Qualitative research is all about in-depth exploring issues, understanding phenomena, and answering questions.

Qualitative research seeks out the WHY’s of its topic through the analysis of unstructured information – things like focus groups, in-depth interviews, open ended survey responses, notes, feedback forms, photos and videos.

It doesn’t just rely on statistics or numbers, which are the domain of quantitative researchers.

Qualitative research is used to gain insight into people's attitudes, behaviors, value systems, concerns, motivations, aspirations, culture or lifestyles.

It’s used to inform business decisions, policy and strategy formation, communication and research.

Some qualitative methods:

• Focus group
• In-depth interview (with one person)
• Paired in-depth interviews (with two persons i.e. couples, colleagues, etc.)
• Observation