What is quantitative data in market research?

• A. Data involving opinions
• B. Data that is qualitative
• C. Data collected from narrative interviews
• D. Numerical data that can be measured and analyzed statistically

Answer: (D)

Quantitative data refers to numbers that can be measured and analyzed statistically. In market research, this includes things like sales figures, counts, prices, ratings on a numeric scale, and demographic measures such as age or income. Because the data are numeric, they can be summarized with statistics and used to identify trends, test hypotheses, and generalize findings to a larger population with a proper sample. This contrasts with qualitative data, which captures non-numeric information like opinions, feelings, and experiences from open-ended questions or interviews. For example, a customer survey using a 1–5 satisfaction scale yields quantitative data suitable for calculating averages and correlations, while interviews produce qualitative data that describes why customers feel a certain way but isn’t easily measured with statistics.