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Mixed Methods research

Mixed methods came into emergence during the 1990s as a process of combining quantitative and qualitative approaches at different stages within a single research study. Known as the third paradigm in research methodology after traditional quantitative and qualitative methods, mixed methods attempts to legitimate the use of multiple approaches in answering research questions. The use of mixed methods is particularly suitable for research in curriculum studies because it permits the exploration of complex instructional issues that do not lend themselves to numerical examination and interpretation. The use of mixed methods eschews the belief that researchers are constrained in their choices for approaching the study of phenomena, relegated to solely selecting either the quantitative or qualitative approach.

Qualitative methods rely primarily on the use of text to generate findings, whereas quantitative methods use numbers to conduct descriptive or inferential statistics. Just as qualitative and quantitative approaches have requirements for application, so does mixed methods. In mixed methods inquiry, methodological congruence must be maintained. As a result, all of the assumptions of applicable methods must be adhered to and the components of each method must be consistent. Thus, strategies cannot be applied, combined, and selected liberally. Researchers must identify the overt dominance of each in study. The continuum that describes the degree of mixture ranges from monomethod to fully mixed methods. The potential for mixing methods is large because for example, a researcher may locate an emergent design during a study dependent primarily on the information that emerges or on the conditions of the study. Rather than be limited by long-standing designs, the researcher has the opportunity to let the findings guide subsequent phases of the research study. In essence, the researcher is not restricted to selecting among a menu of preplanned designs; instead, the researcher can create a design that is likely to answer his or her research questions.

Types and Stages of Designs

Eight types of multimethod designs grounded in deductive and inductive theoretical approaches have been identified. Four designs, identified for the inductive theoretical approach, are described below.

  • QUAL + qual refers to the use of two qualitative methods used at the same time. One method, qualitative, is dominant and is the basis for the whole project.
  • QUAL + qual refers to the use of two qualitative methods that are used sequentially in which one method, qualitative, is dominant.
  • QUAL + quant refers to the use of a qualitative and quantitative method used simultaneously where qualitative methods are dominate.
  • QUAL + quant refers to the use of a qualitative and quantitative method used sequentially where qualitative methods are dominate.

Four designs have been identified for the inductive theoretical approach.

  • QUAN + quan refers to the use of two quantitative methods that are used at the same time. One method, quantitative, is dominant and is the basis for the whole project.
  • QUAN + quan refers to the use of two quantitative methods used sequentially in which one method, quantitative, is dominant.
  • QUAN + qual refers to the use of a quantitative and qualitative method used simultaneously where quantitative methods are dominate.
  • QUAN + qual refers to the use of a quantitative and qualitative method used sequentially where quantitative methods are dominate.

Researchers have also emphasized the importance of considering the stage of the research process during which the integration of quantitative and qualitative data occurs. There are four points in the process in which integration can take place within the study: (1) the research questions, (2) data collection, (3) data analysis, or (4) interpretation. Although integration typically occurs during data analysis or in the interpretation stages, it may occur at multiple stages. For example, survey data that is both quantitative and qualitative might be integrated in the analysis stage by transforming qualitative data into scores that can be compared to the quantitative scores.

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