When most people think about data, they think about numbers: spreadsheets, charts and graphs. It’s true that quantitative data involves counting and measuring things, and provides answers to questions of how many, how much and to what extent, as well as who is involved and when things happen.
But data isn’t only about these factors. Another kind of data can answer questions about why things have happened, how events developed and what might come next. This type of data is qualitative.
The two types of data are not mutually exclusive; on the contrary, they complement each other to determine not only what is currently happening, but why, and what might be possible in the future.