If appropriate, forming hypotheses to tentatively explain relationships between historical variables. Rigorously collecting and organizing evidence and verifying the authenticity of the information and sources, both primary and secondary. Selecting, organizing, analyzing and drawing conclusions about the most pertinent collected evidence. Recording conclusions in a meaningful narrative. It is not possible to study the whole population of individuals, settings, or events.
Historians ordinarily study only one or a few cases of interest.
For example, suppose an historian studied the diaries, correspondence, and other written records of religious ministers in the mid-19th century to better understand religious attitudes toward science and Darwin at that time. The study will necessarily be limited to clergy whose writings have been preserved and to which the historian can gain access. The historian completing such research knows that clergy who were interested in making a written description of their views on science probably were not typical of clergy in general. The historian realizes also that clergy who wrote about science for publication may not have been as open in their views as clergy who wrote about science in private diaries and correspondence. Return to Top Qualitative and Quantitative History Traditionally, historical research has focused on a qualitative, that is, non-statistical, methodology.