Exploratory study

An exploratory study is done as for 'exploring' a new field. It is normally restricted to the use of descriptive statistics.

However, often research is carried out without any particular hypothesis to confirm set out in advance, and, as such, it falls under the 'exploratory' category, even when such research ends up using fully fledged inferential statistics.

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Confirmatory study: This type of study is used to 'test' research hypotheses.
Replicatory study: This type of study is used to 'replicate' the results of previous research.