Summary of inductive, deductive and abductive reasoning
| Inductive | Deductive | Abductive |
| Key feature | ||
| Specific observations to general inferences | General rule to a specific conclusion or inference | Begins with incomplete observations towards the likeliest explanation |
| Theory use | ||
| Existing theories, models and frameworks are generally not used | General rules and premises are often drawn from theories, models or frameworks | Theory-based premises may or may not be used |
| Type of research methodology | ||
| Primarily used in qualitative and mixed methods | Common in qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods | Mainly used in mixed methods and qualitative research |
| Primary outcome | ||
| Hypothesis-generating Theory development | Hypothesis-testing Theory testing | Generating novel insights Developing most plausible inferences about data |