What are Quantitative Research Questions? Meaning, Types, Examples

Quantitative questions are closed questions that seek statistically measurable, targeted responses. The result will be numerical, and thus quantified. 

Here's what we will cover in this blog. Feel free to jump to any section you like!

• The Definition of Quantitative Questions
• Types of Quantitative Research Questions with Sample Survey Templates
• Quantitative Research Question Formats
• The Importance of Quantitative Questions

Off we go!

What are Quantitative Questions?

Quantitative questions require a definite answer and come with a set of pre-designed options. They are close-ended and can vary from rating scale questions to multiple-choice questions, or a combination of the lot.

You must have received those surveys that quickly ask you to rate a product. Or perhaps an NPS survey with a question about your likelihood of advocacy. 

I had made a purchase yesterday at a local store. Before I unloaded the goods to the boot of my car, Ping! I received a CSAT survey. It was a short one with just two quick questions:

• On a scale of 1-10, how satisfied are you with our services?
• Could you give us a rating if we made you smile? 

Sweet, huh? These are perfect examples of a quantitative question.

These questions help a researcher decode patterns and trends in sentiments, behaviors, or preferences over time. The changes can be tracked with numerical values, leading to precise decisions. 

A quantitative survey can have a combination of close-ended questions, descriptive questions, comparative questions, Percentage questions, range questions, and the like.

A perfect quantitative questionnaire will have a set of all these question types. Why don't you create one right away with SurveySparrow? it's pretty simple! You can use the drag-and-drop builder or even better, the AI builder to create one for you in seconds! 

So, why and where should we use quantitative questions? 

Types of Quantitative Research Questions with Examples

Quantitative research questions can come in various shapes and forms depending on the requirements. 

Descriptive Questions

Descriptive quantitative research questions ask for the respondent's opinions on a specific topic. These questions aim to get different perspectives of a large sample on the variables being measured. 

They can be used in exit polls or in research dealing with specific demographics. 

Note that the variable under question can be single or multiple. They start with "What is"... or "How much..." 

Example Questions: 

1. "How much time do teenagers spend on Social media platforms?"
   Here, the variable is the number of teenagers consuming social media and the target audience is teenagers. Now, say a researcher in Ohio wants to conduct a survey on how Google impacts people's movie-watching decisions in the US. 
2. "How many times do you search "What to watch" on Google?"
   The target audience here is the US citizens who own a TV or use any of the online streaming platforms. The variable here is "what to watch."
3. How often do teenagers engage with educational content on social media?
4. What is the average number of friends or followers teenagers have on social media?
5. How frequently do teenagers post updates or share content on social media?

Comparative Questions

Comparative quantitative research questions are used to identify the differences between two variables or different groups of variables. They examine an analogous relationship between groups based on a dependent variable.

• The dependent variable is the one upon which the comparison is done.
• The groups are the categories that are being compared. 

These questions are perfect when you run a market research survey or conduct competitor analysis. 

Typically a comparative question starts with "What is the difference between..."

Example Questions:

1.  "What is the average difference between social media usage in teenagers who are homeschooled and those who go to school?"
   Here, the dependent variable is social media usage, and the two groups are teenagers who go to school and those who are homeschooled.

Here's another one...

2. "To what degree does the perception of online banking differ in Gen-Z's and Millennials?"
   Here online banking is the dependent variable being studied, based on the perception of two groups- Gen-Z and Millenial.
3. How does the frequency of social media use compare between teenagers aged 13-15 and those aged 16-18?
4. how does parental supervision affect the social media usage of students? 

Relationship Based Questions

These quantitative research questions try to establish a relationship, trend, or pattern between variables. They are perfect when you have to understand the deeper contexts and when you are conducting experimental or explorative research. And they start with "What is the relationship between..."

However, when using relationship-based questions, you must eliminate any bias! Asking leading questions will only lead to inaccurate data. 

Example Questions: 

1. "Is there any connection between study time and exam scores of university students?"
   Here, the two variables being examples are the time a student spends studying and the results they get. Based on the patterns you observe, you can draw a positive, negative, or neutral correlation.
2. What is the relationship between screen time and the sleep schedule of students?
3. What is the relationship between parental supervision in social media and anxiety in teenagers? 

Further by asking questions about the study techniques used, you can find alternate conclusions as well.  

Now that you know about the different categories of questions it is important to choose the right question formats for quantitative research. 

Quantitative Research Question Formats

Different types of question formats can help you fetch accurate quantitative results. The magic lies in the way we mix and match them! Giving the respondents options to choose from is key to keeping them engaged. 

Here are the most common ones that you must include in a quantitative research questionnaire...

Multiple Choice Questions

Multiple-choice questions are best when you want your respondents to choose from a predefined set of options. Depending on your research requirements, these questions can be single-select, multi-select, dropdown, star-select, or text slider scale questions. 

Perfect For: Descriptive and Comparative Research

Let's take one of the above examples. When you want to study the social media consumption pattern among the teenagers, you can add a multiple choice question that asks for the most used platform on their smartphones. 

Or, you can ask- "How many hours per day do you typically spend on social media?"

This simplifies the data collection process and further helps in analysis. 

Likert Scale Questions

A Likert Scale question asks a respondent the degree to which they agree or disagree about a particular statement. The options vary from 

• Yes, I agree!
• I kind of agree
• I'm neutral
• I don't like the idea much
• I completely disagree!

You get a broad perspective on the topic as the responses are not restricted to binaries. 

Perfect For: Descriptive and Relationship-Based Research

Let's keep going with the previous example. after the multiple choice e question asking for the most used platform, 

"Social media has a negative impact on the cognitive capabilities of teenagers. What's your take on this statement?"

Here, by asking this descriptive quantitative question, you can quantify their opinion on the matter. 

You can also reveal correlations between the two variables to measure the relationship between academic stress and satisfaction with university services. 

Rating Scale Questions

Rating scales are perfect for quantifying subjective evaluations. Here, the participant is asked to rate a particular item or service on a 10-point or 5-point scale. 

Perfect For: Descriptive and Comparative Research

Now, if you want to assess the difference between the effectiveness of social media for maintaining friendships or homeschooled and school-going students...

On a scale of 1-10, how much would you rate the usefulness of (their most used platform) in keeping you close to your loved ones?

On a scale of 1 to 5, how would you rate your satisfaction with your social media experience?

Here, the data can be compared between the two groups, and see who is more satisfied with social media experience.

Yes or No Questions 

Yes or no questions give you a set of binary answers that can quantified easily. This helps in simplifying the data analysis process. 

Perfect For: Descriptive and Binary Comparative Research. 

If you are looking at the sleeping habits of teenagers using social media, ask questions like...

1. Do you sleep 10 hours a day?
2. Do you use social media daily before sleeping?
3. Have you ever felt that social media negatively impacts your academic performance?
4. Have you ever encountered cyberbullying on social media platforms?
5. Do you feel that your parents monitor your social media usage?

Through these questions the researcher can get direct answers about the social media habits, perceptions, and experiences of homeschooled versus traditionally schooled teenagers, facilitating a clearer understanding of the differences between these two groups.

Importance of Quantitative Questions 

Simply put, it is essential wherever you need quantifiable data. They are used when you need numerical data.

But why are they so vital for research? 

It is because they provide precision, comparability, generalizability,  predictability, and the ability to predict what is to happen! 

Let me take this a bit further. Nope, I wont take much of your time!

Precision

They provide clear and concise answers to the questions. For example, when you ask how many hours a student scrolled through social media the day before, they might say 4 hours or 1 hour. This adds to the reliability of the research. 

Comparability

Numbers can be easily compared to emotions and feelings. That's quite obvious and straightforward. You can compare the time homeschooled students spend on social media with that of those in traditional schools. 

Generalizability

The best part about working with numbers is the ability to generalize the results to a larger population. Having a representative sample helps you reason out and reach a conclusion much faster. 

Predictability

Quantifying data helps you with risk assessment. It males you think way ahead of time! You can predict future behaviors and trends to map out a pattern. If data shows that social media usage among teenagers has a direct effect on the academic performance of the students, researchers can take action to inform the authorities.

Wrap Up!

Quantitative questions are vital to research when you need objective answers. The best part? There won't be any personal bias creeping into the results!

And again, if you need to create quantitative questionnaires for your surveys, you know where to go! SurveySparrow is the way to go- Try it out today!