Do Two Research Cultures Imply Two Scientific Paradigms?

In: Comparative political studies: CPS, Band 46, Heft 2, S. 252-265

Abstract

In A Tale of Two Cultures, Gary Goertz and James Mahoney (2012) seek to describe two distinct social science cultures: "quantitative" and "qualitative." Cultural differences such as these often provide an excuse for groups to retreat to separate sides, to wallow in in-group solidarity, and to prepare for a long and stubborn dispute instead of seeking compromise and agreement. Goertz and Mahoney profess no desire to start a civil war in the social sciences. They are, they tell us, merely anthropologists who have encountered the "Quant" and the "Qual" tribes and who want to catalog their distinctive characteristics. In doing so, they want to make sure that both groups get the respect they deserve for their cultural uniqueness. [Reprinted by permission of Sage Publications Inc., copyright holder.]