Qualitative Vs Quantitative
Qualitative Vs Quantitative
Quantitative
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While quantitative research is based on numbers and mathematical
calculations (aka quantitative data), qualitative research is based on written
or spoken narratives (or qualitative data). Qualitative and quantitative
research techniques are used in marketing, sociology, psychology, public
health and various other disciplines.
Comparison chart
Qualitative Quantitative
Purpose The purpose is to explain and gain insight The purpose is to explain, predict,
and understanding of phenomena through and/or control phenomena through
intensive collection of narrative data focused collection of numerical data.
Generate hypothesis to be test , inductive. Test hypotheses, deductive.
Sampling Purposive: Intent to select “small, ” not Random: Intent to select “large, ”
necessarily representative, sample in representative sample in order to
order to get in-depth understanding generalize results to a population
Design and Flexible, specified only in general terms Structured, inflexible, specified in
Method in advance of study Nonintervention, detail in advance of study
minimal disturbance All Descriptive— Intervention, manipulation, and
Qualitative versus Quantitative comparison chart
Qualitative Quantitative
History, Biography, Ethnography, control Descriptive Correlation
Phenomenology, Grounded Theory, Case Causal-Comparative Experimental
Study, (hybrids of these) Consider many Consider few variables, large group
variable, small group
Data Analysis Raw data are in words. Essentially Raw data are numbers Performed at
ongoing, involves using the end of study, involves statistics (using
observations/comments to come to a numbers to come to conclusions).
conclusion.
Type of data
Qualitative research gathers data that is free-form and non-numerical, such as
diaries, open-ended questionnaires, interviews and observations that are not
coded using a numerical system.