Episode 1.4: Types of Research I: Basic, Applied; Quantitative, Qualitative
Last updated on 2025-06-17 | Edit this page
Estimated time: 12 minutes
Overview
Questions
- What is the difference between basic and applied research?
- When would you use qualitative instead of quantitative research?
- Can a study be both qualitative and quantitative?
- What are descriptive and experimental research, and when are they used?
- How do different research types affect the kind of data you collect?
Objectives
Learners will be able to:
- Distinguish between basic and applied research.
- Compare and contrast quantitative, qualitative, descriptive, and experimental research.
- Identify when and why each type is used.
- Connect each research type to real-world examples and questions.
Think Like a Researcher
Let’s go back to our earlier curiosity:
Why are so many students distracted by their phones during
lectures?
Now imagine five different researchers trying to answer this question, each with their own method and mindset:
- One carefully observes students and documents their behavior.
- Another hands out a questionnaire to hundreds of students.
- A third digs into journal articles to find trends across universities.
- Another conducts interviews to understand students’ perspectives.
- And yet another runs an experiment to see if a new teaching method reduces phone use.
Are all of these research? Yes.
Are they all the same type of research? Not quite.
This episode explores several popular pathways of research, each tailored to a particular kind of question, context, or goal. While not an exhaustive list, these are among the most commonly used types. You’ll learn how different kinds of research give us different kinds of answers.
How do we categorise research?
There’s more than one way to slice the research pie. But most research falls into one or more of the broad categories below:
1. Basic vs. Applied Research
Basic (or Pure) Research
This is aimed at expanding our general knowledge, without necessarily needing immediate application. That is, we don’t intend to solve a problem today.
Instead, basic research asks: How does the world work?
So, it is common in theoretical disciplines or foundational sciences.
- Example: Studying how memory works in the brain, even if no product or intervention is being developed.
Applied Research
Unlike basic research, this is focused on solving a specific, real-world problem.
Applied research asks: How can we use knowledge to improve something?
It is common in public health, education, engineering, and business.
- Example: Investigating how mobile phone use during lectures affects exam performance and then designing strategies to reduce it.
These two types, they often work together. Basic research builds the foundation, applied research builds the bridge to real-life solutions.
2. Quantitative vs. Qualitative Research
Quantitative Research
This involves numbers, statistics, and measurable variables.
Good for answering: How much? How many? How often? Is there a correlation?
(Task: Define correlation in a call out)
This type of research uses tools like surveys, experiments, statistical analysis.
- Example: Measuring how many students use phones during lectures, how long they spend on them, and whether this correlates with their grades.
Qualitative Research
This focuses on experiences, meanings, stories, and context.
Good for answering: Why? How? What was the experience like?
Qualitative research tools include interviews, focus groups, observations, and content analysis.
- Example: Interviewing students to understand why they check their phones, what they feel during lectures, and what might help them focus more.
3. Descriptive vs. Experimental Research
Descriptive Research
This is about observing, recording, and describing a phenomenon without manipulating any variables. It answers: What is happening? Who is involved? How widespread is it?
Descriptive research helps to build a picture of a situation as it naturally occurs. - Example: Surveying how many students report being distracted by phones and tracking differences across age groups or courses.
Experimental Research
This involves actively manipulating one variable to observe its effect on another. It answers: Does this cause that? What happens if we intervene? Experimental research is key when you want to establish cause and effect.
- Example: Introducing a no-phone policy in some classes and comparing exam scores with classes that kept phones.
Illustrative example
Imagine you want to study vaccine hesitancy in your community:
- Quantitative: How many people are hesitant? Which demographics?
- Qualitative: Why are they hesitant? What fears or beliefs do they have?
- Descriptive: What are the most common concerns expressed in public forums or media?
- Experimental: What happens when people are shown targeted educational videos — does their willingness to vaccinate increase?
All offer important insights. Some give you patterns, others give you meaning or causal relationships.
Test Your Knowledge!
Challenge 1:
Which type of research is most likely to involve large data sets and statistical analysis?
- Applied
- Basic
- Quantitative
- Qualitative
Answer: c) Quantitative
Challenge 2:
True or False:
Applied research has no value unless it’s immediately applied to a
problem, policy or practice.
False. Applied research still builds knowledge, even if implementation is delayed.
Key Points
- Basic research builds theory; applied research solves problems.
- Quantitative research answers “how much” with numbers.
- Qualitative research answers “why” with stories and context.
- Mixed methods combine the strengths of both.
- Descriptive research tells you what’s happening without changing anything.
- Experimental research tests cause and effect by manipulating variables.
Inline instructor notes can help inform instructors of timing challenges associated with the lessons. They appear in the “Instructor View”
Figures
Add infographic:
Callout
💡 Note: Some research combines both approaches. This is called Mixed Methods Research.