- Quantitative testing involves testing for quantities of a certain phenomenon. The answers it seeks are numerical, and the data that is retrieved through quantitative testing is data that can be physically measured. A few of the common measurements obtained through quantitative testing include age, area, cost, height, humidity levels, length, speed, temperature, volume and weight. In quantitative testing, the researcher knows exactly what he is testing for in the experiment.
- Qualitative testing, as the name implies, tests for the qualities of an object or phenomenon. This is a descriptive testing method. The data researchers test for is observable, but it cannot be measured. A few of the common aspects that qualitative testing seeks to identify are appearance, beauty, smell, taste and texture. The data achieved in this method of testing is often descriptive words or pictures, rather than numbers and statistics.
- One way to further demonstrate the difference between quantitative and qualitative testing is to use an example to illustrate each method. As an example, if a researcher were to perform quantitative testing on a group of students in a class, there are several items for which they may test. They may determine how many students are in the class, or how many are girls or boys. They may test to see how many of the students are on the honor roll, or the average age of the students.
- Using the same group of students in a class, a researcher can also perform qualitative testing. As an example, they can test about how the students feel about bullying in school. They can test for what careers the students would like to pursue upon graduation. Qualitative testing of these students could also help determine their concerns about the environment or beliefs about other current event topics.
- Advertisement -
- Advertisement -