Exploratory research is a type of research conducted because a problem has not

been clearly defined. Exploratory research helps determine the best research design, data
collection method and selection of subjects. Given its fundamental nature, exploratory research
often concludes that a perceived problem does not actually exist.
Exploratory research often relies on secondary research such as reviewing available literature
and/or data, or qualitative approaches such as informal discussions with consumers, employees,
management or competitors, and more formal approaches through in-depth interviews, focus
groups, projective methods, case studies or pilot studies. The Internet allows for research
methods that are more interactive in nature: E.g., RSS feeds efficiently supply researchers with
up-to-date information; major search engine search results may be sent by email to researchers
by services such as Google Alerts; comprehensive search results are tracked over lengthy periods
of time by services such as Google Trends; and Web sites may be created to attract worldwide
feedback on any subject.
The results of exploratory research are not usually useful for decision-making by themselves, but
they can provide significant insight into a given situation. Although the results of qualitative
research can give some indication as to the "why", "how" and "when" something occurs, it
cannot tell us "how often" or "how many."
Exploratory research is not typically generalizable to the population at large.

Qualitative research is a field of inquiry that crosscuts disciplines and subject

matters.[1] Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior
and the reasons that govern human behavior. Qualitative research relies on reasons behind
various aspects of behavior. Simply put, it investigates the why and how of decision making, not
just what, where, and when. Hence, the need is for smaller but focused samples rather than large
random samples, which qualitative research categorizes data into patterns as the primary basis
for organizing and reporting results.[citation needed] Qualitative researchers typically rely on four
methods for gathering information: (1) participation in the setting, (2) direct observation, (3) in
depth interviews, and (4) analysis of documents and materials [2].
The term qualitative research is most often used in the social sciences in contrast to quantitative
research.
Qualitative research was one of the first forms of social studies (conducted e.g. by Bronisław
Malinowski or Elton Mayo), but in the 1950s and 1960s when quantitative science reached its
peak of popularity, it was diminished in importance and began to regain recognition as late as in
the 1970s. The phrase 'qualitative research' was until then restricted as a discipline of
anthropology or sociology, and terms like ethnography, fieldwork, participant observation and
Chicago school (sociology) were used instead. During the 1970s and 1980s qualitative research
began to be used in other disciplines, and became a significant type of research in the fields of
education studies, social work studies, women's studies, disability studies, information studies,
management studies, nursing service studies, human service studies, psychology, communication
studies, and other. Some qualitative research occurred in the consumer products industry during
this period: researchers most interested in investigating consumer new product and product
positioning opportunities worked with a handful of the earliest consumer research pioneers
including Gene Reilly of The Gene Reilly Group in Darien, CT, Jerry Schoenfeld of Gerald
Schoenfeld & Partners in Tarrytown, NY and Martin Calle of Calle & Company, Greenwich, CT.
In the late 1980s and 1990s after a spate of criticisms from the quantitative side, paralleling a
slowdown in traditional media spending for the decade, new methods of qualitative research
evolved, to address the perceived problems with reliability and imprecise modes of data
analysis.[3

Quantitative research is the systematic scientific investigation of quantitative

properties and phenomena and their relationships. The objective of quantitative research is to
develop and employ mathematical models, theories and/or hypotheses pertaining to natural
phenomena. The process of measurement is central to quantitative research because it provides
the fundamental connection between empirical observation and mathematical expression of
quantitative relationships.
Quantitative research is widely used in both the natural sciences and social sciences, from
physics and biology to sociology and journalism. It is also used as a way to research different
aspects of education. The term quantitative research is most often used in the social sciences in
contrast to qualitative research.

Quantitative research is generally approached using scientific methods, which include:

• The generation of models, theories and hypotheses
• The development of instruments and methods for measurement
• Experimental control and manipulation of variables
• Collection of empirical data
• Modeling and analysis of data
• Evaluation of results