The Qualitative Side of Quantitative Research

Quantitative research has been defined in various ways. Quantitative methods emphasize objective measurements and the statistical, mathematical, or numerical analysis of data collected through polls, questionnaires, and surveys, or by manipulating pre-existing statistical data using computational techniques. Quantitative research focuses on gathering numerical data and generalizing it across groups of people or to predict or explain a particular phenomenon. In marketing research, "quant" historically has meant consumer surveys. Analysis of consumer survey data has typically been limited to reporting numbers, perhaps broken down by age group, gender and a few other respondent groups of interest. The emphasis is mainly on the Who, What, When, Where, and How, though segmentation, conjoint, key driver and other analyses that delve into the Why are also occasionally conducted with consumer survey data.