Qualitative & Quantitative Data Collection Types

No matter the field, all research is divided into two methodologies: qualitative and quantitative. Both methodologies offer researchers important insights. 

Both methodologies have unique ways of collecting data and this blog will get into detail about both methodologies, their data collection types and their tools.

What is the difference between qualitative and quantitative research?

Quantitative and qualitative research use different research methods to collect and analyse data, and they allow you to answer different kinds of research questions.

Quantitative Research	Qualitative Research
Focuses on testing theories and hypotheses Mat and statistical analysis are used for data analyses Mainly expressed in numbers, graphs and tables Requires many respondents  Closed-ended question	Focuses on exploring ideas and formulating a theory or hypothesis Analysed by summarising, categorising and interpreting Mainly expressed in words Requires few respondents Open-ended questions

Data Collection Methods

Qualitative and quantitative data can be collected using different methods. It is critically important to use the right data collection method so that it can help you answer your research question.

 There are various data collection tools that can either be qualitative or quantitative. For example, you can present the data in numbers as well as in words in surveys, observations, and case studies.

However, some methods are used more commonly in one type or the other.

Qualitative Data Collection Methods

• Surveys: surveys have a list of closed or multiple-choice question that is distributed to a sample 
• Experiments: these refer to a situation where variables are controlled and manipulated to establish cause-and-effect relationships.
• Observations: observing subjects in a natural environment where variables can’t be controlled

Quantitative Data Collections Methods

• Interview: researchers ask open-ended questions verbally to respondents
• Focus groups: a group of people are gathered together to discuss a topic to gather opinions that can be used for further research
• Ethnography: in ethnography, the researcher participates in a community or organisation for some time to closely observe the behaviour and culture. 
• Literature review: go through existing works by other authors.

What are the best Data Collection Tools for Surveys?

Online Survey Tools

There are various websites through which you can conduct online surveys, some of the best online survey tools are:

• SurveyMonkey
• Google Forms
• Survey Gizmo
• Survey Planet
• Typeform
• SurveyLegend
• Zoho Survey 
• Qualtrics
• Formplus

SurveyMonkey and Google Forms are the most commonly used online survey tools. To help you understand the basic way to create a survey, we will provide a short guide on how to create an online survey on Survey Monkey

How to create an online survey

Follow the basic rules and you will create a survey that gets you the answers you need.

• To create a new survey, click on Create Survey on the header menu in your account and choose from the options:

• Start from scratch
• Start from a template
• Build it for me

• Add Questions and Pages

• Use the sidebar to add your own questions or choose pre-written questions from the website’s Question Bank. You can use question settings to further customise them.
• If the survey is long, break it up into multiple pages
• If you are using a template, check the survey to customise questions and answer choices to ensure that they are relevant to what you are aiming for.

• Apply Logic

• To get better data you can apply logic. Logic can help you create a more personalised survey experience for survey takers.

• Send Survey

• And that’s it folk, your survey is ready for survey takers. 

(Note: before sending it to survey takers so you can catch if there are any mistakes or logic issues.)

Email Survey Tools

One of the most effective ways to get quantitative data via email is through surveys sent via email. Email surveys can be sent using inboxes like Gmail or combined with customer relationship management (CRM) software such as:

• Salesforce
• MailChimp
• Hubspot
• ActiveCampaign
• Intercom
• Drip

What are the best Data Collection Tools for Interviews?

An interview is a one-on-one conversation that is set up with the sole objective of collecting relevant information to satisfy a research objective. There are three different kinds of interviews, and each one differs slightly from the others.

• Structured Interviews
• Semi-structured interviews
• Unstructured interviews

Interview Tools

• Audio Recorder
• Digital Camera
• Camcorder

What are the best Data Collection Tools for Literature Review?

The idea behind a literature review is to obtain information from already-existing sources to examine a research question(s) unrelated to the ones for which the data was originally gathered.

Literature Review Tools

• Google Scholar
• ScienceDirect
• JSTOR
• ResearchGate
• Factiva
• IBISWorld

(Note: every source should be credible and from a trustworthy author.)

Collecting data is a crucial part of every research so before settling for a method, make sure it aligns with your research objectives. We hope this blog helped you find some of the best tools for data collection. Good Luck with your research!