Research Methods

Qualitative Vs Quantitative

	Qualitative Research	Quantitative Research
Objective / purpose	To gain an understanding of underlying reasons and motivations To provide insights into the setting of a problem, generating ideas and/or hypotheses for later quantitative research To uncover prevalent trends in thought and opinion	To quantify data and generalize results from a sample to the population of interest To measure the incidence of various views and opinions in a chosen sample Sometimes followed by qualitative research which is used to explore some findings further
Sample	Usually a small number of non-representative cases. Respondents selected to fulfil a given quota.	Usually a large number of cases representing the population of interest. Randomly selected respondents.
Data collection	Unstructured or semi-structured techniques e.g. individual depth interviews or group discussions.	Structured techniques such as online questionnaires, on-street or telephone interviews.

(Source: Snap Surveys 2012)

Primary research methods for Baby Boomers

Qualitative Techniques

Focus groups
Phone interviews
Ethnographies
Online
Mall intercepts

Quantitative Techniques

Phone
Online
Issue Omnibus