LECTURE 5

STRUCTURED VS UNSTRUCTURED
APPROACH

By: Iqra Ashraf Dar

Structured approach
 In the structured approach everything that forms
the research process – objectives, design, sample,
and the questions that you plan to ask of
respondents – is predetermined

 The unstructured approach, by contrast, allows

flexibility in all these aspects of the process
 The structured approach to enquiry is usually
classified as quantitative research and
unstructured as qualitative research
Which one to choose?
 The choice between quantitative and qualitative
approaches (or structured or unstructured) should
depend upon:
 Aim of your enquiry – exploration, confirmation or
quantification
 Use of the findings – policy formulation or process
understanding
Quantitative Research
 On the other hand, the study is classified as
quantitative if you want to quantify the variation in a
phenomenon, situation, problem or issue; if
information is gathered using predominantly
quantitative variables; and if the analysis is geared to
ascertain the magnitude of the variation.
 Examples of quantitative aspects of a research study
are:
 How many people have a particular problem?
 How many people hold a particular attitude?
 Conti..
 The use of statistics is not an integral part of a
quantitative study. The main function of statistics is
to act as a test to confirm or contradict the
conclusions that you have drawn on the basis of
your understanding of analysed data

 Statistics, among other things, help you to quantify

the magnitude of an association or relationship
Cont..
 Data collection in quantitative research is usually
done with tools like questionnaires etc

 After data collection , data is analyzed and

interpreted through statistics by using specific
software
Qualitative research
 A study is classified as qualitative if the purpose of
the study is primarily to describe a situation,
phenomenon, problem or event; if the information
is gathered through the use of variables measured
on nominal or ordinal scales (qualitative
measurement scales) and if the analysis is done to
establish the variation in the situation,
phenomenon or problem without quantifying it
 The description of an observed situation, the
historical enumeration of events, an account of the
different opinions people have about an issue, and a
description of the living conditions of a community
are examples of qualitative research

 both qualitative and quantitative approaches have

their strengths and weaknesses, and advantages and
disadvantages, ‘neither one is markedly superior to
the other in all respects’ (Ackroyd &
Hughes,1992).
Cont.
 Qualitative Research is primarily
exploratory research.
 It is used to gain an understanding of underlying
reasons, opinions, and motivations.

 It provides insights into the problem or helps to

develop ideas.
Cont..
 In psychology, qualitative research has come to
be defined as research whose findings are not
arrived at by statistical or other quantitative
procedures. Qualitative research is often said to
be naturalistic.
Purpose of Qualitative Research
 Its goal is to understand behavior in a natural
setting
 understanding a phenomenon from the perspective
of the research participant
 understanding the meanings people give to their
experience
Thank You