Methodology can be regarded as the most fundamental and important part of a science. Given the same phenomenon, different methodologies may lead to different study topics, and the research techniques they employ as well as the results they produce may also vary substantially. Nonetheless, an understanding of the differences and complementarities among various methodologies is important. This article uses Q methodology to analyze the data collected by R methodology with a view to comparing the differences and similarities between the two methodologies and discovering where they can supplement each other. According to the theories of nationalism, national identity refers to the belief of an ethnic group that its political state must be built upon the unity of political and ethnic boundaries. A review of the empirical studies on national identity n Taiwan shows that many of them are limited by their respective methodologies in the sense that they tend to view Taiwanese nationalism and Chinese nationalism as two mutually exclusive concepts, thereby ignoring their common historical background and other subtle commonalities in these two discourses. This study finds that behind the so-called ideal types of Taiwanese national identity and Chinese national identity, there exist at least four dichotomatic discourses on national identity. In other words, Q methodology helps one understand the richness and complexities of the national identity discourses in Taiwan. Yet, if one wants to investigate the quantitative distribution of support for various national identity discourses in the population, R methodology is still irreplaceable.