What is primarily measured in quantitative sociology research?

Quantitative sociology research primarily focuses on collecting and analyzing numerical data to identify patterns, trends, and correlations within social behaviors, attitudes, and opinions. This approach allows researchers to quantify social phenomena, facilitating statistical analysis and enabling them to draw objective conclusions based on measurable evidence.

By employing methods such as surveys, experiments, and existing statistical data, researchers gather information that can be represented through graphs, charts, and statistical models. This approach is instrumental in testing hypotheses and validating theories through empirical evidence, making it a cornerstone of scientific methods in sociology.

While cultural meanings, qualitative opinions, and demographic characteristics can be explored in sociology, they typically fall under qualitative or mixed-methods research, which prioritizes descriptive and interpretative analysis over numerical measurement. In contrast, quantitative research is distinguished by its reliance on data that can be counted and subjected to statistical manipulation.