Qualitativelysuch

Qualitativelysuch is a neologism used in qualitative research and philosophy of science to indicate that a description or inference rests on qualitative characteristics rather than numerical measurement. It can function as an adjective or adverb to signal that a resemblance concerns the kind or quality of a phenomenon, not its magnitude.

The term appears in recent theoretical and methodological discussions about cross-case analysis and pattern recognition. It blends qualitative with such to emphasize a non-quantitative likeness.

In practice, researchers use qualitativelysuch to claim that two phenomena share a similar qualitative structure or causal process, even when quantitative indicators differ. For example, coping strategies observed across cultural groups might be described as qualitativelysuch, meaning the same kinds of meanings and actions are at work despite different contexts. In theory-building, one might say a model's outcomes are qualitativelysuch to the empirical pattern, indicating similarity in structure rather than in numbers.

Reception has been mixed. Some scholars view the term as vague or tautological, while proponents argue that it helps articulate non-quantitative similarity that standard metrics overlook, provided the qualitative features are clearly specified.

See also: qualitative research, qualitative analysis, cross-case comparison. References for the term are largely limited to theoretical or methodological discussions where authors propose or critique non-quantitative modes of similarity.