Social Work Research Methods: Qualitative and

Quantitative Approaches

Topic 1: Introduction to Social Work Research

Methods

Society for Social Work Research:

http://www.sswr.org/

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 Topic 1: Introduction to Social Work Research
Methods

• What do social work researchers do?

• What are some alternatives to social work research?
• What is science?
• What is pseudoscience?
• What are the norms of the scientific community?
• What is the role of books and journals?
• What are the steps in the research process?
• What is the qualitative social work research style?
• What is the quantitative social work research style?

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 What Do Social Work Researchers Do?

• Social work researchers answer questions.

• They learn something new.
• They systematically produce knowledge for
the field.

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 What are some Alternatives to Social Work
Research?

• What family/friends have told you

• What authorities have told you
• What tradition tells you
• What the media tell you
• What your personal and practice experience tell
you

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 What is Science?

• It is a social institution, and a way to produce

knowledge.
• It is organized according to social theories.
• Science is based on evidence, or empirically
observed experiences (i.e. from the five senses).
• The data of science may be qualitative or
quantitative.

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 What is Pseudoscience?
• Pseudoscience provides answers seemingly based
on science, but lacking in actual rigor.
• It distorts real science by offering official-sounding
answers, often supplied by businesses, interest
groups and even some churches.
• Pseudoscience lacks quality control, and findings
often are not able to be replicated.
• It promises unique cures and solutions.

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 What are the Norms of the Scientific
Community?

• Universalism - applies knowledge over a broad range of

cases or locations.
• Organized skepticism - questions the methods used, the
data uncovered, and the findings reported.
• Disinterestedness strives for objectivity in all areas.
• Communalism – researchers belong to one or more
communities of scholars.
• Honesty – researchers insist on adherence to strict rules of
evidence and interpretation.

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 What is the Role of Books and Journal
Articles?

• They distribute scientific knowledge in a timely

fashion.
• Journals follow strict standards for submission.
• They require pre-publication review by peers to
maintain organized skepticism.
• They account for prior research and literature.
• Journals do not pay their authors; the prestige of
publishing is the reward they offer.
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What are the Steps in the Research Process?

• Selecting a topic
• Reviewing the literature
• Focusing the question
• Designing a study
• Collecting data
• Analyzing and interpreting findings
• Informing others of your findings

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What is the Qualitative Social Work Research
Style?
• It constructs social reality subjectively.
• It focuses on interactive processes and events.
• The qualitative style depends on authenticity.
• It recognizes and responds to preexisting scientific
values.

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 Qualitative Style continued…

• The qualitative style recognizes the value of

experience in specific situations.
• It focuses on studying a small number of special
cases.
• The qualitative style is used to analyze inductively
themes that repeat in the data.
• It involves the researcher intimately in the study
being conducted.

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 What is the Quantitative Social Work
Research Style?
• A quantitative style measures ‘facts’ objectively.
• It focuses on variables.
• The quantitative style depends on reliability.
• It remains free of preexisting values.
• The quantitative style stays independent of the
context and setting.

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 Quantitative Style continued…

• It studies many cases and subjects.

• A quantitative style analyzes numbers using
inferential statistics.
• It removes the researcher from the study by
remaining detached.

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