scholarly journals The "Tau" of Science - How to Measure, Study, and Integrate Quantitative and Qualitative Knowledge

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniele Fanelli
Keyword(s):  
Process Tracing ◽  
Greek Letter ◽  
Quantitative Evidence ◽  
Know How ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Statistical Model Selection ◽  
Potential Applications ◽  
Qualitative Knowledge ◽  
Randomised Controlled ◽  
Qualitative Analyses

Scientists' ability to integrate diverse forms of evidence and evaluate how well they can explain and predict phenomena, in other words, $\textit{to know how much they know}$, struggles to keep pace with technological innovation. Central to the challenge of extracting knowledge from data is the need to develop a metric of knowledge itself. A candidate metric of knowledge, $K$, was recently proposed by the author. This essay further advances and integrates that proposal, by developing a methodology to measure its key variable, symbolized with the Greek letter $\tau$ ("tau"). It will be shown how a $\tau$ can represent the description of any phenomenon, any theory to explain it, and any methodology to study it, allowing the knowledge about that phenomenon to be measured with $K$.To illustrate potential applications, the essay calculates $\tau$ and $K$ values of: logical syllogisms and proofs, mathematical calculations, empirical quantitative knowledge, statistical model selection problems, including how to correct for "forking paths" and "P-hacking" biases, randomised controlled experiments, reproducibility and replicability, qualitative analyses via process tracing, and mixed quantitative and qualitative evidence.Whilst preliminary in many respects, these results suggest that $K$ theory offers a meaningful understanding of knowledge, which makes testable metascientific predictions, and which may be used to analyse and integrate qualitative and quantitative evidence to tackle complex problems.

scholarly journals Loneliness as an active ingredient in preventing or alleviating youth anxiety and depression: a critical interpretative synthesis incorporating principles from rapid realist reviews

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eiluned Pearce ◽  
Pamela Myles-Hooton ◽  
Sonia Johnson ◽  
Emily Hards ◽  
Samantha Olsen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Young People ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Mechanisms Of Action ◽  
Anxiety And Depression ◽  
Quantitative Evidence ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Stakeholder Views ◽  
Randomised Controlled

AbstractLoneliness is a relatively common problem in young people (14–24 years) and predicts the onset of depression and anxiety. Interventions to reduce loneliness thus have significant potential as active ingredients in strategies to prevent or alleviate anxiety and depression among young people. Previous reviews have focused on quantitative evidence and have not examined potential mechanisms that could be targets for intervention strategies. To build on this work, in this review we aimed to combine qualitative and quantitative evidence with stakeholder views to identify interventions that appear worth testing for their potential effectiveness in reducing loneliness, anxiety and depression in young people aged 14–24 years, and provide insights into the potential mechanisms of action. We conducted a Critical Interpretative Synthesis, a systematic review method that iteratively synthesises qualitative and quantitative evidence and is explicitly focused on building theory through a critical approach to the evidence that questions underlying assumptions. Literature searches were performed using nine databases, and eight additional databases were searched for theses and grey literature. Charity and policy websites were searched for content relevant to interventions for youth loneliness. We incorporated elements of Rapid Realistic Review approaches by consulting with young people and academic experts to feed into search strategies and the resulting conceptual framework, in which we aimed to set out which interventions appear potentially promising in terms of theoretical and empirical underpinnings and which fit with stakeholder views. We reviewed effectiveness data and quality ratings for the included randomised controlled trials only. Through synthesising 27 studies (total participants n = 105,649; range 1–102,072 in different studies) and grey literature, and iteratively consulting with stakeholders, a conceptual framework was developed. A range of ‘Intrapersonal’ (e.g. therapy that changes thinking and behaviour), ‘Interpersonal’ (e.g. improving social skills), and ‘Social’ Strategies (e.g. enhancing social support, and providing opportunities for social contact) seem worth testing further for their potential to help young people address loneliness, thereby preventing or alleviating depression and/or anxiety. Such strategies should be co-designed with young people and personalised to fit individual needs. Plausible mechanisms of action are facilitating sustained social support, providing opportunities for young people to socialise with peers who share similar experiences, and changing thinking and behaviour, for instance through building positive attitudes to themselves and others. The most convincing evidence of effectiveness was found in support of Intrapersonal Strategies: two randomised controlled studies quality-rated as ‘good’ found decreases in loneliness associated with different forms of therapy (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy or peer network counselling), although power calculations were not reported, and effect sizes were small or missing. Strategies to address loneliness and prevent or alleviate anxiety and depression need to be co-designed and personalised. Promising elements to incorporate into these strategies are social support, including from peers with similar experiences, and psychological therapy.

Joint displays for qualitative-quantitative synthesis in mixed methods reviews

2021 ◽  
pp. 263208432098437
Author(s):  
Ahtisham Younas ◽  
Shahzad Inayat ◽  
Amara Sundus
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Nursing Students ◽  
Quantitative Research ◽  
Practice Research ◽  
Quantitative Evidence ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Quantitative Synthesis ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Excellent Method ◽  
Levels Of Integration

Mixed methods reviews offer an excellent approach to synthesizing qualitative and quantitative evidence to generate more robust implications for practice, research, and policymaking. There are limited guidance and practical examples concerning the methods for adequately synthesizing qualitative and quantitative research findings in mixed reviews. This paper aims to illustrate the application and use of joint displays for qualitative and quantitative synthesis in mixed methods reviews. We used joint displays to synthesize and integrate qualitative and quantitative research findings in a segregated mixed methods review about male nursing students' challenges and experiences. In total, 36 qualitative, six quantitative, and one mixed-methods study was appraised and synthesized in the review. First, the qualitative and quantitative findings were analyzed and synthesized separately. The synthesized findings were integrated through tabular and visual joint displays at two levels of integration. At the first level, a statistics theme display was developed to compare the synthesized qualitative and quantitative findings and the number of studies from which the findings were generated. At the second level, the synthesized qualitative and quantitative findings supported by each other were integrated to identify confirmed, discordant, and expanded inferences using generalizing theme display. The use of two displays allowed in a robust and comprehensive synthesis of studies. Joint displays could serve as an excellent method for rigorous and transparent synthesis of qualitative and quantitative findings and the generation of adequate and relevant inferences in mixed methods reviews.

scholarly journals Consumer Feedback following Participation in a Family-Based Intervention for Youth Mental Health

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew J. Lewis ◽  
Melanie D. Bertino ◽  
Narelle Robertson ◽  
Tess Knight ◽  
John W. Toumbourou
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Treatment Implementation ◽  
Consumer Feedback ◽  
Family Based ◽  
Randomised Controlled ◽  
Further Development

Background. This paper presents findings derived from consumer feedback, following a multicentre randomised controlled trial for adolescent mental health problems and substance misuse. The paper focuses on the implementation of a family-based intervention, including fidelity of delivery, family members’ experiences, and their suggestions for program improvements.Methods. Qualitative and quantitative data (n=21) were drawn from the Deakin Family Options trial consumer focus groups, which occurred six months after the completion of the trial. Consumer focus groups were held in both metropolitan and regional locations in Victoria, Australia.Findings. Overall reductions in parental isolation, increases in parental self-care, and increased separation/individuation were the key therapeutic features of the intervention. Sharing family experiences with other parents was a key supportive factor, which improved parenting confidence and efficacy and potentially reduced family conflict. Consumer feedback also led to further development of the intervention, with a greater focus on aiding parents to engage adolescents in services and addressing family factors related to adolescent’s mood and anxiety symptoms.Conclusions. Participant feedback provides valuable qualitative data, to monitor the fidelity of treatment implementation within a trial, to confirm predictions about the effective mechanisms of an intervention, and to inform the development of new interventions.

Elite Parties and Poor Voters: Theory and Evidence from India

2014 ◽  
Vol 108 (2) ◽  
pp. 454-477 ◽  
Author(s):  
TARIQ THACHIL
Keyword(s):  
Western World ◽  
Poor People ◽  
Quantitative Evidence ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Material Interests ◽  
Basic Services ◽  
Religious Social Movements ◽  
The Rich ◽  
Novel Strategy ◽  
Electoral Division

Why do poor people often vote against their material interests? This article extends the study of this global paradox to the non-Western world by considering how it manifests within India, the world's biggest democracy. Arguments derived from studies of advanced democracies (such as values voting) or of poor polities (such as patronage and ethnic appeals) fail to explain this important phenomenon. Instead, I outline a novel strategy predicated on an electoral division of labor enabling elite parties to recruit the poor while retaining the rich. Recruitment is outsourced to nonparty affiliates that provide basic services to appeal to poor communities. Such outsourcing permits the party to maintain programmatic linkages to its elite core. Empirically, I test this argument with qualitative and quantitative evidence, including a survey of more than 9,000 voters. Theoretically, I argue that this approach is best suited to elite parties with thick organizations, typically those linked to religious social movements.

Media Manipulation in Interwar France: Evidence from the Archive of Banque de Paris et des Pays-Bas, 1914–1937

2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-36
Author(s):  
MARC FLANDREAU ◽  
FRÉDÉRIC ZUMER
Keyword(s):  
Interwar Period ◽  
Political History ◽  
Investment Bank ◽  
Quantitative Evidence ◽  
Media Control ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Archival Material ◽  
History Of ◽  
History Of Information ◽  
Media Manipulation

AbstractThis article shows how one can read political history from evidence on corporate corruption. The study exploits newly discovered archival material from Banque de Paris et des Pays-Bas, a politically connected investment bank. We contribute to current research by replacing existing conjectures with precise qualitative and quantitative evidence. After reviewing previous works and providing a sketch of information repression and media control in France during the interwar period, we argue that the study of patterns of ‘informational criminality’ provides an original entry to the writing of political history and the history of information.

scholarly journals Tariffs and the textile trade between Brazil and Britain (1808-1860)

2021 ◽  
Vol 51 (2) ◽  
pp. 311-342
Author(s):  
Thales Augusto Zamberlan Pereira
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Quantitative Analysis ◽  
Foreign Trade ◽  
Quantitative Information ◽  
Institutional Changes ◽  
Product Price ◽  
Quantitative Evidence ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Textile Trade ◽  
Monetary Instability

Abstract The commercial treaty with Britain in 1810, along the authorization of foreign trade in ports in 1808, are among the most important institutional changes in nineteenth century Brazil. The 1810 treaty lowered tariffs for British manufactures while maintaining high tariffs in Britain for Brazilian sugar and coffee. These terms are generally viewed as disastrous for the Brazilian economy, although there is still limited quantitative information about how much the tariff affected the demand for British imports. This paper provides new qualitative and quantitative evidence on the operation and effect of Brazil’s imports tariffs in the period. I find that the effect of the tariffs is different from what traditional literature assumes. First, the monetary instability in the 1820s and conflicts over product price assessment often led the de facto tariff to be higher than the 15 percent established by the treaty. Second, even with higher rates, quantitative analysis shows they did not have decrease imports of British textiles.

From dynamic modal to conditional protasis connective

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yueh Hsin Kuo
Keyword(s):  
Epistemic Modals ◽  
Quantitative Evidence ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Do So

Abstract The grammaticalization literature has not demonstrated convincingly how, if at all, dynamic modals may develop into conditional protasis connectives. Drawing on qualitative and quantitative evidence from Chinese, this paper hypothesizes that such a directionality may arise through univerbation between dynamic modals and protasis connectives (e.g. ruò ‘if’ + néng ‘be able to’ > ruònéng ‘if’). Furthermore, this paper suggests that functional compatibility in terms of performativity may explain why dynamic modals tend to grammaticalize into connectives in pre-established conditional protases, while deontic and epistemic modals do so in main clauses.

The V2 syntax of Medieval Romance

2018 ◽  
pp. 17-34
Author(s):  
Sam Wolfe
Keyword(s):  
Old French ◽  
Romance Languages ◽  
Medieval Romance ◽  
Quantitative Evidence ◽  
Old Spanish ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Old Occitan ◽  
Old Portuguese ◽  
New Evidence ◽  
Detailed Presentation

This chapter provides a detailed presentation of the main data and arguments which have been proposed in favour of claiming that the Medieval Romance languages were V2 systems and considers data from Old French, Old Occitan, Old Italo-Romance varieties, Old Spanish, and Old Portuguese. It provides new qualitative and quantitative evidence to show the nature of the prefield, Germanic inversion, matrix/embedded asymmetries, and the precise types of verb-first and verb-third-or-greater orders provide new evidence in favour of the V2 hypothesis. It also suggests that the diachronic emergence of a V2 grammar is entirely plausible on the basis of the available data. The main objections to the V2 account proposed in the literature are evaluated and argued to face empirical and theoretical problems.

Development of a ‘Consumer Perceived Value Scale’ (SPERVAL Scale) in the Context of Services Industry

2012 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jyoti Sikka Kainth ◽  
Harsh V. Verma
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Research ◽  
Quantitative Research ◽  
Perceived Value ◽  
Research Paper ◽  
Dynamic Variable ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Dining Services ◽  
Potential Applications ◽  
Services Industry ◽  
Empirical Generalizations

Consumer Perceived Value (CPV) is the value derived from the consumption of a product or service. It is perception based and situational. It is said that ‘Value’ lies in the eyes of the beholder. This appreciation conceives CPV as a dynamic variable. This research paper substantiates the CPV construct by understanding the theoretical underpinnings, followed by constructing a scale based on empirical generalizations in the Fine Dining Services Industry context. The multidimensional SPERVAL (Services Perceived Value) scale so generated as a result of the blend of qualitative and quantitative research helps identify ‘Value Indicators’. The SPREVAL scale targets to analyze the consumer’s perceptions towards various dimensions and drivers of the construct. The SPERVAL scale has a variety of potential applications and can serve as a framework for further empirical research in this inevitable area.

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