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  • Topic: Statistical survey, Research methods, Questionnaire
  • Pages : 40 (11082 words )
  • Download(s) : 91
  • Published : April 24, 2013
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Quantitative research is:
"A formal, objective, systematic process in which numerical data are utilized to obtain information about the world" Quantitative research differs from qualitative research in the following ways: • The data is usually gathered using more structured research instruments • The results provide less detail on behavior, attitudes and motivation • The results are based on larger sample sizes that are representative of the population, • The research can usually be replicated or repeated, given it high reliability; and • The analysis of the results is more objective.

The most common quantitative research techniques include:
• Observation technique
• Experimentation
• Survey technique
Quantitative research is the numbers game. It's about measurement and attaching numbers to a market - for instance market size, market share, penetration, installed base and market growth rates. Quantitative research is based on the numerical representation of observations for the purpose of describing and explaining the phenomena. It is used in both natural and social sciences, including physics, biology, psychology, sociology and geology, education, and journalism. Quantitative research begins with the collection of data, followed by the application of various descriptive and inferential statistical methods. In the field of health, for example, researchers might measure and study the relationship between dietary intake and measurable physiological effects such as weight loss. Quantitatively based opinion surveys are widely used in the media. In opinion surveys, respondents are asked a set of structured questions and their responses are tabulated. In the field of climate science, researchers compile and compare statistics such as temperature or atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide Quantitative research is often contrasted with qualitative research, which is the non-numerical examination and interpretation of observations for the purpose of discovering underlying meanings and patterns of relationships. Qualitative research is generally considered to be exploratory and inductive in nature. It is used to get a general sense of what is happening and to form theories that can be tested using further quantitative research, which is viewed as confirmatory and deductive by its nature.

| Comparative study of Qualitative & Quantitative Research |

|Qualitative |Quantitative | |The aim of qualitative analysis is a complete, |In quantitative research we classify features, count them, and construct | |detailed description. |statistical models in an attempt to explain what is observed. | |Recommended during earlier phases of research |Recommended during latter phases of research projects. | |projects. | | |Researcher may only know roughly in advance what |Researcher knows clearly in advance what he/she is looking for. | |he/she is looking for. | | |The design emerges as the study unfolds. |All aspects of the study are carefully designed before data is collected. | |Researcher is the data gathering instrument. |Researcher uses tools, such as questionnaires or equipment to collect numerical | | |data. | |Data is in the form of words, pictures or objects. |Data is in the form of numbers and statistics....
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