Qualitative vs. Quantitative: Myths of the Culture and Practical Experience

In the “Western” cultures of business and science, there is an interesting and arguably irrational belief that quantitative measures are in all cases superior to qualitative measures. The consequences of this belief are more than an epistemological curiosity; the resulting over-reliance on quantitative measurement and undervaluation of qualitative reasoning can be measured in the tens of millions and tens of billions of dollars. I will argue that a “science of qualities” can help guide researchers and practitioners in a wide variety of fields to make, record, share, and compare observations that are, under some circumstances, as reliable, as valid, and possibly much more appropriate than purely quantitative