Innovative Mixed Methods Approach Research Articles

Now they accept it, now they don’t: Acceptability judgements of nontypical multiword units in Russian as a native and a heritage language

Aims/objectives/research questions: Heritage speakers have been shown to use multiword units, which merge structural elements of both their languages, which do not conform to the combinability patterns of the monolingual variety. However, it is not clear to what extent heritage speakers actually have the knowledge of the corresponding monolingual sequences. The present study on Russian heritage speakers in Germany addresses the question of whether heritage speakers have receptive knowledge of monolingual multiword units that they do not command in production. Design/methodology/approach: The study followes a mixed methods design by combining corpus and experimental methodology. Data/analyses: First, language production data of heritage speakers from two corpora were analysed for nontypical multiword units with prepositional phrases. In the second step, these nontypical multiword units as well as their typical monolingual equivalents served as test items in an acceptability judgement task performed by 53 Russian-German heritage speakers and 56 Russian native speakers. Findings/conclusions: The results show that heritage and native speakers rate nontypical multiword units as less acceptable than their monolingual equivalents. However, the acceptability of typical and the unacceptability of nontypical expressions were more salient for native speakers, whereas heritage speakers in many cases tended to equally accept typical and nontypical items. Acceptability ratings varied according to test items in both groups, but there was no overlap between nontypical multiword units most acceptable to monolinguals and those most acceptable to heritage speakers. Originality: Our paper applies an innovative mixed method approach in investigating the receptive knowledge of monoloigual multiword units in heritage speakers. Additionally, it is one of the first studies looking at the reactions of native spekaers to novel multiword units produced by heritage speakers. Implications: The findings support the idea of a unified multilingual construction, suggesting that heritage speakers do have some receptive knowledge of monolingual multiword units but this knowledge differs from that of monolingual speakers.

Medicaid ACOs on MH care outcomes for Massachusetts children to be examined

A University of Massachusetts Amherst public health researcher has been awarded a five‐year, $2.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to examine the impact of Medicaid accountable care organizations (ACOs) on the quality and outcomes of behavioral/mental health care for children in Massachusetts, a news release stated. ACOs are the value‐based health care delivery model designed to reduce Medicare and Medicaid costs while improving coordination and quality of care. “Fundamental changes in health care are needed to address socioeconomic and racial/ethnic disparities in behavioral health care quality and outcomes for children in vulnerable populations,” the grant summary states. In the past decade, the prevalence of mental health disorders among children has climbed in Massachusetts, said lead investigator Sarah Goff, M.D., Ph.D., a practicing pediatrician and internist and associate professor/chair of health promotion and policy in the UMass Amherst School of Public Health and Health Sciences. The researchers will use an innovative mixed methods approach to investigate how the launching of 17 new Medicaid ACOs in Massachusetts in 2018 may have impacted mental health care for children. Findings from the study are expected to inform providers, payers and policymakers responsible for the care of vulnerable populations of children with mental health disorders.

How School Food Environments Influence Food Choices: Evidence from Citizen Science and Focus Groups

Abstract Background Adolescents, as lucrative targets of food producers, encounter high-choice school food environments that offer an excess of highly processed foods. However, there is limited data on the actual food supply inside and around Austrian schools, adolescents preferences, and how it affects their food choices. To bridge this gap, our study employs an innovative mixed-methods approach to explore adolescents’ food choices. Methods In Study 1, we conducted a citizen science study with students as volunteer scientists who categorized 953 food items from 144 food suppliers in and around their schools based on the Austrian food pyramid. Study 2 explored students’ food preferences in four focus groups with 25 students (11 male, 14 female) aged between 12 and 15, each conducted at a different school in Tyrol. We then correlated the results of individual preferences with the documented food supply. Results The results of Study 1 revealed that the food supply in the investigated schools was predominantly categorized as unhealthy. The students classified 46% of the items as ‘unhealthy,’ 32% as ‘intermediate,’ and only 22% as ‘healthy.’ In Study 2, we identified three influential factors in students’ food choices: 1) individual factors (such as taste and preferences), 2) social factors (such as interactions with peers), and 3) structural factors (such as physical environment and accessibility). Conclusions The study indicates that current school food environments are dominated by unhealthy products, which cater to unhealthy preferences among adolescents. To address this issue, policies should aim to create accessible and fun spaces where food supplies are presented in an attractive way. This includes providing areas where students can mingle and express their identities. Key messages • Attractive presentation of healthy foods in locations, which cater to the social needs of adolescent students, are key to foster and consolidate healthy food choices. • Improve accessibility and supply of healthy food choices in school food environments.

Assessing Electronic Health Record (EHR) Use during a Major EHR Transition: An Innovative Mixed Methods Approach

BackgroundElectronic health record (EHR) transitions are inherently disruptive to healthcare workers who must rapidly learn a new EHR and adapt to altered clinical workflows. Healthcare workers’ perceptions of EHR usability and their EHR use patterns following transitions are poorly understood. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is currently replacing its homegrown EHR with a commercial Cerner EHR, presenting a unique opportunity to examine EHR use trends and usability perceptions.ObjectiveTo assess EHR usability and uptake up to 1-year post-transition at the first VA EHR transition site using a novel longitudinal, mixed methods approach.DesignA concurrent mixed methods strategy using EHR use metrics and qualitative interview data.Participants141 clinicians with data from select EHR use metrics in Cerner Lights On Network®. Interviews with 25 healthcare workers in various clinical and administrative roles.ApproachWe assessed changes in total EHR time, documentation time, and order time per patient post-transition. Interview transcripts (n = 90) were coded and analyzed for content specific to EHR usability.Key ResultsTotal EHR time, documentation time, and order time all decreased precipitously within the first four months after go-live and demonstrated gradual improvements over 12 months. Interview participants expressed ongoing concerns with the EHR’s usability and functionality up to a year after go-live such as tasks taking longer than the old system and inefficiencies related to inadequate training and inherent features of the new system. These sentiments did not seem to reflect the observed improvements in EHR use metrics.ConclusionsThe integration of quantitative and qualitative data yielded a complex picture of EHR usability. Participants described persistent challenges with EHR usability 1 year after go-live contrasting with observed improvements in EHR use metrics. Combining findings across methods can provide a clearer, contextualized understanding of EHR adoption and use patterns during EHR transitions.

An innovative sequential mixed-methods approach to evaluating clinician acceptability during implementation of a standardized labor induction protocol

BackgroundImplementation outcomes, including acceptability, are of critical importance in both implementation research and practice. The gold standard measure of acceptability, Acceptability of Intervention Measure (AIM), skews positively with a limited range. In an ongoing hybrid effectiveness-implementation trial, we aimed to evaluate clinician acceptability of induction standardization. Here, we describe an innovative mixed-methods approach to maximize the interpretability of the AIM using a case study in maternal health.MethodsIn this explanatory sequential mixed methods study, we distributed the validated, 4-question AIM (total 4–20) to labor and delivery clinicians 6 months post-implementation at 2 sites (Site 1: 3/2021; Site 2: 6/2021). Respondents were grouped by total score into tertiles. The top (“High” Acceptability) and bottom (“Low” Acceptability) tertiles were invited to participate in a 30-minute semi-structured qualitative interview from 6/2021 to 10/2021 until thematic saturation was reached in each acceptability group. Participants were purposively sampled by role and site. Interviews were coded using an integrated approach, incorporating a priori attributes (Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research constructs) into a modified content analysis approach.Results104 clinicians completed the initial survey; 24 were interviewed (12 “High” and 12 “Low” Acceptability). Median total AIM scores were 20/20 IQR[20–20] in the High and 12.5/20 IQR[11–14] in the Low Acceptability groups. In both groups, clinicians were enthusiastic about efforts to standardize labor induction, believing it reduces inter-clinician variability and improves equitable, evidence-based care. In the Low Acceptability group, clinicians stated the need for flexibility and consideration for patient uniqueness. Rarely, clinicians felt labor induction could not or should not be standardized, citing discomfort with medicalization of labor, and concerns with “bulldozing” the patient with interventions. Suggested strategies for overcoming negative sentiment included comprehensive clinician education, as well as involving patients as active participants in the protocol prenatally.ConclusionsThis study utilized AIM in an innovative sequential mixed-methods approach to characterize clinician acceptability, which may be generalizable across implementation endeavors. By performing this work during a hybrid trial, implementation strategies to improve acceptability emerged (clinician education focusing on respect for flexibility; involving patients as active participants prenatally) for year 2, which will inform future multi-site work.

English and Dutch terms in Belgian Dutch soccer reporting: a mixed-methods approach

ABSTRACT English is no doubt the language of soccer. At the same time, many countries have over the past century introduced heritage alternatives for English soccer terminology. This paper aims to better understand the resulting choices that need to be made between sports terminology borrowed from English (e.g. keeper) and heritage alternatives (e.g. Dutch doelman). Two studies on Belgian Dutch mass media soccer reporting are presented. Study 1 charts the frequencies of English words and heritage alternatives for 20 soccer concepts in three genres for 38 journalists, revealing a highly variable presence of English. Study 2 reports on a thematic analysis of semi-structured expert interviews asking three journalists to reflect on the position of English terminology in (their own) reporting. Though study 1 reveals a dispersed pattern, the interviewees in study 2 report they do not see a need for more uniform practices or top-down language policies. At the same time, they believe that commentators, pundits, and journalists should adapt usage patterns. Overall, the results of our innovative mixed-methods approach allow us to better understand how the language of soccer has been and is being shaped through the interaction of the individual and the collective, the local and the global.

Customer experience with standard and premium Peer-To-Peer offerings: A mixed-method combining text analytics and qualitative analysis

Although the sharing economy is growing, there is limited research on customer experience (CEX) with different types of peer-to-peer (P2P) offerings. This study explored CEX with standard versus premium P2P offerings adopting an innovative mixed-method approach combining text analytics and thematic analysis. The study relies on a sample of 14.680 reviews of 468 listings on Airbnb. Findings reveal that premium P2P customers are more involved and likely to leave positive and longer reviews. CEX with standard P2P offerings focuses on the utilitarian aspects of the physical internal and external environment and human interaction, which, in the premium P2P context, foster aesthetic, symbolic, and emotional experiences. Overall, CEX with premium P2P is rich in symbolism, aesthetically pleasing, emotionally charged, and is likely to lead to customer delight. The study makes a methodological contribution by combining qualitative research and text analytics to study customer experience.

How can social media reshape power relations in urban planning?

How can social media reshape power relations in urban planning? This ERC Starting Grant project CoChina examines the impact of new media on power relations and public spheres in collaborative planning in China. It aims to have a new understanding of collaborative planning in China and a recon-ceptualisation of collaborative planning theory. The research employs an innovative mixed methods approach to re-search a wide range of case studies.

Developing home cleaning intervention through community engagement to reduce infections and antimicrobial resistance in Ghanaian homes

Globally Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) constitutes a health crisis, particularly in developing countries, where infectious disease are commonly fatal. There is clear evidence for microbial exposure and infection transmission within the home. Personal and environmental hygiene are the best ways of reducing household infections thus decreasing the need for antibiotics and consequently diminishing AMR. Despite this being an obvious step, research efforts to understand the home environment and its impact on AMR, cleaning and possible interventions on household cleaning are limited. We combined design and microbiology methods in an innovative mixed-method approach. A traditional survey design (n = 240), a design ethnography (n = 12), a co-design workshop and a pre-intervention microbiological dust sample analysis was undertaken to provide insights for codesign workshops in which new cleaning practices might be developed to minimise any AMR bacteria present in the household environments located in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Microbiological analysis of household dust showed that 36.6% of bacterial isolates detected were found to carry at least one resistance to the panel of antibiotics tested. Four scenarios were generated from an economic segmentation of the survey data. 50 ethnographic insights were ‘presented’ and descriptions of 12 bacteria species that showed resistance to one or more antibiotics (representing 176 bacterial isolates that showed resistance to one or more antibiotics found in the dust samples) were presented to the participants in a codesign workshop. An intervention, a new regime of cleaning practices agreed through the co-design workshop and practiced for thirty days, was made in (n = 7) households. The high prevalence of multidrug resistance observed in this study indicate the need for antibiotics surveillance program, not only in hospital settings but also in the household environment. There is, thus, an urgent need for targeting of interventions at the household level. Activating knowledge through community engagement in the research helps in increasing public perception and breaking down the scientist-public barrier.

How (Un-)Healthy are Austrian school food environments? Evidence from focus groups and citizen science

BackgroundAdolescents face high-choice school food environments that offer plenty of highly processed foods. Processed food producers target young people in their marketing, but there is limited data on the actual food supply inside and in the vicinity of Austrian schools and its impact on adolescent food choices. This study employs an innovative mixed-methods approach to explore adolescents' food choices. MethodsIn Study 1, we conducted a citizen science study, with students as volunteer scientists. The students examined the food supply in and around their schools according to the Austrian food pyramid and categorized 953 food items in 144 food suppliers using photographs and descriptions. In Study 2, we explored students' food preferences in focus groups. We conducted four focus groups at four different schools in Tyrol, with 25 students (11 male, 14 female) between the ages of 12 and 15. We then linked the findings on individual preferences with the documented supply. ResultsStudy 1 found that the food supply in the investigated schools was predominantly categorized as unhealthy. The students categorized 46% as “unhealthy”, 32% as “intermediate”, and only 22% as “healthy”. Study 2 identified three influential factors in students' food choices: 1) individual factors (such as taste and preferences), 2) social factors (such as mingling with peers), and 3) structural factors (such as physical environment and accessibility). ConclusionThe study shows that unhealthy products cater to unhealthy preferences among adolescents and dominate current school food environments. Policies need to address unhealthy school food environments to tackle this issue. Food supplies should be presented in an attractive ways, in fun places where students can mingle and express their identities.

Tailor-to-Target: Configuring Collaborative Shareholder Engagements on Climate Change

We study collaborative shareholder engagements on climate change issues. These engagements involve coalitions of investors pursuing behind-the-scenes dialogue to encourage target firms to adopt environmental sustainability practices. Drawing on a unique data set of 553 engagements coordinated by the United Nations–supported Principles for Responsible Investment—and an innovative mixed-methods approach integrating fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis with regression analysis and qualitative interviews—we investigate how four coalition composition levers (coalition size, shareholding stake, experience, local access) combine to enable or hinder engagement success. We find that successful coalitions use four configurations of coalition composition levers that are tailored to target firms’ financial capacity and environmental predispositions, that is, target firms’ receptivity. Unsuccessful configurations instead emphasize single levers at the expense of others. Drawing on qualitative interviews, we identify three mechanisms (synchronizing, contextualizing, overfocusing) that plausibly underly the identified configurations and provide investor coalitions with knowledge about target firms and their local contexts, thus enhancing communication and understanding between investor coalitions and target firms. Our study contributes an emerging “tailor-to-target” theory of collaborative shareholder engagement that extends the literature by showing the importance of designing investor coalitions for effective climate-related engagement and the value of conceiving coalitions as different configurations of the same levers that can fit a target firm’s receptivity. From a practical perspective, our study prompts investors to move beyond one-size-fits-all approaches to instead tailor their engagement strategies to target firms’ receptivity. This paper was accepted by Glen Dowell, Special Section of Management Science on Business and Climate Change. Funding: This work was supported by Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI Research Grant). Supplemental Material: The online appendix and data are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2023.4806 .

Designing a Co-creation System for the Development of Work-process-related Learning Material in Manufacturing

The increasing digitalization and automatization in the manufacturing industry as well as the need to learn on the job has reinforced the need for much more granular learning, which has not yet impacted the design of learning materials. In this regard, granular learning concepts require situated learning materials to support self-directed learning in the workplace in a targeted manner. Co-creation approaches offer promising opportunities to support employees in the independent design of such situated learning materials. Using an action-design research (ADR) approach, we derived requirements from co-creation concepts and practice by conducting focus group workshops in manufacturing and vocational training schools to develop design principles for a co-creation system that supports employees through the creation process of work-process-related learning material. Consequently, we formulate four design principles for the design of a collaborative learning and qualification system for manufacturing. Using an innovative mixed methods approach, we validate these design principles and design features to demonstrate the success of the developed artifact. The results provide insights regarding the design of a co-creation system to support learners in the co-creation of learning material with the consideration of cognitive load (CL). Our study contributes to research and practice by proposing novel design principles for supporting employees in peer creation processes. Furthermore, our study reveals how co-creation systems can support the collaborative development of learning materials in the work process.

Toward a better understanding of team decision processes: combining laboratory experiments with agent-based modeling

Despite advances in the field, we still know little about the socio-cognitive processes of team decisions, particularly their emergence from an individual level and transition to a team level. This study investigates team decision processes by using an agent-based model to conceptualize team decisions as an emergent property. It uses a mixed-method research design with a laboratory experiment providing qualitative and quantitative input for the model’s construction, as well as data for an output validation of the model. First, the laboratory experiment generates data about individual and team cognition structures. Then, the agent-based model is used as a computational testbed to contrast several processes of team decision making, representing potential, simplified mechanisms of how a team decision emerges. The increasing overall fit of the simulation and empirical results indicates that the modeled decision processes can at least partly explain the observed team decisions. Overall, we contribute to the current literature by presenting an innovative mixed-method approach that opens and exposes the black box of team decision processes beyond well-known static attributes.

Combining sociocultural discourse analysis and multimodal analysis to explore teachers' and pupils' meaning making

This paper explores a common educational dilemma, namely that of how to resource meaningful teaching and learning experiences, and the research challenge of how to represent the multimodal complexity of pedagogic intentions and instantiations. We share the sociocultural view of talk as a central tool in meaning making, aligned with attention to how teaching and learning conversations are mediated by communicative cues and interactions orchestrated across modes. We present extracts to exemplify the benefits of combining sociocultural discourse analysis (SCDA) and multimodal analysis, to explore classroom data at different levels of detail and temporal range. The context for the data collection was a series of lessons on the Great Fire of London with a Year 2 class (6–7 years). Lessons were part of a project using dance and interactive technologies to support understanding. We highlight the purposeful use of different analytic foci, enabled by SCDA and multimodal analysis, and explore what this can add to researchers' understanding of the contextualised nature of meaning making, building and weaving over time, in often unexpected ways. The original contribution of this paper is in offering an innovative mixed-methods approach to explore the complex detail, development and multimodal array of educational interaction. • Innovative mixed-methods approach to researching educational interactions • Combining sociocultural discourse analysis and multimodal analysis • Acknowledging the use of classroom talk and multimodality in meaning making • Exploring breadth and depth of classroom interactions toward meaningful learning

Habitat value of, and social attitudes towards, dead trees in Canberra’s urban forest

ABSTRACT Dead trees can occur throughout an urban forest and need to be managed. Standing dead trees that have been made ‘safe’ through regular inspection and the removal of unstable and decaying material are called ‘totem trees’ by Transport Canberra and City Services in Canberra, Australia. This paper is a pilot case study of totem trees in Canberra, employing an innovative mixed-methods approach, which includes silvicultural assessment, focal sampling, ad libitum sampling, in situ observation of evidence for fauna presence, and public questionnaires. It demonstrates that totem trees have significant habitat value because they provide perching, nesting, vocalisation, habitation and feeding sites for birds and arboreal mammals, as well as habitation and food for reptiles, insects and fungi. Totem trees with greater structural complexity appear to be preferred by fauna. The questionnaire findings, from park users and nearby park residents, indicate a generally positive attitude towards totem trees, with most participants perceiving them as valuable habitat for fauna and appreciating their aesthetic appeal. This highlights an important juxtaposition of management priorities: the need to balance structural complexity with providing safe trees. The findings of this study underscore the need to maintain and enlarge the totem tree population given their significant habitat value and social functions. Freestanding, structurally complex dead trees with numerous hollows, branches and bark should be prioritised for conservation. Additionally, the raising of public awareness is recommended to address any ongoing public uncertainty regarding the safety of totem trees.

A Novel Methodology for Supporting Integration between Refugees and Host Communities: NAUTIA (Need Assessment under a Technological Interdisciplinary Approach)

Abstract More than 26 million people are recognized globally as refugees and have been forced to flee from their home countries because of poverty, human rights violations, natural disasters, climate change, and other social and political conflicts. What is more, most host communities are usually poor and face social and economic crises. This is why supporting integration between refugees and host communities is imperative at the global humanitarian context. Thereby, this research presents the NAUTIA (Need Assessment under a Technological Interdisciplinary Approach) methodology, an innovative mixed-method approach designed by the Platform on Refugees of the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. The main objective of NAUTIA is to identify the basic needs of refugees and locals to improve their quality of life through interdisciplinary and inclusive intervention proposals based on technology. The methodology was applied in the permanent Shimelba Refugee Camp (Ethiopia), where energy, shelter, and food security solutions have resulted essential to improve the living conditions of both population groups. The results are useful for researchers, stakeholders, and practitioners from the humanitarian sector as they provide a more innovative and comprehensive way to support the unprecedented global human mobility there is nowadays.

Responding Effectively to Customer Feedback on Twitter: A Mixed Methods Study of Webcare Styles

AbstractSocial media offer an unprecedented opportunity for companies to interact more closely with customers and market their products and services. But social media also present reputational risks as negative word-of-mouth can spread more quickly and widely through these platforms than ever before. This study investigates how companies respond to customer complaints on Twitter. We propose an innovative mixed methods approach (i) to identify the key features that mark the styles used by a sample of companies in their replies to customers and (ii) to determine the most effective strategies for responding to complaints. Our results reveal that an affective style, expressed through devices such as stance markers, emphatics, and amplifiers, elicits the most positive response from complainants, regardless of the formality of the message. The study advances our understanding of the features and effects of corporate social media discourse. It also provides business communication practitioners with linguistically grounded insights that can inform the development of appropriate strategies for dealing with negative word-of-mouth online.

Promoting adoption of recycling by municipalities in developing countries: Increasing or redistributing existing resources?

It is usually assumed that income differences may affect recycling by shaping consumer demand. However, the recycling supply may depend on different variables such as area, inhabitants, municipal budget, financial regime, among others. All these factors translate into gaps regarding recycling achievements. In this paper, we study the problem of adoption recycling by municipalities from developing countries. In particular, we study the Santiago Metropolitan Area (Chile). Our research is based on qualitative interviews, quantitative data collection and mathematical modelling. We formulate an optimization model to analyse two policy options in municipal solid waste management (MSWM): increase or redistribution of existing resources. The obtained results show, first, that the concerns among key actors about MSWM can be translated into variables that are statistically significant in the quantitative models to predict probability of adopting recycling. Second, the analysed policy options have different impacts. The increase of the average probability for adoption by redistributing one percentage point of MSWM expenses, is similar to one-half percentage point increased in all municipalities. Third, neither redistribution nor overall resource increases would ensure adoption of recycling in the entire metropolitan area. Finally, we discuss the obtained results in light of qualitative interviews. The specific policy alternatives to implement resource increases are a landfill tax and rising council taxes: both seem politically unfeasible to actors from the MSWM sector. Using an innovative mixed-methods approach, we are able to illustrate both the importance of resource redistribution in the supply-side, and the institutional and political complexity of policy implementation.

Public Spaces as Knowledgescapes: Understanding the Relationship between the Built Environment and Creative Encounters at Dutch University Campuses and Science Parks.

The success of university campuses depends on the interrelations between creative encounters and the built environment, conceptualised here as spatial affordances for creativity. Such an interface plays a fundamental role in interactions for knowledge sharing and the exchange of ideas on campus. Due to campus public spaces generally being considered as the leftovers between buildings and classrooms, undermanaged, and overlooked, little is known about the extent to which this built environment enables or inhibits creative encounters in such spaces. The inner-city campuses and science parks (SPs) of Amsterdam and Utrecht, the case-studies of this research, differ in terms of their location relative to the city, their masterplan typologies and the arrangement of buildings. However, they are similar in terms of the aforementioned issues of public spaces. The novelty of this research is the attempt to overcome such issues using an innovative mixed-methods approach that tests the ‘spatial affordances for creativity’ with empirical data collection and analysis. This raises the importance of mapping, quantifying and analysing the spatial distribution of momentary perceptions, experiences, and feelings of people with methods such as volunteered geographic information (VGI). The results show that proximity between multiple urban functions and physical features, such as parks, cafés and urban seating are important when it comes to explaining the high frequency of creative encounters between people. Urban designers of campuses can use the applied method as a tool to plan and design attractive public spaces that provide creativity through the transfer of tacit knowledge, social well-being, positive momentary perceptions, sense of community, and a sense of place.

Habits of a Lifetime: Museum Visitation Amongst Older Australians

Recent studies have shown that cultural engagement, including museum attendance, is associated with improved health and wellbeing among older people. Understanding the correlates and reasons for attending museums and art galleries in later life is therefore an important area of research. In this paper, we employ an innovative mixed methods approach to understand museum attendance among older Australians (aged 60 and over). The quantitative component of our study found that (1) the prevalence of museum attendance is substantial, with one in three Australians aged over 60 attending a museum in 2014; (2) high income, holding assets and involvement in cultural activities in childhood were all strongly associated with attendance; (3) that demographic groups less likely to attend included those aged over 80, persons born in a non-English speaking country and those reporting poor or fair health, and (4) the most prevalent reason for non-attendance was ‘not interested’ or ‘no need’. The qualitative data from the two pilot studies confirmed the quantitative findings and provided further detail around reasons for attendance, potential strategies to encourage groups less likely to attend and how functional limitations are experienced in museum environments. These findings are important for museums and underscore the long-term and inclusive value of intergenerational programs, museum visitation as a social activity, the importance of physical comfort and ease and the potential of communication around the opportunities and benefits of museum visitation.