CHARACTERISTICS OF RESEARCH
 Quantitative research is objective, only the real or factual, not the emotional or
cognitive existence of the object matters greatly to the artist.
 Quantitative research is analogous to scientific or experimental thinking. In this
case, you just do not identify problems but theorize, hypothesize, analyze, infer,
and create as well.
 Quantitative research usually happens in hard sciences like physics, chemistry,
biology, and medicine; qualitative research, in soft sciences such as humanities,
social sciences, education, and psychology, among others.
 The data is usually gathered using structure research instruments
 The results are based on larger sample sizes that are representative of the
population.
 The research study can usually be replicated or repeated, given its high reliability.
 Researcher has a clearly defined research question to which objective answers
are sought.
 All aspects of the study are carefully designed before data is collected.
 Data are in the form of numbers and statistics, often arranged in tables, charts,
figures, or other non-textual forms.
 Project can be used to generalize concepts more widely, predict future results,
or investigate causal relationships.
 Researcher uses tools, such as questionnaires or computer software, to collect
numerical data.
The following are examples of numerical data that can be gathered through
Quantitative Research:
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The weight of a person (in kilograms)
The height of a person (in meters)
The age of a person (in years and months)
The gender of a person (using a numerical system of categorization, e.g. 1 for
female, 2 for male)
A person’s education (e.g. number and grade of school certificates; classification
of undergraduate degree)
A person’s political views (e.g. using a scale that goes from 0 for extreme leftwing to 10 for extreme right-wing).
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES
Allows for a broader study, involving a greater number of subjects,
and enhancing the generalization
of the results.
Allows for greater objectivity and
accuracy of results. Generally,
quantitative methods are designed to provide summaries of
data that support generalizations
about the phenomenon under
study. In order to accomplish this,
quantitative research usually involves few variables and many
cases, and employs prescribed
procedures to ensure validity and
reliability.
Applying well-established standards means that the research can
be replicated, and then analyzed
and compared with similar studies.
You can summarize vast sources
of information and make comparisons across categories and over
time; and,
Personal bias can be avoided by
keeping a 'distance' from participating subjects and using accepted computational techniques.
Quantitative data is more efficient and able to test
hypotheses, but may miss contextual detail.
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Uses a static and rigid approach and so employs an
inflexible process of discovery
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The development of standard questions by
researchers can lead to "structural bias" and false
representation, where the data actually reflects
the view of the researcher instead of the
participating subject
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Results provide less detail on behavior, attitudes,
and motivation
Researcher may collect a much
narrower and sometimes superficial dataset
Results are limited as they provide numerical descriptions rather than detailed narrative and
generally provide less elaborate
accounts of human perception
The research is often carried out
in an unnatural, artificial environment so that a level of control can be applied to the exercise. This level of control might
not normally be in place in the
real world thus yielding
"laboratory results" as opposed
to "real world results"
Preset answers will not necessarily reflect how people really
feel about a subject and, in
some cases, might just be the
closest match to the preconceived hypothesis.
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Kinds of Quantitative Research
StreQuantitative research is of two kinds: experimental and non-experimental. O
fEXPERIMENTAL
NON-EXPERMENTAL
true experimental,
survey,
quasi-experimental,
historical,
single subject, and
observational,
pre-experimental.
correlational,
descriptive, and
comparative research.
There are four (4) main types of quantitative designs: descriptive, correlational, quasi-experimental, and experimental.
Descriptive research is a study designed to depict the participants in an
accurate way. More simply put, descriptive research is all about describing
people who take part in the study.
There are three ways a researcher can go about doing a descriptive research project, and they are:
Observational, defined as a method of viewing and recording the participants
Case study, defined as an in-depth study of an individual or group of individuals
Survey, defined as a brief interview or discussion with an individual
about a specific topic
Correlational study is a quantitative method of research in which you
have 2 or more quantitative variables from the same group of subjects, & you
are trying to determine if there is a relationship (or covariation) between the 2
variables (a similarity between them, not a difference between their means).
Theoretically, any 2 quantitative variables can be correlated (for example,
midterm scores & number of body piercings!) as long as you have scores on
these variables from the same participants; however, it is probably a waste of
time to collect & analyze data when there is little reason to think these two
variables would be related to each other.
Quasi-experimental design involves selecting groups, upon which a
variable is tested, without any random pre-selection processes.
For example, to perform an educational experiment, a class might be arbitrarily
divided by alphabetical selection or by seating arrangement. The division is
often convenient and, especially in an educational situation, causes as little
disruption as possible.
After this selection, the experiment proceeds in a very similar way to any other
experiment, with a variable being compared between different groups, or over
a period of time.
Experimental research is commonly used in sciences such as sociology and psychology, physics, chemistry, biology and medicine etc. It is a collection of research designs which use manipulation and controlled testing to
understand causal processes. Generally, one or more variables are manipulated to determine their effect on a dependent variable.
The experimental method is a systematic and scientific approach to research in
which the researcher manipulates one or more variables, and controls and
measures any change in other variables.
The word experimental research has a range of definitions. In the strict sense, experimental research
is what we call a true experiment. This is an experiment where the researcher manipulates one
variable, and control/randomizes the rest of the variables. It has a control group, the subjects have
been randomly assigned between the groups, and the researcher only tests one effect at a time. It is
also important to know what variable(s) you want.