STORIES AND NUMBERS - COEXISTENCE WITHOUT COMPROMISE

Research methods are not paradigm specific but should be selected on t he basis of whether they fit with the purposes of an investigation. In the postpositivist, interpretive, and critical paradigms, both qualit ative and quantitative data or a combination of these may be used with out violating paradigm assumptions. Attention to the four basic issues of quality of the data, investigator bias, quality of the research pr ocess, and usefulness of the finding is necessary to produce valid res earch. Although researchers in each paradigm deal with these different ly, combining strategies across paradigms may enhance the scientific v alue of a study and result in new methodologies to address the health needs of all people.