The research methodology describes the pathway used to approach the study question. While weak methods may lead to sterile speculation and a lack of scientific base, excessive attachment to rules and models could generate stereotypical responses and insufficient contextualization. A proper methodology may combine coherent techniques and the researcher’s flexibility, knowledge and ethics.
A reasonable method to approach Houston’s mental health network should consider its complexity. Many lists of mental health care facilities in the area are already available online, provided by trustful organizations. There shouldn’t be an attempt to standardize these services. Their plurality is a valuable source of innovation, not a detrimental factor per se, and ranking parts of such a fragmented net would result in a fallacy, a faulty reasoning. …show more content…
Many researchers (like Wallace, 1971, and Boudon, 1979) have worked to overcome the simple opposition between qualitative and quantitative methodologies. The first may be equivocally seen as relying on pure intuition and subjectivity, while the last may seem to represent the science itself or a picture of the reality. In fact, each of these methods has a goal, and choosing one is only a matter of purpose and perspective.
To understand “the meaning people attach to things in their lives” (Taylor, Bogdan, DeVault, 2015), a broad range of disciplines make use of qualitative methods. They assess human and sociological phenomena and should be prioritized when analyzing beliefs, representations, habits and opinions, especially in universes that cannot or should not be merely quantified (Corbin; Strauss,