In the first part of the 20^th century, quantitative research was the dominant approach in educational research. Then researchers began to question whether quantitative approaches used in natural science were applicable for research about people or social issues. They also challenged the positivist philosophy that was reflected in quantitative research at the time. Positivism has to do with a belief that we can only know what we can observe (through the senses) and measure, and that we cannot know anything beyond that, such as thoughts or feelings (Trochim, 2006).

Feminist researchers are frequently credited with challenging the patriarchal base of positivist research and the fact that it excluded women's experience, knowledge and ways of knowing. Aboriginal researchers, people of colour, people who identify as queer, and other groups have posed similar challenges, including how research has been used to control people and suppress their knowledge. Nancy Cooper (2006) discusses how research that does not account for Aboriginal worldviews has hurt Aboriginal communities. In a discussion about women's learning, Flannery and Hayes (2000) review how research about adult learning has been carried out in post-secondary settings and may not account for the diverse experiences of adults in those and other learning sites.

Like others, researchers in practice might use qualitative and quantitative data collection methods, depending on the nature of their research. However, research in practice draws mainly from qualitative ways of thinking about research and so shares many of the assumptions of that research orientation. These are different from positivist assumptions that have been associated with quantitative research.

The following chart compares some positivist assumptions of quantitative research with some assumptions of qualitative research. It's important to recognize that positivist philosophy has changed over the years and that contemporary quantitative researchers may share some of the assumptions of qualitative researchers. It is also important to note that qualitative research continues to evolve and that it includes various, sometimes contradictory, perspectives.