Qualitative and quantitative research methods are described. Qualitative research uses words, images and subjective approaches to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior through smaller focused samples. It is useful for exploratory research and answering "why" and "how" questions. Quantitative research uses numbers, logic and objective approaches through larger samples and is useful for validating facts and relationships through descriptive and causal studies. Examples of qualitative techniques include in-depth interviews, focus groups, and projective techniques, while surveys and experimentation are provided as quantitative methods.

1. QUALITATIVE & QUANTITATIVE
RESEARCH
Dr. Shriram Dawkhar.
SIBAR, Kondhwa, Pune
Shriram Dawkhar

2. KEEP IN MIND THAT …
• Qualitative research
generally deals in words,
images and the
subjective
• Quantitative research
generally deals in
numbers, logic and
the objective
Shriram Dawkhar

3. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
• Qualitative research is a method of inquiry employed in
many different academic disciplines, traditionally in the social
sciences, but also in market research and further contexts.
• Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth
understanding of human behavior and the reasons that
govern such behavior. The qualitative method investigates the
why and how of decision making, not just what, where, when.
Hence, smaller but focused samples are more often used than
large samples.
• Research used in range of activities from exploratory designs
to means of completing explanations
• Qualitative research assumes that people have meaningful
actions or experiences that can be interpreted
Shriram Dawkhar

4. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
POPULARITY COMES FROM:
*ECONOMICAL
*FLEXIBLE
*OPENS A DOOR TO “WHY, HOW”
*RICHNESS OF DATA
*BEST TO START WITH...
Shriram Dawkhar

5. ◼ Research using qualitative data in the form of
text and pictures, not numbers.
◼ Takes a holistic approach with a specific focus
and tells a richer story than quantitative
research
◼ Used to answer questions about the complex
nature of phenomena, often with the purpose of
describing and understanding the phenomena
◼ Builds on researcher’s ability to interpret and
make sense of what he or she sees for
understanding any social phenomenon
What is Qualitative Research?
Shriram Dawkhar

6. Takes longer to tell a story and usually ends
with tentative answers of hypotheses about
what was observed
Often used in combination with quantitative
methods and data, and can be objective or
subjective, and makes considerable use of
inductive reasoning
Although objective methods may be
appropriate for studying physical events such
as electricity, chemical reaction, and black
holes, an objective approach for studying
human events , relationships, social structures,
etc., is neither desirable nor, perhaps, even
possible (Eisner, 1998; Moss 1996).Shriram Dawkhar

7. Search of , trade and professional
literature.
Use of interviews, brainstorming, focus groups.
Internalization of how others have undertaken both
and quantitative research.
Improve conceptualization.
Clarify research design, including data collection
approach.
• Shriram Dawkhar

8. ◼ Qualitative research usually starts by
questions like:
◼ How do people feel while living under
occupation?
◼ How can a teacher use principles from
behaviorist psychology to help a student
with Autism succeed in an elementary
school?
◼ Good percentage of research could
start as qualitative and then morph into
other types. For example, medicine and
biology.
When To Choose A Qualitative
Approach
Shriram Dawkhar

9. Qualitative research may start using any technique of
the previously described designs, and could shift
towards another design as more information may
suggest a better approach
Qualitative research requires considerable
preparation and planning. Researches should be
well trained in observation techniques, interview
strategies, and data collection methods
Qualitative research does not yield quick results and
easy answers
When To Choose A Qualitative
Approach
Shriram Dawkhar

10. KEY FEATURES of QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
1. Collection Primarily of Data
Qualitative methods emphasize observations about natural
behavior and artifacts that capture social life as it is
experienced by the participants rather than the numerical
representations of the categories predetermined by the
researcher.
2. Exploratory Research Question.
Qualitative researchers typically begin their projects seeking
to discover what people think and how they act, and why, in
some social setting.
3. Inductive Reasoning (Reasoning that moves from more specific
kinds of statement to more general ones)
Only after immersing themselves to many observations, do
qualitative researchers try to develop general principles to
account their observations.
Shriram Dawkhar

11. 4. A focus on Human Subjectivity.
Qualitative methods emphasize the meanings that
participants attach to events and that people give to
their lives.
5. Reflexive Research Design.
In the qualitative methods, the research design may
need to be reconsidered or modified in response to new
developments, or to changes in some other component
as research progresses.
6. Sensitivity to the Subjective Role of the Researcher.
Qualitative researchers should be sensitive to the role
they play in the process of data collection. “Researcher
as an instrument”
Shriram Dawkhar

12.  Provide rich data – that is, in-depth
descriptions of individual experiences.
 Particularly useful for investigating complex
and sensitive issues.
 Explain phenomena – that is, go beyond mere
observation to understand what lies behind
them (eg. why do people become
homeless?)
 Generate new ideas and theories to explain
and overcome problems.
 People are studied in their own environment,
which increases credibility.
Shriram Dawkhar

13.  Can be very time-consuming and
generate a huge amount of data.
 Data analysis can be difficult because of
the amount of data and no clear strategy
for analysis.
 Interpretation of data may be subjective
(but reflexivity can help to minimize this)
 Trained moderator are essential for studyShriram Dawkhar

14. Types of qualitative techniques
• 1) Projective Techniques
• 2) Depth Interview
• 3) Experience Survey
• 4) Focus Groups
• 5) Observations
Shriram Dawkhar

15. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
PROJECTIVE TECHNIQUES
Projective Techniques
Word Association Sentence Completion Tests
Cartoon Tests Role Playing
Third-Person Techniques
Picture Interpretation /Story
Telling
Shriram Dawkhar

16. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH :
PROJECTIVE TECHNIQUES
1. Word Association :
Customers are required to show response to
the concept they are told within 2-3 sec.
Shriram Dawkhar

17. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
PROJECTIVE TECHNIQUES: Word Association :
*Source: http://www.nielsenbuzzmetrics.com/images/uploaded/NikeBAM.gif
Shriram Dawkhar

18. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
PROJECTIVE TECH.
2. Sentence Completion
Customers are required to complete
sentences or stories in their own words
• People who are concerned about ecology …
• When I think of a city …
• I drink a Coca-Cola, usually when…. .
• Starbucks reminds me of…
Shriram Dawkhar

19. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
PROJECTIVE TECH.
3. Cartoon Tests
Shriram Dawkhar

20. QUALITATIVE MARKETING - PROJECTIVE TECH.
• Hth
• Hntfyf
• hngfhn
Let’s see if we can
pick up some
house wares at
Walmart
WALMART
Shriram Dawkhar

21. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
PROJECTIVE TECH.
4. Role Playing
• Respondents are asked to assume the
behavior of someone else
• Useful for emphatic approaches for conflict
resolution
Sales Supervisors are asked to become Sales
Represantatives, and vice versa.
Shriram Dawkhar

22. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
PROJECTIVE TECH.
5. Third Person
Way of learning respondents feelings or
opinions by asking them to answer for a
third party :
“your neighbour”
“most people”
“typical person”
Shriram Dawkhar

23. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
PROJECTIVE TECH.
6.Picture Interpretation
A technique whereby respondents are shown a
picture and are asked to tell a story
describing it
Shriram Dawkhar

24. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
PROJECTIVE TECH.
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
⚫Elicit responses that
subjects would be
unwilling to give
⚫Underlying
Motivations, Beliefs,
Attitudes
⚫Participation of the
respondents
⚫Skills are required to
analyse the responses
⚫Expensive
Shriram Dawkhar

25. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
IN-DEPTH INTERVIEW
Applications:
-Interviews with Professionals
-Interviews with Witnesses
-When Detailed Probing is Needed
-Discussion of Sensitive, Confidential Issues
-When Strong, Social norms Exist
-Interviews with Competitors
Shriram Dawkhar

26. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
IN-DEPTH INTERVIEW
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
⚫Concentrated issue -
maximum probing
⚫Free exchange of
information
⚫Easier to arrange
⚫Best for intimate,
sensitive issues
⚫Flexibility
⚫Expensive
⚫Time consuming
⚫Exhausting for
Interviewer
⚫Interviewer errors
⚫Respondent bias or
reliability
Shriram Dawkhar

27. • 1.Focus Groups: small group discussions led
by a trained moderator
• Objectives:
• Generate ideas
• Understand consumer vocabulary
• Reveal consumer needs, motives,
perceptions, and attitudes on products and
services
• Understand findings from quantitative studies
Focus Groups
Shriram Dawkhar

28. Focus Groups
Group discussion
6-10 participants
Moderator-led
90 minutes-2 hours

29. Focus Groups
• A type of Group Interview.
• Focuses on Group Interaction on a
Topic Selected by the Researcher.
• Ideally 6- 10 Participants. ( may vary)
• The interaction is directed by a
Moderator who asks Questions and
keeps the Discussion on the Topic.
Shriram Dawkhar

30. • Advantages:
• Generation of fresh ideas
• Client interaction
• Versatility
• Ability to tap special respondents
• Disadvantages:
• Representative of the population?
• Subjective interpretation
• High cost-per-participant
.Focus Groups
Shriram Dawkhar

31. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH DESIGN
Qualitative Research:
• Examples
• Case studies on effect of vocational training in Papua
• Ethnographic studies on indigenous populations in
Oaxaca, Mexico
Qualitative Research Types:
• Case studies
• Developmental research
• Historical research
• Ethnographic studies
Shriram Dawkhar

32. Case Studies:
• Purpose: to do an in depth study
• In brief: Background, current status and/or
environmental factors that interact for each
group (individual, institution or community)
• Characteristics of Case Studies:
• It gives very detailed information about individuals /
group / community
• It may give a detailed explanation of a complete life cycle
or part of it
• Number of cases studied may be small but the number
of variables studied are usually more in-depth (e.g. if
compared to a survey) Shriram Dawkhar

33. Developmental Research:
• Conducted to research on the development of
individuals / group / institution / community
• TWO TYPES: Cross-sectional and Longitudinal
Shriram Dawkhar

34. Historical Research:
• Used to gain information on an event, development and/or
previous educational experience
• Process may involve studying previous situation, checking on
current situation, and to predict if the same situation will
occur again
• Conclusion on previous event is done based on collected
facts and evidences to answer why and how the event and
repercussions occurred
• Useful to solve questions that involve sensitive issues
• Important for systematically & objectively collecting and
defining facts and evidences
Shriram Dawkhar

35. Ethnographic Research:
• In-depth study of natural behaviours in a culture or
social group
• Purpose – to understand relationships between
behaviour and culture
–Example: In education – to understand schooling
process (e.g., immigrant children) Involves
widespread observations (participant &
nonparticipant)
• Here often starts research without hypothesis –
hypothesis is developed in the process of
observations, and the researcher explores and test
his hypothesis
Shriram Dawkhar

36. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
IN-DEPTH INTERVIEW
Characteristics:
• A well trained interviewer+interviewee
• Interviewee is exposed to set of probing questions
• Usually face to face
• Interviewer encourages the interviewee to talk more
Goal:
• To collect as much as memory, attitudinal and
behavioral data from the subject
Shriram Dawkhar

37. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
IN-DEPTH INTERVIEW
Applications:
-Interviews with professionals
-Interviews with witnesses
-When detailed probing is needed
-Discussion of sensitive, confidential issues
-When strong, social norms exist
-Interviews with competitors
Shriram Dawkhar

38. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
IN-DEPTH INTERVIEW
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
⚫Concentrated issue -
maximum probing
⚫Free exchange of
information
⚫Easier to arrange
⚫Best for intimate,
sensitive issues
⚫Flexibility
⚫Expensive
⚫Time consuming
⚫Exhausting for
Interviewer
⚫Interviewer errors
⚫Respondent bias or
reliability
Shriram Dawkhar

39. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
1. Degree of Structure
2. Probing of individual
respondents
3. Moderator bias
4. Interpretation bias
5. Uncovering
subconscious
information
6. Discovering innovative
information
7. Obtaining sensitive
information
8. Involve unusual
behavior or questioning
9. Overall usefulness
Relatively high
Low
Relatively medium
Relatively low
Low
High
Low
No
Highly useful
Relatively medium
High
Relatively high
Relatively medium
Medium to high
Medium
Medium
To a limited
extent
Useful
Relatively low
Medium
Low to high
Relatively high
High
Low
High
Yes
Somewhat
useful
Focus
Groups
Depth
Interviews
Projective
Techniques
Criteria
Shriram Dawkhar

40. QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH SURVEY
SURVEY METHOD:
• STRUCTURED QUESTIONNAIRE
• GIVEN TO A SAMPLE OF A POPULATION
• DESIGNED TO GAIN SPECIFIC INFORMATION
Shriram Dawkhar

41. QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH - SURVEY
Traditional
Telephone
Computer-Assisted
Telephone
Interviewing
Mail
Interview
Mail
Panel
In-Home By
appointment
Random Personal
Interviewing
E-mail Internet
Survey
Methods
Telephone Personal Mail Electronic
Shriram Dawkhar

42. QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH - EXPERIMENTATION
EXPERIMENTATION METHOD:
• Scientific investigation in which
• an investigator manipulates and controls one or more independent
variables and
• observes the dependent variable for variation concomitant to the
manipulation of the independent variables.*
Shriram Dawkhar

43. QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
⚫Specific research
problem
⚫Clear independent and
dependent variable
⚫High level of reliability
⚫Minimum personal
judgement
⚫Limited outcomes due to
structured method
⚫Unability to control the
environment
⚫Expensive(large number
of respondents)
Shriram Dawkhar

44. COMPARISON OF
QUALITATIVE-QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
CHARACTERISTICS QUALITATIVE QUANTITATIVE
Research
Objectives
Discovery of new
ideas,insights
and feelings
Validation of
facts,estimates,
relationships
Type Of
Research
Usually
exploratory
Descriptive and
causal
Type Of
Questions
Open-
ended,semi-
structured,
unstructured,
probing
Mostly structured
Shriram Dawkhar

45. COMPARISON OF
QUALITATIVE-QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
contd.
CHARACTERISTICS QUALITATIVE QUANTITATIVE
Time Of
Execution
Short Time
Frames
Usually long time
frames
Sample Size Small Large
Type Of
Analyses
Subjective,
Interpretitive
Statistical,
Descriptive,causal
Researcher Skills Psychology,
Sociology,CB,
Social Psychology
Statistics, MR, DSS,
Decision Models
Representativeness Limited Good
Shriram Dawkhar

46. SUMMARY
• Qualitative methods focus on generating exploratory
initial/progressive insights into questions and problems
• Depth probing of hidden attitudes, feelings or behaviour
• Focus Groups
• In depth Interviews
• Projective Techniques
Shriram Dawkhar

47. SUMMARY
• Quantitative Research is interested in using formalised,
standard structured questioning, whereby response options
are pre-determined
• Usually to be administered to significantly large numbers of
people.
Descriptive Causal
(Surveys) (Experimentation)
Shriram Dawkhar