Apolonio Samson National High School
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Practical Research 2
QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
Definition of Quantitative Research
Expressions like numerical forms, objective thinking, statistical methods, and measurement signal
the existence of quantitative research. One word that reflects the true nature of this type of research is
numerical. This term, numerical, is a descriptive word pertaining to or denoting a number or symbol to
express how many, how much, or what rank things are or have in this world. Expressing meaning through
numerals or a set of symbols indicates specificity, particularity, or exactness of something. Quantitative
research makes you focus your mind on specific things by means of statistics that involve collection and
study of numerical data. Thus, to give the basic meaning of quantitative research is to say that research is
a way of making any phenomenon or any sensory experience clearer or more meaningful by gathering and
examining facts and information about such person, thing, place, or event appealing to your senses. You
use mathematical operations of addition, subtraction, division, and multiplication to study and express
relationships between quantities or magnitudes shown by numbers or symbols. Involving measurements
and amounts, quantitative research seeks to find answers to questions starting with how many, how much,
how long, to what extent, and the like. Answers to these questions come in numerals, percentages, and
fractions, among others. (Suter 2012; Russell 2013)
Characteristics
Since quantitative research uses numbers and figures to denote a particular thing, this kind of
research requires you to focus your full attention on the object of your study Doing this, you tend to exclude
your own thoughts and feelings about the subject or object. This is why quantitative research is described
as objective research in contrast to qualitative research that is subjective. Characterized by objectiveness,
in which 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.
Classification
Quantitative research is of two kinds: experimental and non-experimental. Each of these has sub-
types. Falling under experimental are these specific types: true experimental, quasi-experimental, single
subject, and pre-experimental. Quasi-experimental comes in several types such as: matched comparative
group, time series, and counterbalanced quasi-experimental. Non-experimental research, on the other
hand, has these sub-types: survey, historical, observational, correlational, descriptive, and comparative
research.
Importance
The importance of quantitative research lies greatly in the production of results that should reflect
precise measurement and an in-depth analysis of data. It is also useful in obtaining an objective
understanding of people, things, places, and events in this world; meaning, attaching accurate or exact
meanings to objects or subjects, rather than inflated meanings resulting from the researcher's bias or
personal attachment to things related to the research. Requiring the use of reliable measurement
instruments or statistical methods, a quantitative study enables people to study their surroundings as
objective as they can. This kind of research is likewise an effective method to obtain information about
specified personality traits of a group member or of the group as a whole as regards the extent of the
relationship of their characteristics and the reason behind the instability of some people's characteristics.
(Muijs 2011; Gray 2012)
Quantitative vs. Qualitative Research
Having obtained much knowledge about qualitative and quantitative research, you are now able to
compare and contrast the two based on some standards or criteria appearing in the following table. (Muijs
2011; Sharp 2012)
Standards Qualitative Quantitative
Mental survey of reality Results from social interactions Exists in the physical world
Revealed by automatic
Explained by people's objective
Cause-effect relationships descriptions of circumstances or
desires
conditions
Researcher's involvement with Subjective; sometimes personally Objective; least involvement by
the object or subject of the study engaged the researcher
Expression of data, data analysis, Verbal language (words, visuals,
Numerals, statistics
and findings objects)
Takes place as the research Plans all research aspects before
Research plan
proceeds gradually collecting data
Control or manipulation of
Behavior toward research Desires to preserve the natural
research conditions by the
aspects / conditions setting of research features
researcher
Obtaining knowledge Multiple methods Scientific method
Evaluates objective sand
Makes social intentions
Purpose examines cause-effect
understandable
relationships
Thematic codal ways,
Data-analysis technique Mathematically based methods
competence-based
Impersonal, scientific, or
Style of expression Personal, lacks formality
systematic
More inclined to purposive
Random sampling as the most
Sampling technique sampling or use of chosen
preferred
samples based on some criteria
Supplemental Resource: Visit the links below to learn more on the lesson!
1. [Link]
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Reference: Baraceros, Esther L. Practical Research 2. 2016. Rex Book Store. Quezon City