Title: Descriptive Research Design | Definition, Methods and Examples
Headings: Descriptive research
Descriptive research
Table of contents
When to use a descriptive research design
Descriptive research methods
Surveys
Observations
Case studies
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Shona McCombes

Content: The research design should be carefully developed to ensure that the results are valid and reliable. Surveys
Survey research allows you to gather large volumes of data that can be analyzed for frequencies, averages and patterns. Common uses of surveys include: Describing the demographics of a country or region
Gauging public opinion on political and social topics
Evaluating satisfaction with a company’s products or an organization’s services
Observations
Observations allow you to gather data on behaviours and phenomena without having to rely on the honesty and accuracy of respondents. This method is often used by psychological, social and market researchers to understand how people act in real-life situations. Observation of physical entities and phenomena is also an important part of research in the natural sciences. Before you can develop testable hypotheses, models or theories, it’s necessary to observe and systematically describe the subject under investigation. Case studies
A case study can be used to describe the characteristics of a specific subject (such as a person, group, event or organization). Instead of gathering a large volume of data to identify patterns across time or location, case studies gather detailed data to identify the characteristics of a narrowly defined subject. Rather than aiming to describe generalizable facts, case studies often focus on unusual or interesting cases that challenge assumptions, add complexity, or reveal something new about a research problem.