User Research Methodologies: Qualitative versus Quantitative Research
This article is part of Pensieve AI’s Intro to UX Research series.
In today’s tech world, a successful product is a tool or service that solves a real problem for the consumer while delivering consistent value to its user base. To create such a product, knowing how to use various methodologies involving qualitative and quantitative research, allow the extraction of the right data and insights about your users’ needs. This will greatly help inform the development of your product and help achieve the business goals of your company.
Qualitative and quantitative research methods each help to uncover different sets of data; however, both can be utilized by researchers in a complementary manner to validate important product decisions and run a successful research project. So, what specifically are these methods of research? Let’s break it down.
Types of Qualitative Research
Qualitative research is a method of inquiry characterized by open-ended, exploratory questions used to understand the underlying causes, experiences, and opinions of individuals in their natural environment. This method of research focuses on discovering why particular opinions and behaviors occur in respondents, while paving the path for researchers to form new concepts and theories of possible solutions that can directly benefit their users. Qualitative research includes many interactive and creative methods that researchers can employ to gain different forms of in-depth answers from their users. Here are some widely used qualitative research methods:
1. User Interviews
User interviews are typically in-depth interviews involving a user researcher and an individual participant commonly administered in person, virtually, or over the phone. These interview questions prepared by researchers are typically unstructured and open-ended in format to encourage conversational responses from participants, and further pave the way for follow up questions that provide a detailed look into the participant’s beliefs and intentions regarding the product.
2. Focus Groups
Focus groups typically consist of 6–10 participants from diverse backgrounds that belong to a target market. The primary purpose of focus groups is to provide them with an inviting environment where they feel comfortable expressing their thoughts and bouncing off of each other’s opinions about a product. This qualitative method of research is particularly useful when you are looking to get data on a set of new products or concepts in the market.
3. Diary Studies or Journal
Diary Studies or Journaling is a self-reported research method that user participants perform over an extended period of time. In this study, data on the recorded thoughts, activities, behaviors, and experiences of the participants are observed during their interaction with a product. This method allows researchers to discover patterns into the behaviors of the participants and identify themes that guide decision-making and discover insights into further improving a product.
4. Ethnographic Research
Ethnographic research is an observational study that involves entirely on the capability of the researcher to closely study a participant in their own environment to understand the world through their eyes and direct experiences. This particular study allows the researcher to experience the significance of the participant’s challenges, culture, and motivations first hand and results in the collection of data that can last anywhere from days or weeks to a longer period of time resulting in years of study.
Types of Quantitative Research
Quantitative research is the systematic method of analyzing numerical data collected through surveys, polls, or questionnaires to objectively test a hypothesis and measure the attitudes and opinions of a target audience. Researchers use this method to further visualize patterns into the collective problem areas their product teams must prioritize to directly solve a common need for their customers. Quantitative research includes many data driven methods to determine trends and patterns. The benefit of quantitative analysis is that it can be done in larger volumes compared to qualitative analysis. Here are some widely used methods by quantitative researchers:
1. Surveys Research
Survey Research is the most commonly used quantitative research method that comes in the forms of surveys, polls, and questionnaires. Its main purpose is to gain insights into a single pre-defined topic administered to a target population in order to understand their views about a product. Survey research includes asking customers many questions that are analyzed to produce ample numerical data for researchers to accurately base their key decision on.
2. Correlational Research
Correlational research involves analyzing two separate variables without any interference from the researcher. This study observes how modifying one variable influences the other and the relationship between those two entities and the changes that result during the interactions are analyzed by the researcher.
3. Panels
Panels rely on groups of participants who are given repeated quantitative tasks at specified intervals over long periods of time to determine what they really think of your product or company. These tasks include giving participants a qualitative or quantitative survey to measure their behavior, or interviews to various investigative methods for user feedback.
Qualitative vs. Quantitative Data Analysis
Examining quantitative research data provides visibility into the general attitudes of participants quantified in numerical form, and provides opportunities to identify patterns and trends that lead to valuable product insights. Analyzing qualitative research data on the other hand, although subjective, can be broken down to reveal themes, patterns, and relationships that researchers and product teams can use to collaboratively form a consensus on the appropriate direction and potential features a product would need to directly serve its customers.
Qualitative and quantitative research each individually offer different sets of insights that play an integral part into the key decision making that takes place during the product development phase. However, having a full overview of data acquired through both of these methodologies provides better understanding to the entire product team of the goals they should be prioritizing for in their next launch, while allowing stakeholders the ability to measure the success of their company’s business goals post launch.
Ultimately, it is possible to develop a product through employing either qualitative or quantitative research methodologies. However, it is often ideal for your business when your researchers are given the opportunity to use both methods during their user research studies. These simple yet effective actions provide a full picture into the problems your product teams need to be solving for, and allow your researchers to discover a well rounded set of insights that can be used to create lasting product value for your customers.
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