In general, quantitative research seeks to understand the causal or correlational relationship between variables through testing hypotheses, whereas qualitative research seeks to understand a phenomenon within a real-world context through the use of interviews and observation. Both types of research are valid, and certain research topics are better suited to one approach or the other. However, it is important to understand the differences between qualitative and quantitative research so that you will be able to conduct an informed critique and analysis of any articles that you read, because you will understand the different advantages, disadvantages, and influencing factors for each approach. Show
The table below illustrates the main differences between qualitative and quantitative research. Be aware that these are generalizations, and that not every research study or article will fit neatly into these categories.
Systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and integrative reviews are not exactly designs, but they synthesize, analyze, and compare the results from many research studies and are somewhat quantitative in nature. However, they are not truly quantitative or qualitative studies. References: LoBiondo-Wood, G., & Haber, J. (2010). Nursing research: Methods and critical appraisal for evidence-based practice (7th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Mosby Elsevier Mertens, D. M. (2010). Research and evaluation in education and psychology (3rd ed.). Los Angeles: SAGE Qualitative research and quantitative research are widely used market research methods. They act as powerful sources of insight for marketers, storytellers, journalists, psychologists, economists, brand managers, social scientists – the list goes on. Quantitative research is a numbers thing. It gives you an idea of how many people think, feel, or behave in a certain way. You tend to be dealing with a large sample here – one that more accurately represents a wider group. Quantitative research calls on surveys or analytics to quantify consumer behaviors, perceptions, attitudes, and interests, giving you the hard numbers you need to back your ideas. Here’s an example: Logging into TikTok every day has increased by 54% outside China since the end of 2020. What is qualitative research?Generally speaking, qualitative research explores what people think, feel, and do. It’s non-numerical, which means your insights will consist of words and stories, like people talking about their experiences and sharing their opinions. You tend to be dealing with a small sample here. Qualitative research is usually gathered from sources such as one-on-one interviews, focus groups, and discussion forums. This is great for generating first-hand insight, like uncovering a customer’s perception of your value proposition, or how their attitudes are changing. Here’s an example: Consumers feel that treating themselves and indulging has become more important.
Qualitative research vs. quantitative research: how do they fare?Both research methods have pros and cons, and depending on what type of data you’re after, one will be better suited. The benefits of qualitative research
The drawbacks of qualitative research
The benefits of quantitative research
The drawbacks of quantitative research:
Get the best of both worldsBoth approaches have strengths and weaknesses. By combining the two together (which is often referred to as mixed method research), you can seriously boost the quality and accuracy of your findings, adding both breadth and depth. The advantages of mixed method research
How a combined approach can generate a results-driven campaignCombining both data methods in a way that yields awesome results requires planning.
And in order to ask the right questions, you need to identify your key goals – mapping out exactly what you want to achieve. For example, companies looking to drive campaigns focused on ROI can use quantitative tracking tools like Google Analytics, Data Studio, or Power BI. If set up correctly, you can quickly uncover key performance indicators like website visits, time on page, traffic from social media, number of leads, and even revenue. Pairing this with some qualitative information on how your customers feel about your brand – through questionnaires, reviews, case studies, or customer interviews will give you a detailed picture of what you need to know. This kind of intelligence enables brands to gain a deep understanding of how well their campaigns are working and, critically, why. Using qualitative analysis to streamline the user journeyResearch can answer strategic business questions – but to do that well, you need to interrogate the information and gather the most actionable insight. Qualitative analytics can give your brand answers around why a customer bought a certain product or service and what their end-to-end experience was like. These findings provide clear data that can be actioned, enabling brands to do more of what’s working and address any kinks in the user journey. Plus, qualitative proof like customer reviews can help you drive more conversions. In fact:
So not only can qualitative research help you configure things behind the scenes, but it can also help you make more money. (As long as people are saying nice things about your brand.) Using quantitative analysis to fix what’s brokenQuantitative analytics, on the other hand, can provide specific answers relating to how the purchase journey looks, enabling brands to spot any areas that are causing issues on touchpoints that matter. For example, if a high percentage of buyers are dropping off on a certain page, or abandoning their basket at the same spot, marketers can address this pretty quickly, either by redesigning the page or making the transaction process faster. Combining forces to make the magic happenWhile quantitative data might flag issues around basket abandonment, ecommerce brands may still be unsure as to why consumers are dropping off. Is the page a bit sluggish? Are the payment options confusing? Or is poor page design making the CTA hard to find? Combining the hard numbers with the ‘why’ gives brands a clear idea of where the problems lie and how best to fix them. Deeper insight gives a competitive edgeCombined research can be used in numerous ways depending on a brand’s business objectives. For example, data might reveal that over-70s with disposable income and an interest in technology would buy more devices if the product designs accounted for failing eyesight and inhibited manual dexterity. These sorts of insights could open up a whole new audience – and product category – giving brands more of a competitive edge. Meeting the personalized futureQualitative and quantitative research methods have different roles to play. Using the two together can be a powerful move, especially as consumer demand for personalization continues to rise. To meet this demand, more and more brands and marketers are turning to audience profiling data, analyzing audience behaviors and perceptions on a massive scale, to tailor their activity to their consumers. By combining qualitative personas with quantitative data, you can identify and define your audiences in as much detail as possible, understanding how, where, and when to reach them for maximum impact. Are qualitative and quantitative research methods compatible?Quantitative and qualitative research are complementary methods that work well together to provide insights that are both deep and wide.
Can the qualitative and quantitative methods be used in one research study why?Using a combination of qualitative and quantitative data can improve an evaluation by ensuring that the limitations of one type of data are balanced by the strengths of another. This will ensure that understanding is improved by integrating different ways of knowing.
Which model can be combined with qualitative research as well as quantitative research?Mixed methods research allows data to be presented using complementary qualitative and quantitative analysis.
Can a research study be both qualitative and quantitative?What is mixed methods research? In mixed methods research, you use both qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis methods to answer your research question.
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