Field Of Mixed Methods Research Research Articles

A Qualitative Study Exploring the Process of Turning a Mixed Methods Doctoral Dissertation Into a Journal Article: Perspectives From Recent Doctorates in the United States

Despite guidelines on mixed methods writing practices, the process of turning a mixed methods dissertation into a peer-reviewed publication is unknown, which may hinder scientific advancements and the use of mixed methods research across disciplines. This qualitative study explored recent doctorates’ experiences across three dimensions (i.e., critical decisions about the process, challenges, and recommendations for scholars) through nine semi-structured interviews. We identified themes under each dimension, respectively: (a) considerations for authorship decisions, disentangling the publication process, and the role of support systems; (b) challenges preparing a manuscript for submission and challenges with the journal review process; and (c) the value of time for publication process. This study contributes to the field of mixed methods research by offering empirical evidence and insights.

Exploring the Potential for Cultural Humility in the Evolving Field of Mixed Methods Research

The field of mixed methods research embraces diversity and encourages researchers to combine different perspectives, approaches, and methods to achieve meaningful insights. Navigating such rich diversity can pose challenges that can benefit from ongoing, critical self-reflection. This article introduces the concept of cultural humility in the context of mixed methods research. We aim to enhance understanding of how cultural humility can foster awareness and encourage constructive critique of assumptions, policies, and practices in the field of mixed methods research. This article serves as a foundational resource for mixed methods researchers, practitioners, and scholars to embrace cultural humility in the field. We close with a set of prompts to spark critical self-reflection and dialogue within the field.

Pragmatic critical realism and Mixed methods in Inter-disciplinary Research—Management and Information systems

Mixed methods research traditionally follows one paradigm based on established typologies. However, this study deviates from conventional research paradigms by combining two paradigms in one study. Specifically, it employs a critical realist method to analyze data, complemented by a pragmatist approach. This combination allows for the exploration of various phenomena in multidisciplinary research, such as cyber risk management, which intersects with management and information systems. By delving into the causal mechanisms underlying observed social and organizational phenomena, the pragmatic critical realism (PCR) approach, in conjunction with mixed methods research (MMR), offers a valuable framework for understanding the study's findings. Importantly, PCR has not been widely discussed or adopted in a multidisciplinary context for examining mixed data and advancing theory using MMR. This approach can be applied to multidisciplinary research in different contexts, enabling a deeper understanding of research participants' perspectives, the observable events resulting from those perspectives, and their causal relationships. The study systematically reviews the literature on pragmatism and critical realism in the field of management and information system; compares and combines these two research paradigms to identify common ground and explore their potential for developing a new framework to address interdisciplinary research questions. As a result, a new multiparadigm conceptual model has been established that integrates pragmatism and critical realism, making an original contribution to the field of mixed methods research. The study suggests that academics and researchers in management and information systems should broaden their use of methodologies and embrace interdisciplinary thinking in order to advance theoretical debates within their discipline.

Combining Mixed Methods and Community-Based Participatory Research Approaches to Identify Neighborhood-Level Needs During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The intersection of mixed methods and community-based participatory research (MMCBPR) provides a promising approach to address health inequities. Drawing from strengths of mixed methods (which provides multiple channels for individuals to share experiences) and community-based participatory research methods (which center and empower marginalized communities in research), MMCBPR allows for the development of impactful and relevant research. This article contributes to the field of mixed methods research by illustrating a novel application of MMCBPR to a pilot research study aimed at understanding community resources and needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. We demonstrate feasibility for MMCBPR methods assessing multilevel structural and social determinants of health during times of social, political, and economic uncertainty and highlight challenges experienced in adopting this approach.

Juxtaposing Joint Displays with Mixed Methods Research Rationales: A Mixed Methods Research Systematic Methodological Review

Systematic integration of quantitative and qualitative research is a known challenge when conducting mixed methods research (MMR) and joint displays are one method to make the integration process more concrete. A systematic review of the published literature on joint displays and MMR rationales was conducted in order to juxtapose joint display typologies with corresponding MMR rationales. Data from the mixed methods research systemic methodological review (MMR-SMR) were summarized using descriptive statistics, and a codebook was used to look for patterns and to develop themes that were integrated with descriptive codes. There were 71 joint displays across 27 studies that met the inclusion criteria. The MMR-SMR provides a comprehensive, updated examination of joint displays in the methodological literature and includes several contributions to the field of mixed methods research. One finding suggests that joint displays have evolved beyond their original typologies and an updated typology is provided. The current MMR-SMR identified a novel data transformation joint display that presented the conversion of qualitative data into quantitative data in a tabular format. It is unique that combinations of joint displays are being used (e.g., a side-by-side joint display that incorporates a theoretical lens or a path diagram) and that multiple joint displays are being used in individual studies. Researchers are recommended to strongly consider using joint displays as a method of integration because it can provide a structure to think about integration and to report the results of integration, which can further enhance transparency of the mixed methods research integration process.

Integrating Transformative Considerations and Quantitative Results through a Participant Selection Joint Display in Explanatory Sequential Mixed Methods Studies.

Integrating philosophical or paradigmatic dimensions in mixed methods research studies facilitates the development of stronger meta-inferences. The transformative paradigm and the explanatory sequential mixed methods design share a focus on developing sampling criteria, but with different priorities. This article contributes to the field of mixed methods research by presenting a method of integrating transformative sampling considerations in explanatory sequential designs through a participant selection joint display. The approach presented addresses concerns regarding transparency of research decisions in mixed methods studies, while providing a method of centering the transformative paradigm in mixed methods integration procedures.

A discussion of some controversies in mixed methods research for emerging researchers

Mixed methods research has become an important approach to research worldwide. The combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods has made it possible for a deeper and broader understanding of multifaceted phenomena, thereby offering readers more confidence in research findings and conclusions. The use of mixed method designs became more established in the 1980s and early 1990s, but some controversies surrounding the approach remain. Nonetheless, experts in the field of mixed methods research have continued to work on the central premise that the use of qualitative and quantitative approaches, in combination, provides a better understanding of research problems than either approach alone. This concept paper discusses some of the known controversies around mixed methods with the aim of providing useful insights to emerging researchers interested in learning the methodology.

Mixed Methods Community-Engaged Evaluation: Integrating Interventionist and Action Research Frameworks to Understand a Community-Building Violence Prevention Program.

While mixed methods research can enhance studies of intervention outcomes and projects where research itself transforms communities through participatory approaches, methodologists need explicit examples. As the field of interpersonal violence prevention increasingly embraces community-level prevention strategies, it may benefit from research methods that mirror community-building prevention processes. A multiphase mixed methods study with sequential and convergent components assessed the feasibility, and impact of a prevention program to change social norms and increase collective efficacy in towns. Joint display analysis created a nuanced picture of the acceptability, feasibility, and impact of the program. This article contributes to the field of mixed methods research by bridging discussions of "interventionist" studies with models of community-based participatory mixed methods research into a combined community-engaged method.

Persuasion with Precision: Using Natural Language Processing to Improve Instrument Fidelity for Risk Communication Experimental Treatments.

Instrument fidelity in message testing research hinges upon how precisely messages operationalize treatment conditions. However, numerous message-testing studies have unmitigated threats to validity and reliability because no established procedures exist to guide construction of message treatments. Their construction typically occurs in a black box, resulting in suspect inferential conclusions about treatment effects. Because a mixed methods approach is needed to enhance instrument fidelity in message testing research, this article contributes to the field of mixed methods research by presenting an integrated multistage procedure for constructing precise message treatments using an exploratory sequential mixed methods design. This work harnesses the power of integration through crossover analysis to improve instrument fidelity in message testing research through the use of natural language processing.

Applying Core Quality Criteria of Mixed Methods Research to an Empirical Study

Quality criteria have been advanced for the mixed methods field, but the elements are often too numerous for new researchers, do not incorporate diverse perspectives (e.g., stakeholders and professional associations), and apply the criteria. This methodological article advances a shortlist of six criteria synthesized from diverse, recent sources. The six criteria are a rationale for mixed methods; quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods questions; separate quantitative and qualitative data; a mixed method design and a diagram; integration in a joint display; and meta-inferences. The shortlist, the diverse sources of information used in developing the list, and its application in an empirical study provide essential criteria for new scholars in the field of mixed methods research.

Combining timelining and storyboarding to create a novel method for INtervention DesIGn with stakehOlders: INDIGO

Design is a key part of the healthcare intervention development process, yet it is often viewed as unclear, unstructured, and challenging. INDIGO (“INtervention DesIGn with stakehOlders”) is a new mixed method that brings structure and creativity to the healthcare intervention design process and facilitates a holistic perspective of complex interventions. INDIGO combines and adapts timelining and storyboarding and enables users to create a visual representation of a complex intervention. It comprises card storyboard tokens representing intervention elements that can be moved around on a timeline chart. We discuss the background and development of INDIGO, including existing mixed methods approaches to intervention design. We then provide examples of the use of INDIGO in two empirical studies that informed the development of a brief mindfulness-based intervention, illustrating how INDIGO supported the generation of new insights. We go on to discuss the practicalities, benefits and challenges of INDIGO, including feedback from study participants. This article contributes to the field of mixed methods research by extending the scope and utility of timelining and storyboarding, and by clearly describing INDIGO so the method can be used by other researchers or intervention developers.

Retroductive Theorizing: A Contribution of Critical Realism to Mixed Methods Research

Mixed methods studies in social sciences are predominantly employed to explore broad, complex, and multifaceted issues and to evaluate policies and interventions. The integration of qualitative and quantitative methods in social sciences most often follows the Peircean pragmatic approach—abductive hypothesis formation followed by deductive and inductive testing/confirmation—with limited theorizing properties. This paper contributes to the field of mixed methods research in social sciences by explicating a two-way interaction process between mixed methods data and [social] theory in a pluralistic inferencing approach espoused by critical realism—retroductive theorizing. The paper further illustrates how through retroductive theorizing, critical realism offers a more epistemologically and ontologically grounded alternative for integrating qualitative and quantitative methods compared to pragmatism.

Using Mixed Methods to Explore Variations in Impact Within RCTs: The Case of Project COMPASS

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in education are common as the design allows for an unbiased estimate of the overall impact of a program. As more RCTs are completed, researchers are also noting that an overall average impact may mask substantial variation across sites or groups of individuals. Mixed methods can provide insight and help in unpacking some of the reasons for these variations in impact. This article contributes to the field of mixed methods research by integrating mixed methods into a recently developed conceptual framework for understanding variations in impact. We model the use of this approach within the context of an RCT for online courses that found differences in impact across courses.

Taking a critical stance towards mixed methods research: A cross-disciplinary qualitative secondary analysis of researchers' views.

Recent growth and institutionalization in the field of mixed methods research has provided fertile ground for a wide range of thoughtful criticism of how this research approach has been developed and conceptualized by some members of the mixed methods community. This criticism reflects the increasing maturity of the field as well as the different theoretical perspectives and methodological practices of researchers in different disciplines. While debates addressing these criticisms are likely to lead to valuable insights, no empirical studies have been carried out to date that have investigated researchers' critical views on the development and conceptualization of mixed methods research. This study examines the criticisms of the mixed methods field raised by a cross-national sample of researchers in education, nursing, psychology, and sociology. We carried out a secondary analysis of semi-structured interviews with 42 researchers and identified 11 different criticisms, which we classified in four domains: essence of mixed methods, philosophy, procedures, and politics. The criticisms related to the procedures domain were equally distributed among the four disciplines, while those related to the essence, philosophy and politics domains were more common among sociologists. Based on our findings, we argue that the divergence of views on foundational issues in this field reflects researchers' affiliation to different communities of practice, each having its own principles, values, and interests. We suggest that a greater awareness of this divergence of perspectives could help researchers establish effective collaboration and anticipate potential challenges when working with researchers having different methodological approaches.

Methodological Bricolage and COVID-19: An Illustration From Innovative, Novel, and Adaptive Environmental Behavior Change Research

This article explores innovative and novel research methods and adaptive approaches during the COVID-19 pandemic to examine visitor learning and proenvironmental behavior. We present a mixed methods study that used a methodological bricolage approach to field-based data collection. The pandemic limited our ability to carry out the original study design. Quickly pivoting, the study was adapted to an explanatory sequential design with a survey, an interpretive video, naturalistic observations, personal meaning maps, interviews and a new method: comprehension assessments. This resulted in data collection that maintained trustworthiness and rigor, while remaining flexible to changing protocols. This article contributes to the field of mixed methods research by demonstrating the application of methodological bricolage in visitor research during catastrophic social change.

A Vignette-Based Transformative Multiphase Mixed Methods Interventional Study Featuring Venn Diagram Joint Displays: Financial Education With Hong Kong Early Adolescent Ethnic Minority Students

Despite great interest in the transformative mixed methods, an example of using vignettes in a multiphase mixed methods interventional study has been lacking. This study investigates the social justice problem of poverty in the context of financial education with Hong Kong early adolescent ethnic minority students. The discussion contributes to the field of mixed methods research by demonstrating the use of a vignette-based methodology as a tool for integration, representation, and utilization of participant voices in a multiphase design. The use of joint displays in the form of Venn diagrams illustrates how interdisciplinary research findings that may reveal multiple aspects of noncohering phenomena can be interpreted through simultaneous visualization of integration and diffraction.

Fa’afaletui: A Pacific Research Framework

While typically North American and Anglo-European stances have dominated discussion on different paradigms advanced about mixed method research, recently there has been a call for examination of other cultural worldviews. This article contributes to the field of mixed methods research by presenting a worldview based on collective inquiry, whereby different perspectives are woven together to create new knowledge. Fa’afaletui, a Samoan research framework, literally means “‘ways of’ [fa’a] ‘weaving together’ [tui] deliberations of different groups or ‘houses’ [fale].” It is derived from the Pacific philosophy of connectiveness and a collective holistic approach. We give a case example of how this framework is directing our research.

Applying the Integration Dimensions of Quantitative and Qualitative Methods in Education Policy Research: Lessons Learned From Investigating Micro Policymaking in Norwegian Schools

Qualitative research methods have been predominantly used to understand the complex phenomenon of educational policy enactment at the school level. This article contributes to the field of mixed methods research by applying three dimensions of integration—rationale, study purpose, and research design—to the study of micro-policymaking in schools. By examining these three dimensions, this article contributes to the limited body of mixed-methods models in this field. The findings show that the mixed methods approach provides unique insights into education policy scholarship, thus broadening the understanding of the relations and purposes of accountability and control in education.

Strange Bedfellows: Exploring Methodological Intersections Between Realist Inquiry and Structural Equation Modeling

Realist inquiry, based on the philosophy of critical realism, focuses on exploring the underlying mechanisms that drive social phenomena. Structural equation modeling is a collection of quantitative analytical methods that take a theory-based, confirmatory approach to examining statistical relationships between measured (observable) and underlying (latent) variables. Despite originating from different scientific traditions, the apparent similarities between these two approaches hold promise for their combination in mixed methods research. This article contributes to the field of mixed methods research by exploring their potential synergies, how each approach could contribute to the other, and proposing a framework for their combinations in mixed methods research, which has implications in terms of the implied and explicit ontological and epistemological positionings of these two approaches.

Using a Narrative Approach to Analyze Longitudinal Mixed Methods Data

Despite growing interest in longitudinal mixed methods research designs, more strategies for analyzing and integrating these data are needed. This article contributes to the field of mixed methods research by presenting a novel narrative approach to data analysis in longitudinal studies. Our approach involves the transformation of longitudinal survey data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study into narrative case histories. We use qualitative interviews from participants in an embedded study to select survey variables for data transformation and to explain unexpected survey outcomes. Our analysis shows how multiple factors converge to enable or constrain fathers’ involvement with children in five different fathering trajectories, and how the narrative frames of some disadvantaged fathers may facilitate their sustained involvement.