Imagine you are an educational researcher who wants to learn about the type of psychological atmosphere in which middle school students feel most comfortable and best able to concentrate on their studies. you plan to look at a wide variety of factors that might contribute to such an atmosphere—both physical factors (e. g., cleanliness and colorfulness of the school building) and social factors—(e. g., teacher-student relationships, general tolerance for diverse behaviors and beliefs). you realize that students might identify important factors that you yourself haven't even thought of. in this situation, your best choice would probably be:
a. a qualitative study
b. a quantitative study
c. an analytic study
d. a psychological study