Listening lab

OUR PURPOSE

The Listening Lab at Purdue University exists to elevate the voices of students, faculty, and staff, recognizing that understanding success and overcoming challenges requires more than just quantitative data. We are driven by the belief that qualitative insights are essential for meaningful, strategic decision-making. Our purpose is to bridge the gap between institutional, business, or quantitative data and lived experiences, ensuring that the narratives of those who shape our community are integral to shaping its future.  

OUR GOALS

The Listening Lab at Purdue University is dedicated to driving ongoing innovation through qualitative excellence.  The Listening Lab’s goals include: 

  • To Explore – complex phenomena on campus through rigorous methodologies 
  • To Connect – individuals, gain deeper insight into their lived experiences 
  • To Innovate – by revolutionizing the analysis and dissemination of qualitative data 
  • To Support – Purdue leaders, clients, students, staff, faculty, and the public by providing evidence-based foundations for decision making 

OUR MISSION

The Listening Lab at Purdue University conducts rigorous qualitative research to support evidence-based decision-making and improve the lived experiences of students, staff, and faculty by transforming shared narratives into actionable insights. 

OUR VISION

The Listening Lab at Purdue University will lead the nation institutionalizing the role of qualitative data in decision-making, setting a precedent for its integration into strategic processes.  As the first in the USA to solidify this practice, we aim to revolutionize institutional research by advancing transformative qualitative methodologies and analytics.  By innovating the analysis of dense, narrative-rich data (using such technologies as learning language modeling (LLM) and artificial intelligence (AI)), we will empower researchers and decision-makers to extract actionable insights from thousands of stories, shaping a more informed future for all at Purdue University. Together, we work to support a wide range of campus clients through thoughtful, collaborative assessment practices.

Questions about the Listening Lab should be directed to idata@purdue.edu.