Using Verbatim Quotes in Quantitative and Qualitative Reports
Introduction
This article will cover three main axes: what a verbatim quote is, on what basis a particular verbatim quote is chosen for citation, considerations researchers should bear in mind when picking verbatim quotes, and finally techniques for representing verbatim quotes within reports.
To Begin — What Is a Verbatim Quote?
A verbatim quote is the lifting of a specific text passage exactly as it is, with the aim of citing it to support a particular viewpoint, allude to something, or establish a hypothesis. The quotes we’re talking about here are specific to quantitative or qualitative research reports, so the source of the quote is — in most cases — statements from one of the target-sample participants in the study.
Reasons for Selecting Particular Verbatim Quotes
The process of selecting the most important quotes is a skill the researcher can master through practice writing reports — or through reading reports written by specialized researchers. I’ll list below some of the most important reasons for choosing a particular verbatim quote over another. Not everything said deserves to be quoted, and there’s a place for everything.
(1) The researcher selects a particular quote to support or prove a hypothesis or conclusion they arrived at while analyzing answers to one of the open-ended questions, then searches for the most suitable quote that can embody, within its words, the reasons for that conclusion or hypothesis.
(2) Citing a particular quote to clarify one of the research’s findings related to a specific behavior of the target sample — to make it clearer to the report’s reader. Mentioning the behavior in the respondent’s own language sometimes simplifies its complexity.
(3) Using the quote in the respondent’s language and accent shields the researcher from miscasting what they understood. When the researcher writes the statements in their own style, that can change the meaning, and using a word instead of another may lead to understanding something completely different from what the respondent meant.
Example: In documentary films, we often see live testimonies from those involved so that their voice reaches the viewer as-is.
Example 2: Some parties demand verbatim transcripts of audio interviews so they can dive into the respondents’ statements as-is, separately from the report and the researcher’s notes and conclusions, or they listen to these recordings. This is a very important observation for the researcher working in a country whose culture they don’t understand and whose accent they don’t follow — it will lead them to draw incorrect information.
(4) The quote is used to help the report’s reader more deeply understand and absorb the feelings of those targeted in the study. The researcher cannot speak from the perspective of the experience’s owner, so real experiences and stories the respondents lived through themselves are quoted. Some companies, when doing an in-depth emotion analysis, quote text from it for their future advertising campaigns.
Example: A study was conducted to understand reasons for employee attrition at a particular company, using a qualitative methodology — in-depth interviews with a random sample of current employees or those who recently resigned. In the report, we mentioned real stories — after stripping the personalities for privacy — to ensure understanding of the negative feelings that led, or are leading, to resignation.
(5) To engage the report’s reader more. With quotes in different colors from the report writer’s commentary, it’s said this attracts the reader more and lifts the boredom of qualitative reports overstuffed with text.
Considerations the Researcher Should Keep in Mind When Quoting
(1) The researcher must ensure their choice of verbatim quotes is objective and free of any bias or personal opinions. For example, in a discussion group one participant may be talkative and overly verbose. If this respondent is negative toward the idea being discussed, while the rest are neutral or positive, the researcher must not take quotes only from this negative respondent and then generalize them as a general trait of all participants.
(2) Following on from the previous point: the report writer should try to quote an equal quantity of quotes from all participating respondents, to ensure their choices represent the target sample. If the sample is large, the researcher can focus on particular quotes representing the general trait of the target sample’s responses.
(3) The researcher should try to pick the most eloquent and shortest quotes rather than long ones — following the saying “the best speech is what is brief and to the point” — and should ensure they don’t repeat quotes carrying the same meaning or delivering the same message.
(4) Verbatim quotes should not be overused, so the report doesn’t end up resembling a news bulletin. More experienced researchers agree that the longer the report writer’s experience, the more confidence they gain and the less they use verbatim quotes — except in cases of extreme necessity or when the client requests it.
(5) Whatever the style of representing the quote, the researcher should ensure the reader can easily distinguish between quotes and the writer’s personal conclusions. This is done either by changing font type, color, using specific symbols, or quotation marks — the important thing is that the report’s reader doesn’t confuse a researcher’s conclusion or commentary with a verbatim quote taken from one of the study’s participants.
(6) Classifying quotes: In research whose target sample includes different demographic categories or both genders, the quote should note the category from which it was taken. For example:
“Let’s assume that what’s between these quotation marks is a particular quote, followed by a specific code.” F, 19, B+
What do these symbols below the quote mean? They mean the quote was taken from a 19-year-old female belonging to socioeconomic class B+. This classification is used when wanting to inform the client that this category of respondents shares the opinion the quote represents.
(7) If you need to include respondents’ names or photos, you can write that in the report — but only after asking permission and obtaining their consent. Including them without permission violates international standards for marketing research and may conflict with local privacy laws.
Techniques for Representing Verbatim Quotes in Report Slides
By way of example, not limitation, here are some methods researchers use to present verbatim quotes in their reports:
- Within a separate box or speech bubble, away from the researcher’s (report writer’s) commentary.
- Between quotation marks ” ……. ”
- In italics or bold.
- Highlighted in a different color from the rest of the text.
- Setting the quotes as a separate sub-paragraph from the report writer’s commentary.
- As a full quote of a portion of the conversation the person interviewing the respondent had — given the importance of its content.
The latest trend in reports has been to create a visual report (similar to a documentary) called a Videoreport, consisting of several visual clips of respondents themselves speaking or answering a question. You can view a similar example at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CByJgfuVhbM
This summary relied heavily on the study below, with the addition of real-world examples from my prior experience in the world of marketing research. This document can be enriched significantly with your input and notes — so please don’t withhold them.
Source: Using Verbatim Quotations in Reporting Qualitative Social Research: Researchers’ Views | University of York — March 2006
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