The role of mixed methods in conducting design-based research

Abstract

In this article, I address a specific methodological issue, namely the analysis of interaction that researchers undertaking design-based research (DBR) face when adopting a traditional approach to context. I first describe my methodological worldview in which the meaning of context is continuously negotiated by participants from sociocultural perspectives. I explain how pragmatic and dialectical stances strengthen the use of a mixed methods approach to capture learning in context. I argue for the combination of link and trajectory analyses to analyze interactions from learners’ perspectives. I illustrate how the combination of critical discourse analysis and social network analysis enables researchers to trace a trajectory of learning and discover what has changed over time. I discuss equity, reflexivity, and trustworthiness when conducting DBR. I conclude by presenting the limitations of this combined method while indicating future tasks and directions for using a mixed methods approach in DBR.