Mixed Methods in a Post-Deployment Study of U.S. Army National Guard Soldiers

Abstract

Mixed methods research combines quantitative and qualitative methodologies to achieve a product that is more than the sum of its parts. Here, the authors combine two different data reduction techniques—factor and content analyses of quantitative and qualitative data, respectively—to tap the dimensions of deployment-related variables among U.S. Army National Guard (ARNG) soldiers: stressors and supports, resilience, post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, and post-traumatic growth. Using these combined techniques, the authors explore the validity and substance of these variables and their measures so that employers and practitioners can better understand what deployment means for their employees and clients who are in the ARNG.