nvestigators place signposts to carry the reader through a plan for a
study. The first signpost is the purpose statement, which establishes the
central direction for the study. From the broad, general purpose statement,
the researcher narrows the focus to specific questions to be
answered or predictions based on hypotheses to be tested. This chapter
begins by advancing several principles in designing and scripts for
writing qualitative research questions; quantitative research questions,
objectives, and hypotheses; and mixed methods research questions.
The question you need to ask is: what is my research question? And what is the best method for answering/investigating my research question? Quant and qual research both have advantages and limitations but they pose different kinds of questions. The method you choose should be consistent with the kinds of questions and answers you are seeking. A good text for qualitative research is the following: