory. Slow wave sleep is the
deep sleep that occurs during non-rapid eye movement. It is
called slow wave sleep because at this stage of slumber, the
brain electrical activity is synchronized with slow waves of low
frequency. Previous research has proven that slow wave sleep is
crucial to the retaining of memory but until now, the dynamics
of this relationship was not clear(Scullin, 2013).
In conducting the research, the researcher is trying to
determine the correlation between slow wave sleep, memory
retention, and aging. The author of the research aims to link
together these three seemingly distinct variables and create a
conceptual theory that explains how aging memory and deep
sleep are related. The researcher asks a series of questions that
help to guide the research process. These questions are, is there
a correlation between short weave sleep in humans and memory
consolidation? If so how significant is this relationship, is short
wave sleep crucial to the memory consolidation process? The
researchers then measure the amount of short wave sleep that
young and old adults get. They compare this information with
the increasing reduction in the ability to retain memory, as

8. adults grow older and attempt to make a connection to the lesser
amounts of short wave sleep that older adults get(Scullin,
2013).
Qualitative research is exploratory research conducted to
gain an understanding of the underlying reasons of a problem.
Qualitative research aims to provide a detailed description of
the research process. Qualitative research is usually conducted a
precursor to quantitative research.
Quantitative data aims to quantify the problem by
generating numerical data. This data is then converted to useful
statistics. Quantitative research is used to quantify behaviors,
opinions, attitudes among numerous other variables. The
mandate of quantitative research is to provide a clearer picture
using statistical methods. A quantitative researcher uses tool
such as surveys, questionnaires, and measurements.
The research conducted by Michael K. Scullin is
quantitative in nature. In his research, he aims to uncover the
relationship between slow wave sleep and memory by measuring
sleep patterns and memory retention abilities of adults. Among
the measurement taken are, time spent sleeping, age and ability
to recall memory. In order to test the ability to recall memory
the participants were given word pair combination to memorize
before sleep. They were quizzed on these word pair
combinations after waking from slow wave sleep(Scullin, 2013).
The research conducted by Michael K. Scullin relates to the
field of sleep phycology. Sleep Psychology aims to understand
how sleep affects psychological patterns. This is in order to be
able to treat and diagnose sleep disorders. Sleep psychology
addresses psychological, physiological, and behavioral factors
that underpin disordered and normal sleep patterns across the
lifespan of a human. The field of Sleep Psychology is
committed to providing evidence‐based psychological
approaches to the treatment and cure of sleep disorders.
Overall, the research paper does not consider ethics. The
whole sum of the text does not contain the word ethics.
Regardless ethics is crucial to any research attempts. The

9. researcher should have considered the ethical treatment of the
research subject and not used them as disposable guinea pigs.
Careful consideration should be given to the human rights of the
research subjects.
References
Apa.org,. (2015). Retrieved 23 November 2015, from
http://www.apa.org/ed/graduate/specialize/sleep.aspx
Explorable.com,. (2015). Quantitative and Qualitative Research
- Objective or Subjective?. Retrieved 23 November 2015, from
https://explorable.com/quantitative-and-qualitative-research
Scullin, M. (2013). Sleep, memory, and aging: The link between
slow-wave sleep and episodic memory changes from younger to
older adults. Psychology And Aging, 28(1), 105-114.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0028830