Qualitative research aims to understand the meaning of experiences through what type of questions?

Qualitative research is centered around exploring and understanding human experiences, behaviors, and the meanings people ascribe to them. Open-ended questions are essential in this context because they allow participants to express their thoughts, feelings, and perspectives in their own words, providing rich, detailed responses. This type of questioning facilitates an in-depth exploration of the subject matter, capturing the complexity and nuances of experiences that closed-ended or fixed-response questions would miss.

In contrast, other types of questions, such as closed-ended, multiple-choice, and yes/no questions, limit responses to predefined options, which restricts the richness of the data collected. These formats do not allow for the same level of personal expression or exploration of subjective experiences, which are central to qualitative research methodology. Therefore, open-ended questions are the most aligned with the goals of qualitative research, making this choice the correct one.