Comparison between Quantitative and Qualitative research

BASIS FOR COMPARISON	QUALITATIVE RESEARCH	QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
Meaning	method of inquiry that develops understanding on human and social sciences, to find the way people think and feel.	used to generate numerical data and hard facts, by employing statistical, logical and mathematical technique.
Nature	Holistic	Particularistic
Approach	Subjective	Objective
Research type	Exploratory	Conclusive
Reasoning	Inductive	Deductive
Sampling	Purposive	Random
Data	Verbal	Measurable
Inquiry	Process-oriented	Result-oriented
Hypothesis	Generated	Tested
Elements of analysis	Words, pictures and objects	Numerical data
Objective	To explore and discover ideas  used in the ongoing processes.	To examine cause and effect relationship  between variables.
Methods	Non-structured techniques like In-depth  interviews, group discussions etc.	Structured techniques such as  surveys, questionnaires and observations.
Result	Develops initial understanding	Recommends final course of action