ABSTRACT
Postpositivism, the research paradigm that characterizes quantitative research in art therapy, values logic and deductive reasoning, and is based on the assumptions that complete objectivity is not possible in research, that universal truths cannot be entirely discovered, and that some degree of researcher bias is assumed. This chapter describes characteristics of quantitative art therapy research, including use of the scientific method for hypothesis testing and objectivity on the part of the researcher, and provides definitions of terms associated with this approach. Pre-experimental, true experimental, quasi-experimental, factorial, and non-experimental research designs are described and illustrated with examples of published art therapy studies. Finally, statistical concepts are introduced, including the function of numbers and measurement in data analysis, terms associated with descriptive and inferential statistics, and examples of the use of common statistical tests in published art therapy research.
