Quantitative Methods in Public Health

Quantitative Research Methods

• Quantitative methods involve collecting and analyzing numerical data to answer scientific research questions and generalize results to a wider population.
• These methods are used to summarize, average, find patterns, make predictions, and test causal associations.
• Quantitative research allows us to quantify effect sizes, determine the strength of associations, rank priorities, and weigh the strength of evidence of effectiveness.

Quantitative Research Process

• The quantitative research process uses a deductive approach, extrapolating from a particular case to the general situation.
• Researchers need to choose specific techniques to collect, analyze, and interpret data according to the problem's nature or the research question under study.

Data Collection and Analysis

• National surveys are a common instrument for primary data collection and secondary analysis in quantitative research.
• Quantitative data can be collected from a representative sample of the whole population to study the scope and distribution of illnesses at a national level.
• Qualitative methods can be used to provide a better understanding of people's experiences and challenges when quantitative methods are insufficient.

Research Questions

• Examples of research questions that can be answered using quantitative methods include:
  • What proportion of people were born outside of a country?
  • How much rainfall was there in a region in 2020?
  • Does a strict lockdown prevent new cases of COVID-19?

Regression Analysis

• Simple regression estimates how much the dependent variable changes when the independent variable changes.
• Multiple regression estimates the changes in the dependent variable based on multiple explanatory variables or independent and confounding variables.

Data Interpretation

• Data interpretation requires going back to the initial research question, observing new insights, and drawing conclusions.
• These conclusions often have substantial policy implications or impacts on decision-making.

Conclusion

• Quantitative research methods are systematic ways of gathering and analyzing numerical data to understand reality.
• These methods are used to generalize results to a wider population, make predictions, infer causality, and prove hypotheses.