Which method do you think is better and more robust in anthropology? Quantitative or qualitative research methods and why?
In other words, if you have to do away with one research method, which one will you choose? Quantitative or qualitative methods?
Dear Mr. Eric Nkansah Opoku, generally, I think that your question depends on the level of structuration of knowledge in the researched area. You could try quantitative methods if there are consolidated theories and models, otherwise [unstructured knowledge], qualitative methods.
In anthropology and the other social sciences (in fact, in all sciences...), there isn't an apriori preferred method since methodology and methods depend on the research question and subject. One can't decide research starting from selecting a method, but rather from deciding a question. Since research is researching what we don't know, the research question must be "original" or "new". It is true that in anthropology, "qualitative" observation and ethnographic methods are predominant, but there are also good examples of researches using large amounts of quantitative, serial, and statistical data, what is the case of several anthropological studies related to formal and informal education, schooling, students' habits, etc.
@Lucas does Santos Costa & @Ivo Carneiro de Sousa
Thank you so much for your inputs. Looking forward to receiving more perspectives
Although I prefer qualitative methods, anthropologists must consult and use quantitative ones, otherwise they would miss social demographic data as well as economic research results that construct macro and micro contexts for the topics they research.
Hello Eric, the question you are asking will entirely depend on your research question although most anthropological studies I have come across adopted qualitative methods.
If you could post the topic you are addressing, l think it will help responders in
providing an in-depth contribution to your question.
Goodluck
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