Abstract
To consider the scope and quality of mixed methods research in nursing. Focused mapping review and synthesis (FMRS). Five purposively selected journals: International Journal of Nursing Studies, Journal of Nursing Scholarship, Journal of Advanced Nursing, Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, and Journal of Mixed Methods Research. In the target journals, titles and abstracts from papers published between 2015-2018 were searched for the words or derivative words 'mixed methods'. Additional keyword searches were undertaken using each journal's search tool. We included studies that investigated nursing and reported to use a mixed methods approach. Articles that met the inclusion criteria were read in full and information was extracted onto a predetermined pro forma. Findings across journals were then synthesized to illustrate the current state of mixed methods research in nursing. We located 34 articles that reported on mixed methods research, conducted across 18 countries. Articles differed significantly both within and across journals in terms of conformity to a mixed methods approach. We assessed the studies for the quality of their reporting as regard the use of mixed methods. Nineteen studies were rated as satisfactory or good, with 15 rated as poorly described. Primarily, a poor rating was due to the absence of stating an underpinning methodological approach to the study and/or limited detail of a crucial integration phase. Our FMRS revealed a paucity of published mixed methods research in the journals selected. When they are published, there are limitations in the detail given to the underpinning methodological approach and theoretical explanation.
Highlights
Mixed methods research (MMR) is a well-established research approach that integrates qualitative and quantitative methods to give a breadth and depth of understanding about the phenomenon of interest
Its use has intensified to the point where a scoping exercise, searching titles in CINAHL, showed that from January 2017–May 2018, 748 MMR studies were published in journals relevant to nursing, covering subjects as diverse as assessing students in practice (Burden, Topping, & O'Halloran, 2018) to managing deteriorating health in nursing homes (O'Neill, Dwyer, Reid-Searl, & Parkinson, 2018)
Given the professed value of MMR, we set out to explore the current state of MMR in nursing through a focused mapping review and synthesis (FMRS)
Summary
Mixed methods research (MMR) is a well-established research approach that integrates qualitative and quantitative methods to give a breadth and depth of understanding about the phenomenon of interest. MMR is said to combine the strengths of qualitative and quantitative research and to compensate for any limitations of the individual approaches (Pluye & Hong, 2014) thereby offering ‘multiple ways of seeing’ (Greene, 2007). Since the development of MMR in the 1980s, it has become an important research approach in the social sciences (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2017). According to Flemming (2007), the methodological divide of qualitative and quantitative research is more entrenched in the nursing discipline, reflecting the medical hegemony in healthcare research, where randomized controlled trials dominate. The strengths and limitations of the approach are brought to light
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
