理解世界:弥合社会科学研究中的定性与定量之争

Understanding the World:Reconciling Qualitative and Quantitative Research in the Social Sciences

社会科学研究的定性与定量方法之争由来已久。本文试图从研究本身与哲学基础出发,理解、分析与弥合两派方法之间的争论。本文认为定性与定量方法在服务于理解世界时,不存在本质的分歧。二者作为研究工具具有不同的优点。本文通过讨论理解与阐释、概念与分类、理论建构、因果关系与机制、因果推论,以及数据驱动与理论驱动,分析两种方法各自的特点,并认为在运用方法之前,研究者须主动、深入了解研究对象,并对研究者的身份、基本概念、研究目的与研究方法有自觉意识,并以此为选择方法的依据。

There have been ongoing debates about qualitative and quantitative approaches in the social sciences. This article discusses the philosophical foundation of these two approaches and attempts to resolve such debates. By exploring the methodological connotations of understanding and illustration, concepts and classification, theory construction, causal relations, and mechanisms, and causal inferences and theory-driven and datadriven approaches in the era of big data, this article argues that ontological disagreements do not inherently exist between the qualitative and quantitative approaches. Researchers should gain an in-depth empirical understanding about their research objects and should be epistemologically conscious of the relationship among the basic concepts, research aims,and methods of selection of their research subjects and objects.