what is qualitative research

Qualitative research is a type of research that aims to gather and analyze non-numerical data in order to gain an understanding of individuals social reality, including understanding their attitudes, beliefs, and motivation. It involves collecting and analyzing non-numerical data such as text, video, or audio to understand concepts, opinions, or experiences. Qualitative research is often used to explore complex phenomena or to gain insight into peoples experiences and perspectives on a particular topic. It is particularly useful when researchers want to understand the meaning that people attach to their experiences or when they want to uncover the underlying reasons for peoples behavior. Qualitative methods include ethnography, grounded theory, discourse analysis, and interpretative phenomenological analysis. Qualitative research is commonly used in the humanities and social sciences, in subjects such as anthropology, sociology, education, health sciences, history, etc. . Qualitative research aims to produce rich and detailed descriptions of the phenomenon being studied, and to uncover new insights and meanings.