Qualitative & Quantitative Research – What’s the difference?

We find that many clients ask us to explain what the difference is between qualitative and quantitative research. The following is a short explanation of each research method.

Qualitative Research is undertaken to discover a target audiences’ behavior and perceptions that drive it with reference to specific topics or issues. The qualitative method investigates the why and how of decision making, not just what, where, when. Hence, smaller but focused samples are more often needed, rather than large samples.

Unlike quantitative research there is no fixed set of questions agreed upon, rather a topic/question guide is used to explore various issues in-depth. The discussion between the interviewer and the respondent is largely determined by the respondents' own thoughts and feelings.

The various types of qualitative market research:
In-depth Interviews is typically when a single respondent (in some cases up to three respondents if in the nature of the research) is interviewed based on various themes and topics. The interviews can be conducted either face to face or via the telephone.

Focus Groups normally contain eight respondents, although, they can be as small as four or as large as twelve respondents. A key benefit of interviewing groups comes from the interaction between the different personalities – in addition it provides more value for money than interviewing one on one.

Observation is when a respondent is observed in their 'natural' environment - an example of this is Mystery Shopping.

Workshops are used to elicit new ideas and to evaluate ideas.

Quantitative Research is used to measure how a target audience feels, thinks or acts in a particular way with reference to specific topics or issues. The data collected is expressed numerically and this allows the researcher to estimate future events/quantities.

Data is collected through structured questionnaires where questions are mainly closed with a set of responses. Due to the nature of the research large samples are needed so that the data is statistically valid.

The various types of quantitative market research:
Face-to-Face Interviewing that can be conducted in the street, shopping centres or, for more complex projects, in people's homes.

Telephone Interviewing is when an experienced interviewer completes the survey over the phone with many respondents.

Self-Completion is when a respondent completes a hard copy survey and then mails, faxes back - or completes the survey online.

Omnibus Surveys are used when only a few questions need to be asked. Questions are attached to other larger surveys. Data is obtained at a low cost.

Panel Research is when respondents (or sample) can be purchased and invited to take part in surveys. Panel respondents are already signed up to take part in surveys.

The main differences between the two methods can be found in the table below: