Linking quality & quantity

A fault of many quantitative studies is the inadequate fit between the real-world processes and the formal aspects of the quantitative research designs as seen in their accounting schemes, measurements, and analysis plans. The examples reviewed in this article show how to ameliorate this problem by following the hermeneutically informed strategy of formalization of qualitative texts. Qualitative studies often possess external validity but lack internal validity. Quantitative studies often possess internal validity but lack external validity. By building quantitative studies on formalizations of the qualitative, the resulting research is more likely to possess both external and internal validity. This strategy of formalization will help to avoid two faults in present-day social science — sterility and discontinuity — and will promote the achievement of a dynamic continunity in social research.